| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : JUNE 7, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| COVER STORY
Weill: 'I Have No Problem Being a Partner with John' Q: How do you feel about co-heads? A: I don't think that we have to have two by twos by twos like Canadian geese. We should have whatever works. That could be co-heads, tri-heads. It could be one head. It should be something that makes sense. I have no problem being a partner with John. Q: Don't you find it unwieldy? A: It doesn't make things take inordinately longer. Obviously it takes slightly more time to say yes twice than it does to say yes once. But I don't think it takes that much more time. I think we've accomplished a lot in a short period of time. Q: Is there any friction between Citi people and Travelers people? A: When you put companies together, it is a disruptive thing. It becomes something that begins to work if and when people understand [that] what you're doing makes sense. The question isn't whether the Travelers people are taking over or the Citi people are taking over. It's not who won, but rather the company won. Q: Are you trying to have a roughly equal amount of Travelers and Citi people in various functions? A: I don't think that's the way to look at it. We should pick whoever is the best person. And if 100% come from one place, that's the way it should be. Q: Is your plan to get the merger working and pick a successor? A: Maybe it will be three and a half, four, or five years. People will rise in this organization after spending three-four-five years as part of Citigroup and then they will be able to manage Citigroup. That will be different from managing Travelers or Citicorp. If we do a good job, that person should be working for us now, and will take it to the next level. That would make me the most happy. And I don't think we're close to making that decision today. Q: Do you have any plans to fill the president's job? A: Haven't even had a second's conversation about it. I think the one thing that we don't need is a filter between the business and John and myself. That would make it difficult. Q: What about cultural issues? A: We are different. I think that Travelers is more decision-oriented, Citi is more studied. More controls. I think we've made great progress in bringing the cultures together. Q: Are the incentive plans being changed? A: The top 70 managers are committed to holding 75% of their Citigroup stock. And we are making everyone owners with option grants. These incentives go much deeper than it ever went at Citi. Q: Can you really create a family feeling at a company as big as Citi? A: I think so. When you first get married and you find what each other is about, it's like a work in progress all the time. Q: Are you ready to do another acquisition? A: We're closer than we were six months ago. But for us to do a big thing soon, that would be folly. The most important thing is to get to the point where this thing is one family. I think we're making good progress. I hope that we can be, by the end of the year, in a place where the company is the winner and the shareholder is the winner. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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 RELATED ITEMS Citigroup: Is This Marriage Working? COVER IMAGE: Citigroup: Is This Marriage Working? TABLE: How Reed Thinks Citigroup Is Doing CHART: The Synthetic Citigroup TABLE: Weill's Management Rules CHART: The New Citi: How the Numbers Shape Up Weill: ``I Have No Problem Being a Partner with John'' Reed: ``The Culture Will Take Care of Itself'' ONLINE ORIGINAL: A Financial Powerhouse -- But for Your Portfolio? INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
