S10.E14: McKinsey & Company

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Main topic:  McKinsey & Company Management Consultants

Also:  Callous commentator views re: conditions in Gaza; US Speaker of the House election; charges against Senator Bob Menendez; some things that turn Stuart Varney on

Original air date 2023.10.22

[Lantern7]

I don’t think I’ve heard a LWT audience groan as much as I just did. What a gruesome subject for John to cover. And he’ll probably be on McKinsley's shit list for revealing their physical address. Nice sketch afterward, but damn. Still waiting for a subject that causes John to snap and start uncontrollably screaming.

Edited October 23, 2023 by Lantern7

[Annber03]

"I'm not a violent person, but...if all those dickheads exploded, I would absolutely spin around singing, 'It's Raining Men'."

The loud, hard laugh I let out at this, OMG...XD. 

But wow, yeah, that's quite the...interesting history McKinsley has there. It amazes me how, in this day and age, with the media outlets we have out there and everything, people still think they can be so secretive with their activities, that nobody will ever find out what they're really up to, or that these things that were supposedly meant to be "internal" would not stay as such (presuming you buy that excuse, of course, which, yeah, no). That Saudi Arabia dissidents story was horrifying. But considering the company put itself in the same league of "greatness" as the freaking Catholic Church, well...yeah. Also not surprising that that sort of thing would happen. 

Speaking of scandals that I'm amazed anyone thinks they could get away with in this day and age...everything with Menendez and his wife. What. The. Hell? Just when you think things can't get any crazier with that scandal.. That hit and run story alone O____O. 

[peeayebee]

John's description of Bob Menendez as a Keebler elf who became a tax accountant is perfect. Not all of the stuff in this story was unknown to me, but wow. Crazy. Every single bit. 

I don't quite get why some companies think they need a consulting firm to figure out what to do about getting signatures on invoices on an oil rig. Was the oil company that dumb? Couldn't they consult their legal dept to ask if the signatures were really necessary? It just seems like a huge waste of money.

I certainly understand using McKinsey as a scapegoat to fire people and raise their exec salaries. I was thinking scapegoat before John said that. Still, of course, the amount of greed we see is rage-inducing.

McKinsey has no morals. They aren't in it for Good. I can easily see that the appeal for many of their employees is the challenge of solving a problem, with no consideration at all for consequences.

It was weird in that Squawk Box clip to see the three coat-less guys all looking like Jim Jordan.

[DoctorAtomic]

11 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

And he’ll probably be on McKinsley's shit list for revealing their physical address.

Technically, PBSNewshour already did. He just played the clip and showed you could use google maps to locate the office. 

I laughed at the 'how many pigs in China'. Well, it's not really about the answer. Yes, but any question related to a number is stupid because you can look it up. Asking something about production loss and market share due to a swine flu is about working out a problem. 

[heatherchandler]

https://emag.directindustry.com/2023/03/27/the-rise-of-mega-pig-farms-in-china/
 

I guess this is why Kinsey asks, they researched it.  I’m so horrified by this.  Poor things, the pigs.

Edited October 23, 2023 by heatherchandler

[Hanahope]

I love John bringing to light these topics that one can go their entire life never having heard of it before.  Yes, greed and corruption really are everywhere 

[Lantern7]

14 hours ago, peeayebee said:

John's description of Bob Menendez as a Keebler elf who became a tax accountant is perfect.

Didn't John also say that he looked like a mash-up of the old man and the scout from Up?

[Lois Sandborne]

I don't know why, but of all the hideous things this show has covered, this topic was the grimmest. The only thing I really laughed at was Jim Jordan's notes asking "what was the reason?" I came away nauseated by the thought of all that nebulous, ignorant, venal energy out in the world with that much power. That didn't even happen last week when John literally talked about fecal matter being sprayed on our vegetables.

[peeayebee]

8 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Didn't John also say that he looked like a mash-up of the old man and the scout from Up?

Yes. I liked the first line better.

5 hours ago, Lois Sandborne said:

The only thing I really laughed at was Jim Jordan's notes asking "what was the reason?"

I love when a camera catches the writing on someone's notes. You'd think that by now people would be more careful about keeping stuff like that covered up.

[bilgistic]

In 1999–2001, I worked at a government contracting company. They were circling the drain when they brought on a "consulting firm" to try to right the ship. I went on sick leave because my mental health was shit because of the working conditions, and they fired me while I was on leave. I filed suit against them and by the time we settled, they were going through bankruptcy.

TL;DR: I cast a long side eye at consulting firms.

[andromeda331]

I don't have much to say except that was depressing. Mentioning Purdue reminded me again of those who got away with the opioid crisis and now apparently the consulting firm too.  

[ProudMary]

New, from Reuters:

McKinsey faces US criminal probe over opioids work, sources say

McKinsey & Co is under criminal investigation in the United States over allegations that the consulting firm played a key role in fueling the opioid epidemic, with federal prosecutors homing in on its work advising OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma and other drugmakers, three people familiar with the matter said.

...

The Justice Department is also investigating whether McKinsey conspired to commit healthcare fraud when its consulting work for companies selling opioids allegedly resulted in fraudulent claims being made to government programs such as Medicare, they said.

Prosecutors are also looking at whether McKinsey obstructed justice, an inquiry related to McKinsey's disclosure that it had fired two partners who communicated about deleting documents related to their opioids work, the people said.

...

It carries higher stakes than other government investigations McKinsey has resolved because of the potential for criminal charges against the company or executives, and steep financial penalties that the Justice Department often demands in exchange for resolving its white-collar probes.