If you are in touch with any media, traditional, new or social, you are probably aware that Greg Smith resigned last Wednesday from Goldman Sachs; resigned very publicly in the form of an op-ed piece in the NY Times.
The firm has veered so far from the place I joined right out of college that I can no longer in good conscience say that I identify with what it stands for.
Smith was executive director and head of the firm’s United States equity derivatives business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, but for years he was deeply involved with Goldman’s recruiting efforts.
I knew it was time to leave when I realized I could no longer look students in the eye and tell them what a great place this was to work.
Because of the recruiting video he wasn’t quite the anonymous 33-year-old midlevel executive described, but now his comments and opinions are on everybody’s mind.
(You can read Lloyd Blankfein and Gary Cohn’s response to the resignation here.)
Backing up one’s ethical beliefs means putting your money where your mouth is, which may be a difficult concept for many players and commentators in the financial world to understand.
Mr. Smith is making a considerable financial sacrifice in publicly criticizing Goldman. Most Wall Street employees sign nondisparagement and nondisclosure agreements before they join a firm. If Mr. Smith did, Goldman may take legal action and refuse to release stock options he has accumulated. Mr. Smith may also find it difficult to find work on Wall Street after such a public resignation.
But if I were an employer I would work particularly hard to bring Smith into my organization.
After all, how often do you have the opportunity to hire a moral compass that has already been tested and proven accurate?
William Henry Harrison was the ninth President of the United States; he served from March 4, 1841 to April 4, 1841. He is a great example of why your mom told you to dress warmly when it was cold and experts warn against being too long-winded. Harrison listened to neither bits of wisdom. His inaugural speech was nearly two hours long, in fact, the first sentence alone was 100 words, in spite of Daniel Webster’s editing it for length. (Can you imagine it before editing?) Wearing neither coat nor hat Harrison gave the speech on a cold, wet day, caught pneumonia and died a month later.
“I contend that the strongest of all governments is that which is most free.” The same can be said of companies.
I’m sure the 1% and 1% wannabes will argue this, “All the measures of the Government are directed to the purpose of making the rich richer and the poor poorer.” I’m also not sure if it’s intentional or unhappy coincidence.
Although I agree with Harrison’s statement, “There is nothing more corrupting, nothing more destructive of the noblest and finest feelings of our nature, than the exercise of unlimited power,” but I don’t think the power has to be unlimited. However, whatever limiting factors exist must pay attention and be willing to get involved. Join me Wednesday for a look at what happens when they aren’t engaged.
Today is Lincoln’s birthday and I thought I would share some of his lesser know words.
However, I’m starting with a very well-known quote, because it’s a favorite of mine “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”
Hedge funds are the ultimate expression of capitalism and the capitalist don’t seem to have changed much since Lincoln’s time, “These capitalists generally act harmoniously and in concert, to fleece the people”
There is a reason that today’s discussions of corporate culture focus on the benefits of trust and smart managers would do well to embrace Lincoln’s approach, “The people when rightly and fully trusted will return the trust.”
And if trust isn’t something you’re big on you might rethink your position in the light of these words, “No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar.”
Lincoln said, “Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing;” when hiring be sure not to mistake one for the other.
I’m often accused of being too blunt, although I do try and follow Lincoln’s advice, “Tact is the ability to describe others as they see themselves.”
Finally, advice that was good for the thousand years before Lincoln said it and will be good for the thousand year after—if not longer, “Things may come to those who wait…but only the things left by those who hustle.”
Today offers up four looks at executives and bosses, the folks we love to hate.
A lot of people claim that the whole idea of income inequality has been blown out of proportion, but, looking at your own paycheck, you have to wonder how/why CEO pay increased 30-40%.
“Bosses won in every area, with dramatic increases in pensions, payoffs and perks – as well as salary.”
“It turns out that many CEOs are feeling insecure about their jobs, too.”
Workers, even those with raises, are insecure, too, and new research out of Harvard says bosses are making it worse.
“…managers at all levels routinely—and unwittingly—undermine the meaningfulness of work for their direct subordinates through everyday words and actions.”
As function-rich mobile phones proliferate the need to understand them increases and the results of ignorance become more pronounced—not to mention embarrassing. File this one under “lessons learned.”
“He said he made sure to turn it off before the concert, not realizing that the alarm clock had accidentally been set and would sound even if the phone was in silent mode.
“I didn’t even know phones came with alarms,” the man said. “
It’s not often that I unequivocally recommend a book, but Richard Branson’s Screw Business As Usual meets all my criteria.
It’s not a do-gooder book, per se, although Branson is passionate about “doing good by doing right.”
