Rewinding 2025: A year of The McKinsey Podcast insights—in under 10 minutes

Summary

The McKinsey Podcast — Rewinding 2025: A Year of Insights in Under 10 Minutes

Date: December 19, 2025
Hosts: Lucia Rahilly & Roberta Fassaro

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Episode Overview

This special year-end episode offers a rapid-fire review of 2025’s most impactful business insights, featuring highlights from interviews with McKinsey’s senior partners. The episode distills top themes and memorable moments tackling strategy, technology (AI), leadership, and the evolving global business landscape—all in under ten minutes. This compressed masterclass aims to inspire leaders as they gear up for 2026.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Strategy in Turbulent Times: Fight Inertia

• Speaker: Shubham Singhal (Senior Partner), 01:00
  • Emphasizes that, contrary to the impression that many companies are “frozen”, the “age of strategy is back” due to uncertainty and shifting advantage patterns.
  • Distills leaders’ actions into: Protect, Prepare, Propel.
  • Quote:
    “There's so much uncertainty. There's so much that is shifting on advantage and demand patterns... I simplify it down sometimes to just simply say protect, prepare, and propel.” (01:00)

2. CMO’s Role in Strategic Planning

• Speaker: Shelley Stewart (Senior Partner), 01:44
  • Stresses the missed opportunity when CMOs aren’t included in strategy—only 50% are aligned with CEOs on planning.
  • Highlights the importance of customer-centricity at the strategy table.
  • Quote:
    “Only 50% of CMOs are involved in strategic planning alongside the CEO. I mean, that's a startling statistic... that lack of alignment really creates issues.” (01:44)

3. M&A as a Pathway to Growth

• Speaker: Jake Henry (Senior Partner), 02:11
  • Modern strategies are incomplete without considering Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A).
  • M&A can address growth challenges brought on by geopolitical shifts and industry disruption.
  • Quote:
    “No strategy is complete without a consideration of M and A activity... M and A can be a path to being able to fill those gaps and add additional pathways to achieving.” (02:11)

4. Navigating Geopolitical Uncertainty

• Speaker: Pradeep Patyat (Senior Partner), 02:58
  • Banks and other industries face significant risks and opportunities due to geopolitical flux.
  • Leaders must proactively address, not ignore, the macro environment.
  • Quote:
    “Banks that ignore the macro environment, the geopolitical environment, the risks that come with it, the opportunities that come with it, do so at their own peril.” (02:58)

5. AI Agents: Digital Coworkers and Workforce Evolution

• Speaker: Lorena Yee (Senior Partner), 03:37
  • Introduces the concept of the “digital coworker”—AI agents as integral, adaptable members of modern teams.
  • Successful adoption involves technical onboarding and ongoing feedback, much like managing human employees.
  • Quote:
    “This idea that you could have a digital co worker isn't a science fiction fantasy... you actually do have to on-board it, you need to do training of it and you need to give it feedback.” (03:37)

6. Powering the Next Wave: Data Centers and Energy Demand

• Speaker: Jesse Novsinger (Partner), 04:29
  • Data center growth is reshaping energy generation and distribution.
  • Increases in AI-driven workloads drive up electricity demand, especially in regions like the US.
  • Quote:
    “It's not just about delivering the power, but as we go upstream, it's about generating the electricity... it's actually driving almost entirely the upside that we see over the next few years.” (04:29)

7. Leadership Development: Field Promotions and Growth Mindset

• Speaker: Daniel Pacteau (Senior Partner), 04:58

  • Modern CEOs enable accelerated leadership development by “field-promoting” people—entrusting big roles even before they’re fully ready.
  • Quote:
    “The best CEOs today give people field promotions... people grow into the role and rise to the occasion.” (04:58)

• Speaker: Carolyn Dewar (Senior Partner), 05:24

  • Leading executives retain a “beginner’s curiosity” and willingness to learn, rather than coasting on experience.
  • Quote:
    “Humility, willingness to be open to feedback, willingness to learn and challenge their own thinking and continually was striking.” (05:24)

