Inside the Strategy Room

Agentic AI is fundamentally changing how a transformation office (TO) can operate, freeing up the team to be not just faster but better. Chase Covington and Tomer Slaney join us to discuss how deploying agentic tools can generate sharper performance insights, maintain a single source of truth, and drive the right conversations at the right cadence—while allowing a more dedicated focus on the...

Today’s disruption has created a critical ‘Strategy Moment’ for organizations navigating a fundamentally changing basis of competitive advantage. Carolyn Dewar , Marcus Jacob and Laura LaBerge join us to debunk four strategy myths and unpack how long-held assumptions are being rewritten to shape foundational strategic choices for a future-focused reality. They also discuss where...

As we enter the fourth quarter, we look to where M&A stands and how dealmakers can finish strong. We also explore how AI is rewriting the traditional M&A playbook: success no longer comes from scale alone, but from building intelligent platforms and capabilities that compound over time to drive growth. Benjamin Houssard , Kameron Kordestani , Alex Liu , and Tobias Lundberg walk through how...

As AI models become increasingly sophisticated, organizations and their leaders need to maintain awareness of the opportunities and challenges each new model can present. Specifically, the newest Frontier Lab LLMs are able to chain together and exploit vulnerabilities in even the most sophisticated organizations. Charlie Lewis and Marie-Claude Nadeau join us to discuss the threats posed by these m...

Episode description Executives have more data, more frameworks, and more advice than ever, and yet their confidence in their strategies keeps falling. Andy West , Tim Koller , and Whitney Zimmermann , authors of our forthcoming book Strategy and Value: The Four Foundations That Drive Long-Term Performance , join us to discuss how winning companies leverage the four foundations that drive long-term...

McKinsey research finds that companies executing transformations with rigor are much more likely to meet overall organizational transformation goals. Chris Hagedorn , Preeya Mody , and Michel Morenville join us to discuss what rigor really means in the context of transformation and how to embed it throughout the process, from setting the aspiration to mobilizing to delivering impact. Rel...

Real estate is moving from stabilization to selective acceleration, with value creation becoming more targeted, operational, and execution-led. As capital concentrates in select sectors and strategies, leaders need sharper asset selection, disciplined capital structures, and stronger AI-enabled capabilities. Ben Dimson , Tripp Norton , and Aditya Sanghvi  discuss how General Partners, Limited...

Private equity is navigating one of its most challenging value creation environments in years, and winning firms are using M&A integration as a competitive weapon. Brian Dinneen  and Matthew Maloney  join us to discuss three high-impact integration strategies that leading sponsors are using to overcome these headwinds, based on their recent article . Related insights How private equi...

The risk function’s fundamental purpose has not changed in light of AI. What has changed is the nature and pace of risks amplified by AI, as well as the tools available to manage them. Anke Raufuss , Björn Nilsson , and Laura Webanck  join us to discuss the role of the digital twin and how it is changing the future of risk management.   Related Insights Evolving model risk man...

As strategy rises to the top of executive agendas, many organizations are struggling to translate bold strategic choices into sustained performance. In this episode, the global coleaders of our Strategy and Corporate Finance Practice, Sébastien Lacroix and Andy West , along with Whitney Zimmerman , a distinguished expert in strategy, discuss why mobilization has become the critical differen...

In this bonus episode, McKinsey CFO practice leaders Kevin Carmody , Matt Maloney , and Christian Grube share their insights from the 2026 CFO Forum in London. Their conversation explores how the CFO role is evolving from financial steward to strategic value creator; why leading finance organizations are moving beyond incremental budgeting; how AI can provide the catalyst to fundamentally rewire f...

Private equity firms are under increasing pressure to create value in a tougher market, with longer hold times and evolving value creation theses. Leading funds are using re-underwriting as a repeatable discipline that supports better decisions across the hold period. Join AD Bhatia, Jason Phillips, Hassen Ahmed  and Manuel Fernandez Angulo as they unpack the what, when and who of re-underwri...

