Aashik Jayswal

My three Key Learnings for Morgan Stanley: Becoming a “One-Firm Firm” are as follows:

1. The need of Human Resource in an organization

Morgan Stanley, for most of its history, has no formal systems for career development or
performance appraisal. The lack of structure increased the workload of the managers that
hindered the development of employees as they couldn’t be coached well. Even the evaluation
was based on verbal dialogues. For the holistic growth and development of an organization, it is
essential to have a dynamic human resource department. The employees should realize that
there is a career for him/her, and it should be complemented with training and interactions. The
human resource of any organization helps to bring in all the employees of the organization on a
similar platform and to have a better understanding of the culture of the organization. Like there
was a “UP or OUT” trend at Morgan Stanley, in such cases, the HR helps people accommodate
with needed skills and knowledge by connecting them to relevant people. In the discussion had
there been a formal system for the appraisal, much of the problems would have been solved at
the place, and the organization would prosper. HR help hire the required talent from a pool of
talented people that make or break an organization. It is immensely important to have an
excellent human resource in the organization.

2. Be ready to adapt to the change

There should be zeal among oneself to be open to learning new skills and techniques to adapt to
the rapidly changing world. Whenever there is a disruption in the industry, people fall to secure
their jobs as they think about the short-term benefits and making money in a quick time.
Following the same strategy, everywhere won’t be feasible. New problems need to be
approached in a new way, and for that, we have to let go of the resistance to change and adapt
according to the requirement of the market.

3. Eliminating the unhealthy competition within the organization for improved cooperation
“While the outside world was applauding, storms brewed inside” clearly indicates that there
were conflicts and tensions within the organization which hindered the growth of the
organization. Be it big or small firm; there should be interdepartmental cooperation for
operating in a smooth way to achieve the goal of the firm. As we see in the case, the rivalry
between Richard Fisher and Robert Greenhill was costing the organization as a whole, and be it
on the top level and lower level. It ultimately will harm the organization. There should be a
healthy competition along with cooperation for common good and benefit. All the
divisions/teams should work in a synchronized manner, and there should be a balanced
relationship with employees from other divisions as well.