E-commerce is undergoing a fundamental change that is reshaping how customers buy and companies sell. While generative AI (gen AI) has grabbed the attention of executives over the past year, a quieter wave of technology-driven innovation is washing over almost every aspect of e-commerce. This technology infusion is powering a…

Leadership is never easy—not for nothing did Shakespeare write, “Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.” The job of leader may seem even more imposing these days given a range of micro- and macro- social, economic, and geopolitical forces. But amid the challenges, there is always the opportunity for…

The world needs more productivity growth. As a recent McKinsey Global Institute report  argues, it’s the best possible antidote to wealth inequality, inflation, and exploding debt and could provide crucial funding for the net-zero transition and improved living standards. It’s also what every company needs. Yet productivity growth has largely…

Spiritual health, often overlooked in holistic well-being, deserves greater attention. While physical health has traditionally been the main focus and mental and social health are gaining recognition, spiritual well-being plays a critical role in enhancing overall health. McKinsey Health Institute’s (MHI) global survey of 41,000 people finds that spiritual health…

What will it take for the consumer goods industry to turn its fortunes around? Once a leader in total shareholder returns (TSR), the industry has fallen from the top to the bottom quartile in TSR performance. This episode of the McKinsey on Consumer & Retail podcast examines the reasons for that…

Executive summaryThe automotive industry has been a stronghold of the European economy for decades but is now facing disruption from electric mobility. In 2023, the industry contributed $1.9 trillion in gross value added (GVA), with technology and car exports creating $620 billion in value. Electric mobility could add $240 billion…

The narrative surrounding generative AI (gen AI), a moon shot, once-in-a-generation innovation, is that it could utterly reinvent how businesses—consumer-packaged-goods (CPG) companies among them—are run. CPG leaders are heeding the call. In a 2024 survey of CPG leaders, 71 percent said they adopted AI in at least one business function…

At a glance Micro-, small, and medium-size enterprises (MSMEs) are the bedrock of the US economy. They employ nearly six in ten workers, produce almost 40 percent of value added nationally, and grow into a meaningful share of very large corporations. MSMEs in the United States are only half as…

Consumer-facing companies across all types of sectors have already begun to harness the power of modern retailing techniques. Tactics such as bundled offers and dynamic pricing can provide a boost to an organization’s revenue and profit. At the same time, they are creating better, more relevant experiences for consumers. Airlines,…

No matter where one turns these days, engaging with some form of AI is likely. From the algorithms that power social media to virtual assistants that answer questions and control smart devices, AI is actively shaping how the world works. Opinions about AI’s impact on the workforce range from positive expectations…

At a glance A three-lens approach–on adoption, creation, and energy–is required to assess Europe’s competitiveness in the emerging generative AI (gen AI) economy. While much of the current discourse centers around large language models (LLMs), European policy makers and business leaders must look beyond LLMs. Adopting a holistic approach to…

Looking back over the past few months since our last China Brief update in April, not much has changed.China’s GDP grew at a steady 5 percent during the first half of the year, while retail sales ticked modestly upward by 3.7 percent during this period. We see few signs that…

Autonomous vehicles (AVs), with their potential to reduce shipping costs and address a scarcity of drivers, will likely be delayed by another year, according to McKinsey analysis. Major OEMs are continuing their commitment to autonomous trucking and are investing to bring the first vehicles of their kind on the road…

The real estate industry faces growing pressure to reduce the emissions caused by building operations. The good news is that the technology already exists to solve the problem, and a new way to formulate decarbonization plans can make it easier and cost effective to take action, as McKinsey partner Brodie…

On this page: Opportunity | Solution | Impact $0.5Tannual global cybersecurity damage by 20250+enterprise customers across sectors0%savings in cybersecurity spending The Opportunity A new way to source cybersecurity Cyberattacks are on track to cause $10.5 trillion a year in damage by 2025. In their efforts to fight back, business leaders…

The defense industry has long endeavored to equip forces with enhanced communication by connecting technologies across land, sea, air, and space. This goal might seem easily attainable in today’s smartphone-enabled world, but aging hardware, fragmented install bases, and inconsistent standards across devices and networks may weaken secure communications. As adversaries…

Momentum around connected and data-enabled services in commercial vehicles is accelerating. Data-enabled services are critical for new opportunities in charging energy solutions, connected insurance, the automotive aftermarket, advanced financing solutions, and transport as a service [TaaS]. Their potential to solve complex problems for OEMs, automakers, and fleet managers is too…

In an era marked by rapid technological advancements, the commercial vehicle industry stands on the cusp of a transformative evolution. The decentralized electrical/electronic (E/E) architectures that have long been the backbone of vehicle operations are now being redefined, and so is the software running on them. To master this evolution…

Electric two-wheelers, with their affordability, ease of access, and environmental benefits, are leading the charge to vehicle electrification around the world. Electric two-wheeler markets in Asia are loaded with potential. Annual sales in the Indian electric two-wheeler market, the second-largest globally, are expected to increase from one million micromobility units…

