Norris’ retirement a roundhouse kick in the guts

Tony of Poorakistan says:

02:49pm | 22/07/11

You’d have to be a banker, John Dorian, given you think the share price and profit margins are the Holy Grail. Loosen your sphincter a bit, buddy; the article is satire. 
 
Anyway, NAB is a joke in IT circles, so *your* argument is specious as well.

Ryan says:

03:03pm | 22/07/11

@Tony

“NAB is a joke in IT circles”

Given Norris headed the CBA, I’m sure he’d find that funny too.

John Dorian says:

03:15pm | 22/07/11

@Tony of Poorakistan

I actually work for one of their rivals so there is professional admiration.

I do not think profit margins and share price are the holy grail. But my sister works in their HR and culture area before Norris’s time and she can attest to the huge transformational and cultural change within CBA. It is a much kinder place to work under Norris, the numbers and proportion of women in leadership has risen, there is genuine development of staff.

It’s why she’s been there for 8 years and loves it.

Don’t get your point about NAB….Norris is CEO of CBA.

Condor says:

07:19pm | 22/07/11

Profits and share prices are the holy grail. Get a clue. That is the nature of capitalism. If you want it differently then go and live in North Korea.

Hugh Harley Davidson says:

11:33am | 24/07/11

John Dorian get your facts right. The IT transformation was well down the track before Chuck arrived. The shares were at $35 when he arrived, not $25, that’s an annualised return below a CBA term deposit rate! He increased profit margins by sacking all and sundry, squeezing the hell out of frontline staff in the process. He substantially lowered the gap in customer satisfaction ratings by threatening anyone with dismissal if their surveys fell below their peers. Intimidation tactics are about as contemporary and lateral as toilet paper…

JC says:

04:24pm | 22/07/11

Lol you win.

Purpose of this article? says:

07:57pm | 24/07/11

@Will,  Reverse it back?  Is there a forward-reverse, also?

RyaN says:

03:39pm | 22/07/11

Tell that to Tim Flannery, he won’t believe you! Remember we were never supposed to have proper rainfall again.

sylvie says:

04:29pm | 22/07/11

@Temerarious.  Yes, end of story

Sir Tiff I. Abel says:

07:42pm | 22/07/11

Yes - those downstairs have become rather impertinent and restless, unfortunately we can’t send the troublesome ones off to any colonial outposts until NASA gets its act together.

stephen says:

08:46pm | 22/07/11

If it’s so cheap he will not take any notice of it… unless of course he gives 3 mill. to his kids and they want to invest in offshore under-capitalized Greek banks and, considering that the Americans had real trouble in re-financing their local institutions - which ones, ‘that is the question’ - then the IMF, (that last refuge of the scoundrel) should not interfere with Ralphy making a comeback - on his kids behalf, who are probably in the middle of a snow-fight, giggling, in New Hampshire - then we shall be OK.
Greece is in real trouble, so is now Italy, and so are we all.
If you really trust Culture, then go tell Mr. Norris to play his part, cause he’s left the World a fucking mess.

John of Brisbane says:

09:59pm | 22/07/11

I agree Al, but he was one of the best “administrators” I have ever worked for. He changed the culture in CBA for everyone and made it the number one Bank in Australia in the process. I have worked for “entrepreneurs” as well and I can tell you they care stuff all for their staff. It’s all about them and only them. With Ralph it was about the Bank. He wasn’t perfect but he was pretty damn good.

stephen says:

11:10pm | 22/07/11

Gates, (bill) got a commonsense bout of compassion because he and his family were, about 13 years ago, threatened by I think an Eastern European crime gang to abduct his family for ransom.
For money.
( ‘Open hearted , generous, and brave’. Some need to be convinced.)

Al Chunk says:

01:43pm | 23/07/11

@John of Brisbane - I take your points on board and will regard him as you portray, and yes entrepreneurs can be tiresome, but usually they are creating wealth and not just sharing around what is already in the pot .  A good administrator is good for the company but a good entrepreneur is good for the country.  If CBA was in such a bad way as you say, it indicates to me, the previous regime was incompetent.  It is no surprise then that they rewarded themselves handsomely anyway - just because they have the keys to the till.
@Steve - not sure I undserstood.

John of Brisbane says:

09:14pm | 23/07/11

Al , the previous administration was maybe not incompetent, but given their history they certainly weren’t great. Just public servant johnnies who couldn’t break out of the public service paradigm. Ask anyone who works there now and they will tell you Ralph put a broom through the place and brought the Bank into the 21st century. Our banking laws don’t allow entrepreneurs (thank goodness..just look at how many went broke in America during the GFC) but they do still create and manage wealth. A good banking system is good for the country and that means good banks. No entrepreneur would ever make it without the backing of a good banking system.  Neither exists in isolation

Al Chunk says:

10:50pm | 23/07/11

@John
Totally fair calls and I have suitably adjusted my thinking although I still feel bank directors abuse their closeness to the till.  Now back to TDF.

merylsweet says:

