3 McKinsey Communication Hacks You Should Know
By Fernando Okumura, Venture Builder | Former McKinsey and JPMorgan M&A
Here are 3 everyday communications hacks I learned at McKinsey. They kept my interactions more structured and to the point for many years. Hope they can do the same for you.
Hack # 1: PIRN — Progress, Insights, Road Blocks, Next Steps
Use it for project update meetings or routine checkpoints. If you structure your report this way, it will make your manager’s life much easier.
At the beginning of the meeting, after the appropriate ice breakers, say something like “I organized this update in 4 parts: Progress, Insights, Road Blocks, and Next Steps”. After you and your manager get used to this framework, you can skip this intro.
1.1) Progress
In Progress, you tell which tasks you have completed since the last update. Be brief and objective. If your list is large, group your items and prioritize. Let your manager ask for more details if necessary. For example, in an inside sales routine meeting, you would cover things like the number of closed deals, demos performed, qualified leads, etc.
1.2) Insights
Insights is what you have learned that “changes the answer”. Changing the answer is improving how things are done in the company or changing the direction of the project. If it does not change the answer, it is not an insight.
Find out how your work (or the larger process it fits in) can be done more effectively or efficiently. For example, in Sales, it could be an adjustment in the Demo playbook; in CS, an improvement in the onboarding process; in technology, a new tool that decreases the development cycle; in product, a new pricing format.
Insights do not “happen”, you need to be proactive and deliberate. In my first project at McKinsey, I was required to leave a voicemail to my EM with these 4 items every day. This forced me to actively seek them during the day and prioritize my activities accordingly. I’d constantly ask myself “How does what I’m about to do corroborate/change the answer?” and write down the insights. I started doing things with a much greater sense of purpose.
In addition, it also helped consolidate some good habits. For example, since Progress was similar to my To Do List, I jotted it down at the beginning of the day. This helped me plan tasks and have discipline and focus throughout the day.
Note: If your work is more execution-focused, generating insights is icing on the cake. For example, if you are in sales, your priority is to crush your quota. However, if you are in a more strategic position, your cake is to generate insights.
1.3) Road Blocks
Here you talk about things that are slowing you down or bottlenecks. You say what the problems and implications are, suggest a solution, and validate it with your boss/team (use the PIR framework below). If there are no Road Blocks, just say ~ “No Road Blocks at this point”.
1.4) Next Steps
Finally, Insights and Road Blocks can change your Work Plan. Make sure you and your boss/team are on the same page about what comes next. This is good Expectation Management.
Remember Satisfaction = Reality — Expectation. If you want people to be satisfied, you over deliver and/or manage expectations.
Hack # 2: PIR — Problem, Implication, Resolution
Use it when reporting a problem. It will force you to think and plan before taking your manager’s time. She will thank you for that (and you may realize you don’t even need to discuss it with her at all).
When approaching your manager, do not beat around the bush, be objective. Say something like “[Name], I came across a Road Block and I want to run my solution by you. Can you let me know when you have a few minutes? Thanks.” This way, your manager will not have to spend energy/time diagnosing what you want.
2.1) Problem
Here you tell it like it is, without sugar coating. For example, “There was a critical bug in the last deploy and our service is down since 6:00am this morning”. Saying things the way they are fundamental for good problem solving. A good boss will focus on the solution, not kill the messenger.
2.2) Implications
Here you explain the consequences of the problem. That is, you anticipate the “So what?” that are sure to follow you problem statement.
For example, “There was a critical bug in the last deploy”. The implication is that our service has been down since 6am this morning and our clients have been loosing sales since. We estimate they’ve lost US$ X million by now. If we don’t fix it they’ll keep loosing $ Y by the hour. This will impact our reputation and future sales.
Describing the implications is important so that your manager can understand and prioritize the problem. Your boss is not always able to assess the severity of the situation alone, especially if it is a technical area she does not master.
If your doctor told you “You have Hodgkin’s disease” and stopped there, this information alone would probably be of little use to you. So you would have to use your time research it and understand its severity without even knowing how serious it was. It’s an inefficient use of your time.
2.3) Resolution
After telling what the problem is and its implications, offer a solution. You don’t want to be the person who only brings problems. It will also show your problem-solving abilities, maybe the most sought after skills in any professional.
Hack # 3: PPP — Purpose, Process, Payout
Use it at the start of meetings and calls. It will make you think and plan before interacting with your colleagues. In addition, it will put everyone on the same page at the outset. No one will waste energy deciphering the reason for being there and will be able to channel their energy to what matters.
3.1) Purpose
After the appropriate icebreakers, say “The purpose/goal of this call/meeting is XYZ.” For example, “The purpose of this call is to make a mutual diagnosis and see if there is a fit between our solution and your challenges.”
3.2) Process
The Process is how you will achieve the goal. For example, “… To that end, we will ask listen do John’s report on HR and ask Katie 2–3 questions about finance to understand your context. Then we’ll demo the features relevant to your situation. At the end of the demo, will we have a Q&A. The process should take 30 minutes. ”
With this opening, you put everyone on the same page about what is to come. It helps people keep track of where you’re going and their role. This promotes engagement and makes the interaction more effective and efficient.
3.3) Payout
Payout is what you expect to take away from the conversation/call. For example, a Work Plan, a Business Proposal, etc.
In our example, the conversation opening would look like this:
“The purpose of this call is to make a mutual diagnosis and see if there is a fit between our solution and your challenges.”
“To that end, we will ask listen do John’s report on HR and ask Katie 2–3 questions about finance to understand your context. Then we’ll demo the features relevant to your situation. At the end of the demo, will we have a Q&A. The process should take 30 minutes. ”
“By the end of this meeting, you should have a formal proposal that fits your budget and needs to discuss internally”
By opening the meeting this way, you make clear to everyone the goal of being there, how you want to achieve it, how they can help, and what they’ll get. No one wastes time wondering, “what’s the point?”, “What are we doing?”, “Why are we talking about it?”, etc. Engagement will be much greater and meeting times will decrease.
Conclusion
Hope these 3 hacks make your days more productive. They have worked wonders for me for many years. Special thanks to Jonh Lydon and Chloe Lamb for teaching me these.
PS: These hacks are totally focused on task completion. To be an effective leader in the long run, you need to balance task completion with your ability to influence/lead. If you’re curious about this, read my other LinkedIn article: The Parallel Dimension of Leadership.
Fernando Okumura has been a serial entrepreneur, investor and digital venture builder for 14 years. Backed by VCs (e.g., Accel) and Corporates (Groupon). Former strategy consultant at BCG and McKinsey, and M&A banker at JPMorgan. Attorney at law.
Liked this article, and curious to know more? Drop me a note at fyo@alumni.stanford.edu
Other articles by Fernando Okumura:
