Business · Companies · 8 hrs ago
Chris Bradley resigns from Australian charity board after glass cliff comments
McKinsey partner Chris Bradley resigned from the board of Opportunity International Australia after his comments about women leaders drew criticism.
The Sydney-based charity said it had accepted his resignation and thanked him for supporting its work.
McKinsey had already removed Bradley from a leadership role at the McKinsey Global Institute after an internal conduct review.
The review followed his online exchange questioning whether the “glass cliff” exists.
The term describes women being more likely to become chief executives at struggling companies, where the job may be harder and failure more likely.
Bradley remains a senior McKinsey partner and a board member of the Centre for Independent Studies.
His charity board resignation follows McKinsey’s decision to remove him from leadership roles, while the charity says he had supported its mission for more than 25 years.
Chris Bradley resigned from the board of Opportunity International Australia, and the charity accepted his resignation.
The move came days after McKinsey removed Bradley from a leadership role at the McKinsey Global Institute.
The decisions followed an internal review of Bradley’s online comments questioning the “glass cliff” faced by women executives.
Bradley remains a senior partner at McKinsey and a board member of the Centre for Independent Studies.
- Who
- Chris Bradley, a McKinsey senior partner and Opportunity International Australia board member.
- What
- He resigned from the charity’s board after McKinsey removed him from leadership roles following his comments about the glass cliff.
- When
- The charity accepted his resignation on Thursday evening; the article is dated October 16, 2026.
- Where
- Opportunity International Australia, a Sydney-based charity.
- Why
- The resignation followed controversy over Bradley’s online comments questioning the glass cliff and an internal McKinsey conduct review.
Bradley
Glass cliff proponents
Existence of the glass cliff
Bradley
Bradley questioned whether the concept exists and said it did not rank among the world’s top 1,000 problems.
Glass cliff proponents
Proponents say research shows women are more likely to be offered CEO roles when companies are in crisis or facing a turnaround.
Bradley exchanged comments on LinkedIn with Julia Carreon about the workplace glass cliff.
McKinsey removed Bradley from leadership roles, including his role at the McKinsey Global Institute, after an internal conduct review.
Opportunity International Australia said it had accepted Bradley’s resignation from its board.
- Charity
- Opportunity International Australia
- McKinsey research unit
- McKinsey Global Institute
- Remaining McKinsey role
- Senior partner
- Remaining board role
- Centre for Independent Studies
What people are saying
Chris Bradley has offered to resign from the Board of Opportunity International Australia, and we have accepted his resignation
His public comments fell well short of the standards we expect at our firm
I am not going to start researching glass cliffs as I don’t think it ranks in the top 1000 problems of the world.
Aren’t people from McKinsey & Company supposed to know these things?