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From: Chuck Prince
Date: February 14, 2005
The Company We Want To Be
Over the last several months, as many of you may know, I have traveled to many of our locations around the world to have an open and frank conversation with our employees about our company. During these Town Halls, we talked about Citigroup’s 200-year old history and our legacy of achievement; we talked about our company’s successes over that span and the many innovations we started; and we talked, quite candidly, about our shortcomings.
Mostly, we talked about the kind of company we want to be.
Now the time has come to act. Starting March 1, we will begin implementing a Five Point Plan, which reflects many of the thoughts and ideas we received from you during the Town Halls. This will be preceded by the global broadcast to employees on February 17 at 7:30 am, Eastern Standard Time on "The Company We Want To Be."
The broadcast will feature Management Committee members who will discuss the roll-out of the Five Point Plan (see attachment for details), which we believe will bring about the changes the company needs to make, both large and small, in how we live up to our Shared Responsibilities – that is, to our clients, to each other, and to our franchise – and how we reach our goal to be the most respected global financial services company.
Let me be very clear: to be the most respected company does not require a sea change in our culture. Citigroup already has one of the world’s most respected names in financial services, with a legacy and record of accomplishment few companies could even dream to match. Yet at times our actions have put at risk our most precious commodity – the trust of our clients, the patience of our employees, and the faith of our shareholders.
World Premiere: The Story of Citigroup
March 1 is the beginning of one of the most important chapters in the company’s history. On that date – and going forward – we want every employee to spend some time reflecting on our company, its history, the great legacy handed down to us, and on our Shared Responsibilities to build on this legacy.
On March 1, we will hold the world premiere of The Story of Citigroup. This 25-minute documentary will be shown to employees at meetings held in close to 100 countries and will be followed by a discussion of the Shared Responsibilities. Later on, employees will be asked to attest that they have seen the film and understand the Shared Responsibilities.
Subsequent meetings will be held throughout the following few weeks until all our employees have participated. The goal is for our employees to share a collective experience of Citigroup, to understand that all of us have been given a great gift – the opportunity to work for one of the world’s most dynamic and successful companies – whose leadership for two centuries has transformed the industry and whose best years are still ahead, provided we all pull together.
The film and discussion are the first steps in a series of initiatives you can expect to see in the coming 12 to 18 months. In some areas, the initiatives – revolving around training, talent & development, performance appraisals, communications, and controls – are new and mark a decided change of approach for us; in other areas, they strengthen programs already underway.
Frankly, the Five Point Plan is the natural next step in the evolution of our culture and, indeed, of Citigroup as a company, and will touch in some way every employee from the senior-most ranks to entry level. We believe it is our obligation to ensure the plan’s initiatives become part of the fabric of how we conduct ourselves – now and for the long term.
If we do, I have every confidence we will reach the goal we all share for Citigroup – that is, to be the most respected global financial services company.
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