ProSapient co-founder Margo Polishchuk shortlisted for Private Business Awards 2026

Margo Polishchuk, co-founder of expert network ProSapient, has been shortlisted for Female Business Leader of the Year at the Private Business Awards 2026, an awards programme sponsored by BDO that recognises UK private and PE-backed businesses with turnover between GBP 10M and GBP 500M.

Winners will be announced at a gala at The Savoy in London on 10 September 2026. The programme drew over 700 nominations across 11 categories, according to the ProSapient announcement, with an independent judging panel picking finalists.

The recognition slots Polishchuk into a cohort of UK mid-market founders being tracked by BDO's private business franchise. Last year's inaugural winners, per the ProSapient statement, included Totalmobile, Flagstone Group and Cycle Pharma, a mix that spans field service software, cash deposit platforms and specialty pharma. ProSapient sits in a different bucket: the London-headquartered expert network competes with Guidepoint, GLG, AlphaSights and Third Bridge for buy-side and consulting research spend.

"We're proud to be shortlisted in the Private Business Awards. Building proSapient has been a journey of constant innovation, persistence, resilience and, above all, the commitment of an exceptional team that continues to raise the bar every day," Polishchuk said in the company statement. She added that the category's focus on future female leaders was a personal draw, and said she hoped ProSapient's trajectory would push more women to start and scale businesses.

Mark Sykes, Head of Consulting at BDO, framed the shortlist as evidence of resilience in the UK mid-market. "Despite economic uncertainty and a challenging business environment, this shortlist brings to life to the impressive leadership, performance and resilience across the private sector," Sykes said in the same announcement.

What the shortlist actually signals

UK founder-of-the-year categories are, in practice, a proxy for two things: revenue trajectory in a defined turnover band, and a founder who is publicly identified with the business. Polishchuk co-founded ProSapient in 2017 and remains one of its most visible executives. The Female Business Leader of the Year category places her against founders and CEOs from the wider GBP 10M to GBP 500M cohort, not against expert network peers specifically.

The expert network category itself has been consolidating. Bain-owned Guidepoint, IHS Markit-era backers behind AlphaSights, and PE-backed Third Bridge dominate the top tier. Mid-market players including ProSapient, Atheneum and Dialectica have built share by pricing below the majors and leaning into AI-assisted sourcing and transcript workflows. ProSapient publicly markets AI-moderated interviews, transcript delivery and a search product alongside its human moderator business.

The Private Business Awards gala is scheduled for Thursday, 10 September 2026, at The Savoy Hotel in London.