What: McKinsey identifies 10 shifts which have transformed organisations.

Why it is important: Even though the pandemic is now over and a thing of the past, the changes it brought in the way we work are still heavily felt and are game-changers for deciders.

The State of Organizations 2023 report by McKinsey discusses the significant organizational shifts that businesses across the world are currently grappling with. These include dealing with economic volatility, geopolitical instability, and the residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report identifies 10 key organizational shifts and offers advice on how to navigate them. These shifts are related to various areas, such as organizing for speed to enhance resilience, striking a balance between in-person and remote work models, addressing the declining mental health of employees, and creating new institutional capabilities amidst rapid technological changes.

The report is based on a survey of over 2,500 business leaders worldwide, conducted between May and June 2022. The results revealed that only half of the organizations felt adequately prepared to anticipate and react to external shocks, while two-thirds viewed their organizations as overly complex and inefficient.

The report recommends four points to consider in addressing the ten organizational shifts:

1. Setting a direction to calibrate their ambition, which may involve fine-tuning to flatten structures and clarify roles, or a more radical transformation.
2. Cultivating talent regardless of the type of transformation undertaken.
3. Investing in leadership that will propel the organization forward.
4. Integrating all these aspects to ensure that large-scale changes can occur within an organization that is prepared to adapt to new situations, challenges, and opportunities

The state of organisations 2023