8. Embedding Curiosity and Agility: The COO’s Charge

• Speaker: Dan Swan (Senior Partner), 06:01
  • Advocates for cultivating curiosity across the organization, led by the CEO and COO.
  • Continuous improvement and openness to change are linked directly to unleashing growth and adaptability.
  • Quote:
    “Be curious, think about, you know, what could we do better? You know, don't be defensive about how we've always done things... that mindset around curiosity, continuous improvement really embedded in the organization.” (06:01)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Strategy:
  “Protect, prepare, propel.” — Shubham Singhal (01:00)

• On Involving CMOs:
  “Only 50% of CMOs are involved in strategic planning... that lack of alignment really creates issues.” — Shelley Stewart (01:44)

• On M&A:
  “No strategy is complete without a consideration of M and A activity.” — Jake Henry (02:11)

• On Geopolitical Risk:
  “Banks that ignore the macro environment... do so at their own peril.” — Pradeep Patyat (02:58)

• On Digital Coworkers:
  “You need to onboard it, you need to do training of it and you need to give it feedback.” — Lorena Yee (03:37)

• On Power and Data:
  “It's not just about delivering the power, but... generating the electricity.” — Jesse Novsinger (04:29)

• On Accelerated Developments:
  “The best CEOs today give people field promotions.” — Daniel Pacteau (04:58)

• On Humility:
  “Humility, willingness to be open to feedback... was striking.” — Carolyn Dewar (05:24)

• On Organizational Curiosity:
  “Be curious, think about... what could we do better?” — Dan Swan (06:01)

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Important Timestamps

• Business Strategy and Inertia: 01:00
• CMO and CEO Alignment: 01:44
• M&A for Growth: 02:11
• Geopolitics in Banking: 02:58
• AI Coworkers ("Digital Agents"): 03:37
• Data Centers & Power Demand: 04:29
• Leadership Development & Growth Mindset: 04:58, 05:24
• Curiosity and Continuous Improvement: 06:01

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Takeaway

The McKinsey Podcast’s 2025 wrap-up highlights how leading businesses are successfully navigating uncertainty by putting strategy, customer insight, M&A, and AI at the center of their agendas, all while encouraging leadership development and a culture of curiosity. As the world accelerates into a more complex, AI-driven era, authentic learning, humility, and continuous improvement will define those who thrive.

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Hosts: Lucia Rahilly & Roberta Fassaro
“So let's hear it for curiosity as we head into the new year.” — Roberta Fassaro (06:34)

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[Episode available at McKinsey.com and in the McKinsey Insights app.]

Transcript

[A]

Happy holidays to you from us here at McKinsey.

[B]

Today, we've got one of our most popular interviews from 2025.

[A]

We'll be back January 8th with new episodes.

[C]

This is the McKinsey podcast where we help you make sense out of our world's toughest business challenges.

[B]

Welcome to the show. I'm Lucia Rahilly.

[A]

And I'm Roberta Fassar. Hey, everyone. Hey, Lucia.

[B]

Hey, Roberta. Happy holidays.

[A]

Same to you. Listen. As we head into this holiday break, let's take a few minutes and listen to some key moments from 2025.

[B]

While business leaders adapt to rapid changes in technology, shifts in tariffs and trade have their attention, too. Senior partner Shubham Singhal says they must fight inertia.

[D]

We often hear and see that a lot of companies are frozen, and that's not entirely true, at least not for the most sophisticated ones. In essence, you know, the age of strategy is back. There's so much uncertainty. There's so much that is shifting on advantage and demand patterns. And so when we look at the, you know, kind of leaders in the industry, there are three kinds of things that they're doing. And, you know, I simplify it down sometimes to just simply say protect, prepare, and propel.

[A]

When it comes to strategy planning, McKinsey senior partner Shelley Stewart says CEOs should include the chief marketing officer in those discussions just to ensure that companies stay close to what matters most, and that's the customer.

[E]

Only 50% of CMOs are involved in strategic planning alongside the CEO. I mean, that's a startling statistic in a world where I think of the CMO as being someone who really does understand the end to end customer journey. And so that lack of alignment really creates issues.

