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 di...
Despite persistent uncertainty in global markets, 2024 was the year that private equity began to emerge from a multi-year fog, with a rebound in dealmaking and distributions. Our Global Private Markets Report for 2025 revealed an industry that is more resilient, more innovative, and perhaps stronger than before. To discuss the nuances of that report we are joined by two of the report’s authors, Alex Edlich and Christopher Croke. Alex is a senior partner in our New York office where he helps private equity and financial services clients achieve superior performance, by driving innovation with new technology. He is a senior leader in our Financial Services, Private Capital, and Digital Practices. Christopher Croke is a partner in our London office, where he is a leader in our Private Capital Practice. He advises private equity firms on their investments and strategy and helps the companies they own with their strategy and value creation. Related insights Global Private Markets Report 2025: Private equity emerging from the fog Insights on Private Capital Deal Volume Podcast CEO alpha: A new approach to generating private equity outperformance Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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240. Improving strategy with AI
A key challenge to developing corporate strategy is moving quickly enough with the right insights to gain and maintain a competitive edge. Generative AI can help with this, as our guests this week describe.In this episode, we talk with three strategy experts about their research into using gen AI to help develop corporate strategy and the successes and challenges they encountered. Bruce Delteil is the managing partner of our Vietnam office and leads our Strategy Practice in Asia. He serves clients on all aspects of strategy development, including scenario planning, visioning, war games, and the impact of gen AI. Antoine Montard is our Strategy Practice director of client capabilities based in Lisbon. He leads our Strategy, Research, and Insight Center and helps develop novel approaches for strategy, builds capabilities of teams and clients, and serves as a strategy expert on client projects. Andrea Tricoli is an associate partner in our Strategy and Corporate Finance Practice based in London. He leads our initiative to apply generative AI to our Strategy Method. He serves organizations on how to use analytics and AI to drive better decision-making, especially across the finance and strategy functions. Related Insights How AI is transforming strategy development Gen AI: Opportunities in M&A Four critical strategies for sustainable gen AI adoption Strategy Beyond the Hockey Stick Why strategists should embrace imperfection The art of 21st-century leadership: From succession planning to building a leadership factory Achieving growth: Putting leadership mindsets and behaviors into action Six strategies for growth outperformance McKinsey Strategy & Corporate Finance on LinkedInSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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239. CEO perspectives: Jim Fitterling, Chair and CEO of Dow Inc.
Innovation and transformation become critical imperatives for many organizations, especially as they grow larger and mature. The complex merger and series of spin-offs that Dow Inc. underwent with E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company between 2017 and 2018 is among the more dramatic of such reinventions. The move to create a materials science company (Dow), an agricultural business (Corteva), and an industrial company (Dupont), remains a much-studied growth strategy case. In this episode, Dow Inc. Chair and CEO Jim Fitterling talks with McKinsey Senior Partner and Global Energy and Materials Practice leader John Warner about why the “merge-spin” made sense then and now, and about leading a global company with compassion in a rapidly changing world. Related insights How Dow reinvented itself Getting fit for growth: The leadership mindsets and behaviors that matter The Committed Innovator: A conversation with Neal Gutterson of Corteva The making of a megadeal: Howard Ungerleider on the merger of Dow and DuPont Top M&A trends in 2024: Blueprint for success in the next wave of deals How one approach to M&A is more likely to create value than all othersSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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238. How leading CEOs excel at stakeholder engagement
The best leaders are masterful communicators. They advance the aspirations of their companies with compelling, singular narratives that inspire a wide range of internal and external stakeholders. In this episode, we’re joined by three CEO and stakeholder relations experts who share their research into how CEOs can foster deeper dialogues and more meaningful connections with their wide range of stakeholders. Blair Epstein is a partner in our Bay Area office and a leader in our CEO Excellence Practice. Julia McClatchy is a partner in our Philadelphia office and a leader in our Growth, Marketing, and Sales Practice, and Eric Sherman is an expert based in our New York office who co-leads our CEO communications work. Related Insights How the best CEOs build lasting stakeholder relationships The CEO’s essential checklist: Questions every chief executive should be able to answer CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinquish the Best Leaders from the Rest The Journey of Leadership: How CEOs Learn to Lead From the Inside OutSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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237. Adapting on the go: How Judy Marks leads Otis Worldwide Corporation through all manner of change
Judy Marks is one of the few dozen women who lead Fortune 500 companies. She joined Connecticut-based Otis Elevator in 2017 as President, and was appointed CEO in 2019. After leading the company’s 2020 spinoff to become an independent publicly traded company, she was appointed Chair as well. Additionally, Judy serves on the board of Caterpillar. In this episode McKinsey Senior Partner and North America Chair Eric Kutcher talks with Judy about how she thinks about geopolitical shifts, technological change, and leading 71,000 employees in more than 200 countries and territories around the globe. Related insights The art of 21st-century leadership: From succession planning to building a leadership factory A business of its times: Haier’s self-evolving organization Author Talks: IBM’s Ginni Rometty on leading with ‘good power’ Getting fit for growth: The leadership mindsets and behaviors that matter Opening doors for women leaders: An interview with Caroline Feeney CEO PerspectivesSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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.
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