Inside the Strategy Room

If you’re not in the tech industry, developing your own software may seem like an adjacency too far. But it’s just one of the things you may need to do today to execute a successful digital transformation. In this episode, we’re joined by senior partners Rodney Zemmel and Kate Smaje who co-lead McKinsey Digital. We were also joined by Laura LaBerge, a senior expert in our Stamford office, who until recently was the director of capabilities in our Digital Strategy Practice. We recorded this episode with Rodney, Kate, and Laura in 2022. They discussed the findings from their research including why most organizations achieve less than one-third of the impact they expected from digital investments. We talked about what companies can learn from the best digital performers about how to beat the odds today. Mckinsey.com article: Three new mandates for capturing a digital transformation’s full value Join our LinkedIn community of more than 87,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy.  Explore more Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

We're joined by Patrick Lammers, chief operating officer for customer solutions, at E.ON, one of Europe’s leading energy providers. Patrick explains how he fosters growth during a historic, industrywide transition to renewable power.E.ON is a German multinational serving more than 50 million customers throughout Europe. Like every other major European utility, E.ON is contending with supply chain disruptions, a continental energy crisis, and the need to decarbonize without sacrificing growth. Lammers sat down with McKinsey’s Sascha Lehmann to explain his growth philosophy, which includes always being ready for growth with the right organizational framework; creating diverse teams full of new talent to encourage fresh thinking; and relentlessly looking for opportunities to automate key parts of the value chain.  We are sharing today’s episode as part of an ongoing collaboration with our Growth, Marketing, and Sales Practice on the topic of growth strategy.  It is also the first episode of the Practice's new podcast called C-Suite Growth Talks, which will feature conversations with leading executives about how they are successfully choosing growth, by aligning around a shared mindset, strategy, and capabilities.   Links:  Episode transcript C-Suite Growth Talks podcast Mckinsey.com article: 'Choosing to grow: The leader’s blueprint' Join our LinkedIn community of more than 87,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy. Explore more Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Ankur Agrawal joins Sean Brown to discuss how finance leaders can help promote talent development within their organizations. Ankur is a partner in our New York office and one of the leaders of our Healthcare Practice. In this episode, he talks with Sean about how CFOs have access to data, a cross-functional perspective, and an expanding role as value manager and strategy partner. They therefore have a critical role to play in ensuring that companies develop the skills, talent, mindsets, and behavior required for long-term success. Ankur and Sean also discuss the recent MIT Sloan CFO Summit and the emerging trends for CFOs to watch in 2023. We hope you enjoy this episode.  Connect with Ankur on LinkedIn.  Join our LinkedIn community of more than 87,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy.  Explore more Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Bill George joins us to share his insights on authentic leadership–the theme of the latest edition of his best-selling book True North: Emerging Leader Edition.  Bill is the former chairman and CEO of medical-device company Medtronic and the author of four best-selling books on leadership. He is currently an Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School, where he's taught leadership since 2004. Bill currently serves on the boards of Goldman Sachs and the Mayo Clinic, and he is a trustee of the World Economic Forum. Bill recently published a new edition of True North that focuses on emerging leaders. He joined us for an online event with Carolyn Dewar, a senior partner in our San Francisco office who co-leads our CEO Excellence practice and co-authored the New York Times bestseller, CEO Excellence.   Join our LinkedIn community of more than 87,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy.  Explore more Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.comSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian joins us Inside the Strategy Room for a wide-ranging conversation where he discusses how he has grown Google's cloud business, how he manages innovation, and how he thinks about talent management. Thomas also shares insights on sustainability and the future of artificial intelligence and machine learning. This episode is an excerpt of a conversation Thomas and Adrian Booth, a senior partner in our Silicon Valley office, had at a recent gathering of global business leaders.  Join our LinkedIn community of more than 87,000 members and follow us on Twitter at @McKStrategy.  Explore more Inside the Strategy Room episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Israel’s start-up ecosystem is already a powerhouse—how can the country continue to scale it up? This episode is the second on Israel’s vibrant start-up scene, and a continuation of McKinsey innovation leader Erik Roth's conversation with Avi Hasson and Chemi Peres.  Hasson leads a not-for-profit, Startup Nation Central, that promotes Israel’s start-up sector, while Peres leads a venture capital firm, Pitango, and a not-for-profit, The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation, that promotes peace and innovation which was started by Chemi’s father, Shimon Peres, the former prime minister of Israel. Follow The Committed Innovator podcast and read the transcript of today's episode.  Join our LinkedIn community of more than 86,000 members and follow us on Twitter @McKStrategy.  Explore Inside the Strategy Room podcast transcripts episode transcripts on McKinsey.comSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Despite its small domestic market, Israel has managed to build a vibrant start-up scene that competes with those of much larger countries. In this episode, two leaders of Israel’s innovation culture, Avi Hasson and Chemi Peres, talk with McKinsey’s innovation leader Erik Roth in this first in a series of episodes on innovation in Israel. Hasson leads a not-for-profit, Startup Nation Central, that promotes Israel’s start-up sector, while Peres leads a venture capital firm, Pitango, and a not-for-profit, The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation, that promotes peace and innovation which was started by Chemi’s father, Shimon Peres, the former prime minister of Israel. Follow The Committed Innovator podcast and read the transcript of today's episode.  Join our LinkedIn community of more than 86,000 members and follow us on Twitter @McKStrategy.  Explore Inside the Strategy Room podcast transcripts episode transcripts on McKinsey.comSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

