270. Mastering the cycles of CEO leadership: Stepping up and sending it forward
In the high-stakes world of corporate leadership, becoming a Fortune 500 CEO is an Everest-like ascent, with only the savviest succeeding across every stage of the journey. Carolyn Dewar, Vik Malhotra, and Kurt Strovink, authors of the upcoming book A CEO For All Seasons, join Sean to share insights from top-performing CEOs on navigating the first and fourth stages of CEO leadership – preparing for the role and fortifying a legacy, in the first of two episodes based on the new book. Carolyn Dewar, a coauthor of the New York Times bestselling CEO Excellence, is a senior partner at McKinsey and founded and co-leads the firm’s global CEO excellence client service line. She is a frequent keynote speaker on leadership and transformation. Vikram (Vik) Malhotra, a coauthor of CEO Excellence, is a senior partner at McKinsey where he has worked since 1986. He has served on McKinsey’s Board of Directors and as McKinsey’s Managing Partner of the Americas. Kurt Strovink is a senior partner at McKinsey and a member of the firm’s Board of Directors. He also leads McKinsey’s global CEO services practice and coauthored the national bestseller The Journey of Leadership: How CEOs Lead from the Inside Out. Related insights A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership Sending it forward: Successfully transitioning out of the CEO role Staying ahead: How the best CEOs continually improve performance Stepping up: Becoming a high-potential CEO candidate Starting strong: Making your CEO transition a catalyst for renewal The inner game of women CEOs The CEO’s essential checklist: Questions every chief executive should be able to answer Leadership lessons from the world’s best CEOs Serving a greater purpose: CEO Excellence revisited Building leaders from the ground up The art of 21st-century leadership: From succession planning to building a leadership factory CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets that Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest McKinsey Insights on Strategy & Corporate Finance McKinsey Strategy & Corporate Finance on LinkedIn 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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269. Strategy under geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty
The current climate of geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty can complicate the strategy process and can make the idea of waiting for calmer times look attractive. But as our guests today point out, waiting out the storm is not an option. Instead, organizations need to make bold strategic moves rooted in a thorough understanding of how they create value and the market conditions they face. In this episode, Sean is joined by Matt Watters, who is a leader in our Geopolitics, Government, and Strategy and Corporate Finance Practices and a partner in our New Jersey office. Matt’s work focuses on growth and innovation in industries with evolving global dynamics, including defense, space, semiconductors, high tech, and cybersecurity. Ezra Greenberg also joins the podcast and is a partner in our Connecticut office, where he advises executives and investors across multiple sectors on how macro forces and global trends impact critical strategy and investment decisions under uncertainty. Related insights In a moment of tariffs, can the world find balance and trust to thrive? How American business can prosper in the new geopolitical era Restricted: How export controls are reshaping markets Tariffs on the move? A guide for CEOs for 2025 and beyond A proactive approach to navigating geopolitics is essential to thrive Strategy beyond the hockey stick: People, probabilities, and big moves beat the odds Building geopolitical resilience: A conversation with Michèle Flournoy Taking a proactive approach to geopolitics McKinsey Insights on Strategy & Corporate Finance 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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268. Accounting for carbon: SAP’s Dominik Asam on the CFO’s role
Beyond reporting requirements and transparency imperatives, there’s a huge financial incentive to manage your company’s sustainability activities with data-driven business decision-making. To do so, efforts must be anchored in a data strategy that merges the financial and the ESG analysis. In this episode, Peter Spiller, a partner based in our Frankfurt office who co-leads our efforts in environmentally sustainable operations, speaks with Dominik Asam, Member of the Executive Board and CFO at enterprise planning software giant SAP. Dominik talks about his role in helping steer the company and their customers towards decarbonization, and how to balance the financial ledger with the sustainability ‘Green Ledger’ in a future-ready way that centers on driving real progress while protecting the bottom line. Related insightsManaging carbon: A new role for the CFO Toward the long term: CFO perspectives on the future of finance Reaching net zero–what will it take? McKinsey Insights on Strategy & Corporate Finance 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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267. Cybersecurity for CFOs: Defending against an accelerating threat
In today’s fast-evolving cybersecurity landscape, organizations face bigger and bolder threats that have wide-reaching implications − from financial and customer data breaches, to third-party infiltration and disruption far down the supply chain. Hacking has become an organized business, and AI and quantum technologies are as much a part of the threat as they are the solution. Charlie Lewis leads our North American and European cyber practices and is a partner in our Connecticut office. He supports clients on strategic cyber transformations. In this episode, Charlie speaks with Sean Brown about the critical role of CFOs in their organization’s cyber operations, the core foundations of cybersecurity, and the importance of organizations collaborating on improving security in a world of crime that has no borders. Related insights Resilience Pulse Check: Harnessing Collaboration to Navigate a Volatile WorldRepelling the cyberattackers (book excerpt) McKinsey Insights on Strategy & Corporate Finance 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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266. Transforming procurement to transform your business
Procurement can play a crucial role in driving a company's transformation, and leaders are now recognizing its potential to be a strategic enabler of change. In this episode of Inside the Strategy Room, we explore the key findings from our recent McKinsey.com article titled “Aim higher and move faster for successful procurement-led transformation”. Teresa George, a partner in our Chicago office, Raul Santos, a partner in our Madrid office, and Cole Wirpel, an associate partner in our Atlanta office, join Sean to share insights on how procurement can be a catalyst for company-wide transformation and the essential capabilities required to achieve this goal. Related insights Aim higher and move faster for successful procurement-led transformation How procurement leaders can bring metals and mining up to speed The digital spend control tower: Shift spending mindsets at scale Defining your ‘true north’: A road map to successful transformation McKinsey Insights on Transformation McKinsey Transformation on LinkedIn McKinsey Insights on Strategy & Corporate Finance 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
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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