James McLean

As Calgary Managing Partner at PwC Canada, James McLean leads local partners and teams to help clients accelerate results and deliver sustained improvements for businesses across Calgary and Canada.

He works with business leaders on the decisions that matter most: how to grow, where to invest, how to improve performance, and, for many family-owned and privately held businesses, how to prepare the next generation to lead.

Alongside leading PwC Calgary, James continues his work in PwC's Consulting practice, helping clients locally and across Canada overcome challenges and transform their operations.

Over the past 20 years and across two continents, he has helped organizations navigate growth, transformation, and investment decisions across a range of industries. Along the way, he led PwC Canada's National Utilities practice through a period of significant change in the energy sector.

His perspective on those challenges was shaped early in his career. He was part of a team that turned around a struggling manufacturing plant. The team reduced waste, built trust, radically improved performance, and was recognized as the Best Factory in the UK.

That experience, and many others since, driving change at the front line continue to shape how he approaches every client challenge and keeps him grounded in the realities of running a business.

Outside of client work, James teaches operations and supply chain consulting at the University of Calgary's Haskayne School of Business.

He is also deeply committed to inclusion and diversity, particularly mental health and creating safe working environments. James speaks openly about living with bipolar disorder because he believes honest conversations are one of the most effective ways to reduce stigma.

Above all, he is a husband and father to four young men who keep life interesting, whether they're on a ski hill, golf course, or somewhere in between.

If you're building, growing, or navigating change in your business, please don’t hesitate to connect.