mckinsey -要实现并维持增长需要具备哪些条件 What does it take to achieve and sustain growth

February2026

Mckunsey

&company

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?

Toomanygrowthstrategiesstallbecauseleadersdon’ttreatthemwiththesamerigortheyapplytootherlong-terminvestments.Here’showtoavoidthattrap.

McKinseyresearchhasfoundthatwhilemanyleadersbelievethey’veadoptedand

implementedproductivemindsetsforgrowth,thoseattitudesandambitionsdon’talways

translateintothebehaviorsandactionsnecessarytoachievetheirgrowthobjectives.Onthisepisodeof

TheMcKinseyPodcast

,EditorialDirectorRobertaFusarospeakswithMcKinseySeniorPartners

GregKelly

and

JillZucker

abouthowleadingorganizations

translategrowth

intentintosustainedperformance

.Inpart,itinvolvesmakingclearbets,allocatingresourcesdeliberately,andstayingcommittedthroughuncertainty.

TheMcKinseyPodcastiscohostedbyLuciaRahillyandRobertaFusaro.

Thefollowingtranscripthasbeeneditedforclarityandlength.

Cultivatingagrowthmindset

RobertaFusaro:We’reheretodaytotalkaboutgrowth.It’stheholygrailforeverycompany.

McKinseyrecentlydidresearchonthistopicsuggestingthatmanyexecutivesbelievethey’vecreatedagrowthmindsetintheirorganizations.Butveryfewhavebeenabletotranslatethatintoconsistentgrowthbehaviors.Whatdoyouthinkiscausingthisgap?

JillZucker:Severalyearsago,wesetouttostudywhatdrivescompaniesthatgrowconsistentlyovertime—bywhichwemeanprofitablegrowthandshareholderreturnsinexcessofpeers,

includingprivatecompaniesthatperformsimilarly.Whatwefoundisthatamajordriverof

sustainedgrowthisCEOmindset.Leadershavetoactivelychoosetogrowandmakedeliberatechoicesinsupportofthatgoal.

Aseconomicconditionshavebecomemoreunsettled,we’vealsoseenthatleadersneed

couragetocontinuemakingthatchoiceindifficultmoments.Inourmostrecentwork,we

examinedhowcompaniestranslateagrowthmindset—thedesiretogrowandthecouragetogrow—intorealaction.

Thegapisstriking.Seventy-twopercentofleaderssaytheywakeupwantingtorunagrowth

company.Butwhenthosesameexecutivesareaskedwhethertheyhavetherightteaminplaceorhaveallocatedresourcestosupportgrowthinvestments,only22percentsayyes.That

disconnecthelpsexplainwhyonlyoneineight—oroneinten,dependingonhowyoumeasureit—companiesareabletogrowprofitablyonasustainedbasisovertime.

Theexecutiongap

RobertaFusaro:Jill,theresearchpointstofivemindsetsthatmattermostforgrowth:

prioritizinggrowth,actingboldly,maintainingcustomercentricity,attractingandnurturingtalent,andexecutingwithrigor.Whichoftheseishardestforexecutivesandorganizationstoact

on—andwhy?

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?2

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?3

JillZucker:Ithinkexecution,inmanyways,isthehardest.Mostcompanieslistentotheir

customers,right?Wehavesurveys.Wehavecustomer-satisfactionscores.Andyet,weoftendon’thaveagoodfeedbacklooptotranslatethatinsightintonewinitiativesandgrowth.

Executionrequiresdata.Itrequiresrigoroustracking,someofwhichishardtoaccess.ButIliketosaythatcostinitiatives—whichthiscertainlyisnot—areoftenrunwithveryrigoroussystems.There’sacommitmenttotheworkandacommitmenttotheorganization.

There’salsoenormouspressuretodeliver,socompaniesputsystemsinplace:What’s

happeningeveryweek,everymonth,everyquartertomeetthosegoals?Mostcompaniesdonotdothesameforgrowth.Theyshould,andtheycould.