[B]

Senior partner Jake Henry agrees with Shubam and Shelley and adds that any healthy strategy also takes into account potential mergers and acquisitions.

[F]

No strategy is complete without a consideration of M and A activity. Growth is harder and harder to access right now, and that could be geopolitical uncertainties in terms of geographies that are underperforming. That could be exposures that they have because of the geopolitical environment and form of pricing and otherwise. And so as these companies are looking at their growth board, they do see holes. So M and A can be a path to being able to fill those gaps and add additional pathways to achieving. It can also be a way to be able to access capabilities that are required for growth.

[A]

Geopolitics is affecting businesses across industries, including banking. Senior partner Pradeep Patyat says the only way to seize the moment is to take on these challenges directly.

[C]

Banks that ignore the macro environment, the geopolitical environment, the risks that come with it, the opportunities that come with it, do so at their own peril. And this could be a local bank, it could be a global bank, doesn't matter. I think this is something that should be on the agenda for, for nearly every bank because lots of things appear to be in motion, in flux, in change. And these will create great opportunities as well as great risks.

[B]

No surprise, AI is one of those great opportunities. McKinsey senior partner Lorena Yee says it's time to start acting on AI agents.

[G]

This idea that you could have a digital co worker isn't a science fiction fantasy. It's something that you can apply. It's not software deployment. It actually is bringing something into the workforce so it actually looks more like human capital deployment. So let me give you an example. If you have an agent or a team of agents, you actually do have to do all the technical pieces of it, get it ready to enter the workforce. But then you need to onboard it, you need to do training of it and you need to give it feedback and then you have to figure out how to teach it, what are the ways of working, what are the norms, how to actually be kind of within our team. And so we're just seeing the beginning scratches of this.

[A]

Of course we can't use AI on our teams if we don't generate enough power for it. McKinsey partner Jesse Novsinger says data centers will have to adapt to meet consumer demand.

[H]

It's not just about delivering the power, but as we go upstream, it's about generating the electricity. Even as the world's consumption increases, we expect the data center number to be much higher. And in places like the US where we haven't seen a lot of net load growth in a while, it's actually driving almost entirely the upside that we see over the next few years.

[B]

And who's making the decisions behind building this AI powered world leaders. Senior partner Daniel Pacteau tells us why it's so important to invest in leadership development.

[I]

I think the best CEOs today give people field promotions. I felt I got a lot of these where I was perhaps not ready to play the role, but then people grow into the role and rise to the occasion. And I think that's a bit this mindset that I think you want to create in a high performing and 21st century leadership team.

[A]

Senior partner Carolyn Dewar notices this beginner's mindset in some of the most successful leaders.

[J]

I was surprised by the learning mindset and the curiosity you would expect, especially these folks who've been successful for so long. They would show up very much with the answers. They had just mastered their craft and were just on repeat. And that's not what we found at all. Humility, willingness to be open to feedback, willingness to learn and challenge their own thinking and continually was striking.

[B]

McKinsey senior partner Dan Swan says companies must integrate qualities like these to adapt and stay competitive. And the chief operating officer is pivotal in taking the lead.

[E]

Be curious, think about, you know, what could we do better? You know, don't be defensive about how we've always done things. Those mindset pieces are critically, critically important. And, you know, I think the CEO often sets the tone on that. It's just so powerful for unlocking not only productivity, but ideas that can drive growth, that can drive service, that can drive anything else. Right? And so if I could impart one thing, it would be how to get that mindset around curiosity. Continuous improvement really embedded in the organization.

[A]

So let's hear it for curiosity as we head into the New year.

[B]

Second that. Happy holidays to you, and we will see you in 2026. Thanks so much for listening to the McKinsey Podcast. I'm Lucia Rahilly.

[A]

And I'm Roberta Fassaro.

[B]

Find us on McKinsey.com we'll have a transcript of this episode up shortly and.

[A]

Download the McKinsey Insights app where you can find this podcast and other helpful content content updated daily.

[B]

If you enjoyed the show, we'd love for you to leave a rating and a review.

[A]

We'll see you in two weeks.