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FOUR OF OUR BEST NEW IDEAS

Curated by Liz Hilton Segel, chief client officer and managing partner, global industry practices, & Homayoun Hatami, managing partner, global client capabilities

Twice monthly, we bring you four new insights out of the dozens we publish that we think are worth a second glance from any business leader in any geography. In this edition, we look closely at new advice for CEO aspirants, the squeeze on middle management, and more. We hope you enjoy the read.

—Liz and Homayoun

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What’s new

One in a million. When Mary Barra joined General Motors as an 18-year-old intern, she was more likely to be struck by lightning than become CEO. The odds were far lower than one in 750,000 (the number of GM employees at the time). Yet today, she’s nearly ten years into her tenure. How did she—and dozens of other CEOs—beat the odds? There’s no guaranteed formula, but we’ve isolated four key pieces of advice that will greatly increase your chances of winning the top job.

To get your trail map, read Stepping up: Becoming a high-potential CEO candidate, a new article by Carolyn Dewar , Scott Keller , Vikram Malhotra , and Kurt Strovink .

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What’s now

Middle managers can’t win. Sometimes they’re seen as superfluous; “managers managing managers” is one recent criticism. Sometimes they’re so vital to everyday operations that they’re essentially still working a line job, with no time to help the people who report to them. If those people leave for lack of a good boss, the company suffers. Where’s the middle ground?

If your company is in one of these traps, our new article has tips to get out. Check out Stop wasting your most precious resource: Middle managers, by Emily Field , Bryan Hancock , Marino Mugayar-Baldocchi, and Bill Schaninger .

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What’s next

The rise and rise of generative AI. Not all business problems are machine learning problems. But looking at some persistent challenges through a machine learning (ML) lens can lend critical new insight. Applying foundational models like ChatGPT to specific issues can significantly shorten the time needed for model development, a key step in ML applications. Fashion companies are already using generative AI to shorten their design cycle.

Speed up your problem solving with A new and faster machine learning flywheel for enterprises, by Medha Bankhwal and Roger Roberts .

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What’s needed

Let’s also be smart about intelligence. New automation and AI technologies are poised to change the world. But whether they’re moving the needle in the direction of shared, sustainable global prosperity is another question altogether. In a new report, we found that education—of all kinds, including emotional and social skills, and at all learning stages—will be critically important to ensuring tech-fueled growth leaves no one behind.

To learn more about the looming skills gap—and how to close it—check out The skills revolution and the future of learning and earning, a new report by Emma Dorn , Stephen Hall , Hibatalla Ibrahim, Shajia Sarfraz, Dirk Schmautzer , and Safia Tmiri.

We hope you find this synthesis helpful. See you in two weeks with four more ideas from McKinsey.

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by "McKinsey Shortlist" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 02:29 - 24 Mar 2023

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