McKinsey Quarterly 2023 Number 1

because my wife is the one who has kept the family going, and my daughters are in a great place. I know my friends, if anything, will be even stronger friends, and they will keep giving support to my family unit. I know my business will be run because it’s run by people who are better than me, and they know how that com pany functions. World Central Kitchen will keep running because it’s made out of unbelievable people. So everything can keep running with out me. - - What I mean is that I’m thankful to everybody because without everybody, I wouldn’t be who I am. But at the same time, I realize that every thing I have done can run tomorrow without me, and nobody will even notice I’m gone. This is something I’m proud of. And I think we all should try to run our lives the same way. - Katy McLaughlin: You were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019. In 2020, you posed on the cover of Time magazine, which has twice named you one of the world’s 100 most influential people. In 2021, Jeff Bezos granted you his $100 million Courage and Civility Award. It sounds helpful–to both the business and the nonprofit–to have your profile, but I wonder if there are any downsides. How do you make sure that others are empowered? Does every one just try to figure out, “What would José do?” - José Andrés: I disagree with you. A lot of philan thropies carry the name of one person, but I didn’t call World Central Kitchen “José Andrés.” World Central Kitchen goes far beyond me. It’s an organization that is of the people. We have an independent board. Obviously, I am part of the board because I think I should be, because it is still a very young organization. It still needs to be shaped into what we are going to become. - In the company, obviously, it’s my company. I’m the biggest shareholder. In the areas I’ve shown I’m good at, I hope people will ask, “What would José do?” In the same way, I ask myself what

Strawberries and milk, a dessert served as part of a roughly 20-course, $295-per-person meal at Andrés’ restaurant minibar, a ten-seat restaurant in Washington, DC, that has two Michelin stars. Photo: © Rey Lopez.

‘The only thing I like about emergencies . . . is they force us to solve short-term problems of food and water with so much energy and efficiency.’

‘It’s important to bring the spirit of emergencies to the long term’

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