In this latest episode in our Committed Innovator series Erik Roth speaks with Harley Finkelstein, an entrepreneur and innovator who is president of the multichannel commerce platform, Shopify.

Their conversation is essential listening for anyone interested in learning how to create and build a business that scales. Harley and Erik speak about what it means to be an entrepreneur, why starting a side business makes sense, Shopify's company culture, and how the t-shirt business Harley started in college led directly to him serving as the president of Shopify. 



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The Committed Innovator podcast
The transcript for this episode 
The Committed Innovator on McKinsey.com 

Join our LinkedIn community of more than 90,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy. 

Explore our collection of Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.com

In this latest episode in our Committed Innovator series <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/erik-roth">Erik Roth</a> speaks with <a href="https://ca.linkedin.com/in/harleyf">Harley Finkelstein</a>, an entrepreneur and innovator who is president of the multichannel commerce platform, <a href="https://www.shopify.com/">Shopify</a>.
Their conversation is essential listening for anyone interested in learning how to create and build a business that scales. Harley and Erik speak about what it means to be an entrepreneur, why starting a side business makes sense, Shopify's company culture, and how the t-shirt business Harley started in college led directly to him serving as the president of Shopify. 
Related insights 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-committed-innovator/id1595192279">The Committed Innovator podcast</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/the-committed-innovator-talking-with-shopifys-harley-finkelstein">The transcript for this episode </a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/inside-the-strategy-room-podcast/innovation">The Committed Innovator on McKinsey.com </a></li>
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Join our <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&amp;-corporate-finance/?viewAsMember=true">LinkedIn community</a> of more than 90,000 members and follow us on Twitter at <a href="https://twitter.com/McKStrategy">@McKStrategy</a>. 
Explore our collection of Inside the Strategy Room <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/itsr">episode transcripts on McKinsey.com</a>

We talk with McKinsey partners and corporate executives on the challenges they face creating lasting strategies in a fast-changing world. We also examine the different ways these executives approach these challenges and the new and innovative ways they think of creating a vision for their enterprises.

What does it take to survive in a world of constant change? More than ever, enterprises need to create strategies that can meet current needs but also adapt to future demand. A regular series of interviews with McKinsey partners and corporate executives.

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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 courage, clarity, conviction, and cohesion that allow their businesses to win by moving faster than the world around them. 

The world is moving faster, and as upheaval becomes the norm, vast business opportunities will be within the grasp of the extraordinary few. &nbsp;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&rsquo;s highest-performing CEOs, CFOs, innovators, and McKinsey experts and discuss how they build the courage, clarity, conviction, and cohesion that allow their businesses to win by moving faster than the world around them.&nbsp;

171. The Committed Innovator: How Shopify approaches innovation

In this episode, we explore how finance leaders can harness AI to drive performance and create value for the organization. Our guests—Kevin Carmody, Davide Grande, and Andrea Tricoli—share insights from their , highlighting how AI is reshaping finance functions, from strategic planning and cost management to risk mitigation and investor relations. Join us as we delve into real-world examples of AI in action and consider the evolving role of the CFO as a strategic partner in the C-Suite.   

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How finance teams are putting AI to work today

Gen AI: A guide for CFOs

Gen AI in corporate functions: Looking beyond efficiency gains

Spendscape by McKinsey: Next-level spend analytics software powered by AI

 

In this episode, we explore how finance leaders can harness AI to drive performance and create value for the organization. Our guests&mdash;<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/kevin-carmody">Kevin Carmody</a>, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/davide-grande">Davide Grande</a>, and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreatricoli/">Andrea Tricoli</a>&mdash;share insights from their <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/how-finance-teams-are-putting-ai-to-work-today?cid=cl4c-cml&amp;sid=CL4C"></a>, highlighting how AI is reshaping finance functions, from strategic planning and cost management to risk mitigation and investor relations. Join us as we delve into real-world examples of AI in action and consider the evolving role of the CFO as a strategic partner in the C-Suite. &nbsp;&nbsp;
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<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/how-finance-teams-are-putting-ai-to-work-today?cid=cl4c-cml&amp;sid=CL4C">How finance teams are putting AI to work today</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/gen-ai-a-guide-for-cfos">Gen AI: A guide for CFOs</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/gen-ai-in-corporate-functions-looking-beyond-efficiency-gains">Gen AI in corporate functions: Looking beyond efficiency gains</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/solutions/spend-analytics-software/overview">Spendscape by McKinsey: Next-level spend analytics software powered by AI</a>
&nbsp;

303. How finance leaders are driving value with AI

Private equity firms have long outperformed their peers—not just through financial engineering, but by building better businesses faster. In this episode, senior partner Sacha Ghai and partner Marla Capozzi discuss what leaders across sectors can learn from the highest-performing private equity CEOs. Drawing on their recent Harvard Business Review article, Sacha and Marla unpack the concept of CEO alpha: the value created when CEOs outperform as individual leaders, team builders, and operators. They explain why private equity’s edge has shifted from financial engineering to building stronger, more resilient businesses, and they share six practices that distinguish top-performing PE CEOs.  

