Sunday, March 18, 2012
The Goldman Letter
This resignation letter ranks up there with Steven Slater's exit from Jet Blue (click here if you don't know him). This letter, however, is not as humorous. As interesting as his letter is, read some of the comments. Keep these ideas in your head as you venture out into your careers and create your story.
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I think Mr. Smith took a brave and respectful course. Hopefully this publicity will convince Goldman Sachs to change its ways. After all, Apple convinced its Chinese contractors to improve wages and working conditions after it was publicly pressured over the issue. But if not, hopefully Mr. Smith is right that Goldman is sacrificing its long-term prospects, so that eventually Goldman Sachs will be usurped by firms with more integrity.
ReplyDelete-Vance, period 8
I think this letter is a really interesting look at what is going on inside Goldman. Greg Smith is angry that GS managers are putting profits ahead of the success of their clients in order to make as much money as they can as quickly as possible. According to Smith, the firm was not like this when he joined and he is giving up a high-level management position because he can't continue to be associated with such an operation.
ReplyDeleteBen Carleton
Period 8
I really liked reading The Goldman Letter. His point of view is how I wish everyone in the world saw things. People call me naive all the time for wishing the world was a better place but I don't care. I know that it would make more sense and there would be a lot less tension if everyone believed the same things that Greg Smith and I both believe in. Everyone is so preoccupied with making the most money, when in reality the goal in life should be to find happiness. The people who work at Goldman need to listen to the elderly people who are giving out free advice about living life with no regrets.
ReplyDeleteSam H period 8
This article was very interesting. It’s funny that he is leaving Goldman when most people would kill to work there. He says that Goldman has become less about achievement and more about shortcuts, the easy way to make money, not necessarily the right way. I was talking to my brother a couple of weeks ago when he was figuring out where he would like to work next and he had a similar complaint. “A lot of these big firms buy companies, refinance their debt, and then sell them. They don’t actually fix anything or make the company any better,” he said. Smith is making a similar claim. It shouldn’t be about making fast money. It should be about bettering the companies they buy.
ReplyDeleteI like to see that there are still people in the world with morals. A man who was probobly making A LOT of money at Goldman Sachs left his job becuase he didnt like how the company treated their clients and the enviornment of the place. Companies are all about making money now, and while that is imporotnat, making your clients happy should be a top priority too. They charge so much money and then services given by componies like this end up only being avaliable for the rich. If there were more people in the world like this man, maybe there wouldnt be companies like this.
ReplyDeleteMike D Period 8
The article on the culture of Goldman Sachs is extremely interesting. Clearly, if a member of the company who has been contributing and working for the company since college is discontent with the company, then there is something that has changed while he has been there. Although most businesses' first and most important tenet is to make money, Smith seems correct in suggesting that in the long-term, it is in Goldman Sachs' best interest to keep their clients happy and do what is best for their clients, even if that does not make the most profit in the short-term. According to Smith, keeping the clients happy instead of making the most money off of them will sow the seeds for a lasting partnership between the client and the company. Although it may be counter-intuitive from a business perspective, it is an interesting suggestion that it is possible to ensure long-term success by not attempting to capitalize on the market in the short-term. Smith also brings up the importance of culture in business. It is crucial for a company to have an operating "culture" and style that draws customers and develops a reputation. Without this culture, consumers will not know what to expect from the company and will not trust the company. Although making money is paramount, the consumers have to be happy with the product/service so that they come back for more and refer the product/service to others, showing just how important the business culture and keeping the customer happy really are.
ReplyDeleteArvind Viswanathan - Period 8
Since I don't work in finance (or have family members who do), I can't speak for whether everything Mr. Smith says is true. I do, however, believe that customers should always come first in business (after all, they supply the demand), and I think that Mr. Smith is taking a great, risky, but courageous step in leaving Goldman Sachs. I never liked profit-hounds from the get-go, and this article only makes me dislike them more.
ReplyDelete-Brian W p.8
This article was very enjoyable and influential to read. I am impressed at how Mr. Smith had the courage to resign from his executive position and had the courtesy to write this letter. The resignation of Mr. Smith really provided the actions behind his words because it shows that he means everything he stated. At the same time, he did not sound condescending. This resignation statement is more of a plea than anything else, and that is what impacted me the most. Smith gave up his job and reputation in order to get the Goldman Sachs company to open their eyes and see the problems within their company. He essentially put the integrity of the company before himself. Smith provides the perfect example of what he defines as a leader. He didn't like the values of the company anymore and therefore he spoke up to try and fix it. Although this cost him his job, he didn't care, as long as the company and the clients are first and this, is exactly how he wants every employee at Goldman Sachs to prioritize. I hope that this loss of Smith in the company will pay off and really turn out as a benefit to them because they should make the loss of a valuable player worth it.