The risk and ambiguity inherent in innovation can make employees shy away from it. Creating an innovation culture where risk-taking is embraced must start at the top. Most executives will agree that fear—of criticism, of uncertainty, of career consequences—can paralyze innovation. In this episode, three innovation experts discuss ways to create an environment of psychological safety that rewards creative initiative and destigmatizes failure. Laura Furstenthal, Alex Morris, and Erik Roth, all leaders in McKinsey’s innovation practice, are the co-authors of the recent article, Fear factor: overcoming human barriers to innovation. Join our LinkedIn community of more than 86,000 members.  Explore Inside the Strategy Room podcast transcripts episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

AI tools can help executives avoid biases in decisions, pull insights out of oceans of data, and make strategic choices more quickly. And that’s just the beginning. Can machines automate strategy development? The short answer is no. However, there are numerous aspects of strategists’ work where AI and advanced analytics tools can already bring enormous value. Yuval Atsmon is a senior partner who leads the new McKinsey Center for Strategy Innovation, which studies ways new technologies can augment the timeless principles of strategy. In this episode, he explains how artificial intelligence is already transforming strategy and what’s on the horizon.  Read Yuval's articles on strategic decision-making: Where, how much, and how: Answering the hardest questions of resource allocation  How nimble resource allocation can double your company’s value  Connect with Yuval on LinkedIn.Join our LinkedIn community of more than 86,000 members.  Explore Inside the Strategy Room podcast transcripts episode transcripts on McKinsey.com  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

One of the surest signs of a thriving enterprise is robust and consistent revenue growth. That has not been easy to accomplish over the past 15 years. Now, with a slowing global economy, rising inflation, and geopolitical uncertainty, growth may become more elusive still. To help business leaders buck these trends, our guests Chris Bradley and Rebecca Doherty conducted an in-depth study of the growth patterns and performance of the world’s 5,000 largest public companies over the past 15 years. Their findings suggest ten rules that should guide organizations seeking to outgrow and outearn their peers.  Chris is a senior partner based in our Sydney office and a director of the McKinsey Global Institute. Rebecca leads our work on growth and innovation and is based in the Bay Area. They joined Sean Brown to discuss how business leaders can unlock the growth code.  Read Chris and Rebecca's article on McKinsey.com Join our LinkedIn community of more than 86,000 members.  Explore Inside the Strategy Room podcast transcripts episode transcripts on McKinsey.com                                  Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information