Now,whyisthat?It’snotalwaysclearwheregrowthisgoingtocomefrom.Youcanhaveasetofinitiatives,butit’shardertosay,“Thisoneisgoingtodeliverten,thisone15,andthisoneonlytwo.”

Instead,youbelieveabasketofinitiativeswilldeliverinaggregate.Thedataisoftenmore

forwardlooking.Ifyouthinkaboutclientsales:Havewehadconversationswithclients?Havewemovedthingsintocontracting?Whereisitinthepipeline?

Noteverycompanyhasdataatallthosestepsinthefunnel.Welaunchnewproductsinbeta.

Somework,somedon’t.Thatrequiresawillingnesstofail—andcourage.So,execution—andputtingrealsystemsarounditwiththesamerigoryoubringtocosts—isanimportantpieceofthepuzzle.

GregKelly:Whatwefindisthatonly22percentofexecutivesweworkwithactuallyspendsignificanttimeonlong-termgrowthinitiatives.Thatshowsthegapyou’redescribingin

practice,andmuchofitcomesfromthelackofasystematicapproachyoumentioned.

OneCEOweworkedwithhadgreatdisciplineoncostsandwonderedwhetherthatsame

musclecouldextendtogrowth.Sheworkedtoapplythesameapproachacrossdifferenttypesofgrowth—coregrowth,growthinadjacencies,andgrowthinnewbreakoutbusinesses.

Whatshefoundwasthatthesamekindofdisciplineusedonthecostsidecouldbeappliedtogrowth.Youneedafewmoreinitiativesthanyoudoforcosts—thecostonestendtobemorepredictable—butyouneedmoreonthegrowthsidetoensuretheexpectedgrowthcomes

through.Thatsamedisciplinedoesapply.Unfortunately,notmanycompanieshaveitinplacetoday.

JillZucker:Youhavetomakeaseriesofbets—betsthatarehardtoturnbackon.

Theytakerealcourageandcommitment.Ofcourse,youcouldstopthem,butthey’renotsubtleinhowcompaniespursuethem.Andexactlyasyoudescribed,Greg,theyspanmultiple

pathways:Thingsyoudoinyourcorebusiness,inadjacentbusinesses,onelaneoverfromyour

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?4

‘Leadershavetoactivelychooseto

growandmakedeliberatechoicesinsupportofthatgoal.’

—JillZucker

currentvaluestream,andthentruebreakoutopportunities—thingsthatfeeldistantbutthat,fiveyearsfromnow,coulddeliversignificantvaluetothebottomline.

Aportfolioapproachtogrowth

RobertaFusaro:WhatI’mhopingthispodcastwillachieveisawareness—sopeopleunderstandthattheyneedtobuilddisciplineintotheirgrowthplans.Wehearalotabouttheneedfor

executivestoactboldlyandmakebigbets,andtocontinuepursuinggrowthevenduring

downturns.Iimaginethat’sincrediblyhard.Greg,couldyoutalkaboutwhyit’ssohardtostaycourageousduringadownturn?

GregKelly:It’sveryeasytolettheurgentoverwhelmtheimportant.Weseethatoften.Inourrecentresearch,only30percentofleadersactuallyincreaseresourcesforgrowthinitiativesduringuncertaintimes.

Ifyouthinkaboutsomeofthechallengingperiodswe’vehadrecently—COVID,ormorerecenttariffdifficulties—it’seasyforthoseissuestoconsumemanagementtimeandattention,ratherthanfocusingonthegrowthdriversthatwillmakethebiggestdifferenceoverthelongrun.

Thereare,though,someexcitingexamplesofcompaniesthathavebuckedthattrend.Corningisone.TheCEOsetaboldtargettodelivermorethan$3billioninnewannualizedsalesby

acceleratinginnovation,includinggenAI.They’veachievedstrongresults—forexample,an8percentincreaseinrevenue.Itshowshowconvictionandaccountabilitycanreignitegrowth.

UsingdataandAItoguidedecisions

RobertaFusaro:Iwanttoturntoanothermindsetfromtheresearch:customercentricity.Wehearalotaboutit,andweknowthatprioritizingthecustomerleadstofastergrowthandhigherreturns.Basedonthelatestresearch,whatotherdatadowehaveoncustomercentricity—andwherearecompaniesfallingshort?

