Accountability - the ability of people to understand what is expected of them, exercise authority, and take responsibility for delivering results - is an important dimension of organizational health. Of course, some companies are better at fostering it than others.
In debates about whether growth is a percentage point up or down, we too often lose sight of the absolute scale of China's economy. No matter what rate the country grows at in 2016, its share of the global economy, and of many specific sectors, will be larger than ever.
Today's economies are dramatically changing, triggered by development in emerging markets, the accelerated rise of new technologies, sustainability policies, and changing consumer preferences around ownership. Digitization, increasing automation, and new business models have revolutionized other industries, and automotive will be no exception. These forces are giving rise to four disruptive technology-driven trends in the automotive sector: diverse mobility, autonomous driving, electrification, and connectivity.
McKinsey's proprietary benchmarking survey conducted annually with a dozen regional and super-regional banks in the United States supports the axiom that investing more in IT is not as important as investing smartly.
Gender inequality is not only a pressing moral and social issue but also a critical economic challenge. If women - who account for half the world's working-age population - do not achieve their full economic potential, the global economy will suffer.
The potential of artificial intelligence and advanced robotics to perform tasks once reserved for humans is no longer reserved for spectacular demonstrations by the likes of IBM's Watson, Rethink Robotics' Baxter, DeepMind, or Google's driverless car.
Pharmaceutical companies are running hard to keep pace with changes brought about by digital technology. Mobile communications, the cloud, advanced analytics, and the Internet of Things are among the innovations that are starting to transform the healthcare industry in the ways they have already transformed the media, retail and banking industries. Pharma executives are well aware of the disruptive potential and are experimenting with a wide range of digital initiatives.
Change management as it is traditionally applied is outdated. We know, for example, that 70 percent of change programs fail to achieve their goals, largely due to employee resistance and lack of management support. We also know that when people are truly invested in change it is 30 percent more likely to stick.
Around the world, ever-larger capital projects are being undertaken. Better project management and technological innovation can improve the chances of success.