Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
Widening the performance
Resilience | Strategy
October 28, 2022 – In times of adversity, it’s important for business models to be resilient. High-performing companies invest more time than others clarifying goals and setting strategy, allowing them to take immediate steps in a crisis, say McKinsey senior partner Ida Kristensen and coauthors. According to their analysis of 1,100 publicly traded companies with revenues exceeding $1 billion, those that outperformed leading up to and during the 2008 financial crisis were able to extend their lead in the years that followed.
To read the article, see “Something’s coming: How US companies can build resilience, survive a downturn, and thrive in the next cycle,” September 16, 2022.
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Visual form
Performance-gap comparison chart.
Layout / body structure
The chart is organized as a comparison of resilience winners and the rest of the field, with the reader moving across the business outcomes that separate them in a crisis and the next cycle. The layout is grouped and comparative rather than timeline heavy.
What is being compared
It compares high-performing companies and lower-performing companies on resilience-linked outcomes such as crisis response, strategic clarity, and the degree to which they widen their lead after adversity.
Measurement system
The page uses comparative performance metrics across a large company sample, so the reader is tracking relative outperformance rather than a single absolute measure.
Visible structure inside the graphic
The internal pieces are the paired outcome markers for winners and other firms, arranged so the performance spread becomes visible across multiple categories. The chart is built to show that the lead is not one metric wide but broad based.
Main takeaway from the visual
The page shows that resilient companies do not simply survive downturns; they come out with a wider lead. The chart ties that advantage to earlier strategic clarity and faster crisis action.
Key standout values or extremes
The strongest emphasis is on the widening gap between resilient winners and the rest of the sample through and after disruption. The article framing notes that the comparison comes from analysis of about 1,100 public companies with revenue above 1 billion dollars.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
This is a static chart image with no in-chart controls to operate.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart image is the full visual on this page.