More than 55 percent of large spin-offs fail to deliver the expected value three years post-spin; this is true for both the parent and the new company. However, even in today’s complex macro environment, there is plenty of spin activity as companies look outside the portfolio in pursuit of more focused strategies, fit-for-purpose operating models, and optimized capital management.

Join us as Jamie Koenig and Anna Mattson, co-leaders of our Global Separations Practice, discuss their recent article on the topic and step through five critical moves that help increase the odds of spin-off success. They also share a wealth of insights gleaned from several decades of deal experience, including what a new SpinCo CEO should expect.

Related Insights

Beating the odds: What really matters for successful spin-offs

2026 M&A trends: Navigating a rapidly rebounding market

When separating businesses, people are the key to unleashing value

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Today’s board members face growing demands on their time. A challenging macro environment and ever-evolving business risks are increasing meeting frequency and requiring faster decision-making. For executives considering a board role, the developmental opportunity may be clear — but what does the role really involve?

In this episode, McKinsey senior partner emeritus and board director, Celia Huber speaks with Christiana Smith Shi. Christiana is the former President of Nike’s direct-to-consumer division and a seasoned board member with over 14 years of service, including on the boards of Williams Sonoma and Mondelēz International. She currently serves on the boards of Columbia Sportswear and UPS, and as Chair of Habitat for Humanity. In a wide-ranging conversation, Christiana opens the boardroom door to discuss topics including the differences between not-for-profit and corporate boards, the dynamics of CEO transitions, and what drives board effectiveness.

Related Insights

The Board Perspective

How boards can tackle geopolitical risk

The board’s role in managing emerging AI risks

The AI reckoning: How boards can evolve

CEO Insights: Forging stronger CEO–board partnerships

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Buy-side carve-outs can create significant value for acquiring companies, but they can also present complex challenges. In this episode, we’re joined by Kameron Kordestani, Anna Mattson, and Rui Silva to discuss how leaders—particularly CFOs, integration managers, and CHROs—must balance financial structuring, operational planning, and people management to ensure a value-creating transition.

Related insights

How buyers can successfully navigate integrating a carve-out

The power of goodbye: How carve-outs can unleash value

Solving the carve-out conundrum

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Outperformance in private equity is no longer defined by leverage or multiple expansion; disciplined value creation will be the decisive factor in future investment success. In this episode, AD Bhatia, Robin Ligon, and Jason Phillips are joined by CVC’s John Kelleher to discuss the key shifts in today’s PE environment and share five moves firms are making in response. The path to transforming value creation requires a more disciplined playbook: structured re-diligence, holistic transformation under a dedicated transformation leadership, stronger operating-team talent, and the use of AI as a portfolio-wide accelerator.

Related Insights

2026 Global Private Markets Report

How private equity is using M&A integrations to overcome headwinds

Beating the odds: How private equity firms can improve exit prospects

McKinsey Strategy and Corporate Finance on LinkedIn

McKinsey Transformation on LinkedIn

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

For CEOs, the first 100 days often get the most attention. But the final chapter of a CEO’s tenure can be just as consequential. In this episode, senior partner Carolyn Dewar speaks with Charles Lowrey, former executive chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, about what it takes to finish strong and manage a successful leadership transition.

Lowrey reflects on his unexpected path to the CEO role, the lessons he learned while leading through the pandemic, and why he began discussing succession with the board before officially taking the job. He explains how Prudential developed internal candidates, planned the handover in detail, and worked to make the market’s reaction to the transition “a huge yawn.”

The conversation also explores the personal side of stepping away: preparing for life after the CEO role, avoiding the temptation to remain too involved, and finding new ways to contribute. For current and aspiring CEOs, Lowrey offers practical guidance on legacy, succession, and the discipline required to lead until the very end.

Related insights

A CEO For All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership

CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest

The Strategic CEO LinkedIn newsletter

Sending it forward: Successfully transitioning out of the CEO role

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

As millions of baby boomer business owners in the United States approach retirement, the country faces a major transition in business ownership. Over the next decade, millions of small and midsize businesses could be sold, transferred, or closed, with major implications for local economies, jobs, family wealth, and economic mobility.

In this episode, we hear from partner Ken Yearwood and associate partner Nick Noel about the wave of business transfers on the horizon, the scale of the opportunity, and the risks of avoidable closures. They discuss what this transition could mean for buyers, sellers, private capital, employees, and rural communities, and explore how a broader and more inclusive ownership ecosystem could unlock long-term value.

Related insights

The Great Ownership Transfer: A new era of business stewardship

McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

In this episode, we explore how finance leaders can harness AI to drive performance and create value for the organization. Our guests—Kevin Carmody, Davide Grande, and Andrea Tricoli—share insights from their research, highlighting how AI is reshaping finance functions across strategic planning, cost management, risk mitigation, and investor relations. Join us as we delve into real-world examples of AI in action and consider the evolving role of the CFO as a strategic partner in the C-Suite.

Related insights

How finance teams are putting AI to work today

Gen AI: A guide for CFOs

Gen AI in corporate functions: Looking beyond efficiency gains

Spendscape by McKinsey: Next-level spend analytics software powered by AI

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Private equity firms have long outperformed their peers—not just through financial engineering, but by building better businesses faster. In this episode, senior partner Sacha Ghai and partner Marla Capozzi discuss what leaders across sectors can learn from the highest-performing private equity CEOs. Drawing on their recent Harvard Business Review article, Sacha and Marla unpack the concept of CEO alpha: the value created when CEOs outperform as individual leaders, team builders, and operators. They explain why private equity’s edge has shifted from financial engineering to building stronger, more resilient businesses, and they share six practices that distinguish top-performing PE CEOs.

Related insights

What Every Company Can Learn from Private Equity

CEO alpha: A new approach to generating private equity outperformance

CEO Excellence: The six mindsets that distinguish the best leaders from the rest

A CEO for All Seasons: Mastering the Cycles of Leadership

The Strategic CEO

Support the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/

See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information