The advance of artificial intelligence (AI) in senior management drives companies to review their internal processes and create new digital governance structures, promoting changes at all organizational levels.The warning and analysis comes from Eric Kutcher, senior partner in the San Francisco Bay Area office and president of McKinsey
According to McKinsey, the adoption of AI forces CEOs to rethink not only the technology, but the entire business model.
Kutcher maintains that the transformation process is “eighty percent business and twenty percent technology,” a proportion that, according to the manager, differs from the traditional perception of digital innovation.”The CEOs who take on this challenge will take their organizations to a different level. And the CEOs who wait… their companies will not exist. They will not prosper. It is thus binary in terms of importance,” Kutcher said during the talk.
The president of McKinsey underlined the democratic nature of artificial intelligence compared to previous technologies, such as semiconductors: “Everyone, from children to older adults, today has access to tools like ChatGPT. This happened in an accelerated and massive way, unlike other innovations that took years to become popular.”This democratization has placed additional pressure on executives, who must now make strategic decisions with greater speed and scope.
One of the most visible challenges, as he clarified, is the difficulty in converting investments in AI into tangible benefits for the business.
The manager identified that many companies have fallen into the trap of implementing technology without redesigning background processes.”It is not enough to install the tool and expect results. It is necessary to define a vision for the next five years and communicate it clearly,” explained the executive in the dialogue recovered by McKinsey Podcast.
In that sense, Kutcher shared examples of divergent strategies: some companies choose to integrate innovation throughout the organization in a uniform way, while others drive changes in selected areas to then replicate the successful model.The focus, in both cases, lies on ambition and the ability of leaders to challenge traditional methods.
The development of digital fluency at all levels of the company appears as a constant concern.Kutcher highlighted the phenomenon of young employees, who are more familiar with technology than experienced managers.
“You can be an engineer and feel like a beginner next to them. The fundamental thing is the willingness to learn,” he said.To illustrate this point, he mentioned the case of a CEO who, after using ChatGPT to resolve a personal query, changed his perspective on the practical application of AI in daily work.
Regarding the future of work, Kutcher anticipates more horizontal organizations, with fewer intermediate levels and closer collaboration between humans and automated systems.”We will have to decide where and how to integrate AI agents. Greater judgment and less direct supervision will be required,” he assured McKinsey’s editorial team.
Faced with concerns about employment for beginners, the manager rejects the idea that these positions will disappear.
On the contrary, it emphasizes the importance of offering learning and testing opportunities to less experienced employees, who, according to its analysis, already have high digital fluency and face complex challenges from the beginning of their careers.
Continuous access to training is another central axis identified in the McKinsey podcast.For Kutcher, companies must facilitate access to training and tools, but success will depend on each person’s willingness to adapt.“If they don’t want to learn, they won’t prosper,” he warned.
The manager also recommended that training programs include a significant proportion of content aimed at the practical use of AI.
When addressing the governance of artificial intelligence, Kutcher recognized the risks and the need for effective controls, especially in the face of the proliferation of thousands of digital agents in organizations.
He highlighted the importance of involving diverse teams and establishing responsible use policies, warning about the impact that poor governance can have on business operations and reputation.
At the geopolitical and technological level, the president of McKinsey for North America identified a growing trend towards technological sovereignty and stricter data residency requirements.“Some markets will seek to not depend on foreign suppliers, but limiting access to the best technology would have a high cost,” he commented in the podcast.
The analyst anticipates that collaborative models and more complex data structures will emerge to adapt to this fragmentation.
Regarding effective leadership, the manager highlighted qualities such as authenticity, closeness and continuous learning.He valued the importance of leaders maintaining contact with younger teams to understand internal reality and considered that vulnerability and the ability to recognize one’s own limits have become valuable attributes in current management.
Change management, according to McKinsey, has become the primary function of CEOs, above strategy.Kutcher pointed out that the real difference lies in the magnitude of the ambition that each leader is willing to assume.
Looking ahead to the coming years, Kutcher expressed enthusiasm about the transformative potential of AI and advised those entering careers in this environment: “Never lose intellectual curiosity. Don’t stop learning. Find your own voice and express it authentically, because otherwise it prevents you from thinking critically.”
Artificial intelligence represents, for McKinsey, a real transformation that already impacts the destiny of companies and redefines the role of their leaders, according to statements collected in its official podcast.
