McKinsey Talks Talent

Your AI agents need performance management, too

Agents: Everybody’s got them. But who’s managing them? And what happens to the human talent working alongside them—and being asked to show up differently as a result? “Th

Is the AI productivity story at a turning point?

"Is my generation doomed?" That’s what one Stanford graduating senior asked Professor Erik Brynjolfsson, economist and director of the Stanford Digital Economy Lab. The p

What it takes to build “genius at scale”

That elusive Eureka moment: Every leader strives for it—but it can’t be forced. And as Harvard Business School Professor Linda Hill argues in her new book Genius at Scale

The problem with ‘bringing your whole self to work’

Being yourself at work has become a corporate mantra—and it certainly started in a well-meaning way. But it can also have significant downsides, according to Tomas Chamor

US manufacturing’s next test: Building a workforce for a new era

Manufacturing is back at the center of the US economic agenda. Yet the sector faces a persistent talent shortage—and to bridge it, leaders will need to rethink how they a

How smart people end up in the wrong careers

Many high performers think they’re doing everything right—yet still feel somehow wrong about their day-to-day. And the advent of AI means work-related decision-making is

What leaders can learn from Homeboy Industries

In the US, many companies still struggle to fill essential roles. What if part of the solution involves talent that has traditionally been overlooked? Take Johanna Carb

Building a talent pipeline for the AI era

AI is ushering in a new era of work, and smart employers are staying ahead of the curve by rethinking how to cultivate the skills their organizations need to thrive. The

Talent wins: the growing business of women’s sports

On this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, McKinsey talent experts Brooke Weddle and Bryan Hancock join Global Editorial Director Lucia Rahilly for a conversation with Jas

How the right operating model can close your performance gap

A smart strategy is vital—but in today’s fast-changing world, it isn’t enough. Our research suggests that even high-performing companies fail to deliver on the potential

What the labor market isn’t telling you—yet

AI is fast transforming work as we’ve known it—and the latest data on jobs doesn’t always reflect the changes underway. “One word sums it up best: ‘uncertainty,’” says Sv

The future of work is agentic

Think about your org chart. Now imagine it features both your current colleagues—humans, if you’re like most of us—and AI agents. That’s not science fiction; it’s happeni

The surprising state of employee health

Leaders have long recognized the importance of a healthy workforce to driving economic productivity. But they might be surprised at the value at stake—and at the size of

How to get return to office right

Return to office (RTO) is on the rise. But in the words of McKinsey partner and talent expert Bryan Hancock, “It doesn’t matter where you ask someone to be. What matters

The value of generosity in leadership

Time is finite and leadership pressures are legion, particularly in the throes of change. Nevertheless, the best leaders persist in cultivating generosity with their team

What works—and doesn’t—in performance management

New research reveals what employees find fair, what motivates them to perform, and where many organizations go wrong when it comes to feedback, compensation, and annual r

Why being in HR is getting tougher—and how to break through

Everybody hurts sometimes, R.E.M. once famously sang. And if you’re in human resources, your job is to help. On this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, McKinsey leaders an

Understanding what neurodivergent employees need to succeed

Neurodivergent people make up a substantial percentage of the global population. How can companies best put their distinctive capabilities to work? On this episode of McK

Managing in the era of gen AI

Middle management was already a tough gig. Then generative AI (gen AI) entered the fray. A year after the publication of their book Power to the Middle: Why Managers Hold

Workers wanted: How to fill the skilled-trade shortage

Plumbers, carpenters, builders, and engineers are in short supply. What will it take to meet the demand for these skills in the United States and globally? In this episod