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?5

‘Whatwefindisthatonly22percentofexecutivesweworkwithactuallyspendsignificanttimeonlong-termgrowth

initiatives.’

—GregKelly

JillZucker:Almosteverycompanycollectssomeformofcustomerfeedback.Youseeitinyourinbox—afterapurchase,yougetasurveyasking,“Didyouliketheexperience?”InaB2B

context,there’salsoaconstantfeedbackloopthroughthesalesteam.

CEOsalsopridethemselvesonbeinginthefield,talkingtocustomersandclients.Andinour

research,wefoundthat63percentofcompaniescollectcustomerdata.Sothisisanareawheredataclearlyexists.

Andyet,only15percentofthesameexecutiveswhosay,“Yes,I’moutinthefield,I’mtalkingtocustomers,we’recollectingdata,”alsosaytheyusethatdatatomakegrowthdecisions.That,tome,wasreallysurprising.

Wealwayssay,“Listentoyourcustomers.Createtheproductstheyneed.Meetthemwhere

theyare.”Andyet,despitethefactthatthisdataexists—andthatwe’reconstantlyfindingnewwaystocollectandanalyzeit—wedon’tconsistentlyuseittodeliversomethingmeaningful.

WithgenAIandnewlisteningandanalyticscapabilities,weknowevenmoreabouthow

customersinteractwithcompanies,especiallyindigitalchannels.Butinsightaloneisn’tenough.

Youhavetoactonit.

Companiesthatdoboth—generateinsightandtakeaction—seerewardsintermsofgrowthandoutperformance.Realengagementtranslatesintoperformance.Andby“real,”Imeanboththeinsightandtheaction.Thatshouldbeaneasywinforcompanies—toconnectthosedots.

RobertaFusaro:Thinkingabouthowcompaniescandoabetterjobhere,istherearoleforgenAIorothernewtechnologies?Whatadvicewouldyougivetocompaniesthatwanttogeta

betterhandleontheirdataandactuallyuseitmoreeffectively?

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?6

GregKelly:We’reseeingahugeacceleration.Ifyoulookatjustthepastyear,theprogressclientshavemadeusingAIandgenAIisremarkable.Whatwasonceapromiseisnowan

emergingreality.

Onecompanythat’sbeenatthisforquiteawhileisSephora.I’vebeenimpressedbyhow

they’veintegratedtheirconsumerexperienceacrossbothphysicalanddigitalformats.They’vedevelopedanumberofAItoolsoverseveralyearstosupporttheirBeautyInsiderloyalty

program.

Whetherit’sColorIQ,SkinIQ,orSmartSkinScanmatch,thesecapabilitiesreallyhelp

consumers.Beautyisdeeplypersonal,andhavingsolutionstailoredtotheindividualmakesa

realdifference.Sephorahasbeenabletopersonalizeexperiencesin-storeandathomethroughanintegratedloyaltyecosystem.It’sastrongexampleofacompanystayingattheforefrontof

technologyandusingAIandgenAItodeliverbetteroutcomes—andgrowth.

RobertaFusaro:That’sagreatexample.AndIcanvouchforitasaSephoradevotee.

GregKelly:Ihavedaughters,Roberta.

JillZuckerTheotherthingIwouldaddisthatIspendalotofmytimeinwealthmanagement,andIreallycareaboutthepromiseofabetterfuture—forAmericans,butalsoforglobal

citizens—tohavefinancialsecurityinretirement.

Whatwe’vefoundthroughtheuseofdigitalagentsandagenticAIistheabilityforfinancialadviserstocallwithmuchmoreappropriateadvice,andatamuchmorefrequentcadence.

Therewillalwaysbedigital-onlycustomers,butI’malsotalkingaboutpeoplewhoworkwithanadviser.

Theadvisernolongerhastospendtimechanginganaddressordoingsomeofthebasic

blockingandtackling.Asaresult,theycanspendmuchmoreoftheirtimegivingrealadvice,listeningtoneeds,andofferingmoreholisticguidancearoundhowtosupportclientsandtheirfamilies.

