574: McKinsey Senior Partner, Kate Smaje: Winning in the Age of Digital and AI (Strategy Skills classics)

574: McKinsey Senior Partner, Kate Smaje: Winning in the Age of Digital and AI (Strategy Skills classics)

For this episode, let's revisit one of Strategy Skills classics, where we interviewed Kate Smaje, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company and Global Leader of McKinsey Digital.

In this episode, Kate offers a clear-eyed and disciplined perspective on what it takes for organizations to succeed in digital transformation. Drawing from deep client work across industries, she outlines a practical, results-focused view of how digital can be embedded into the operating core, not treated as a parallel initiative or buzzword.

Kate Smaje challenges conventional narratives around innovation, urging leaders to look beyond technology adoption and focus instead on talent systems, cultural alignment, and strategic clarity. "We often start with a conversation about tech, but the value comes from the way you bring it all together," she says.

"If you think digital is the job of the digital team, you've missed the point. It's about how the whole organization behaves."

Key Takeaways:
  • Digital Transformation Must Be CEO-Led and Enterprise-Wide
    Smaje emphasizes that meaningful transformation requires the involvement of the full organization, not just IT or digital teams.

    "Digital is everyone's job. The companies who really succeed have a CEO and leadership team who are actively engaged."


  • Shift Metrics from Volume to Value
    She critiques outdated performance metrics:

    "If you're just measuring lines of code or hours worked or features shipped, you're not measuring outcomes."


  • Technology Without Architecture Is Just Chaos
    Many companies overemphasize agile practices but underinvest in foundational tech and data coherence.

    "You can't run 300 agile teams and not have an architecture that supports it. It's like having everyone run at speed but in different directions."


  • Product Ownership and Cross-Functional Clarity Are Essential
    Successful organizations empower teams with clear product mandates while maintaining enterprise-wide alignment.

    "The product owner model is about creating real accountability, with multidisciplinary teams who have the context to make decisions."


  • Leadership Behavior Drives Cultural Change
    Where leaders focus their time is a key signal:

    "One of the biggest indicators of success is how leadership spends its calendar."


This conversation is essential listening for senior executives who want to move beyond surface-level digital initiatives and embed durable capabilities that support both innovation and performance. Smaje leaves no doubt: digital excellence is not a side project—it's a leadership discipline.

Get Kate's book here: https://shorturl.at/hxqk6

REWIRED: The McKinsey Guide to Outcompeting in the Age of Digital and AI. Eric Lamarre, Kate Smaje, Rodney Zemmel.

Here are some free gifts for you:

Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach

McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf

Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

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477: Why Everything You Know About Public Speaking Is Wrong—And What You Should Be Doing Instead

477: Why Everything You Know About Public Speaking Is Wrong—And What You Should Be Doing Instead

Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 477, an interview with Hollywood insiders and the authors of Briefly Speaking, Deborah Shames and David Booth.   In this episode, we discuss effective communication and presentation strategies for individuals and business professionals. With their extensive experience coaching executives, celebrities, and leaders, Deborah and David share invaluable insights about different topics including the power of storytelling in business communication using the OSB (Obstacle-Solution-Benefit) template, practical tips for leaders to command attention in meetings and presentations, how to showcase your unique attributes and differentiators, how to present yourself authentically, and how you can engage audiences through visual language, novelty, and genuine enthusiasm.   This episode offers actionable advice to help you connect with audiences, win pitches, and advance your career through more impactful speaking and presenting.   Deborah and David are co-founders of Eloqui, a business communication and presentation training firm based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They have translated performance techniques from the entertainment industry for the business professional. Eloqui training utilizes the latest research from neuroscience on how to be memorable. They also draw upon impression management from the field of psychology.   Learn more about Deborah and David here: https://eloqui.biz/   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

26 Aug 202453min

476: Handling client's difficult questions (Strategy Skills classics)

476: Handling client's difficult questions (Strategy Skills classics)

For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic where we address how to answer difficult questions raised by the client during an executive workshop or another type of client's executive group meeting.   We start with discussing the right mindset any consultant requires to be able to effectively handle difficult questions from a client. We thereafter review the particular steps in addressing a client's difficult questions raised during a workshop or a presentation. Lastly, we dive into which skills are required to be able to handle difficult questions, especially the kind of questions for which you don't have an immediate answer.   Click here to see the full study and here to see the merger study and market entry study.   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

