Dayhoff Westminster Soundtrack: Kristi Hedges – Huffington Post: Guess Who's The Next Greg Smith?

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Kristi Hedges – Huffington Post: Guess Who's The Next Greg Smith?

3/19/2012

http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/03/19/guess-whos-the-next-greg-smith/

When I read Greg Smith’s blistering op-ed about Goldman Sachs in the New York Times last week, I was floored. My first thought was “How brave!” quickly followed by, “Is he crazy?” Publicly quitting your job with a resignation letter to the world stating that your former company is “ripping people off” with “morally bankrupt” leadership is not a good career move… http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/03/19/guess-whos-the-next-greg-smith/

[…]

Though Goldman attempted to undermine his credibility by calling him a “disgruntled, mid-level employee,” numerous accounts corroborate what Smith himself said: he was a star performer on a fast-track who felt compelled to call out an ethical breakdown in one of our vaulted institutions. One of Smith’s colleagues described him as having a “clear moral compass.”

I can’t speak to the accuracy of Smith’s account at Goldman, or why it took him 12 years to figure all this out. And frankly, that’s not why I’m writing about it.

At some point in our careers, many of us will find ourselves in a place where what we’re asked to do at work directly contradicts our own deeply held values. I’m not talking about the small indignities that come from having a boss on a power trip or a job you hate. But rather the piercing jabs at your conscience that make you wonder who you really are.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, count yourself lucky… http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/03/19/guess-whos-the-next-greg-smith/

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