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What Every Company Can Learn from Private Equity

CEO alpha: A new approach to generating private equity outperformance

CEO Excellence: The six mindsets that distinguish the best leaders from the rest

A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership

The Strategic CEO

Private equity firms have long outperformed their peers&mdash;not just through financial engineering, but by building better businesses faster. In this episode, senior partner <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/sacha-ghai">Sacha Ghai </a>and partner Marla Capozzi discuss what leaders across sectors can learn from the highest-performing private equity CEOs. Drawing on their recent <a href="https://hbr.org/2025/11/what-every-company-can-learn-from-private-equity">Harvard Business Review article</a>, Sacha and Marla unpack the concept of CEO alpha: the value created when CEOs outperform as individual leaders, team builders, and operators. They explain why private equity&rsquo;s edge has shifted from financial engineering to building stronger, more resilient businesses, and they share six practices that distinguish top-performing PE CEOs. &nbsp;
Related insights
<a href="https://hbr.org/2025/11/what-every-company-can-learn-from-private-equity">What Every Company Can Learn from Private Equity</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/private-capital/our-insights/ceo-alpha-a-new-approach-to-generating-private-equity-outperformance">CEO alpha: A new approach to generating private equity outperformance</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-on-books/ceo-excellence">CEO Excellence: The six mindsets that distinguish the best leaders from the rest</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-on-books/ceo-for-all-seasons">A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership</a>
<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-strategic-ceo-7236955032997216256/">The Strategic CEO</a>

302. What every CEO can learn from private equity 

Generative AI is reshaping the way investors evaluate opportunities and replacing much of the manual work involved in completing an outside-in diligence. Firms that adapt the fastest during this transition have the most to gain. To discuss how the deployment of gen AI in diligence can give organizations an investment edge and explore the shift from traditional diligence to AI-enabled, outside-in analysis we’re joined by David Pralong, a senior partner and the global leader of our Transformation Practice,  William Bundy, a partner in our Washington D.C office, Chase Covington, a partner based in our New York office, and Laura Borton, a consultant also based in our New York office.

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From potential to performance: Using gen AI to conduct outside-in diligence

Creating Value in Portfolio Company Operations: A Practical Guide to Growing Cash Flow in Business

Wave: Your path to unprecedented performance

McKinsey insights on transformation

McKinsey insights on Strategy and Corporate Finance

McKinsey Transformation on LinkedIn

McKinsey Strategy and Corporate Finance on LinkedIn

Generative AI is reshaping the way investors evaluate opportunities and replacing much of the manual work involved in completing an outside-in diligence. Firms that adapt the fastest during this transition have the most to gain. To discuss how the deployment of gen AI in diligence can give organizations an investment edge and explore the shift from traditional diligence to AI-enabled, outside-in analysis we&rsquo;re joined by <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/david-pralong">David Pralong</a>, a senior partner and the global leader of our Transformation Practice,&nbsp; William Bundy, a partner in our Washington D.C office, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/chase-covington">Chase Covington</a>, a partner based in our New York office, and Laura Borton, a consultant also based in our New York office.
Related Insights 
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/transformation/our-insights/from-potential-to-performance-using-gen-ai-to-conduct-outside-in-diligence">From potential to performance: Using gen AI to conduct outside-in diligence</a>
<a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/creating-value-in-portfolio-company-operations-william-bundy/1143981002#:~:text=%22Creating%20Value%20in%20Portfolio%20Company%20Operations%22%20is%20an%20essential%20toolkit,poised%20to%20make%20their%20mark">Creating Value in Portfolio Company Operations: A Practical Guide to Growing Cash Flow in Business</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/transformation/how-we-help-clients/wave/overview">Wave: Your path to unprecedented performance</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/transformation/our-insights">McKinsey insights on transformation</a>
<a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights">McKinsey insights on Strategy and Corporate Finance</a>
<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-transformation/posts/?feedView=all">McKinsey Transformation on LinkedIn</a>
<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-corporate-finance">McKinsey Strategy and Corporate Finance on LinkedIn</a>

171. The Committed Innovator: How Shopify approaches innovation

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