Bob Sternfels, Global Managing Partner at McKinsey, discusses how corporate hiring criteria are shifting away from school prestige toward raw intrinsic capabilities due to AI integration.
“It actually means that where you went to school matters a lot less.”
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More from Bob Sternfels
Disclosure
Sternfels: McKinsey will grow client-facing consulting headcount 25% next year
“We're growing that body at 25% next year.”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 18:16Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
AssertionNot checkable as stated
McKinsey cut non-client-facing staff 25% while increasing output 10% with AI
“At the same time though, about half our firm are non-client facing folks. We're down 25% in that group with 10% increase in output.”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 18:58Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
Disclosure
McKinsey employs 40,000 humans alongside 25,000 personalized AI agents
“40,025 thousand, that is the number of humans we have and the number of personalized agents we have as of last week in McKinsey.”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 29:35Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
Insight
Sternfels: Corporate success today is less about strategy and more about organizational speed
“And I haven't met a CEO yet that isn't talking about how do I get my organization moving faster? It's quite frankly less about strategy. It's more about organizational speed.”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 4:19Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
Insight
Sternfels: Scaling enterprise AI ROI in non-tech companies is harder than expected
“Realizing enterprise at scale value in non-technology companies is proving harder than people think.”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 9:05Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
AssertionContradicted
McKinsey: Employee skill ROI period dropped from 7 to 3.6 years
“We've done some work at our global institute that said for an employer, the return on investment that you give an employee in terms of skills has shrunk by about half over the last 30 years. It used to be about seven years return. It's less than four years, so…”
Bob SternfelsJan 14, 2026▶ 29:01Why AI will dwarf every tech revolution before it: robots, manufacturing, AR glasses from CES 2026
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