The traditional annual budget process is broken. It is rigid, backward-looking, and not operationally fit to keep up with today's fast-moving markets. Top-performing companies are outpacing peers by budgeting differently. Matthew Maloney , Karen McLoughlin, and Michele Tam join us to discuss their recent article on how top-performing companies are transforming the budget from a control mechanism t...

Infrastructure is at a pivotal inflection point: its definition is expanding beyond traditional assets to digital and interconnected systems, demanding a fundamental mindset shift by governments, investors, and operators to plan, fund, and maintain integrated infrastructure that supports future growth and resilience.  Alastair Green and Adrian Kwok discuss the latest findings from our 2026 Gl...

Competitive advantage is becoming much more fluid as market positions shift faster across industries, with advantages eroding and differentiation narrowing. Despite this increased volatility, companies often fail to actively monitor shifts in their competitive edge. Join Matt Banholzer  and Laura LaBerge  as they discuss their latest research  on the erosion of competitive advantage...

Long-term value creation is foundational to building strong companies and economies, yet many leaders struggle to ensure that well-conceived, well-executed strategies receive full recognition from investors. Senior Partner  Ryan Davies  and Associate Partner Jacob Marcus join us to discuss how to anticipate investor reactions, assess opportunities to outperform expectations, and embed an...

In today’s tougher exit environment, private equity firms are facing longer holding periods, valuation gaps, and increased pressure to return capital. Kai Vollhardt and Jelena Bauer  are joined by Christian Habrich and Frederyk Schroeder as they unpack their latest article on how to drive successful exits. They share strategies that top-performing firms use to improve exit out...

Discover how market leaders—Walmart, Builders FirstSource, Progressive, and JPMorgan Chase—achieved exceptional growth from 2019 to 2024, outperforming peers by an average of five percentage points in revenue and seven points in profitability. In this episode, Simon Jones , David Schiff , and Kate Siegel  discuss their new article  on the three critical characteristics that d...

Transformations often falter due to internal dynamics that divide organizations, such as misaligned incentives, siloed efforts, and risk aversion. CEOs are uniquely positioned to address these challenges by tackling the root causes of collective-action problems and uniting their organizations around bold aspirations. Join Meagan Hill, Mathew Lee, and Kurt Strovink as they explore the role of the C...

More than 55 percent of large spin-offs fail to deliver the expected value three years post-spin; this is true for both the parent and the new company. However, even in today’s complex macro environment, there is plenty of spin activity as companies look outside the portfolio in pursuit of more focused strategies, fit-for-purpose operating models, and optimized capital management. Join us as...

Today’s board members face growing demands on their time. A challenging macro environment and ever-evolving business risks are increasing meeting frequency and requiring faster decision-making. For executives considering a board role, the developmental opportunity may be clear — but what does the role really involve? In this episode, McKinsey senior partner emeritus and board director,...

Buy-side carve-outs can create significant value for acquiring companies, but they can also present complex challenges. In this episode, we’re joined by  Kameron Kordestani , Anna Mattson , and Rui Silva to discuss how leaders—particularly CFOs, integration managers, and CHROs—must balance financial structuring, operational planning, and people management to ensure a value-c...

Outperformance in private equity is no longer defined by leverage or multiple expansion; disciplined value creation will be the decisive factor in future investment success. In this episode, AD Bhatia , Robin Ligon , and Jason Phillips  are joined by CVC’s John Kelleher to discuss the key shifts in today’s PE environment and share five moves firms are making in response. The path...

For CEOs, the first 100 days often get the most attention. But the final chapter of a CEO’s tenure can be just as consequential. In this episode, senior partner Carolyn Dewar speaks with Charles Lowrey, former executive chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, about what it takes to finish strong and manage a successful leadership transition. Lowrey reflects on his unexpected path to the CE...

As millions of baby boomer business owners in the United States approach retirement, the country faces a major transition in business ownership. Over the next decade, millions of small and midsize businesses could be sold, transferred, or closed, with major implications for local economies, jobs, family wealth, and economic mobility. In this episode, we hear from partner Ken Yearwood and associate...