J.P. Morgan Chase

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. Is a conglomerate company with a very specific purpose. According to their website, the mission and values of J.P. Morgan Chase is "To be the most profitable, respected and influential investment bank in the world for the long term." To adequately quantify a company's mission or its vision, the firm must first determine, at the strategic level, what its core principles are. J.P. Morgan Chase is a firm with very specific business principles that they believe are at the very core of achieving their mission. Many of these basic principles include: Aspire to be the best, Execute superbly, Build a great team and a winning culture. (J.P. Morgan business goals).

The company defines these goals, and sets pace to realize these goals with a very precise subset goal structure. Together, this defines J.P. Morgan Chase & Co's corporate strategy.

J.P. Morgan has very precise ideas on their aspiration to be the best. This goal includes developing a world class franchise in every business they operate. This is done by having the ability to deliver good returns and solid growth over time. Be client driven. J.P. Morgan believes in having consistent customer driven priorities, and exceeding their expectations. Innovate, test, and learn. Innovation must be at the very core of the company. Finally, as a corollary to being client driven, to create powerful brands that carry a commitment of quality and integrity. Essential to this is delivering on the promise everyday. (J.P. Morgan business goals).

The next business principle for J.P. Morgan is to execute superbly. Strategy is one thing, but maintaining high standards on execution is one thing J.P. Morgan strives to do best.

They have many underlying plans towards execution. Some include: Demand and maintain strong financial discipline in good times and bad, Design and maintain the best systems, Eliminate waste, and Measuring performance. (J.P. Morgan business goals). To do this, J.P. Morgan has determined that they must act quickly on problems, ensure detailed follow-up, and drive for results, not just activities. (J.P. Morgan business goals).

The third basic business principle is to build a great team, and a winning culture. At J.P. Morgan Chase, this is achieved through: Operating with the highest standards of integrity, Training and retraining great managers, Being honest, Giving incentives, and Giving back to the community. (J.P. Morgan business goals) At J.P. Morgan, they understand integrity must be cultivated and continually affirmed. The focus is on what is best for the customers. J.P. Morgan understands that great managers drive for superior performance and build teamwork. This is why they consistently hire and train great managers and leaders.

As a segue from maintaining standards of integrity, they stress being open an honest within and outside of the company. They understand that although it is the hardest part of leadership, the company must have the fortitude to take action and do the right thing. (J.P. Morgan business goals). Being honest within the company itself and the community outside will help the company maintain quality standards on challenging the system and solving problems. Giving incentives is another integral part of building a great team. Just compensation should be used as an incentive for performance. J.P. Morgan believes that morale builds from respect, growth, and success. They want employees to act like owners and partners. The employees must have room to advance, with adequate compensation and the ability to benefit as the company grows.

Done right, this can create a proper balance between individual and collective accountability. (J.P. Morgan business goals).

Finally, another important aspect of building a great team and building a winning culture is giving back to the community. J.P. Morgan is committed to adding value to the community by focusing on issues that are universally important; such as education and community development. The company views its greatest source of pride as being the employees who contribute their time in hundreds of volunteer efforts participating in worthwhile causes around the world. (J.P. Morgan business goals).

To know a company, it is important to have an understanding of its history. J.P. Morgan is one of the leading global financial services and has been doing business for over 200 years. They have assets of $1.4 trillion and operations in more than 50 countries. J.P. Morgan Chase has historic links to its nearly 1,000 predecessors which started back in the 1800s. The beginning of J.P. Morgan Chase traces back to the Bank of the Manhattan Company that was started in 1799 by Aaron Burr.

J.P. Morgan started his banking career in 1856 in his father's bank in London, but moved a year later to New York City to work at the banking house of Duncan, Sherman & Company. From 1864-1871 Morgan was a member of Dabney, Morgan & Company. In 1871, he partnered up with Anthony Drexel a Philadelphia banker to form a private merchant banking partnership in New York, called Drexel, Morgan & Co that would later become the most powerful investment bank in the world with access to the world's principal money centers. In 1895, it became J.P. Morgan & Co., and had close ties with Drexel & Co. of Philadelphia, Morgan, Harjes & Co. of Paris, and J.S. Morgan & Co. (after 1910 Morgan, Grenfell & Co.), of London. (J.P. Morgan Chase, 2007).

In 1869, Morgan started to reorganize and consolidate all over the United States to help develop and finance a railroad empire. In 1886 he also reorganized Chesapeake & Ohio. This was the beginning of "Morganization", a process of taking over businesses in trouble and reorganizing their structure and management to return them to profitability. Morgan was also able to bring investors to the businesses he took over because of his background in banking and financing. (J.P. Morgan Chase, 2007).

In 1895, during the last mercantile and credit crisis of the 19th century, Morgan was able to save the U.S. government from default, save the gold standard, and briefly managed to control the flow of gold in and out of the U.S. The Federal Treasury was almost out of gold, so President Cleveland arranged for Morgan to form a syndicate to buy gold in Europe and supply the U.S. Treasury with $65 million in gold. In 1907, during a financial panic, J. P. Morgan saved several trust companies and leading brokerage houses from insolvency, bails out New York, and rescues the New York Stock Exchange. Sometime in the 1920s-1930s, Chase National Bank merged with Equitable Trust Company of New York, which was controlled