Thomas advises executives and their teams in the energy and industrials space on leading step-change performance transformations and growth strategies. He also leads the firm’s sustainability work around the world for the energy and materials sector.
Since joining McKinsey in 2000, Thomas has advised leading clients mainly in the energy, chemicals, and industrials sector. His support focuses on high impact strategy and performance-improvement transformations, including commercial and capital transformations. Over the last years, his professional focus anchored more on energy transition strategies, circular value chains, water as a resource, and sector decarbonization.
He received his diploma in chemistry at the University of Cologne as well as a PhD in chemistry at RWTH Aachen University. Before deciding to join McKinsey’s German office, he worked as a German Research Foundation scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Published work
“The energy transition: Where are we, really?,” McKinsey & Company, August 2024
“‘You need to do the math and then explain the math’: A talk with ExxonMobil’s Darren Woods,” McKinsey & Company, September 2023
“Leading through uncertainty in the energy and materials sectors,” McKinsey & Company, July 2023
“The net-zero materials transition: Implications for global supply chains,” McKinsey & Company, July 2023
“Addressing the challenges of plastic waste: Circularity and leakage,” McKinsey & Company, September 2022
“Climate impact of plastics,” McKinsey & Company, July 2022
“How team structure and governance can unleash sustainability success,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, January 2022
“Green growth avenues in the cement ecosystem,” McKinsey & Company, December 2021
“Managing water and climate risk with renewable energy,” McKinsey & Company, October 2021
“Organizing for sustainability success: Where, and how, leaders can start,” McKinsey & Company, August 2021
“True packaging sustainability: Understanding the performance trade-offs,” McKinsey & Company, July 2021
“Net zero or bust: Beating the abatement cost curve for growth,” McKinsey & Company, April 2021
“The state of the chemical industry—it is getting more complex,” McKinsey & Company, November 2020
“Water: A human and business priority,” McKinsey & Company, May 2020
“Plastics recycling: Using an economic-feasibility lens to select the next moves,” McKinsey & Company, March 2020
“Accelerating plastic recovery in the United States,” McKinsey & Company, December 2019
“How plastics waste recycling could transform the chemical industry,” McKinsey & Company, December 2018
“No time to waste: What plastics recycling could offer,” McKinsey & Company, September 2018
“Chemicals 2025: Will the industry be dancing to a very different tune?,” McKinsey & Company, March 2017
Past experience
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Postdoctoral fellow
Bayer Corporation
Education
University of Technology, Aachen, Germany
PhD, chemistry
University of Cologne, Germany
MA, chemistry
