A premier crisis management expert, a retail and media giant, and a DIY powerhouse

| Obituary
Our January obituaries also include a plasma screen inventor, a backpack trendsetter, and a Holocaust survivor who became a five-time Olympic gold medalist.

Integrity is at the core of people-first leadership. A skilled negotiator, former Time Warner CEO Richard Parsons mitigated conflict during the unsuccessful merger between the media giant and AOL. As chair of Citigroup, he restored relationships with regulators during the financial crisis. While his reputation earned him the trust and respect of the corporate world, his desire to be a force for good also resonated.

Donald J. Hall, former Hallmark CEO, was considered by the conglomerate to have “lived our beliefs and values,” not only through the nonviolent, family-centered programming he promoted on its television networks, but also through the community causes he supported. Just as Hall uplifted those around him, Home Depot cofounder and CEO Bernard Marcus—who believed he was unfairly terminated from a former job—assumed a people-first approach in his new role. He cultivated customers by sharing profits via steep discounts. In addition to paying employees above minimum wage, he added stock options that ultimately made millionaires out of junior staffers.

McKinsey on Lives & Legacies

Highlighting the lasting impact of leaders and executives

Explore previous obituaries

Explore more

A visionary music producer, reflects on a career that reshaped the soundscape of a generation.
A music legend, a pioneering investment strategist, and a Nobel Prize–winning physicist
-
Our December obituaries also include a Navajo code talker, a trailblazing economist, and an innovative doctor who invented a simple folk remedy for cholera.
An isometric illustration of books creates a little world for people to relax and read.
A bookselling titan, a computer pioneer, and a pathbreaking neurosurgeon
-
Our November obituaries also include a visionary architect, a digital-arts innovator, and a Holocaust survivor whose story of tragedy and triumph became a New York Times bestseller.
A business man peers out of a window while enjoying a cup of tea. Within the cityscape are cars, a tractor, and a university building.
A corporate visionary, a retail CEO, and a fashion designer
-
Our October obituaries also include a staunch advocate for older adults, a surgical innovator, and an award-winning photographer who enabled many to see underserved communities through a new lens.