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David Chinn

Senior PartnerTel Aviv

Leads our Israel office; helps clients in Israel and across Europe in the government, armed forces, and industrial sectors make substantial operational improvements and manage crises

David is a senior partner and managing partner of McKinsey's Israel office.

David previously led the Public & Social Sector Practice in Europe, established our work in the cybersecurity space, and led our services for defence ministries and armed forces globally.

Originally from London, David returned to Israel in 2021, bringing more than 20 years of experience serving companies across multiple industries on topics ranging from strategy to operational transformation and procurement. His focus over the last few years has been on government transformations with particular expertise in defence.

David’s projects have included multi-year transformations in aerospace and defence manufacturing, application of lean management techniques for maintenance and optimization of organization design and personnel management, and major corporate transformations covering topics including portfolio strategy, sales growth, and operational efficiency. He has supported multiple substantial transformations related to indirect and direct purchasing and supply-chain design and manufacturing.

David also aids McKinsey’s pro-bono efforts, applying his experience in military logistics to support disaster-recovery teams. He led our aid efforts following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, working with the Haitian government, leading NGOs, and other organizations in the international community to manage disaster recovery and reconstruction operations. He has played a major role in our COVID-19 support for governments in Europe.

Published work

Innovation and efficiency: Increasing Europe’s defense capabilities,” McKinsey & Company, February 2024

The future of European defense and security,” McKinsey & Company, February 2024

Invasion of Ukraine: Implications for European defense spending,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

How the British Field Army headquarters shifted to agile ways of working,” McKinsey & Company, November 2020

Navigating the post-COVID-19 era: A strategic framework for European recovery,” McKinsey & Company, June 2020

Well-being in Europe: Addressing the high cost of COVID-19 on life satisfaction,” McKinsey & Company, June 2020

Restoring public transit amid COVID-19: What European cities can learn from one another,” McKinsey & Company, June 2020

Lessons from the military for COVID-time leadership,” McKinsey & Company, May 2020

The future is now: Closing the skills gap in Europe’s public sector,” McKinsey & Company, April 2020

Safeguarding Europe’s livelihoods: Mitigating the employment impact of COVID-19,” McKinsey & Company, April 2020

Europe needs to prepare now to get back to work—safely,” McKinsey & Company, April 2020

Building agility in the British Army’s headquarters,” McKinsey & Company, October 2019

Asking the right questions to define government’s role in cybersecurity,” McKinsey & Company, September 2018

International defense sales: Opportunities, but not for all,” McKinsey & Company, March 2015

Risk and responsibility in a hyperconnected world: Implications for enterprises,” McKinsey & Company, January 2014

Enlisting productivity to reinforce European defense,” McKinsey & Company, August 2013

Preserving combat power when defense budgets are falling,” McKinsey & Company, April 2013

Supply chain transformation under fire,” McKinsey on Government, Spring 2010 (PDF–280 KB)

An expert view on defense procurement,” McKinsey on Government, Spring 2010 (PDF–272 KB)

Supply chain lessons from Haiti,” Supply Chain Management Review, September/October 2010

Past experience

Credit Suisse
Head of products; head of portal and marketing
1999-2001

National Institute for Testing and Selection, Israel
Researcher
1992-1993

Education

INSEAD
MBA, business administration

Carnegie Mellon University
MSc, cognitive psychology

Cambridge University
BA, natural sciences