I always like to read customer complaints. I read them, and when I know the policy behind the complaint, I call up the people in charge and say, ‘I agree with the customer.’ Sure, we ‘shoulda, coulda, woulda.’ But I don’t give a damn whether we’re technically responsible or not. You’ve got to do the right thing
In his latest annual letter to shareholders, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon offers a steady, clear-eyed meditation on what it takes to run, and protect, a dynamic business.
His views are rooted in lived experience, and while some lessons might sound basic, they are all the more important for being so often forgotten.
Bureaucracy is a weed and you have to keep pulling
“You must kill bureaucracy all the time and relentlessly.” Dimon opens with what he calls one of the biggest threats to any organization: bureaucracy. Its forms are subtle, unnecessary meetings, bloated processes, communication breakdowns, but its impact is deep. He doesn’t just name the problem, he lives the solution, questioning norms, cutting unnecessary overhead, and demanding agility at every level.
He recalls a visit to Home Depot’s headquarters, where a simple sign captures the right mindset: “Store Support Center.” The implication is clear, leadership exists to support the people closest to the customer. “All of us, particularly corporate staff, [must remember] that we are here because we have a customer, a branch or an investment banker in front of a client.” That mindset translates into practical behaviors, using “war rooms,” reviewing customer complaints personally, and remaining attentive to feedback that might otherwise be ignored or buried.
Listen first, defend never
Dimon’s leadership is defined by active listening and decisive correction, not defense. “I always like to read customer complaints. I read them, and when I know the policy behind the complaint, I call up the people in charge and say, ‘I agree with the customer.’ Sure, we ‘shoulda, coulda, woulda.’ But I don’t give a damn whether we’re technically responsible or not. You’ve got to do the right thing, you’ve got to change your mindset.”
Culture is what you do, not what you say
“What is culture anyway? I struggle with this one a little bit because I think it’s a lot of the things I’m speaking about here. A great culture is created by what you do and not by what you say.”
There’s a quiet, durable truth running through Dimon’s letter, culture isn’t slogans. It’s about small, consistent decisions. It’s about treating people with respect and setting expectations that integrity matters more than hierarchy. “We work hard to foster an environment that enables [employees] to thrive as curious, honest, hard-working and empathetic individuals who care not only about each other but about our customers as well, to be people who want to do the right thing, and it’s very important we get this right.”
Accountability must be owned, not outsourced
Years ago, JPMorgan had 500 management coaches on the books. Dimon questioned the number. “I said, ‘Five hundred coaches? Really?’” His leadership team wasn’t thrilled by his scrutiny. “Of course I said that I wasn’t [going to micromanage], and that it was their decision, but the issue really bothered me.”He changed his mind over the weekend and returned with a firm stance.
“I want all coaches out by the end of the week.” This wasn’t about saving money. It was about restoring leadership. “I did it because it’s a leader’s job to coach, and we basically had outsourced management!”
Don’t let meetings replace action
Dimon doesn’t romanticize collaboration for its own sake. He wants meetings with purpose and follow-through. “Kill meetings. But when they do happen, they have to start on time and end on time, and someone’s got to lead them.”
The worst version of bureaucracy, in his view, is the “meeting after the meeting,” where people say what they didn’t want to say when it mattered. “That’s not acceptable. Don’t bother. I’m not their messenger.” Transparency isn’t negotiable.
The anatomy of a mistake
Dimon doesn’t hide his failures. He names them clearly, reflects honestly, and urges leaders to do the same. “I also recognize that I don’t always get everything right and that I have made plenty of mistakes myself, and that’s why I want to candidly share some of them, as lessons.”
He underestimated cloud technology, delayed making hard personnel decisions, and missed early signs of risk.
One of the most human moments in the letter comes from an early lesson at Bank One, where he learned something basic, and crucial, about customer service. “I was in a local branch, and I realized that the branch across the street’s hours were 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and our hours were 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.” No one had raised the issue.
No one saw it as urgent. But it was. He checked across all 1,800 branches and found they were open two hours fewer than their competitors. “I apologize. I thought I was a pretty good CEO, but I messed up, I made a mistake. I should have recognized this much sooner.” He acted. He changed the hours, even though the decision was unpopular. “We’ve got to change it. We’re here for customers. Obviously, I care about morale, but morale sucks because we suck. Morale will get better when we’re better as a company.”
Sometimes, the problem isn’t internal. “There used to be a wealthy guy who would come into a branch yelling and screaming. He was verbally abusive to our staff multiple times. I finally heard about it and called him and said, ‘I want you to take all your business out of the bank. And by the way, you’re not going to treat our people that way.’” No amount of business is worth normalizing disrespect. “If we have a client who is disrespectful to our people and the way we operate, we will fire them. And life will go on.”
Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
