136. Creating value with M&A: A conversation with XPO CEO Brad Jacobs

Few business leaders have more experience in M&A than Brad Jacobs. Over a four-decade-plus career, he created several billion-dollar corporations. The most recent three he built largely through acquisitions: United Rentals, an industrial equipment rental company; United Waste Systems, involved in garbage collection; and XPO, the logistics company he currently leads. At both United Rentals and United Waste, he executed more than 200 deals each. At XPO, he has created a digital-forward logistics leader in an industry that has tended to lag in technology adoption. Brad will soon transition from CEO to executive chairman of XPO. We thought it’d be a good time to ask him to share the lessons he has learned over the course of his extensive deal-making experience. Brad sat down with Andy West, a senior partner based in Boston who co-leads McKinsey’s M&A practice globally. Join our LinkedIn community:https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance Explore more Inside the Strategy Room podcast episode transcripts: https://www.mckinsey.com/itsr Contact Andy West: https://www.mckinsey.com/our-people/andy-westSupport the show: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/mckinsey-strategy-&-corporate-finance/See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information