{
  "id": 13890892,
  "title": "McKinsey strips partner of leadership role over LinkedIn posts",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/mckinsey-strips-partner-of-leadership-role-over-linkedin-posts-13890892",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-12T06:15:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Straits Times Business",
    "slug": "straits-times-business",
    "url": "https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/mckinsey-strips-partner-of-leadership-role-over-linkedin-posts"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "McKinsey & Co. has terminated the leadership position of senior partner Chris Bradley within the firm's research division following his LinkedIn posts questioning the challenges faced by female executives. Bradley, a director at McKinsey Global Institute, remains a senior partner based in Australia. The decision stemmed from an internal review initiated by his online debate with an author of a book on the \"glass cliff\" phenomenon, which describes the tendency to promote female leaders to CEO roles during company downturns. McKinsey distanced itself from Bradley's remarks, stating that they did not align with the firm's standards. The term \"glass cliff\" was coined by academics to describe the occurrence of women being appointed to CEO positions during crises. Bradley's deleted posts expressed skepticism about the existence of the concept. McKinsey has previously addressed workplace challenges for women through its \"Women in the Workplace\" study, conducted with Sheryl Sandberg's LeanIn organization. The study reveals that women leaders encounter more resistance and have their judgments questioned more frequently than male counterparts. Despite these challenges, women CEOs of Russell 3000 companies have a shorter average tenure (6.2 years) compared to their male counterparts (8.9 years). As of the latest data, only one in ten S&P 500 companies is led by a female CEO.",
  "summary": "Chris Bradley called the glass cliff “a very convenient way to always be a victim in the rain”.",
  "key_points": [
    "McKinsey fired Chris Bradley from leadership role",
    "Bradley questioned female exec challenges on LinkedIn",
    "Firm distanced from Bradley's controversial remarks"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The removal of a senior leader over social media debates signals that professional consulting firms now view public skepticism toward gender-based workplace challenges as a direct violation of corporate standards.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Moneyweb",
        "title": "McKinsey strips partner of leadership role over LinkedIn posts",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/mckinsey-strips-partner-of-leadership-role-over-linkedin-posts",
        "published": "2026-10-12T02:05:57.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}