Remanufacturing: Turning old parts into new opportunities
What if a product’s journey didn’t end after its first use? Remanufacturing—restoring preowned parts to perform like new—is transforming automotives, electronics, and other industries. In this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Senior Partner Inga Maurer and Editorial Director Roberta Fusaro explore how this practice reduces waste while creating more value for companies. Articles Mentioned: One year of agentic AI: Six lessons from the people doing the work The infrastructure moment Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy NgiawSee www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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What sets the world’s best leaders apart
Most leaders set out to be the best—but few make that Mount Everest–like ascent successfully. What do the world’s most iconic CEOs do differently? McKinsey Senior Partners Carolyn Dewar, Kurt Strovink, Scott Keller, and Vik Malhotra break it down in their new book A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership (Scribner/Simon & Schuster, October 2025), based on research and interviews with executives ranking among the top 200 CEOs across the globe. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, the four coauthors join Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly to discuss some of the more surprising lessons they learned—and what they’ve changed about their own leadership as a result. Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy NgiawSee www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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The promise and potential of rural America
There is no single definition of “rural America.” It comprises agricultural hubs, manufacturing centers, and fast-growing regions—each a regional archetypes with its own distinct challenges and opportunities. In this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Senior Partner Nora Gardner joins Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly to discuss these archetypes and new research that can help leaders better understand rural communities. In our second segment, McKinsey Partner Sarah Tucker-Ray speaks with Editorial Director Roberta Fusaro about how rural K–12 education can equip students with the skills needed for advanced manufacturing—and why partnerships with industry matter for the future of rural America. Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy NgiawSee www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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Which tech trends are rising to the top of the business agenda?
Global competition has intensified, and the demand for energy and computing power is growing exponentially as companies embed AI, robotics, and other technologies into their everyday business processes. McKinsey’s annual outlook on technology trends points to 13 “frontier” trends that can help companies get a handle on these and other challenges. On this episode of The McKinsey Podcast McKinsey Senior Partners Lareina Yee, Roger Roberts, and Sven Smit share the latest data and their insights on digital innovation, implementation, infrastructure, and trust with Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly. Articles Mentioned: How CEOs are responding to geopolitical uncertainty A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy NgiawSee www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
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The changing role of the CMO—and what it means for growth
Chief marketing officers are vital to strategic decision-making, but increasingly, they’re being left out of the discussions that matter most—to the detriment of both customers and growth. “Kelsey and I are on a singular mission to bring CMOs back,” McKinsey Senior Partner Shelley Stewart III said recently, referring to Senior Partner Kelsey Robinson. In this episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Shelley and Kelsey join Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly to discuss new research on worsening disconnects in the C-suite, as well as how strengthening alignment between CMOs, CEOs, and CFOs can make a meaningful and sustainable difference in organizational performance. This conversation originally aired as a McKinsey Live webinar following the 2025 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Theme music composed, performed, and produced by Joy NgiawSee www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information
The McKinsey Podcast, our new flagship podcast series, takes you inside our global firm, and features conversations with experts on issues that matter most in business and management. McKinsey & Company is a management-consulting firm that helps businesses, governments, and not-for-profit organizations realize their most important goals. Topics covered in this series include strategy, technology, leadership, marketing, operations, organization, and the role of business in society.
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