Rita McGrath
Rita McGrath is a strategy author, Columbia Business School educator, and host of Thought Sparks, where she explores innovation and change with writers and business leaders.
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Rita’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Overview
- Work
- Author, strategy educator, speaker, and Thought Sparks host
- Education
- Barnard BA, 1981; Columbia MPA, 1982; Wharton PhD, 1993
- At Columbia
- Joined Columbia Business School in 1993
- Signature idea
- Discovery-driven planning, developed with Ian C. MacMillan
- Recognition
- No. 6 in the 2025 Thinkers50 ranking
Mini bio
How it started.
Before business school, Rita worked for the City of New York. Helping automate its purchasing system drew her into questions about how large organizations change. She returned to study at Wharton and joined Columbia Business School in 1993.
Ideas that traveled.
At Wharton, Rita began a long collaboration with Ian C. MacMillan. Their 1995 Harvard Business Review article, Discovery-Driven Planning, became a signature contribution. They went on to write The Entrepreneurial Mindset, MarketBusters, and Discovery-Driven Growth together.
Seeing change sooner.
The End of Competitive Advantage, published in 2013, challenged the assumption that companies can rely on lasting advantages. Seeing Around Corners followed in 2019, exploring how to spot the signals of major market shifts before they become obvious.
Where fans find her now.
Rita brings those questions to Thought Sparks through a podcast, newsletter, and essays. She also directs Leading Strategic Growth and Change at Columbia and founded Valize to help organizations put discovery-driven growth into practice.
Creditschronological, newest first
Books
- 2019Seeing Around CornersAuthor
- 2013The End of Competitive AdvantageAuthor
- 2009Discovery-Driven GrowthCo-author with Ian C. MacMillan
- 2005MarketBustersCo-author with Ian C. MacMillan
- 2000The Entrepreneurial MindsetCo-author with Ian C. MacMillan
Articles
- 1995Discovery-Driven PlanningCo-author with Ian C. MacMillan, Harvard Business Review
Awards
Quotes
I thought it would be amazing to teach and to help other people learn.Rita McGrath, interview with Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, April 27, 2018
Explaining why she went to business school. Source: https://antonionietorodriguez.com/interview-with-rita-mcgrath/
Trivia
- Her mother made her take typing classes at 18 so she would have a way to support herself.
- She worked in politics and two start-ups before her academic career.
- She has said she reads widely and seeks out people who challenge her thinking.
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