21 Aug 202415min

475: 3.4 million followers minister on building a business and professional brand from the ground up

475: 3.4 million followers minister on building a business and professional brand from the ground up

Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 475, an interview with Dr. Sam Adeyemi (Ah Day yeh me), a global speaker, strategic leadership expert, minister, and author who has influenced millions of people on success and leadership through radio, television, conferences, and information products for more than 25 years.    Atlanta-based Dr. Sam Adeyemi leads leaders. He shifts mindsets to help leaders see possibilities and become those possibilities. More than 3 million CEOs and high performing individuals follow Dr. Sam on top social media sites. He holds a Doctorate in Strategic Leadership from Virginia's Regent University, and is author of the book "Dear Leader: Your Flagship Guide to Successful Leadership." He and his wife, Nike (say Nee keh) have three children and founded Daystar Christian Centre in Lagos, Nigeria. More than 45,000 alumni have graduated from Dr. Sam's leadership school.    As a global conference speaker, Sam has addressed audiences in the United States, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, South Africa, Nigeria, India, and several other countries. In 2015 and 2017, he spoke at the Global Leadership Summit, a global conference attended by over 400,000 leaders in 130+ countries.   Get Dear Leader here: https://rb.gy/cin0ng   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

19 Aug 202454min

474: How accurate was our financial model for the market entry strategy study? (Strategy Skills Classics)

474: How accurate was our financial model for the market entry strategy study? (Strategy Skills Classics)

For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic where we discuss how accurate our financial model for the market entry strategy study is.   Watch the video version here: How accurate was our financial model for the market entry strategy study?   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

14 Aug 202413min

473: MIT Professor Deborah Ancona on How Family Ghosts End Up in the Executive Suite

473: MIT Professor Deborah Ancona on How Family Ghosts End Up in the Executive Suite

Welcome to Strategy Skills, episode 473—an interview with Deborah Ancona, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management.   In this episode, we explore "family ghosts," a rarely discussed topic that significantly impacts professional growth, behavior, and attitudes toward work. We discuss how to achieve your greatest potential as a leader by recognizing your own "family ghosts" and determining which ones to embrace or leave behind.   Deborah Ancona is a distinguished Professor of Management and Founder of the MIT Leadership Center. Deborah specializes in studying, teaching, and consulting in the areas of individual leadership, team effectiveness, and organizational transformation. Her new work centers on how Family Ghosts end up in the Executive Suite.   Deborah is also the coauthor of X-Teams: How to Build Teams That Lead, Innovate, and Succeed, a classic book on teams and collaboration. This work demonstrates how an externally focused team model is key to driving innovation and ensuring your organization's success.   Get X-Teams here: https://rb.gy/jyzhwq   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

12 Aug 202450min

472: Top-down view of energy (Strategy Skills classics)

472: Top-down view of energy (Strategy Skills classics)

For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic about the top-down view of energy. It is crucial to provide boundaries when discussing sector-wide issues or the executives may get lost in the details and miss the key levers.   Watch the video version here: Top-Down View of Energy   Click here to see the full study and here to see the merger study and market entry study.   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

7 Aug 20249min

471: Management consulting storyboards (Strategy Skills classics)

471: Management consulting storyboards (Strategy Skills classics)

For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic where we share one of our more in-depth episodes taken as a sample video from one of our strategy studies. This episode is complimentary and available on iTunes, Youtube, Spotify, and many other podcast players.   Watch the video version here: How do I build the storyboard and why is it done so early?    Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

5 Aug 202420min

470: Audemars Piguet & leadership (Strategy Skills classics)

470: Audemars Piguet & leadership (Strategy Skills classics)

For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic where we explain how leadership is defined at great firms like McKinsey and BCG, and how we also manage leadership transition at FC. It will surprise you to see how different the mindset can be and that we think about these issues all the time.   The most important role of a partner is to leave the firm in a better place than when she/he joined, and to hand over a client relationship to a newer partner. The ability to maintain this cycle is critical.   If the mechanism is not there, even proud and great firms suffer during leadership changes. You want to avoid that. The cycle must be continuous.   Click here to see the Corporate Strategy & Transformation study.   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

31 Juli 202415min

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