Business Consulting Problem Solving

The McKinsey Way (Summary)

by Ethan M. Rasiel

Imagine spending weeks on a brilliant solution, only to have it shot down in the final presentation. McKinsey consultants have a secret to avoid this: they never walk into a big meeting without knowing the outcome. The real work isn't the final slideshow; it's the series of one-on-one 'pre-wire' meetings with key stakeholders to get their buy-in before the formal presentation even begins. The big meeting is just a formality.

Don't Just Solve the Problem, Dissect It

Before searching for answers, you must break down a problem into a framework that is Mutually Exclusive (no overlaps) and Collectively Exhaustive (no gaps). This 'MECE' principle prevents wasted effort and ensures you've covered all your bases.

A client wants to increase profits. Instead of brainstorming random ideas (cut costs, raise prices), a McKinsey consultant first breaks profits into its core components: Profits = Revenue - Costs. Then they break down Revenue (Price x Volume) and Costs (Fixed + Variable). This logical tree allows them to systematically investigate each distinct driver of profit without missing anything or duplicating work.

Find the 20% of Work That Drives 80% of the Results

In any complex problem, a small number of factors will have a disproportionately large impact. The key is to relentlessly identify and focus your energy on these high-leverage areas instead of trying to analyze everything equally.

When analyzing a company's declining sales, instead of examining all 500 product lines, a consultant might find that just 20 of them account for 85% of the revenue drop. The entire team's focus then shifts to understanding and fixing the problem with those 20 specific products, ignoring the other 480 for the time being.

If You Can't Explain It in 30 Seconds, You Don't Understand It

Your solution and its core logic must be so clear and concise that you can explain it to a busy executive in the time it takes for a short elevator ride. This forces you to distill your complex analysis into a simple, powerful, and memorable message.

After a three-month project, a team’s final recommendation isn’t a 100-page report. It's a single, powerful statement: 'We must exit the European market because our two main competitors have an insurmountable cost advantage, and we can reinvest that capital for a 25% higher return in Asia.'

Don't Reinvent the Wheel. Ever.

McKinsey heavily relies on its internal knowledge base and past projects. The first step in solving a new problem is to find out how someone, somewhere, has solved a similar problem before. Originality is less important than effectiveness and speed.

When a team is tasked with optimizing a supply chain for a retail client, their first move isn't to start from scratch. They search the firm's global database for 'retail supply chain,' pulling up dozens of case studies, frameworks, and expert contacts from previous projects, giving them a massive head start.

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