If You Ask Me: A Global Banker Reflects on Our Times
Wriston, Walter B.
2007
A Simple Matter of Survival
How much of your time is spent in activities outside of Citicorp, such as public relations? Do you think the role of the chief executive officer has changed? | |
After that, do we get to the tough questions? | |
The only thing about my job today that's the same as it was ten years ago is the title--fortunately not the pay. | |
One of my predecessors prided himself on the fact that he never met a senator or congressman. Those days are gone. Today, to make believe that the survival of the corporation isn't part of your job is insane. That's why a group of us founded The Business Roundtable. We're working at survival on a lobbying basis, because the number-one job of a CEO is the survival of his corporation. If interaction with the government is one key to that survival, along with intelligent business management, then that's obviously a top priority for your time. So, you can spend up to--well, Reg Jones[7] says he spends half his time outside, and I wouldn't doubt it. It's not that much for me, but it's a good 30 percent on broad national issues and developments in my own industry like membership in the Federal Reserve, Regulation Q, interstate banking--that sort of thing. | |
Footnotes: [7] Reginald H. Jones, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of General Electric Company. |