Why Leaving Goldman Sachs Breaks the Rules of the Game

[marmar]

from YES! Magazine:



Why Leaving Goldman Sachs Breaks the Rules of the Game
Defector Greg Smith has been called dishonest, unprofessional, and self-serving. But what might he be telling us about how to do business responsibly?

by Elizabeth Doty
posted Mar 23, 2012


In his transformative 1978 essay, "The Power of the Powerless," Czech dissident Václav Havel explains how one person “living in truth” can shine a light on unspoken questions, revealing the automatism of our usual assumptions: “When a single person breaks the rules of the game, thus exposing it as a game—everything suddenly appears in another light.”

With his March 14 New York Times op-ed, "Why I Am Leaving Goldman Sachs," now former Executive Director Greg Smith broke many rules of the game. He has been called unprofessional. Sanctimonious. Dishonest. Self-serving. Disgruntled. Naïve.

Like any defector, Greg Smith was disloyal. He aired dirty laundry, describing how Goldman Sachs had lost the client focus that once defined its culture. “It makes me ill how callously people talk about ripping their clients off,” he said. Why would he so publicly denounce his employer? And after twelve years? He must, detractors speculate, not have been happy with his bonus. He must have been bypassed for promotion. He must be planning to write a book.

All of this is possible. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/why-leaving-goldman-sachs-breaks-the-rules-of-the-game