I realize that his take on entrepreneurism will fall on deaf ears for anybody who starts a company with the prime motivation of getting rich, but even they might reconsider after reading it—Branson started Virgin so he could afford to make a difference.
And there is prime proof that doing right pays.
“Companies that consistently manage and measure their responsible business activities outperformed their FTSE 350* peers on total shareholder return in seven out of the last eight years.”
Branson believes that the right focus is your employees and your customers; take care of them and the rest will follow.
The people, stories and advice in Screw Business As Usual are about, and dedicated to, entrepreneurs, business people and anybody else who believe that there is more to work and business in the 21st century than making money.
What worked in the past isn’t going to work in the future, from top-down, command and control management to companies whose policies destroy people, resources, etc., in the name of profit.
The doing-good-by-doing-right bandwagon is picking up steam, fueled by a vocal new generation that is disgusted with business as usual and older generations (maybe not as noisy) with the same feelings who are learning to vote with their feet—as US banks so recently found out.
Business needs to recognize that if they want to keep making money they need to do it responsibly—assuming, of course, they need both workers and customers to succeed.
In other words, screw business as usual.
*FTSE 350 is the British version of the Fortune 500.
Entrepreneurs: Screw Business As Usual (book review)
I rarely read book that I unequivocally recommend, but Screw Business As Usual meets my criteria.
It’s not a do-gooder book, per se, although Branson is passionate about “doing good by doing right.”
I realize that his take on entrepreneurism will fall on deaf ears for anybody who starts a company with the prime motivation of getting rich, but even they might reconsider after reading it.
And there is prime proof that doing right pays.
“Companies that consistently manage and measure their responsible business activities outperformed their FTSE 350* peers on total shareholder return in seven out of the last eight years.”
Branson believes that the right focus is your employees and your customers; take care of them and the rest will follow.
The people, stories and advice in Screw Business As Usual are about, and dedicated to, entrepreneurs, business people and anybody else who believe that there is more to work and business in the 21st century than making money.
What worked in the past isn’t going to work in the future, from top-down, command and control management to companies whose policies destroy people, resources, etc., in the name of profit.
The doing-good-by-doing-right bandwagon is picking up steam, fueled by a vocal new generation that is disgusted with business as usual and older generations (maybe not as noisy) with the same feelings who vote with their feet as US banks so recently found out.
Business needs to recognize that if they want to keep making money they need to do it responsibly—assuming, of course, they need both workers and customers to succeed.
*FTSE 350 is the British version of the Fortune 500.
Rupert Murdoch is in making news as opposed to reporting it, so I thought I’d see if any of his past comments were applicable to the present situation. I found six statements that reflect a mindset that’s particularly interesting in light of what’s currently happening.
I think a newspaper should be provocative, stir ’em up, but you can’t do that on television. It’s just not on.
Does that mean that anything that proves provocative is OK?
I’m a catalyst for change. You can’t be an outsider and be successful over 30 years without leaving a certain amount of scar tissue around the place.
It sounds as if a lot of the people affected had enough scar tissue and didn’t really need Murdoch’s organization to increase it.
I try to keep in touch with the details… I also look at the product daily. That doesn’t mean you interfere, but it’s important occasionally to show the ability to be involved. It shows you understand what’s happening.
Makes you wonder just how “in touch” Murdoch was with the hacking details.
You can’t build a strong corporation with a lot of committees and a board that has to be consulted every turn. You have to be able to make decisions on your own.
I wonder if Murdoch would say the “you” referred to him or use it as a get out of jail free card by making others responsible.
Our reputation is more important than the last hundred million dollars.
I’d say it’s more like many hundreds of millions between the direct damage and the possible loss of BSkyB.
The buck stops with the guy who signs the checks.
If Murdoch really meant this, he would step forward and take responsibility, instead of damage control—but I’m sure not holding my breath.
Did you know that when Roman generals rode through the streets for their victory parade they were required to have a person in the chariot who kept repeating “Remember, you are not a god.”
Twitter, Facebook, TechCrunch, blogs and other media are the modern version of the victory parade.
What we are missing is someone to remind them, “You are not infallible; you are not a god.”
The truly shocking part of this story is found in the comment section; the stories from employees whose descriptions of their work environment will raise your hackles even as they make you cringe.
Dell sued TigerDirect for trademark infringement for “repeated and blatant” violations regarding the resale of its computers and in 2008 the Florida Attorney General’s office sued for failing to pay advertised rebates to consumers.
But this isn’t just another CEO running amok.
Fiorentino may have founded Tiger Direct and be CEO of CompUSA (bought out of bankruptcy), but Systemax owns the whole shebang.
