Bob Sternfels
Global Managing Partner, Bay Area
Bob serves as the global managing partner of McKinsey & Company
ABOUT BOB
Bob is the global managing partner of McKinsey & Company and chairs the firm's board of directors. His focus is ensuring McKinsey lives up to its dual mission of helping our clients realize lasting and substantial improvements in their performance; while also attracting, developing and retaining exceptional people in an inclusive culture.
Bob is a founding member and chair of the African Leadership Group Advisory Board and sits on the boards of the US China Business Council, New York City Jobs Council, FCLTGlobal and The Singapore Economic Development Board. He is an active member of the Business Roundtable, Asia Business Council, Tsinghua SEM Advisory Board, Trilateral Commission and the Council on Foreign Relations.
Bob is a graduate of Stanford University and the University of Oxford. He serves in a personal capacity on the board of QuestBridge, the advisory board of USA Water Polo, and as a trustee of the Rhodes Trust. He is also a private pilot. Bob is married to Ashley, and they have three children.
PUBLISHED WORK
“Space: The missing element of your strategy,” McKinsey & Company, March 2023
“Seizing the momentum to build resilience for a future of sustainable inclusive growth,” McKinsey & Company, February 2023
“A devilish duality: How CEOs can square resilience with net-zero promises,” McKinsey Quarterly, November 2022
“Strategic courage in an age of volatility,” McKinsey Quarterly, August 2022
“Resilience for sustainable, inclusive growth,” McKinsey & Company, June 2022
“Three keys to a resilient postpandemic recovery,” McKinsey & Company, February 2022
“Why do we serve high-emissions companies? Because that is where the emissions are.” McKinsey & Company, October 2021
“Our future lives and livelihoods: Sustainable and inclusive and growing,” McKinsey Quarterly, October 2021
“Return as a muscle: How lessons from COVID-19 can shape a robust operating model for hybrid and beyond,” McKinsey Quarterly, July 2021
The economic state of Black America: What is and what could be, McKinsey Global Institute, June 2021
“Speed and resilience: Five priorities for the next five months,” McKinsey & Company, March 2021
“Reenergizing an exhausted organization: A conversation with Admiral John Richardson,” McKinsey Quarterly, December 2020
“The emerging resilients: Achieving ‘escape velocity’,” McKinsey & Company, October 2020
“What now? Decisive actions to emerge stronger in the next normal,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“Unleashing sustainable speed in a post-COVID world: Reimagine structure,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“As you return from the summer break, can you lead toward a COVID-Exit?,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“Unleashing sustainable speed in a post-COVID world: Rethink ways of working,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“Ready, set, go: Reinventing the organization for speed in the post-COVID-19 era,” McKinsey & Company, June 2020
“Return: A new muscle, not just a plan,” McKinsey & Company, May 2020
“A roadmap for a digital transformation,” McKinsey & Company, March 2017
“Trend spotting: Qualcomm executives consider the next wave of growth in semiconductors,” McKinsey & Company, September 2014
EDUCATION
University of Oxford
MA, politics, philosophy, economics (Rhodes Scholar)
Stanford University
BA, economics, history