Inside the Strategy Room
Inside the Strategy Room
The world is moving faster, and as upheaval becomes the norm, vast business opportunities will be within the grasp of the extraordinary few. But it takes bold people and courageous approaches to seize those opportunities and create value. In each episode of our weekly podcast, we interview the world’s highest-performing CEOs, CFOs, innovators, and McKinsey experts and discuss how they build the …Social links:
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298. The CEO as a resilience leader
Building resilience is a critical skill for organizations today, yet our research shows that many leaders and organizations don’t spend enough time building their resilience to navigate current and emerging risks. In this episode, two authors of a recent article on the topic discuss how organizatio…
55:44
297. Boards in the age of AI
As artificial intelligence transforms how companies compete, many boards are grappling with how to provide effective oversight in this new era. Senior partners Aamer Baig, Celia Huber, and senior advisor Rebecca Schechter join host Sean Brown Inside the Strategy Room to discuss their recent article…
46:29
296. The power of rigor in transformation
Companies that execute transformations with rigor are much more likely to achieve their goals, generate higher total shareholder returns, and enjoy better organizational health. In this episode, Preeya Mody and Dominic Skerritt join host Sean Brown to share insights from their latest research on th…
47:34
295. AI, strategy, and the future of work: What business leaders need to know
While artificial intelligence is moving rapidly from experimentation to execution, many companies still struggle to capture real value from the technology. In this episode, we’re joined by Professor Jean-Paul Carvalho and Robin Nuttall to explore how CEOs can more effectively scale AI and to discus…
35:27
294. Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon on adapting to economic and technological change
What does today’s wave of AI and economic change really mean for markets, jobs, and leadership? In this episode, David Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, joins our North America Chair and senior partner, Eric Kutcher, to explain why he sees the current moment as more evolutionary than unp…
41:19
293. Private equity 2026 outlook: Clearer view, tougher terrain
After a long period of uncertainty, the fog has lifted, and while private equity rebounded in 2025, the clearer visibility has also revealed a more complex and demanding landscape. In this episode, the authors of our 2026 Global Private Markets Report unpack the structural shifts reshaping the ind…
54:02
292. 2026 M&A Trends: Navigating a rapidly rebounding market
Top dealmakers entered 2025 expecting to overcome continued challenges, but few anticipated how sharply trade and geopolitical pressures would intensify. In this episode, Jake Henry and Mieke Van Oostende, the global co-leaders of our M&A Practice, share key themes from our annual M&A report. They …
48:47
291. ‘Having a human bank is very important’: A conversation with Citi CEO Jane Fraser
Jane Fraser, Chair and CEO of Citi, talks with McKinsey Senior Partner and North America Managing Partner Eric Kutcher. After becoming CEO in March 2021, Jane launched a multi-year strategy to transform, simplify, and modernize the bank for the digital age – leveraging Citi’s unique global context …
42:48
290. Tim Koller reflects on three decades of Valuation at McKinsey
From its origins as an internal three-ring binder to its status as a global reference text, Valuation has shaped how business leaders think about value creation for more than 30 years. In this episode, co-author Tim Koller joins the co-leaders of our Strategy and Corporate Finance Practice, Andy W…
28:57
289. The CFO as growth leader: Levi’s Harmit Singh on transformation and the “Magic of the And.”
Levi Strauss & Co. Chief Finance and Growth Officer, Harmit Singh, joins us to share lessons from his 13-year journey transforming the iconic clothing company. Singh explains how Levi’s returned to growth, strengthened profitability, and shifted toward a direct-to-consumer model, while staying true…
36:40