Rating: 
Summary: THE STORY BEHIND THE AURA...
Review: goldman sachs as an institution and as a brand in the financial industry occupies a brand positioning in minds which is what coke would be in beverages or disney in entertainment or christian dior in fashion-CREME DE LA CREME. this book very closely examines and lets the readers share why 85 broad street is not just another address but the ultimate destination - almost like the mecca- of the ruthless and glorious, tough and highly demanding and extremely rewarding field of money. though this book was written before the goldman ipo, it narrates closely how this issue of keeping the culture intact v/s going public been debated for many years within this organisation. what is seldom known outside that in its almost 100 years journey, it has been a handful of people at the top who have lead this partnership to where it stands today.. a must read for anybody who wants to know about goldman and also how the world of wall street works..and why loyal clients of goldman have been so not for years, but decades..
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Summary: POWERFUL EXAMPLE OF CO-CEO LEADERSHIP
Review: Goldman Sachs has had more success with co-CEOs than any other outstanding organization. I found this history of the firm to be a valuable source of ideas about how senior executives can work together to accomplish more. I was also impressed by the need to constantly retune Goldman's focus over time. This reminded me of IN PURSUIT OF PRIME. Goldman Sachs also was slow to innovate in many areas. They would have benefited from the oustanding perspective on organizational development and systematic innovation in THE 2,000 PERCENT SOLUTION.
Rating: 
Summary: A love story, not a business book
Review: Here it is in a nutshell: If you really like Goldman Sachs and want a book that will help justify your feelings, this is perfect. If you are wanting to get some good factual information about I-Banking or Trading, stay as far away from this book as possible. This sounds like a recruiting brochure, too overtly pro Goldman. My recommendation.....a waste of time.
Rating: 
Summary: Very good, but the Vault Reports guide on Goldman was better
Review: I am a Wall Street VP, and while I found "The Culture of Success" to be insightful in areas, it's also too focused on the firm's ancient history. And there is a better guide I found called "Goldman Sachs" by Vault Reports that job seekers and Wall Street employees would find more interesting and up-to-date and more focused on Goldman's culture, pay, career path, and the firm's often back-breaking workaholic environment.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, Readable, But Lacking Focus
Review: I enjoyed Lisa Endlich's book about Goldman Sachs but I felt like there was alot left to be desired. As for the good points, the writing is very clear and the coverage of the 1990s is outstanding. It did give me a bare bones understanding of the history of the firm up until the 1990s, especially about the times of Sidney Weinberg, Gus Levy, and John Weinberg and John Whitehead. But, on the negative side, what this really is is a HISTORY OF GOLDMAN SACHS IN THE 1990S. 155 of 274 pages are devoted entirely to the 1990s and only 88 pages cover 1869-1990 (29 are about the discussion about going public in 1986; and the book starts on page 3). If there is a theme to the book it is Goldman Sach's existing as a partnership and the increasingly intense consideration of going public from 1986 until it finally did in May 1999. There are interesting anectdotes about IPOs (such as Ford) and more about huge trading gains and losses made by the firm. But it didn't read like a book to me but more like a series of articles. She just kind of recaps the highlights from various times, focusing mainly on the 1990s. It was not a bad book but I have read many business books that I consider to me much better such as "Barbarians at the Gate" and "Monkey Business". This one is more comparable to solid but less outstanding efforts such as "Liar's Poker" and "Eboys", in my opinion. ....
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, Readable, But Lacking Focus
Review: I enjoyed Lisa Endlich's book about Goldman Sachs but I felt like there was alot left to be desired. As for the good points, the writing is very clear and the coverage of the 1990s is outstanding. It did give me a bare bones understanding of the history of the firm up until the 1990s, especially about the times of Sidney Weinberg, Gus Levy, and John Weinberg and John Whitehead. But, on the negative side, what this really is is a HISTORY OF GOLDMAN SACHS IN THE 1990S. 155 of 274 pages are devoted entirely to the 1990s and only 88 pages cover 1869-1990 (29 are about the discussion about going public in 1986; and the book starts on page 3). If there is a theme to the book it is Goldman Sach's existing as a partnership and the increasingly intense consideration of going public from 1986 until it finally did in May 1999. There are interesting anectdotes about IPOs (such as Ford) and more about huge trading gains and losses made by the firm. But it didn't read like a book to me but more like a series of articles. She just kind of recaps the highlights from various times, focusing mainly on the 1990s. It was not a bad book but I have read many business books that I consider to me much better such as "Barbarians at the Gate" and "Monkey Business". This one is more comparable to solid but less outstanding efforts such as "Liar's Poker" and "Eboys", in my opinion. ....
Rating:
Summary: Good insight into the history of the company
Review: I just finished reading this book and believe that it provides a detailed insight into the company, especially its famed history. The book provides the history of the company from its early beginnings in the early 1900's until its decision to go public in early 1999. If you want to know more about the culture of the company, then this is a must read book.
Rating: 
Summary: GOOD PICTURE, CHANGING SINCE IPO
Review: I read this book right before joining Goldman Sachs and was tremendously excited about it. I joined in 1999, right after the IPO (yes, I missed out). Despite the apparent glorification of the company, I did feel like its culture of teamwork and "long term greed" was present in everything my teams did, which the book does a good job of portraying. It is clear the author appreciates the company very much and that this is a somewhat endorsed biography of the firm, yet I enjoyed reading it nonetheless. It is refreshing to see a former employee write a positive book after so many recent cases of employees leaving only to criticize their former employers.
Rating:
Summary: GOOD PICTURE, CHANGING SINCE IPO
Review: I read this book right before joining Goldman Sachs and was tremendously excited about it. I joined in 1999, right after the IPO (yes, I missed out). Despite the apparent glorification of the company, I did feel like its culture of teamwork and "long term greed" was present in everything my teams did, which the book does a good job of portraying. It is clear the author appreciates the company very much and that this is a somewhat endorsed biography of the firm, yet I enjoyed reading it nonetheless. It is refreshing to see a former employee write a positive book after so many recent cases of employees leaving only to criticize their former employers.
Rating:
Summary: factual throughout but too much emphasis on the 1990's.
Review: I spent 30 years at Goldman Sachs as a senior risk arbitrage trader in the equities division. I retired in 1995. The information contained in the volume has been carefully and thoughtfully researched and the result is a wonderful historical analysis of Goldman Sachs. The book is eminantly readable and easily understandable, even for those uninitiated in the banking business. My only negative criticism refers to the excessive space given to the recent history of the firm. There was a clear change in the firms' culture after the greedy portion of the 1980's. The author is right on the mark when she tells how important the people (not only the partners) were to the creation of the special atmosphere that pervaded the firm and how very special it was to be a part of it. Although profitability was always a clear motive, it surely was not the sole purpose for which the firm existed. To profile a few bond traders and enumerate their spectacular successes (and failures) in the 1990s clearly indicates how things have changed from previous decades. I worked with Gus Levy for 10 years and Bob Rubin for 20 years and from a trader's point of view these were the spectacular people at least in the Equities Division. I doubt that the client interest is foremost in the culture of Goldman Sachs today as it was for the first 125 years. Although the importance of the client remains high today, it is profitability and risk taking that are the motivating forces.
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