They’realsogettingmuchmoreinsightfromtheirpeers.Manyofthesewealth-management

firmshavethousandsofadvisers,andsharinginsightacrossclientsandwhat’sworkinghas

beenhard.Nowit’smucheasiertodo,andIseemanyofthesefirmsattheleadingedgeofthis.

Makinglong-termperformancestick

RobertaFusaro:Shiftinggearsalittlebit,weknowthatgrowthrequiresteamwork.Butinourresearch,almost70percentofexecutivesadmitthey’vegotsubstantialgapsintalentintheirorganizations.Whatdoesittaketobuildandkeepateamthat’sgenuinelywiredforgrowth?Whataresomeofthecomponentsexecutivesneedtothinkabout?

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?7

‘Companiesthatdoboth—generate

insightandtakeaction—seerewardsintermsofgrowthandoutperformance.’

—JillZucker

GregKelly:Alotofitisstretchandchallenge.You’reusuallytalkingaboutopportunitiesthat

areprettynascentwhenthey’reidentified.Andsohavingthecouragetotakeahigh-performingleaderoutofacurrent,biggerareathatmaybedoesn’thaveasmuchgrowth,andthenhavethatleadergointoanewareathathasthepromiseofgrowth—thattakesrealcouragetodo.

Ittakesrealentrepreneurshipfromthatleader.Anditdoesstretchandchallengetheminanewway.Andwefindthatcompaniesthatdothishistoricallyendupdoingitmoreandmoreover

timeastheygetgoodresults—becauseitreallydoestakeputtingthosehighperformersontothesenewopportunitiestomakethemsuccessful.

Unfortunately,thelaggards,ifyouwill,usuallydon’thaveahistoryofdoingthat.Anditthen

becomesabitofaviciouscycle—ofnotgettingthegrowth,notbeingconfidentaboutthe

growth,andthennotoutperforming.Butthosethataredoingitsuccessfullyreallydohavethatvirtuouscycleinplace,wherehighperformersgotooneofthesenewareas,makethat

successful,andthengointoanevenbiggerlineopportunity.

JillZucker:Iwouldlovetoaddon,RobertaandGreg,andpickupontheideaoftheteam,becausewhathappensisyouneedtowinandlose,ifyouwill,orcoursecorrect,asateam.

Andifyou’reanorganizationthatdoesthestretchandchallengesGregdescribed,butthen

whenitdoesn’twork—andsometimesgrowthinitiativesdon’twork—youtosstheexecutiveoutwiththeinitiative,nohigh-performingexecutiveisevergoingtobewillingtotakethatchance.

Andsoyoureallyneedtothinkaboutthisasateam.Howdoyouworktogetherandprotectanindividualwhodidalltherightthings,buttheinitiativeortheideajustwasn’tfitforpurpose,orjustdidn’tendupbeingtherightthingintherightmomentforacompany?

Andsomovingpeoplearoundisterrificanddefinitelyrequired,andyouwantyourbesttalentonthebestnewopportunity.Butyoualsoneedtoprotectthemonthedownside,orelsethere’snoreasonthatyourbestperformerwouldeverbewillingtotakethatchance.

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?8

RobertaFusaro:Jill,thinkingaboutthatverytactically,aretherethingsyou’reseeingamongourclientswherethey’rebuildingteamsthataren’tafraidtoinnovateandtrynewthings?

JillZucker:IthinkthisisarealexampleofthetonesetfromthetopandtheCEO.Ifyou’rean

organizationwhereit’sokaytogiveawarninglightwhenthingsaren’tgoingwell,andtoaskforadvicefromcolleaguesandothersonthemanagementteam,youcansolvethingstogether.

Ifyou’reanorganization—andwe’veallseenthem—whereeverythingisgreenandgreenand

green,andthensuddenlyit’sredandburningred,youhavearealproblem.Buttherearealwaysindicatorsthatthingsareinneedofacoursecorrection.Andifraisingthoseisadisciplinary

action,youhaveaproblem.

