Handicapping the Rajat Gupta Verdict
The insider-trading case against ex-McKinsey boss Rajat Gupta is now with the jury. From the beginning, this looked like a clear case of wrongdoing, but I believe there’s a good chance he’ll go free.
I’m Starting to Worry about Goldman Sachs
The outlines of Goldman’s new public relations strategy are becoming clearer. It involves more television appearances by CEO Lloyd Blankfein, investments in trendy green-tech companies and a new twitter account, unveiled at yesterday’s annual shareholder meeting. It is part of an effort to create a “more open and friendly” firm, according to news reports. Lloyd […]
Was the New York Times at Fault for its Handling of Greg Smith’s Letter?
Now that we are in day two of the Memo that Shook Wall Street – the most famous resignation since Jerry Maguire’s “mission statement” – it’s worth asking whether the New York Times has anything to answer for in this episode. Landing a prominent article on the Times op-ed page doesn’t happen overnight. Unlike the […]
Welcome to Goldman Sachs, Mr. Siewert – Update
In an earlier post, I suggested that Goldman send a note to its employees to respond to Greg Smith’s public resignation letter. It appears my advice was taken. Goldman chiefs Lloyd Blankfein and Gary Cohn did indeed send a memo (perhaps I’ll send them a large bill). It was very well done. Here’s why: It […]
Welcome to Goldman Sachs, Mr. Siewert
The public resignation letter by Greg Smith, a Goldman executive, is lighting up the blogosphere. It’s certainly not the way Jake Siewert imagined spending his first day on the job as head of communications. As a candid, personal confession from a Goldman insider, the letter is very damaging. It counters the notion that Goldman has […]
Goldman’s next PR Chief
Somewhere inside Goldman Sachs a managing director in human resources is anxiously leafing through a stack of resumes looking for a candidate to replace PR chief Lucas van Praag, who retires at the end of March. There’s been little news since Lucas’s departure leaked a month ago and a former Treasury staffer was tipped as […]
Defending Goldman Sachs: The 5 reasons its PR has triumphed under Lucas van Praag
Lucas van Praag, the longtime communications chief at Goldman Sachs, is stepping down. To those of us in the PR trade, this news yesterday was much more significant than Facebook’s IPO filing and the legion of twentysomething millionaires it will spawn. Van Praag has done a brilliant job of defending Goldman and handling the outsized […]