McKinsey boss Sneader ousted following poor crisis handling
McKinsey global managing partner Kevin Sneader has been voted out of his position following a perceived poor handling of a succession of crises.
All 650 of McKinsey’s senior partners routinely vote every three years on who should lead the firm, but, according to the Financial Times, this year’s election was seen as a referendum on Sneader’s handling of crises including US states’ litigation over McKinsey’s advice to opioid manufacturers, and its work in autocratic countries around the world.
Earlier this month the firm agreed to pay $574m to settle lawsuits brought by 49 US states over its advice to Purdue Pharma and other opioid manufacturers accused of fuelling an epidemic of prescription drug overdoses.
In a statement McKinsey said: “Every three years, McKinsey’s senior partners elect one of their colleagues to serve as the firm’s global managing partner. The election, which is conducted by an independent third-party firm, is now underway and we will announce the result after the election concludes.”
According to the FT, the next McKinsey head will be either senior partner and head of client capabilities Bob Sternfels, or Sven Smit, senior partner and co-chairman of the McKinsey Global Institute.