11:14am | 24/07/11

John of Brisbane, yes, he cared for staff for sure. And woe betide those staff that didn’t hit 110% of all their KPI targets, that’s when he cared so much to the point that you were given a smile and DCM, no need to waste valuable bonus time explaining that a GFC had hit your sales figures for six. What planet are you on John? the CBA bonus planet methinks. Money talks yes…

Ross McLost says:

09:04pm | 23/07/11

Yes, me likes dis muchly as truth dist strwaingerr dan wiction…

John of Brisbane says:

08:25am | 24/07/11

@Leo. You contradict yourself ... you start by saying that it is vital to have profitable and financially secure banks and then continue to rant about socially responsible and community aware management as if there was only one community ie the borrowers. There are also the investors .. remember those, they are likely your super fund and pensioners living off their earnings and share dividends. etc. They especially have suffered in this time of low interest rates. Also you make it sound like the Bank is a charity or some such organisation. CBA is no longer (and hasn’t been for a long time) a government organisation. Their judge now is the community and it doesn’t look like the community at large sees them as socially irresponsible ..... if they did, they would be out of business.

George Busch says:

10:36am | 24/07/11

Spot on Leo, can I work for you, and my daughter as well? You have a balanced perspective sadly lacking in our current profit-at-all-cost commercial society.

johngone says:

10:41am | 24/07/11

John of Brisbane, are you a CBA Executive? Never ceases to amaze how the Corporates money can buy you mates… Ethics and moral beliefs do not exist inside this organisation. As an ex-staffer I have seen both sides of view and from first hand experience I am glad to see the exit door, never to set foot inside ‘Alcatraz’ again.

John of Brisbane says:

12:46pm | 24/07/11

ooh looks like my comments have brought out all the disgruntled ex-employees. No I am not an executive ... not even a manager. I’m just some one who observed and experienced a lot of change in the bank for the past few years. We all have our expectations and sometimes they don’t align with our achievements and then we get disappointed. No need to cut someone else down though to make us feel more important. The Bank is not perfect and Ralph didn’t make it so ... there is a long way to go ... but he did at least send it down a path of positive change and not self-destruction. It never ceases to amaze me that people will rant against Banks making a profit but not miners who take all their profits overseas or the retail oligopoly which absolutely gouges the Australian consumer for all their life staples ... like food and fuel.  Get some perspective people and stop tearing down success to make yourselves feel better. If you really think you can do a better job ...then go on ...DO IT.

Sandy says:

01:22pm | 24/07/11

John of Brisbane - ‘Their judge now is the community and it doesn’t look like the community at large sees them as socially irresponsible ..... if they did, they would be out of business’ - really, out of business eh? That’s about the most simplistic assessment of one of the largest Institutions in this country, and thank god they have been led by their saviour in Chuck Norris. Maybe Chuck deserves a community award or something, I’m sure he would value it as much as his retirement package!

Erin Rockobitch says:

03:24pm | 24/07/11

John of Brisbane, one little tiny thing your missing in that simplistic headspace of yours - the result is important but equally important is how that result is achieved. If you think their modus operandi is fair and reasonable for today’s day and age, then our future is completely fucked.

Suze Banshee says:

03:59pm | 24/07/11

John of Brisbane, take it easy there. Chuck is just another human being like the rest of us. Just what in particular did he do that was ‘outstanding and fearless’?

jf says:

11:13am | 24/07/11

Stuart Grimsmile says:11:03am | 24/07/11

“monopolistic”?

Do you mean apart from the other three major competitors and myriad other banking alternatives amongst the smaller banks, credits unions and building societies?

What a curious dictionary you must have to define “monopolistic” in this way.

Angus Middleton says:

08:10pm | 24/07/11

Yes David, he is more financially successful than Tory. And you are obviously too, just like the pack of lying ravenous wolves on Levels 2 & 3 that will kill anything that gets in the way of performance, right down to the constant belittling and threatening the job security of the married Branch manager with 2 young kids that took his life at the end of the GFC after the constant abuse from above to meet the ridiculous unsustainable sales targets. Yep, Chuck is a real winner, whatever it takes David.

Cam Clyde says:

08:25pm | 24/07/11

you’re obviously a wank - er - banker David, just takin’ the piss mate…

Dave says:

10:39pm | 24/07/11

Clam Nope, I’m not a banker - self employed. But still I respect people that perfrom rather than those that take cheap shots at those that do. As for Angus not sure all you say is true but gave a colourful description of exactly what I was talking about.  The real world.  The sad fact is in some jobs you actually have to deliver a result.  Ralph does.

Gordon Gecko says:

09:34pm | 25/07/11

Reality is just an illusion caused by pure greed…

Angus Middleton says:

09:43pm | 25/07/11

David, I pity you for having such a one-sided perspective on business. Yes, it is true that performance counts for everything. No, the colourful description is fact. I am happy to provide my email to give you the details of this particular staff member and you can check out the facts yourself. Sometimes acknowledging the bigger issues can be challenging to those that have tunnel vision and sometimes the boss is not always right.