Lareina brings nearly 25 years of experience in advising clients on growth, technology, and transformation. As one of the firm’s leading experts in AI and frontier technologies, she is a leader in the Tech Media and Telcom practice; a director of the McKinsey Global Institute, leading technology research; and the global head of McKinsey Alliances, which includes more than 100 technology collaborators that create world-class, custom tech capabilities for clients.
She is passionate about helping software and AI companies develop and bring new technologies to market. She works with organizations across industries to deploy these new capabilities to realize greater productivity, improve the relationship between people and machines, and spark innovation in their businesses.
Lareina’s recent research includes Technology Trends Outlook, The State of AI, The Economic Potential of Generative AI, and The CEO’s Guide to Generative AI, each of which examine long-term technology shifts and their implications for different industries. Lareina is the host of the podcast series “At the Edge” that features leading thinkers on technology trends, and she frequently speaks at leading global conferences and industry events.
Lareina has been involved in creating more inclusive workplaces for over a decade, serving as McKinsey’s first Chief Diversity Officer in 2018. Ten years ago, she co-founded Women in the Workplace, a research partnership with LeanIn.org that reports annually on the state of women in corporate America. She is also the co-author of the book, The Broken Rung, a guidebook for women seeking to reach their full potential at work. Lareina was recognized as one of Forbes Future of Work 50 in 2023 for her contributions in gender and technology.
In addition to her roles at McKinsey, Lareina serves on the board of the San Francisco Ballet and is a member of several academic advisory councils including the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University, Beyond Barnard Program at Columbia University, and the Artificial Intelligence for Business Program at the University of Southern California.
Videos & Podcasts
“When the career ladder breaks for women—and how to succeed anyway,” McKinsey & Company, March 2025
“AI in Action: An interactive learning journey,” McKinsey & Company, February 2025
“The case for human-centered AI,” McKinsey & Company, December 2024
“Internet cocreator on how to make the internet more accessible,” McKinsey & Company, December 2024
“What McKinsey learned while creating its generative AI platform,” McKinsey & Company, November 2024
“Keeping artificial intelligence real,” McKinsey & Company, October 2024
“Technology alone is never enough for true productivity,” McKinsey & Company, September 2024
“A look at the technology trends that matter most,” McKinsey & Company, September 2024
“The key to accelerating AI development? Pragmatism plus imagination,” McKinsey & Company, August 2024
“Embrace gen AI with eyes wide open,” McKinsey & Company, July 2024
“Busting myths about women in the workplace,” McKinsey & Company, January 2024
“Middle managers hold the key to unlock generative AI,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, July 2023
“McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2023,” McKinsey & Company, July 2023
“Generative AI and the future of HR,” McKinsey & Company, June 2023
“Women in the workplace: Breaking up to break through,” McKinsey & Company, February 2023
“The state of burnout for women in the workplace,” McKinsey & Company, January 2022
“McKinsey and Lean In: New details on gender gap,” Wall Street Journal, October 2018
“Women face a steeper path to leadership in workplace: Lean In president,” CNBC, October 2017
“Lareina Yee at PBWC17,” 2017 Professional BusinessWomen of California, March 2017
“Everything You Want to Know About Sales Growth but are Afraid to Ask,” Dreamforce, October 2016
“A continuing struggle for ‘Women in the Workplace,’” Bloomberg, September 30, 2016
“Ending the gender gap in workplace promotions,” Fox Business, September 28, 2016
“Why Do Women Keep Hitting the Glass Ceiling?” Bloomberg, September 30, 2015
“Megatrends: What it means for sales,” McKinsey on Marketing & Sales, August 2015
Publications
“Open source technology in the age of AI,” McKinsey & Company, April 2025
“To climb to the top, women should focus on skill building,” McKinsey & Company, April 2025
“The state of AI: How organizations are rewiring to capture value,” McKinsey & Company, March 2025
“How women can steer toward growing industries and companies,” McKinsey Quarterly, February 2025
“Quantum communication growth drivers: Cybersecurity and quantum computing,” McKinsey & Company, February 2025
