Russell co-leads the McKinsey Center for Future Mobility and its work in mobility disrupters in the Americas. He joined McKinsey in 2003 and has focused on strategic and operational transformations within the global automotive industry and multiple related areas over the past 13 years. He co-leads the global automotive knowledge agenda for the practice and is a core leader within the McKinsey Center for Future Mobility.
Examples of his work include the following:
- accelerating operational transformation for a global automotive original-equipment manufacturer (OEM) across multiple regions (Europe, North America, and South America)
- optimizing manufacturing capital expenditures and vendor tooling costs for a global automotive OEM
- leading product-development organizational transformation from regional to global focus for a major global manufacturer
- conducting due diligence across a variety of organizations prior to and post acquisition
Prior to McKinsey, Russell led vehicle engineering at Ricardo Consulting Engineers in North America and North American operations for Motor Industry Research Association North America.
Published work
“Dealmaking through challenges: Lessons from the automotive industry,” McKinsey & Company, February 2025
“Will today’s environment affect vehicle purchase decisions for US consumers?,” McKinsey & Company, December 2023
“Electric vehicles are here and large-scale adoption is … near?,” McKinsey & Company, November 2022
“Scaling electric-vehicle infrastructure to meet demand,” McKinsey & Company, October 2022
“The 125th anniversary of the little engine that couldn’t,” McKinsey & Company, September 2022
“Connected revolution: The future of US auto insurance,” McKinsey & Company, September 2022
“The future of navigation in a digitized world: An interview with what3words’s Clare Jones,” McKinsey & Company, August 2022
“Can the automotive industry scale fast enough?,” McKinsey & Company, May 2022
“Electrifying the bottom line: How OEMs can boost EV profitability,” McKinsey & Company, November 2021
“Why the automotive future is electric,” McKinsey & Company, September 2021
“How the automotive industry is accelerating out of the turn,” McKinsey Quarterly, July 2021
“Electric mobility after the crisis: Why an auto slowdown won’t hurt EV demand,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“Improving battery-electric-vehicle profitability through reduced structural costs,” McKinsey & Company, September 2020
“The impact of COVID-19 on future mobility solutions,” McKinsey & Company, May 2020
“Winning the race for talent: A road map for the automotive industry,” McKinsey & Company, February 2020
“The road ahead for e-mobility,” McKinsey & Company, January 2020
“How sharing the road is likely to transform American mobility,” McKinsey & Company, April 2019
“Making electric vehicles profitable,” McKinsey & Company, March 2019
“Charging ahead: Understanding the electric-vehicle infrastructure challenge,” McKinsey & Company, August 2018
“The potential impact of electric vehicles on global energy systems,” McKinsey & Company, August 2018
“The future of mobility in India: Challenges & opportunities for the auto component industry,” McKinsey & Company, September 2017
“A roadmap to the future for the auto industry,” McKinsey Quarterly, October 2014
“Battery technology charges ahead,” McKinsey Quarterly, July 2012
Past experience
Ricardo Consulting Engineers
Vehicle engineering operations, North America
Motor Industry Research Association North America
Vehicle engineering operations
Education
University of Michigan
MBA
Leeds University, England
BEng, mechanical engineering
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