Goldman Sachs Bank

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Goldman Sachs Bank on Cultural Capital 1. How would you characterize the economic dimension of the external environment as it forms the background of this story? The economic dimension that forms the background of this story is quite an unstable one. We are brought in at the beginning of a crisis, one that has taken out several of Goldman’s competitors. The mortgage crisis had hit, and Goldman’s was weathering the storm, and despite the odds actually were able to come out ahead. 2. How did Goldman’s flat managerial structure affect its approach to the decision-making process, both during times of crisis and during times of less extraordinary stress? How did it affect the nature of the decisions that were actually made? The flat managerial structure meant that decisions were more of a collective effort. During both times of crisis and times of little stress there was typically multiple people involved in the decision making process. This meant there were multiple minds bouncing ideas off one another and formulating what would be best for the company by taking the best ideas. This meant that decisions that were actually made didn’t necessarily reflect the company’s traditional viewpoints. Such as in the time of crisis when the decision was made to minimize losses rather than maximize profit. This was an idea that was played with before it was put decided upon collectively and put into effect and what may have ended up saving them during this troubling time. 3. How, in general, did the nature of its ownership affect Goldman’s culture? How, more specifically, did it affect Goldman’s action during such crucial events as its IPO and global financial crisis? The ownership of Goldman created a very close-knit, family-like environment. When making large decisions Goldman’s seems to want to do what is best for its “family.” For instance when the company
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