“Superagency in the workplace: Empowering people to unlock AI’s full potential,” McKinsey & Company, January 2025
“Women in the Workplace 2024: The 10th-anniversary report,” McKinsey & Company, September 2024
"An unconstrained future: How generative AI could reshape B2B sales,” McKinsey & Company, September 2024
“Approaching generative AI with a beginner’s mindset,” McKinsey & Company, August 2024
“Why agents are the next frontier of generative AI,” McKinsey Quarterly, July 2024
McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2024, McKinsey & Company, July 2024
“The state of AI in early 2024: Gen AI adoption spikes and starts to generate value,” McKinsey & Company, May 2024
“Implementing generative AI with speed and safety,” McKinsey Quarterly, March 2024
“The state of AI in 2023: Generative AI’s breakout year,” McKinsey & Company, August 2023
“How generative AI could support—not replace—human resources,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, July 2023
“The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier,” McKinsey & Company, June 2023
“What every CEO should know about generative AI,” McKinsey & Company, May 2023
“Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lighthouses 2023,” McKinsey & Company, January 2023
“Generative AI is here: How tools like ChatGPT could change your business,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022
“Women in the Workplace 2022,” McKinsey & Company, October 2022
“McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2022,” McKinsey & Company, August 2022
“Race in the workplace: The frontline experience,” McKinsey & Company, July 2022
“Marketing in the metaverse: An opportunity for innovation and experimentation,” McKinsey Quarterly, May 2022
“Women in the Workplace 2021,” McKinsey & Company, September 2021
“Race in the workplace: The Black experience in the US private sector,” McKinsey & Company, February 2021
“The Questions Companies Should Ask Themselves to Prepare for a New Era of Business,” Fortune, November 2019
Technology and Sales:
“Ten trends redefining enterprise IT infrastructure,” McKinsey & Company, November 2017
“What enterprise-technology companies must know to drive digital-sales growth,” McKinsey & Company, October 2017
“Unlocking the power of data in sales,” McKinsey & Company, December 2016
“What sales executives need to get right for digital success,” McKinsey & Company, August 2016
“The sales secrets of high-growth companies,” McKinsey & Company, May 2016
“Is Your Sales Organization Ready for the Digital Revolution?,” Quotable, May 2016
Women in the Workplace:
“Even in the metaverse, women remain locked out of leadership roles,” McKinsey & Company, November 2022
“Weighing the pandemic’s impact on working moms,” ABC News, May 2021
“Creating a postpandemic recovery for women in the workplace,” McKinsey & Company, March 2021
“For mothers in the workplace, a year (and counting) like no other,” McKinsey & Company, May 2021
“COVID-19’s impact on Asian American workers: Six key insights,” McKinsey & Company, May 2021
“Women in the Workplace 2020,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“Ten things to know about gender equality,” McKinsey Global Institute, September 2020
“Confronting the early-career gender gap,” McKinsey Quarterly, January 2020
“Women in the Workplace 2019,” McKinsey & Company, October 2019
“The future of women at work: Transitions in the age of automation,” McKinsey Global Institute, June 2019
“One is the loneliest number,” McKinsey Quarterly, January 2019
“How to overcome the isolation of women in the workplace,” Wall Street Journal, October 23, 2018
“Women in the Workplace 2018,” LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Company, October 2018
“Still looking for room at the top: Ten years of research on women in the workplace,” McKinsey Quarterly, March 2018
“How companies can guard against gender fatigue,” McKinsey Quarterly, February 2018
“Delivering through diversity,” McKinsey & Company, January 2018
“Time for a new gender equality playbook,” McKinsey Quarterly, February 2017
“Women in the Workplace 2016,” a study undertaken by McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org, September 2016
“What It Will Take to Make the Tech Industry More Diverse,” Harvard Business Review, March 15, 2016
“Breaking down the gender challenge,” McKinsey Quarterly, March 2016
“Women in the Workplace,” a study undertaken by McKinsey and LeanIn.Org, September 2015
“Fostering women leaders: A fitness test for your top team,” McKinsey Quarterly, January 2015
Education
Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs
MA, economic policy
Columbia University (Barnard)
BA, history and political science
