Simplifying AI transformation at scale: Wave by McKinsey launches on AWS Marketplace
Scaling transformation remains one of the hardest problems to solve in enterprise leadership—and one of the most “undertooled.” As organizations face increasing pressure to transform and adapt to turbulent times, a persistent challenge remains: Defining ambition and strategic priorities is easier than execution. Organizations struggle to implement coordinated, consistent action across the enterprise and translate strategic priorities into measurable outcomes.
Wave is designed to address this gap. It supports organizations across successive waves of change, helping teams move from diligence and goal setting to planning and execution while maintaining continuity. Beyond tracking performance, it enables real-time execution management—mobilizing teams, coordinating initiatives, and embedding new capabilities across the organization.
Built on insights from more than 2,000 client engagements and 2.3 million initiatives, Wave brings together McKinsey’s transformation experience, implementation expertise, and proprietary performance data in a platform that supports ideating, planning, tracking, and continuous management of ambitious, large-scale change programs.
“Wave underpins McKinsey’s transformation approach because it embeds the firm’s best practices and expertise directly into how organizations execute change,” says McKinsey Partner Michel Morenville, global coleader of Wave. “With the introduction of AI coaches, Wave is evolving from a system of record into an intelligent assistant that helps teams apply that expertise in real time.”
Making Wave available in AWS Marketplace significantly expands access—allowing organizations to obtain and deploy the platform through existing AWS procurement agreements and accelerate time to value.
AWS Marketplace enables organizations to discover, procure, and manage technology solutions within a single environment, supporting streamlined procurement, centralized governance, and faster deployment of enterprise capabilities. Including Wave in this channel broadens access for organizations that already have a relationship with AWS and simplifies integration into existing technology and operating environments—delivering a more streamlined path to enterprise-wide impact.
“Collaborating with AWS accelerates how we bring scalable, AI-powered transformation solutions to our clients worldwide," says Tony Fagan, London-based global coleader of Wave by McKinsey. McKinsey Transformation’s ability to pair cutting-edge technology with advisory services is now stronger, more visible, and more credible—making end-to-end delivery more seamless.”
Snapshot of Wave’s impact
Wave has supported organizations across industries in scaling transformation programs and delivering measurable results, contributing to more than $50 billion in value creation.
Materials: From episodic transformation to enterprise-wide performance
A global materials company has used Wave for more than a decade to support a continuous improvement program that has generated more than $9 billion in value. What began as a focused turnaround evolved into an enterprise-wide effort, with more than 21,000 initiatives tracked globally in a single, real-time system. Wave enabled consistent governance, standardized value tracking, and a unified view of performance across regions.
Consumer goods: Big savings, record pace
A global food supplier used Wave to coordinate more than 500 transformation initiatives across commercial, procurement, operations, and organizational redesign workstreams. The platform was deployed in three weeks and quickly became the central hub for more than 250 employees, with many using it daily to manage execution. The program identified approximately $105 million in EBITDA potential.
Manufacturing: Real-time tracking delivers value
A global manufacturing company used Wave to support a large-scale transformation targeting $2 billion in value. The platform enabled real-time tracking of nearly 43,000 initiatives across 3,000 employees globally. The program is on track to deliver approximately $5.5 billion in value, more than twice the original target.
