So, How Should Companies Behave? Epstein Files Could Be Forcing Old-Fashioned Values on Business and More

 In 2025, confidence in business plunged to 15%, down from 30% back in 1999. A column in Bloomberg puts it this way:

"By characterizing their [Ruemmler/Epstein] relationship as strictly professional, Goldman sent the wrong message about what companies should consider appropriate behavior."

Now, though, Ruemmler announced she will step down. 

In terms of reputation, economist Larry Summers and Apollo co-founder Leon Black don't seem to have a shot at redemption and forgiveness.

At Paul, Weiss chair Brad Karp ended his very successful era of leadership, contending his interactions with Epstein were a distraction.

Again, business could be undergoing another era of reform. Remember Enron. Remember global financial crisis of 2007. 

Values could be reshaped.

Leadership will have to be Mr. and Ms. Clean. 

Standards of transparency would be ramped up. What kind of vetting did Goldman do when it considered hiring Ruemmler? Maybe ordinary citizens should be put on boards. After Gulf Oil was found to have been involved in bribes in overseas operations a Roman Catholic nun was appointed to be part of ethical monitoring.

Dating back to 2018, CSR (corporate social responsibility) hasn't been taken seriously. There could be a retreat from the Friedman Doctrine of Shareholder Value. Part of that could include backing off from the current raw treatment of labor. The timing of implementing AI could be subject to regulations. 

This upheaval in values could spread to other institutions such as higher education. Ranging from Bard College to Columbia Dental School we're bearing witness to the questionable influence created by major donations. Obviously, a reset is overdue.

Then, what?

Eventually the reforms will peak. And there could be another massive Epstein-like scandal about the misuse of power. 

The Old Testament (the fall of man), the Roman Catholic Church (original sin), William Shakespeare (cankered the grain), Carl Jung (shadow side) and George Orwell (doings on animal farm) all document how flawed is the human race. There's a simple metaphor for that a la New York City. That's this: As long as the rats stay in the basement and don't come up and join the diners things are in control. We have to get concerned when that control breaks down, as it is now.

Success is a mental game. Failure comes from being done in by the “committee” in your head.

Together, we liberate your thinking. Then we change your story. And, unleash success. Meanwhile, we focus on bringing in income. That puts you in a position of strength.

Intuitive Coaching. Special expertise with transitions, becoming a solopreneur and aging. Psychic/tarot readings, upon request. Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova (Text 203-468-8579, janegenova374@gmail.com). Yes, test out the chemistry. Zero risk.

Don’t give up before the miracle.

 

 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

America Not Hiring in 2026: Back to Golden Age of Solopreneurs?

 For hiring, 2025 was a brutal year to search for a job. The Wall Street Journal reports that 2026 could be worse: "At a gathering of CEOs in Midtown Manhattan this month organized by the Yale School of Management, 66% of leaders surveyed said they planned to either fire workers or maintain the size of their existing teams next year. Only a third indicated they planned to hire." The WSJ adds that pullback from adding manpower could be temporary. But given shareholders' demand for cost-efficiency and the continual improvements in AI, chronic unemployment could become standard. However, there is a solution. An old-fashioned one. That's becoming a solopreneur, that is setting up your own business without partners or employees. The model dates back to ancient times.  The golden age of the solo business owner in America had been from the late 1800s to about the mid 1920s.  There had been a wave of immigrants, discrimination against them and few jobs. They drove pushcarts ...
Read more

Newly Minted PhDs in Economics Face Unwelcoming Job Market: Of Course, I Left My PhD in Humanities Off the Resume

Monitor postings on Reddit subunits focused on careers and it's no longer news that PhDs, both newly minted and those already in the labor market, generally are finding the credential an obstacle in the search for a job or even contract assignments. No, not an asset.  Let's cut to the chase. The highly educated have to get smart about this, fast. With some exceptions, I advise those I coach to leave the PhD off job-search materials. The negative assumptions among those hiring range from that you expect too much money to you'll be a know-it-all.  When my boutique collapsed post-9/11 and I had to land a survival job I lopped off everything but the BA. At the interview I dumbed-down my vocabulary. Sure Harvard was started in 1636 but America remains anti-intellectual. In addition, the integration of AI into strategy and operations makes knowledge work in general less and less marketable.  That's the narrative of our times: Advanced degrees having low or no ROI. The result,...
Read more

Mr. Paul Weiss Goes to Washington

In college, backgrounders state that Brad Karp, the long-time chair of law firm Paul Weiss, toyed with the idea of a career path in politics. The specific focus was about running for Congress. Instead, though, he accepted admission to Harvard Law School (turned down the one to Yale) and that was that. Now, during the current crisis for law firms, under comprehensive attack by the Trump administration, Karp seems to be showcasing his inner politico. The guy is a smart strategist. Semafor reports that Karp has gone to Washington. There his objective seems to be to create lines of communication with a power force which, as Steve Bannon puts it, wants his firm and other elite firms out of business. Already Paul Weiss has lost one client as a result of an Executive Order. One way he is trying to connect, notes Semafor:  "Karp ... is discussing a particular path back into the administration’s good graces: helping the White House respond to alleged instances of antisemitism that came...
Read more