Let’s be frank: the core purpose of a company is profit. But many firms also want to make an impact, whether it’s helping their customers solve a problem, filling a gap in a market, or promoting broader social change. In more-ambitious cases, these dueling motivations can create a seeming paradox: Is it possible to build a business and a better world at the same time? The answer, according to Kellogg’s…
It’s a familiar experience for today’s online shoppers: seeing tailored offers and promoted items while you’re filling your cart. A search returns “sponsored” items at the top of the results, and embedded ads suggest additional purchases based on your browsing history. Picking out some pasta? Maybe you’d like to try this sauce. Typically order water filters every 6 months? Here’s a helpful reminder—and a recommended brand. These platforms, called retail…
Somewhere between a resignation email and the fifth "team-building" lunch of the quarter, the CEO sighs: "We have an HR problem." But what if the problem isn’t HR? What if the problem is you built a company like a tent—and expected it to stand like a tower? We’re in an era where HR has become the scapegoat for everything a business hasn’t structurally addressed: toxic managers, flaky culture, burnout epidemics,…
How can OEMs navigate frugal consumers and shifting macroeconomics in the increasingly competitive white goods sector? We examine our latest global state of the industry customer survey to learn more.
Sharpen your problem-solving skills the McKinsey way, with our weekly crossword. Each puzzle is created with the McKinsey audience in mind, and includes a subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) business theme for you to find. Answers that are directionally correct may not cut it if you’re looking for a quick win.
Securing rising living standards for all Americans requires action on the affordable housing shortage.
RegTech, or “regulatory technology,” refers to technologies that improve processes at financial-services organizations, particularly those related to risk and compliance.
State governments will need to balance a complex range of costs and a full view of the benefits as they weigh their strategies in data center development.
How can leaders learn from disruption and pursue purpose? Stanford lecturer in management Robert E. Siegel shares a systems leadership playbook and transforms classroom lessons into boardroom learnings.
Financial institutions are allocating significant resources to fighting financial crime, but they are generally making little progress. AI-based solutions may be an accelerator.
“All that work, and what did it get us?” Leaders feel frustrated when transformations fall short, but they can achieve their goals by avoiding six common pitfalls.
Nerves of steel or “same old, same old”? Either way, dealmakers stared down volatility, leading to higher global M&A activity in the first half of this year.
What does it take to lead a procurement transformation that delivers lasting impact in a world where the function is asked to do everything from managing volatility to generating sustainability and savings?
McKinsey’s Dr. Rupal Malani discusses changing policies and workforce shortages and how leaders are using M&A and AI to improve margins, operations, and care delivery.
Annual mobile-data growth rates are expected to fall from more than 50 percent in 2019 to as low as 10 percent in 2029. Will this lead to unprecedented competition or a new profitable era for telcos?
Sharpen your problem-solving skills the McKinsey way, with our weekly crossword. Each puzzle is created with the McKinsey audience in mind, and includes a subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) business theme for you to find. Answers that are directionally correct may not cut it if you’re looking for a quick win.
A seismic threefold increase in advanced-manufacturing investment could transform rural America by driving economic growth, creating high-quality jobs, and revitalizing communities.
Six strategies could catalyze growth and improve the well-being and economic mobility of rural residents across the country.
Five leading cybersecurity executives and public company directors discuss how chief information security officers and boards can work together to grow and protect their organizations.
Life sciences companies are spending big on new capital projects. Industry leaders who embrace capital excellence could secure a competitive edge.
When a case reaches trial, the judge is expected to be an impartial referee who ensures that justice is served. But new research suggests that a judge’s ultimate decision is often as arbitrary as the flip of a coin—which may actually be a sign of a healthy justice system. Centuries of legal research have shown that judges often make decisions based on bias, chance, or other nonlegal considerations. For example,…
In 2001, the Chinese auto industry sold fewer than a million cars. By 2017, it was responsible for more than a third of all the cars produced or sold on earth. Quality improved, too: between 2001 and 2014, malfunction rates in domestic Chinese passenger vehicles fell by 75 percent. How did this growth happen so quickly? Part of the answer has to do with “knowledge spillovers” from foreign auto firms…
An entrepreneur arrives at a bank and asks for funding; a family asks for a mortgage; a medium-sized business asks for a loan. Whether the bank provides financing in each case boils down to the question of lending standards. With looser standards, the borrowers are more likely to get their money, while with tighter standards, they are less likely. For banks, there is an important trade-off at play here. A…
Earlier this year, AI developer Anthropic released a new model that can spend more time “thinking” through a problem, similarly to the way a person might. Stanford and IBM developed AI “twins” of more than 1,000 people that supposedly reason and make decisions just like their real-life counterparts. The hope, for many companies in this space, is to build AI models that reason in a manner that is nearly indistinguishable…
When Uber started its surge pricing policy in late 2011, outrage quickly ensued. Horror stories emerged about rides on New Year’s Eve or during snowstorms costing multiple times the standard rate—in one case, 50 times the regular fare. So when U.S. grocery retailers like Walmart and Kroger announced in 2024 that they would start using electronic shelf labels (or digital price labels) in their stores, it naturally raised alarm bells…
Six building blocks could help pharma organizations slash filing timelines from months to weeks, potentially unlocking as much as $180 million in net present value for priority assets.
Powering AI and new computation technologies can accelerate data center project delivery and optimize spending to reduce the projected $1.7 trillion global spend through 2030 by up to $250 billion.
As overall investment trends in future mobility have remained steady, analysis reveals that the market is undergoing deeper structural change.
A new target operating model is crucial if gas distribution system operators are to capture the opportunities presented by changing market forces.
Creating a successful business venture is more than just a notion. An executive coach outlines the risks and rewards of business building and shares the core elements of successful start-ups.
By harnessing gen AI, companies can leapfrog from selling data to building robust data products that deliver actionable intelligence and unlock previously untapped value.
Facing a complex array of threats, payments providers will need to embrace a mix of traditional and emerging approaches.
Stop tinkering with your org chart. Start rethinking your operating model—and closing the gap between strategy and performance as a result.
The field of robotics presents opportunities in industries from manufacturing to healthcare to agriculture. Researchers are exploring the ethical and safety implications to set safe guardrails.
How can organizations move from reactive mental health efforts to proactive well-being strategies? A Cambridge professor shares a blueprint for supporting teams from the inside out.