A gap in financial services
November 3, 2022Financial institutions in the United States are investing more in diversity and inclusion efforts, but have yet to fully meet Black consumers’ needs, McKinsey senior partner Shelley Stewart III and coauthors find. In a recent McKinsey consumer survey, respondents indicated only six companies out of more than 50 listed met their needs at scale.
To read the article, see “Investing in—and with—Black consumers in financial services,” September 6, 2022.
Ramping up supply chain resiliency
November 4, 2022
The vulnerabilities of highly globalised supply networks have been exposed by the turbulence of recent years. Some organisations have made significant strides in their plans to improve supply chain resilience since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, McKinsey partner Tacy Foster and colleagues found in a recent survey of 113 global supply chain leaders. For example, dual-sourcing strategies were adopted by 81 % of respondents, a leap from 55 % who said the same in 2020.
To read the article, see “Taking the pulse of shifting supply chains,” August 26, 2022.
Hanging tough
November 2, 2022 Resilient players in the distribution industry could emerge from these volatile times with a strategic advantage against competitors. Based on analysis by senior partner Kevin Sachs and colleagues of how industrial distributors performed through the Great Recession and during the recovery, from 2007 to 2011, outperformers experienced lower drops in margin during the downturn compared with nonresilient companies. Resilient distributors tended to focus on profitable growth during the slowdown and exhibited a heavy emphasis on category management.
To read the article, see “How distributors can build momentum in a slowdown,” September 20, 2022.
Round and round we grow
November 1, 2022Consumer demand is shifting toward greener goods, say McKinsey senior partner Stefan Helmcke and coauthors. Younger generations are expressing their values through their purchasing decisions, leading toward a sustainable and increasingly circular model for consumer products, instead of the established take-make-waste model. By McKinsey estimates, the shift in demand could result in a EUR 400 billion to EUR 650 billion annual opportunity for European companies.
To read the article, see “Playing offense on circularity can net European consumer goods companies EUR 500 billion,” June 29, 2022.
Cloud control
October 31, 2022 To stay competitive, insurance carriers might look to the cloud. Leading carriers are already using it to provide quick, efficient service to customers. Insurers that decide to migrate their computing systems to the cloud would be in good company, McKinsey senior partner Steve Van Kuiken and coauthors note: among C-suite leaders across sectors, a third expect to have up to 50 % of their computing environment in the cloud in the next five years.
To read the article, see “What every insurance leader should know about cloud,” September 7, 2022.
Widening the performance
October 28, 2022 In times of adversity, it’s important for business models to be resilient. High-performing companies invest more time than others clarifying goals and setting strategy, allowing them to take immediate steps in a crisis, say McKinsey senior partner Ida Kristensen and coauthors. According to their analysis of 1,100 publicly traded companies with revenues exceeding USD 1 billion, those that outperformed leading up to and during the 2008 financial crisis were able to extend their lead in the years that followed.
To read the article, see “Something’s coming: How US companies can build resilience, survive a downturn, and thrive in the next cycle,” September 16, 2022.