If you have an ambition but no plan behind it, you’re probably not going to get the results you’re looking for. According to recent McKinsey research on the UK economy, the highest-performing UK companies have grounded their ambitions in a set of five conditions—looking at investors, incentives, sources of growth, partnerships, and people. And the results speak for themselves. On today’s episode of The McKinsey Podcast, senior partners Andrew Goodman and Tunde Olanrewaju speak with editorial director Roberta Fusaro about this research.

In our second segment, we look at the role of the CEO during an M&A transition with senior partner Mieke Van Oostende, from our CEO Insights series.

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It’s easy to fall in love with gen AI—but recent research suggests that realizing its value is harder than the hype. Rewired offers a playbook that can help.

In this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Rodney and fellow senior partners and co-authors Eric Lamarre and Kate Smaje join global editorial director Lucia Rahilly to talk about their book Rewired: The McKinsey Guide to Outcompeting in the Age of Digital and AI (Wiley, 2023)—which, a year and a gen AI disruption post publication, continues to offer leaders a play-by-play guide for outcompeting in a fast-changing era.

In the second segment, senior partner Wesley Walden talks about the time he went to a client meeting instead of his son’s first concert. The client’s reaction taught him an important lesson about open communication.

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Optimists, pessimists—who’s right? On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partner Humayun Tai, partner Mekala Krishnan and global editorial director Lucia Rahilly discuss new research that takes stock of the physical realities shaping our trajectory toward net zero, as well as what needs to happen to address these challenges—and hasten progress—successfully.

In our second segment, we hear about how to improve the CEO–board relationship with senior partner Celia Huber, from our CEO Insights series.

Theme music composed and performed by Joy Ngiaw

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The greatest CEOs are necessarily driven, decisive, and confident. But McKinsey senior partner Ramesh Srinivasan, senior partner emeritus Hans-Werner Kaas, and coauthors of their new book, The Journey of Leadership: How CEOs Can Learn to Lead from the Inside Out, say CEOs must weave in a layer of soft skills like self-awareness, humility, and compassion to inspire their workforce. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Srinivasan and Kaas speak with editorial director Roberta Fusaro about taking on the challenge of reinvention for the greater good of the company.

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Innovation and interest in the tech sector remain strong, despite market challenges and dips in investment. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey technology experts Lareina Yee and Roger Roberts share findings from the McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2024 report. They talk with editorial director Roberta Fusaro about where innovation is exploding, interest is deepening, and investment is flowing.

In our second segment, from our CEO Insights series, McKinsey partner Blair Epstein explores how successful CEOs organize their yearly communication plans, including how to manage comms through crisis.

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Bogged down, bothered, beleaguered: Many middle managers have it bad—and they can also have a bad rap. In Power to the Middle: Why Managers Hold the Keys to the Future of Work (Harvard Business Review Press, July 2023), McKinsey talent experts Bryan Hancock and Emily Field sought to correct that misperception, clarifying the vital role the best middle managers play in competitive outperformance.  In this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, originally aired on McKinsey Talks Talent, the authors revisit the book one year on, talking with global editorial director Lucia Rahilly about the downside of leadership programs, how to identify and understand different managerial styles, and how middle managers can use gen AI to support their teams more effectively—and update their image while they’re at it.

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While AI continues to influence the way we work in exciting new ways, it is crucial for organizations to apply guardrails to keep it safe. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partners Alexander Sukharevsky and Lareina Yee dig into McKinsey’s latest report, with editorial director Roberta Fusaro.

In our second segment, how do you muster the courage to speak up at work? Senior partner Sherina Ebrahim has two tips.

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Consumers say they want experiences over goods. As always, they are looking to get the most value for their dollar. Even when it comes to sustainably produced products and services, the price must be right. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partner Sajal Kohli speaks with editorial director Roberta Fusaro and outlines recent research on today’s consumer: who they are, what they’re buying, and where they purchase - plus the influence of the East.

In our second segment, from our CEO Insights series, McKinsey senior partner Joydeep Sengupta explains how the best CEOs use storytelling as a way to build energy, excitement, and inclusion in their organizations.

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Gen AI has rightly seized leaders’ attention. But is it also eclipsing lower-profile digital imperatives? On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partners Rodney Zemmel and Kate Smaje, with global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, talk about ideas leaders risk overlooking with gen AI in the spotlight, and how to ensure your digital initiatives—including gen AI—work in tandem to drive meaningful value.

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Labor productivity over the past 25 years has been a success story for some, a tale of stagnation for others. Investments and digital transformation can boost productivity for all economies. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, McKinsey senior partners Chris Bradley and Olivia White join editorial director Roberta Fusaro to discuss how best to measure productivity, what’s behind curbed productivity numbers, and what can be done to ramp up productivity rates again.

In our second segment, McKinsey senior partner Tania Holt explores the challenge that Europe faces in filling many open skilled labor jobs. The answer, says Holt, is hiring ethnic-minority employees. 

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