Ifinsteadit’sseenas,“Let’ssolvethiscollectivelyasateam.Let’sfigureoutifweneedmore

dollars,moretalent,orachangeindirection,”thenyougettoabetteroutcome.Butthat’sa

tonesetbytheCEO—beingopen-mindedandwillingtohavethatconversationopenlywiththeexecutiveteam,asopposedtoapunitiveconversationwhensomeoneraisesaconcern.

GregKelly:Iwouldaddthatthereisabalancebetweenfocusandrenewal.WhatdoImeanbythat?There’susuallyaninspiringgrowthagendathatoutperformerssetasanoverarchingvisionandpurpose.

There’sthenagoodsetofinitiativestodrivethat,andfocusforanumberofyears.Timesdochange,though,andneedsdochange.Andsothereusuallyisrenewalinthose

outperformers—notrestingonthelaurelsofthatsuccessfulinitialgrowthprogram.

Typically,three,four,orfiveyearsafterasuccessfulgrowthagenda,weseeleadersrenewingit:comingupwitharefreshedvision,arefreshedpurpose,andarefreshedgrowthagenda—and

thenbringinginfreshnewtalenttodrivethosenewexcitinggrowthinitiatives.

RobertaFusaro:Ilovethatidea.Jill,youmentionedthatthetonecomesfromtheCEO.WhenIthinkabouttheCEOorseniorleadership,growthrequirescommitmentbecauseitdoesn’t

happenallatonce—ittakesalongtime.Howcanleaderskeepuptheirownenergyforthelonghaul?Whatdoleadersdopersonallytohelpfacilitategrowth?

JillZucker:Oneisreallyacadence—orarhythm—oftimetoreflectandrenew.Whatarethemomentsinthecalendarthatarepredeterminedwhereyou’regoingtotakeastepbackandmakesureyou’reontherightpath?Whatisthelearningjourneyyou’regoingtotakeyourselfandyourexecutiveteamon?

Howareyougoingtocontinuetoimmerseyourselfinthelatestthinking?Whatisthevisittothelatesttechinnovatorsthatyou’regoingtolearnfrom?Whatareyougoingtodogeographicallytounderstandwhat’shappeningaroundtheworldthatyoucanbringbacktoyourown

organization?

Whatdoesittaketoachieveandsustaingrowth?9

‘Weneedtobeagentsforgrowthfromahumanperspective,butwealsoneedtohelpourclientscreateagentsto

drivegrowthmoresystematically,usingthepowerofAIandgenAI.’

—GregKelly

Settingarealcadenceisimportant.Don’tletithappenbyaccident—thatyougotinvitedtoaconferenceormetsomeoneoverameal—butinsteadsetitintentionallyinyourexecutive

calendar.

Iseemanygrowthorganizationssay,“Februaryisourgrowthmonth.Atthestartoftheyear,wemakesurewe’rereallylearningexternallyaboutgrowth,andweusetheboard’sFebruary

strategymeetingtodothat.”

Itcanbeanytimeofyear.ButonecompanyI’mthinkingaboutdoesthisconsistently.Theyalwaysbringinreallycutting-edgethinkingandideasfortheexecutiveteaminpreparationfor—andultimatelyfordiscussionwith—theboard.

TheotherthingIwouldaddisthatgrowth,likemostthings,requiresre-underwriting.Giventhevolatilityintheworld,anideathatlooksgoodandtakesthreeyearstomaterializemight,inyeartwoandahalf,beonly80percentright.

Atthatpoint,youneedtore-underwritetheconditionsandunderstandwhat’sgoingtoworkandwhat’snot.AfailuremodeI’veseenis,“Well,weagreedonthisbigtechbuildthreeyearsago,sowe’remarchingforward,”withblindersontowhat’shappenedexternally.

Whenyousuggestre-underwriting,peoplesometimessay,“Whywouldwere-underwrite?Thisiswhatweagreedto.”Butweknownewthings36monthslater,andit’simportanttohavea

feedbackmechanismtoaccountforthat.

RobertaFusaro:Thishasbeenincrediblyhelpful,andIknowtheresearch