ReplyDeleteN.Q. pd 8
Reading this article scares me about going into the business world. It's pretty sad that at Goldman Sachs, the employees are much more concerned with making money for the firm than for making money for their clients. My friend who goes to Cornell and interns at Goldman Sachs recently told me that they are always looking to make money for themselves before anything. This article reinforces what he told me and gives the big picture of the flaws in how the firm operates.
ReplyDeleteJack McGuire
AP Micro Period 8
I applaud Steven Slater for taking a stand against corruption. As a business major myself, I hope to keep true to my morals and set an example for others like this man did. Ethics should always be emphasized, since maintaining strong ethics will bring honest profits and trusting clients like Steven said in his letter. Not all business people are corrupted like the media portrays us.
ReplyDeleteCalvin T. pd.9
The article was very interesting because it shows that large companies have changed their attitudes about their clients. When the company was smaller all they worried about was making money for the clients and keeping them happy, but that has changed and what matters now how much the company makes. As companies get bigger i do think that they lose sight of what brought them up their because they get greedy for more and more money. Because of this greed they in danger clients by putting them in risky situations. I do agree with this article because as a company gets bigger they lose their morals and everything from then on becomes about bringing in the most money for the company.
ReplyDeleteJainam Shah pd. 8
It's something really peculiar, something that really deserves a second thought. How this happens in today's day and age when as students and professors in the classroom, a big part of what we hear and preach is business ethics, morals, the right thing to do, is almost elusive. As much as I don't know what I'd like to major in over the next four years and commit to for a living, I can't discredit my father's advice that a degree in economics, finance or some sort of financial engineering might be a lot more lucrative than a degree in literature or English, especially in our present state of the economy. And this scares me, to think that this might very well be the place I'm heading, with no influence at all to control the culture or climate of where I might work or intern, of where I might perhaps learn the ropes and learn from the people I am fortunate enough to work for. It'd be interesting to see if Goldman Sachs releases a statement to the press addressing Smith's resignation.
ReplyDelete- Yoni
I feel like this article really shows how materialistic we've become as a nation, and more importantly, I feel like it's our generation that has become the most corrupted. As I talk to some of my friends about the future, a lot of times I get the feeling that most of them, if not all, are pursuing careers with more monetary value rather than careers that would actually make them happy--myself included. Furthermore, it's very scary to think that Goldman Sachs, and firms like it, are more interested in the money aspect of their work as opposed to helping people. When did we become a culture where it is socially accepted to give someone the wrong advice just for more money? I hope this article is a major wake-up call for the newer generation working at Goldman Sachs; maybe they'll be the ones to bring back ethical values to the firm.
ReplyDelete-Maryam, Period 8
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting, but not surprising. Being someone who follows CNN I already knew the corrupt and ill mannered ways in which massive investment bank Goldman Sachs makes their money. It was however very bizarre to see one of their highest officers talk down to the company which most likely gave him millions. I also find it hilarious as this so called whistle blower didn't actually blow the whistle whine he still worked. This guy basically used all of Goldman's benefits, then, in a move of sheer self defense calls Goldman on all of its fault which he was a part of for however long he worked in the company in some bad attempt to shield himself from legal repercussions if they so happen to come his way. Nonetheless it was still interesting to hear about this mysterious banking giant from an inside source.
ReplyDeleteGregory Arpino
Kramer 8
AP Microeconomics
THe first thing that came to mind was how brave and respectable it was of Mr. Smith to print this letter. I can't really say much about the business world, seeing as I don't have much knowledge about it, but it was scary to read this letter and see what someone who has worked behind those curtains for numerous years had to say about a company that many people can only dream of working for. Of course, reading this letter made me fear for the future of the business world. I know that people go into work and firms to make money, but the fact that many companies have changed their motto to only making money and not caring about their clients is horrendous. It was really enlightening reading Mr. Smith's letter and learning about what the business world is slowly changing into, something immoral and terrifying.
ReplyDelete-M. Choe Period 8