Road freight vehicles account for a significant share of global CO2 emissions. Hence, minimizing their carbon footprint is a vital step toward achieving global climate targets. Over the past decade, governments, fleet operators, and truck OEMs have realized this need for action and have gone to significant lengths to make…

As the end of ESSER funding approaches in September 2024, K–12 district leaders are reflecting on which investments were effective to help shape their priorities in the post-ESSER years ahead. In this third and final article in our series on K–12 district funding, we follow the flow of funds to…

Telcos worldwide want to evolve from traditional connectivity providers into customer-centric, platform-oriented innovators akin to today’s top tech players. Industry leaders and experts view this shift toward broader services and partner ecosystems as the most promising path to reignited and sustainable growth after many years of declining performance (especially in…

The expected global mass rollout of electric trucks is going to require a dense charging network to keep these zero-emission vehicles moving. For Europe, McKinsey estimates that, by 2030, more than 300,000 public and private charge points will be required across the continent for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, up from…

The Chinese heavy-duty-truck (HDT) market has faced a variety of challenges. Nearly a decade of rapid growth gave way in 2022, with sales plummeting 45 percent year over year. As the market finds its footing, several new trends are at play: the emergence and rise of new powertrains, partnerships exploring…

Since its founding in 1968, Special Olympics has grown into a global program that provides year-round athletic training and competition for millions of children and adults with intellectual disabilities. The program fosters and celebrates its athletes’ abilities and promotes equal access to healthcare for all, according to Dimitri Christakis, MD,…

While resilient, global economic growth is uneven, forward-looking indicators now show a divergence between manufacturing and services on a global basis. The manufacturing sector has contracted for the first time in 2024, registering 49.7 in July on the global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), while services continue to grow steadily, clocking…

The conventional view of art may be that it is incompatible with technology. But in recent years, digital forms of art have complemented and perhaps enhanced traditional arts such as opera, film, and dance. In her ten years at the helm of the Kennedy Center, Deborah Rutter has led a…

For many travel and logistics providers, workforce challenges have become an increasing source of anxiety. Labor shortages are frequent and labor costs are rising. Workforce planning missteps can result in reduced margins and degraded customer service. These workforce challenges affect more than three million people employed at the 40 top-grossing…

As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, operations leaders face a complex set of challenges, including high administrative costs and employee attrition rates. Administrative accounts for about 25 percent of the more than $4 trillion spent on healthcare annually in the United States. Simultaneously, in response to rising expectations, organizations…

Most founder CEOs will tell you that it’s the people who matter most for a start-up’s success—that entrepreneurial band of software engineers, product developers, marketing managers, finance associates, and others who can help bring an idea to life and then to market. Founder CEOs know that talent is a key…

Aerospace OEMs are under pressure to ramp up production, improve operations, and increase sustainability, but multiple challenges persist. Supply chain issues are particularly acute, and a delay in shipping a single component often creates a domino effect that ripples through the production process. While tackling these problems can be challenging,…

Marketing is at a pivotal moment, with data and new technology propelling rapid changes and expanding opportunities for growth. The promise is enormous, with the economic value of generative AI (gen AI) potentially reaching $4.4 trillion, with a large percentage of that value set to come from marketing and sales. Amid…

Five smoke stakes line up against a backdrop of a blue sky. A thick cloud of white smoke pours out from one of the stakes.For centuries, philosophers have opined on the nature of control and the challenge of recognizing what’s in one’s power to change. Solving the problem of climate…

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Women in the Workplace report. Conducted in partnership with LeanIn.Org, this effort is the largest study of women in corporate America. Over the past decade, more than 1,000 companies have participated in the study, and we have surveyed more than 480,000 people…

The global metals and mining industry is entering a new era. Historically, the industry has been driven by economic growth and the development of the middle class, resulting in major demand growth for materials such as steel, aluminum, and coal. While 80 percent of the industry today primarily consists of…

There are only a handful of people who have taken a start-up from zero to $88 billion in revenue and continue to lead it today. Michael Dell is one of them. The founder, CEO, and chairman of Dell Technologies has steered his company through four decades of change and wave…

Today, more than 95 percent of trucks on the road around the world run on diesel or gasoline. The traditional truck ownership model of combining purchasing or leasing with selected add-on services is a proven model for both OEMs and customers. Large-fleet customers have a strong understanding of vehicle life…

Throughout his 19-year career at Boeing, Darren Hulst has seen the aerospace sector change in many ways. As the vice president of Boeing’s Commercial Marketing division, Hulst keeps his finger on the pulse of the industry to see how consumer demand, technology, and the global dynamics have evolved. Today, sustainability,…

Research conducted over two decades has continually affirmed that organizational health (how you run the place) is a valuable, competitive differentiator across industries. Organizational health has been linked to value creation, profitability, resilience, and safety metrics (see sidebar “How to assess organizational health”). Organizations in the care delivery sector are…

As major trucking companies decarbonize their fleets, they are currently prioritizing lower-carbon fuels such as natural gas and biofuels over zero-emission trucks. Adopting these fuels marks a positive step toward sustainable commercial mobility but represents only an intermediate step toward zero-emission mobility in the commercial sector. Meanwhile, true zero-emission mobility…