A Bank With a Soul: The Bureaucracy of People Management, Alive and Well CEO Jane Fraser describes Citi as a bank with a soul. This is what that looks like in practice. Citi has perfected two ceremonies above all others: the ceremony of entry and the ceremony of disposal. The in-between is underwhelming. Both are…
A Managing Director in USCC Risk demonstrated a disturbing pattern of using performance reviews as a tool of retaliation rather than genuine evaluation. When an employee pushed back on an inaccurate mid-year assessment, the MD responded not by engaging with the substance of the disagreement but by doubling down — praising the Director’s leadership while…
The lawsuit recently filed against Citi Wealth is, unfortunately, a familiar tale. The company follows a well-established playbook: employees who raise concerns can expect retaliation. I know because it happened to me. Shortly after COVID, I reported a significant issue with a trading platform in the Private Bank. Months later, while I was on FMLA…
Unemployable Elsewhere: How Tribalism Breeds A Parasitic Culture There is a particular kind of organizational failure that accumulates in meetings that resolve nothing, in systems built without use cases, in team members that cannot self-manage because no one above them is managing either. An Agile coach, brought in to assess team productivity, estimated approximately thirty…
I was about to share this when Story 324 dropped in. They dovetail together. The Euphemisms of Toxicity There is a particular kind of institutional violence that leaves no bruises. It operates entirely through language. Retaliation becomes “performance concerns.” Harassment becomes “interpersonal conflict.” Bullying becomes “high standards.” Exclusion becomes “cultural fit.” Coercion becomes “managing expectations.”…
The Financial Times reported today that another lawsuit has been filed against Citi by a former executive in its wealth division. The allegations involve risk management, compliance concerns, and claims of retaliation after concerns were escalated internally. Citi has denied the allegations and stated that the lawsuit has “absolutely zero merit.” As always, allegations are…
80% Done. Just Missing the Lines of Defense Structure. Citi’s Consent Order began in 2020. By the bank’s own account, remediation is near complete. A Data Risk function in the second line of defense — the independent oversight layer whose entire purpose is to challenge and govern data risk taken by the business — did…
A former Director from DART who joined ERM Product into an MD role exhibited a troubling pattern of conduct toward a woman on her team — one who held greater seniority and demonstrated stronger leadership than the MD apparently recognized or took the time to understand. When the decision was ultimately made for the targeted…
What does not surprise me is that it’s Citi. What does surprise me is that it’s Citi US. I started my career at Citi in India, in a back-office team supporting global investment banking operations. Interestingly, I wasn’t even aware it was a back-office role because that was never mentioned in the job description. The…
Watching commentators on the Golf Channel discuss Phil Mickelson’s banishment from his club got me thinking about how when action against influential people occurs, it’s natural to wonder what happened behind the scenes. The public rarely has access to the full story, but organizations clearly understand that removing a prominent figure carries costs of its…