The company has avoided the major scandals that have dogged many of its peers, and remains well-regarded in the industry.

Given the global nature of the industry, it is increasingly difficult for investment banks such as JP Morgan to manage human behavior. The Dow Chemical example shows the impact that communication and oversight can have. The U.S. subsidiary was forced to enforce the company's codes of behavior on a foreign subsidiary that clearly did not understand the company's mission or outlook on the issue. The Dow deal would have been sour, and could have earned the company a reputation for putting profit ahead of ethics.

The deal almost happened -- the U.S. company was only alerted to the negotiations out of England by the conflict of interest office. The organizational structure therefore played a strong role. The company is structured around business unit, not geography. This means that New York...
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