Arne Gast is at the core of our People & Organizational Performance practice and is the global leader of Mckinsey’s change offerings. He is also the cofounder and current chair of Aberkyn, our specialized change leadership facilitation group. Over the last seven years, Arne has spearheaded our organizational initiatives across the Asia-Pacific region.
Arne works across diverse sectors such as retail platforms, financial institutions, telecommunications, energy, airlines, and public services. He focuses on shaping positive transformation programs that shift purpose and strategy, boost performance, and improve organizational health. With over two decades at McKinsey, he has supported hundreds of leaders in refining and broadening their capabilities to drive transformational change.
Arne has extensive experience across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
Recent examples of his work include the following:
- Facilitating the transformation of a key player in the chemical industry by driving positive change and improving organizational health, focusing strongly on enhancing top team effectiveness, top70 empowerment, and restructuring the operational framework
- Supporting the transformation of global pulp and paper company by crafting a new operating model, establishing a corporate academy, and modifying core HR systems, including performance management, rewards, and recruiting
- Supporting top platform companies in navigating hypergrowth and profit-push by implementing top-team leadership development programs and designing agile operating models with increased accountability
- Empowering the transformation of a global medical technology company by building organizational health, refining top-team leadership, and redesigning talent systems
- Enabling the purpose-driven transformation of a bank by designing an innovative talent strategy, championing positive change, and supporting the leadership team for seamless execution
- Driving the lean transformation of a top health insurance company by overhauling commercial strategy and launching a Leadership Academy to equip executives for lean operations
- Executing the merger integration and growth strategy for a global dairy cooperative, including organizational design, executive leadership development, and post-merger human resources system redesign
Arne was part of the teams that wrote “Deliberate Calm,” “Beyond Performance,” “Reorg,” “Mobilizing Minds,” and “Blue Ocean Strategy.” He regularly publishes in the McKinsey Quarterly and shares his ideas through podcasts and guest lectures.
Passionate about education, Arne founded leerKRACHT Foundation, collaborating with teachers in over 1000 Dutch schools to improve student outcomes. He serves on the board of UWC Maastricht, played a role in launching a school for gifted children, facilitated at the Dutch Moroccan Leadership Institute, and assisted multiple universities in shaping their strategy.