And it is Systemax that turned a blind eye for all those years as Fiorentino created and maintained a culture of intimidation and abuse of both employees and vendors for more than a decade.
“He was making a lot of money for the company and I think people looked the other way for a long time. … If he wanted it, he took it, for whatever reason,” –William “Cully” Waggoner, a former employee who was fired in 2009 after five years with the company, but won a court settlement challenging the action. A blind eye until a worm turned and made that fateful whistleblower call.
Now Systemax claims it wants to change its corporate culture.
A memo last week to employees talked about embracing changes like a more “open management style” and elimination of competitive postings of hours worked by each employee. “The prior management regime was not the reason for the Company’s success – you were.” –Systemax Executive Committee
This is the same executive committee that was blind all those years.
If you believe them I have a great buy on a gorgeous orange bridge that would look terrific on your front lawn.
Do you have a power-happy boss who never heard of engagement? The kind who believes a big title is all that’s needed to run an organization? If so, you might give him a copy of this article; it spells out why that approach dooms him to failure—sooner or later.
On the other side of the fence is David Kelley, founder of IDEO and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford, who explains why, although largely unsung or ignored, empathy is a necessary trait to drawing the best out of people.
Everyone is talking about employee engagement, but what is it really? Is engagement a function of what managers do or is it outside of their control? Matt Grawitch, professor of Organizational Studies at Saint Louis University School for Professional Studies, offers a different view on engagement from most that I’ve seen.
I thought it would be nice to end today on a lighter note.
Have you ever given thought to CEO names? Or the difference between the names used by the guys vs. the gals in the corner office? I didn’t think so, but LinkedIn did. Check out the most popular CEO names and what they mean.
Although his admirers credit Mr. Hsieh with having created a unique (and unified) culture at Zappos, others point out that what he is doing is actually simple, and perhaps not so original.
I’d like to know who those ‘others’ are.
The best things usually are simple, have often been done before and I don’t think Hsieh has ever claimed his ideas and approach were new—but his execution is.
His approach is simple: happy employees make for happy customers; happy customers spend lots of money and return often.
Of course, if it’s so simple why don’t all CEOs and other bosses run their own organizations that way? Why do they pay $4000 to learn from him? Because the proof is in the Zappos pudding.
I’ll bet that Jack Welch never cared if the people who worked at GE were happy as long as they made their numbers—in fact, I’ll guarantee that no imperial CEO gave or gives a damn; nor do similarly minded managers at other levels.
Hsieh is more proof that great CEOs aren’t necessarily extroverts; don’t seek or require the limelight; nor do they actually fit all those profiles you read.
Rarely do articles focus as much on Hsieh the person as this one does. In terms of analyzing what makes Tony tick, and why others have so much trouble implementing and sustaining his simple approach, this bit of insight seems to say it all.
Then he quietly slipped out from the party. Employees talked affectionately about him after he had gone. “Sometimes I look at him, and I say, ‘He is such a dork,’ ” said Lauren Glassman, a buyer in the action sports clothing division, downing a goblet of beer. “But at the end of the day, we are all dorks.”
Want more on introverted bosses? Check out this post by Douglas R. Conant, President and CEO of Campbell Soup.
Entrepreneurs face difficulties that are hard for most people to imagine, let alone understand. You can find anonymous help and connections that do understand at 7 cups of tea.
Crises never end.
$10 really does make a difference and you’ll never miss it,
If you are in touch with any media, traditional, new or social, you are probably aware that Greg Smith resigned last Wednesday from Goldman Sachs; resigned very publicly in the form of an op-ed piece in the NY Times.
William Henry Harrison was the ninth President of the United States; he served from March 4, 1841 to April 4, 1841. He is a great example of why your mom told you to dress warmly when it was cold and experts warn against being too long-winded. Harrison listened to neither bits of wisdom. His inaugural speech was nearly two hours long, in fact, the first sentence alone was 100 words, in spite of Daniel Webster’s editing it for length. (Can you imagine it before editing?) Wearing neither coat nor hat Harrison gave the speech on a cold, wet day, caught pneumonia and died a month later.
Today is Lincoln’s birthday and I thought I would share some of his lesser know words.
Today offers up four looks at executives and bosses, the folks we love to hate.
Rupert Murdoch is in making news as opposed to reporting it, so I thought I’d see if any of his past comments were applicable to the present situation. I found six statements that reflect a mindset that’s particularly interesting in light of what’s currently happening.
Did you know that when Roman generals rode through the streets for their victory parade they were required to have a person in the chariot who kept repeating “Remember, you are not a god.”
From an article about 
