JP Morgan Chase 2015 Annual Report Download - page 52

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The answer to these challenges is not to
hold back progress and the magic of tech-
nology; the answer is to deal with the facts
and ensure that public policy and public
and private enterprise contribute to a
healthy, functioning and inclusive economy.
At JPMorgan Chase, we are trying to
contribute to the debate on public policy.
One new way we are doing this is through
the development of our JPMorgan Chase
Institute, which aims to support sounder
economic and public policy through better
facts, timely data and thoughtful analysis.
Our work at the Institute, whether analyzing
income and consumption volatility, small
businesses, local spending by consumers or
the impact of low gas prices, aims to inform
policymakers, businesses and nonprofit
leaders and help them make smarter deci-
sions to advance global prosperity.
What works and what doesn’t work.
In my job, I am fortunate to be able to travel
around the world and to meet presidents,
prime ministers, chief executive ocers,
nonprofit directors and other influential civic
leaders. All of them want a better future for
their country and their people. What I have
learned from them is that while politics is
hard (in my view, much harder than busi-
ness), breeding mistrust and misunder-
standing makes the political environment far
worse. Nearly always, collaboration, rational
thinking and analysis make the situation
better. Solutions are not always easy to find,
but they almost always are there.
What doesn’t work:
• Treating every decision like it is binary –
my way or your way. Most decisions are
not binary, and there are usually better
answers waiting to be found if you do the
analysis and involve the right people.
• Drawing straw men or creating scape-
goats. These generally are subtle attempts
to oversimplify someone’s position in
order to attack it, resulting in anger,
misunderstanding and mistrust.
• Denigrating a whole class of people or
society. This is always wrong and just
another form of prejudice. One of the
greatest men in America’s history, Presi-
dent Abraham Lincoln, never drew straw
men, never scapegoated and never deni-
grated any class of society – even though
he probably had more reason to do so
than many. In the same breath, some of
our politicians can extol his virtues
while violating them.
• Equating perception with reality. This is a
tough one because you have to deal with
both perceptions and reality. However,
perceptions that are real are completely
dierent from perceptions that are false.
And how you deal with each of them prob-
ably should dier.
• Treating someone’s comments as if
they were complaints. When someone’s
response to an issue raised is “here they
go complaining again,” that reaction
diminishes the point of view and also
diminishes the person. When a person
complains, you need to ask the question:
“Are they right or are they wrong?” (If you
don’t like the person’s attitude, that is a
dierent matter.)
What does work:
• Collaborating and compromising. They
are a necessity in a democracy. Also, you
can compromise without violating your
principles, but it is nearly impossible to
compromise when you turn principles
into ideology.
• Listening carefully to each other. Make
an eort to understand when someone
is right and acknowledge it. Each of us
should read and listen to great thinkers
who have an alternative point of view.
• Constantly, openly and thoroughly
reviewing institutions, programs and
policies. Analyze what is working and
what is not working, and then figure out –
together – how we can make it better.