Admin - Mahony Partners

Jun

2012

Did John Thain Really Say That?

John Thain, the CEO of CIT Group, recently was honored by a Manhattan charity and had some interesting things to say about public perceptions of the financial sector. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Chief Justice Roberts: Master of Spin

Taking & Managing Risk

We seldom expect a Supreme Court justice to utter the defining sound-bite on a controversial public issue. But Chief Justice John Roberts did just that in today’s ruling on President Obama’s healthcare legislation. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Does the Presidential Campaign Foretell a Corporate Marketing Trend?

Advertising, Marketing Strategy, Media

Social media transformed the 2008 presidential campaign, and it’s set to play a major role in the 2012 race, too. It’s an example of how election campaigns are often early adopters of new marketing techniques that later become widespread in the corporate realm. What emerges from the 2012 campaign could be very interesting indeed. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Never Blame the Risk Model

Crisis, Financial Services, Taking & Managing Risk

Federal regulators released a report about what caused the San Onofre nuclear power plant in California to leak radioactive steam in January. It said excessive wear caused steam tubes at the plant to rupture – an event that “had never been seen before,” according to a federal official, and hadn’t been anticipated by the manufacturer’s computer model. Faulty computer models aren’t confined to the world of nuclear power, of course. Just ask Jamie Dimon. But it’s the managers - not the models – that must shoulder the blame when things go wrong. Read More

Jun

2012

Charlie Sheen’s Rules for Scandal-Tainted Directors

Financial Services

The New York Times has a story on the return of Charlie Sheen, the actor and renowned Hollywood bad boy. Sheen’s run on a hit TV series collapsed spectacularly, but he quickly pivoted to other projects without any regrets. It’s a pattern followed by directors at financial firms who crashed their institutions but kept lucrative roles on other boards. Read More

Jun

2012

Handicapping the Rajat Gupta Verdict

Crisis

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. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Withholding Judgment on Kleiner Perkins

Crisis, Financial Services, Media

Allegations in a lawsuit are not facts, but they still can dent a company’s reputation. So Kleiner Perkins likely has suffered from the media attention around the sex-discrimination suit filed by Ellen Pao, a partner at the firm. But its bad press is not a fatal blow. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Three Lessons from Jamie Dimon and Bob Greifeld

Crisis, Financial Services

Jamie Dimon of J.P. Morgan and Bob Greifeld of Nasdaq OMX share several things in common. Both presided over colossal blunders at their firms – a multi-billion-dollar trading loss at J.P. Morgan for Dimon, and a systems breakdown on the closely watched Facebook IPO for Greifeld. Both Dimon and Greifeld have thus far offered only general descriptions of what went wrong. Both are facing tough scrutiny from investors and regulators, with the possibility of legal action, and both executives are still unable to tally the full cost of the mishap to their institution. And yet for all these similarities, Jamie Dimon is today the stronger executive. Read More

Jun

2012

Merrill Lynch Brings Back the Bull

Advertising, Financial Services

The bull - the iconic image long associated with Merrill Lynch – reappeared in advertisements for the firm over the past week. It is a widely recognized symbol associated with values that hold appeal in troubled times – growth, strength, optimism. (more…) Read More

Jun

2012

Volatility in Unexpected Places

Crisis, Financial Services, Media

In case you missed it, the FT’s Gillian Tett had a great piece yesterday on the emergence (or perhaps the re-emergence) of risks that are hard to quantify but have a very powerful effect on the markets: (more…) Read More