Goldman Sachs: The Culture of Success

If you think Liar's Poker is good, then you need to read this book. While it is a slightly favourable portrait of the firm, Goldman Sachs' success is nonetheless indisputable in the industry. The culture of the firm relies heavily on charismatic leaders like Levy and Rubin, and this book has done a good job of highlighting how important culture is to the firm's success.The struggle to go public is well explored in several chapters which are enlightening. Those chapters alone deserve as a must-read!Although this book is presented in a much formal way, I find it a very valuable reference and an easy read. Highly recommended even for people who know nothing (like me!) but curious about the world of investment banks!

This was evidently the most popular summer book both at Goldman Sachs and at Morgan Stanley. I know I bought it the first day it was out at Borders, and I recommended it to colleagues immediately. Although this book does provide a glimpse into the secret world of one of the top investment banking limited partnerships, it is difficult to evaluate objectively since Ms. Endlich was a former foreign currency trader at Goldman. Nevertheless, the book is well written with what appears to be daylight clarity. The history of the development and evolution of Goldman Sachs is fascinating, and I was particularly interested in the story of how Goldman took over the commodity trading company J. Aron in 1981 and the subsequent inpact that had on Goldman's profitability. Ms. Endlich does have a clear advantage with her access to some of the principals who are still alive, and that may be her chief contribution. Ms. Endlich also deals with several of the near collapses of Goldman Sachs including the failure of Goldman Sachs Trading Corp. in 1929, which took several decades to recover from, and the Penn Central commercial paper scandal of 1969 & 70. There have been other rumored large losses from proprietary trading at Goldman Sachs over the years. Goldman Sachs like Morgan Stanley had a genteel client list and both became top investment banks. Ms. Endlich, however, portrays Goldman as the inventor of the raid-defense in a series of hostile takeovers. It is not clear just how accurate this favorable portrayal of Goldman in the M & A business is. Goldman recently went public with a well publicized IPO. The firm will now be subject to much more stringent public disclosure, and they have already indicated that they will curtail their aggressive proprietary trading. All in all, a well written informative book.

The author does a great job in making this inside-view of Goldman Sachs interesting. It's meticulously researched and peppered with fascinating stories. I don't know the first thing about business or investment banks, but I found this thoroughly readable and utterly enjoyable. I don't normally read business books, but this is one I am recommending to everyone.

Why would the partners of Wall Street's last remaining partnership, which also happens to be Wall Street's most profitable firm, decide to sell shares to the public? And when their public offering aborts due to a stock market dip (in the fall of 1998), what happens to the critical issues that triggered the choice of public ownership? Ms. Endlich provides answers to many of these questions as she leads the reader on a stimulating journey through Goldman Sach's 125 year history.Ms. Endlich identifies many factors that contributed to Goldman Sach's success. She details personalities of the firm's leadership starting with Marcus Goldman and Samuel Sachs through a succession of outstanding leaders to the present day. Concurrently, she examines Goldman Sachs' progress as it expanded by new product development, though not always origination. She highlights the firm's geographic expansion as Goldman Sachs became a global powerhouse. Peppered throughout are constant reminders of the unique firm culture which Ms. Endlich suggests has been critical to the firm's past success. This culture's themes, such as proclaiming that the firm's clients come foremost and that the firm's success is more important than individual glory, spice up historical anecdotes. To-day the firm's mushrooming staff size plus their worldwide dispersion, exacerbated by potential public ownership, clearly challange the future of this culture.Several episodes, which are explored in detail, liven this story and contribute to a down to earth impression of Goldman Sach's staid investment banking world. The Robert Maxwell debacle, insider trading charges during the 1980's, the hugely successful block trade of British Petroleum shares and a motorclycing star performer are examples that will interest Wall Streeters while providing enjoyable reading to non-Wall Streeters.Clearly the fat lady has not yet sung on this latest chapter in the Goldman Sachs saga, but this book will provide a foundation to understanding to-morrow's headlines.