JPMorgan's anti-WFH crusader Jamie Dimon lets top Europe chief work 3,000 miles from his team

A top JPMorgan Chase executive has been allowed to work remotely from his team - while CEO Jamie Dimon continues to crack the whip on employees with his return-to-office mandate.
Filippo Gori, the banking behemoth's CEO of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), will be moving to New York City while continuing to run the European business, reported the Financial Times.
He is ditching the company's London office - the epicenter of his workload - less than a year after relocating from Hong Kong to take the top job.
This means that Gori is free to run the EMEA division five hours behind, and 3,400 miles away from, the bank's managers, staff, and clients whom he is in charge of.
While Gori is expected to spend at least half of his time in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, he'll be living and working from the Big Apple - despite Dimon's incessant belief that managers and bankers ought to work together, in-person and in-office.
By contrast, for example, Pablo Garnica, the bank's top executive of EMEA Private Bank, is based in Madrid, Spain - who stressed in an interview last year: 'We believe that being close to the clients and being part of that community is really important.'
It's understood that Gori, who is also Co-Head of Global Banking, will be working from the bank's headquarters on Madison Avenue five days a week during his move.
CEO Jamie Dimon (pictured) has felt the ire of his staff following his incessant belief that work from home is not effective for running a business
Gori's move to the States comes amid CEO Dimon's heated criticisms of remote work, which have made him a champion of the return-to-office culture shift.
The Wall Street veteran's ironclad anti-remote work stance has caused a seismic backlash ever since he first announced his plan in the years following the pandemic.
'[Return-to-office] for the serfs, work from home for the aristocracy. Yep, sounds about right,' one person previously said.
'Rules for thee but not for me. I despise these double standards,' said another. 'Trash policy from a trash company run by a trash CEO,' added a third.
'Billionaires virtue signaling about "work" while they make 5000x more per hour than average wage is always hilarious,' said a fourth.
Earlier this year, the JPMorgan Chase CEO announced that the company would require employees to return to the office five days a week starting in March.
Dimon also said one reason he wanted people back in the office was that 'younger people are being left behind.'
'To have the younger people coming in but not their bosses - I have a problem with that too,' he said.
He also noted that the benefits of in-person office conversations will help younger people to succeed in their careers.
'All day long we're talking,' he said. 'Constant updates, constant share of information.'
Remote work means young people miss out on these conversations, essentially 'leaving them behind,' Dimon said. 'I won't do that.'
Dimon further added that remote employees tend to not pay attention on company Zoom calls.
His strong-armed stance on remote work went viral after one of the company's employees asked a question during a company town hall back in February.
The question, posed by Nicolas Welch, a tech analyst at the bank since 2017, triggered an extraordinary rant from the chairman.
'Don't waste time on it. I don't care how many people sign that f*****g petition,' Dimon said.
'It simply doesn't work. It doesn't work for creativity, it slows down decision-making. And don't give me this s**t that work-from-home-Friday works. I call a lot of people on Fridays, and there's not a goddamn person you can get a hold of.'
But his rampant anti-work-from-home mandate has infuriated many bankers.
According to insiders, the discontent swirls across departments and seniority levels, with employees sharing concerns about surveillance, privacy, and the feasibility of a five-day office mandate, particularly in offices that don't even have enough desks or parking spaces to accommodate everyone.
In March, Dimon obliterated a young crowd asking why they can't work from home while speaking at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.
He got onto the controversial topic after a graduate student asked a question regarding his leaked, expletive-loaded remarks from a company town hall about the finance firm's end of hybrid work.
Dimon claimed the only group of people disgruntled with the move are 'the people in the middle' - like corporate office workers.
'If you work in a restaurant, you've got to be in. You all may not know this, but 60 percent of Americans worked the whole time,' he said.
'Where did you get your Amazon packages from? Your beef, your meat, your vodka? Where did you get the diapers from?'
Dimon appeared to be referring to people who continued to work in person during the pandemic.
'You got UPS and FedEx and manufacturers and agriculture and hospitals and cities and schools and nurses and sanitation and firemen and military. They all worked,' he continued.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Daily Mail​

23 minutes ago

• Daily Mail​

EXCLUSIVE Entrepreneur who interviewed Meghan says the Duchess is 'not rushing to meet outside expectations' and gushes she has 'clarity, conviction and honestly genuine wisdom'

Meghan Markle was praised for her 'clarity, conviction and honestly genuine wisdom' today by entrepreneur Emma Grede after they sat down for a 90-minute podcast. Grede hailed the Duchess of Sussex for 'building something with purpose, precision and with a lot of heart' as she lauded her in a follow-up video on Instagram last night. The British businesswoman, a founding partner of Kim Kardashian 's shapewear brand Skims, spoke to Meghan for her Aspire podcast which came out on Tuesday. Their chat saw Meghan say she would 'ask people to tell the truth' if she was able to rewrite her public narrative from scratch and refer to a 'lie' told eight years ago. The Duchess also used the podcast to deny that her personal Instagram account, where she shares behind the scenes footage of family life, is a tool to promote her business – adding that she uses it for 'authentic' sharing such as her twerking video. The interview was released three days before Meghan's As Ever brand is due to restock and launch new products later today at 8am Pacific Time (4pm UK time). Reflecting on the podcast, Grede said: 'When I sat down with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, I expected a great conversation, but what I didn't expect was how much clarity, conviction and honestly genuine wisdom that she brought to the table. Grede, who co-founded denim company Good American, added: 'Meghan doesn't just talk about building a brand - she's building something with purpose, precision and with a lot of heart. And there were a few moments that really stayed with me.' She cited the first one as being 'trust your timeline', praising Meghan for saying 'someone else's urgency is not my urgency'. Grede said 'She's not rushing to meet outside expectations. She's building with care on her own terms, and that discipline shows in every move that she makes.' The second one was labelled 'own the vision, share the work', with Grede telling how Meghan talks about 'creating something where you feel her fingerprints all over it'. Grede added: 'She believes in collaboration but not at the expense of intention. You can delegate, but you still have to show up.' The third point was to 'protect what matters the most'. Grede said Meghan 'spoke about being present for her kids and having to ask herself if she could do it well enough or if she should just do a few things exceptionally well'. She continued: 'And that idea really resonates with me, because it's not about balance, it never is, it's about priorities.' Having to 'make your message unmistakable' was cited as the fourth point. Grede said: 'For Meghan, influence just isn't about visibility, it's about intentionality. And even in silence, she used her platform to elevate others. Meghan said she would 'ask people to tell the truth' if she could rewrite her public narrative 'Every choice was a signal, redirecting attention, value and visibility towards people and principles that matter. Her reminder was that influence is power, but how you use it, that's purpose.' The final point she mentioned was Meghan saying 'success starts small'. Grede added: 'As Ever started with homemade jam. Not a splashy rollout, just a personal gesture, and it grew because it was real. And that's the reminder that you too can start small. Just start with what you love.' She concluded: 'So let me know which moment stuck out to you, and if you haven't listened to the full episode, Aspire with Emma Grede is available now on Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts.' During the podcast which has already had 140,000 views on YouTube, Meghan spoke about asking 'people to tell the truth and referred to a 'lie' told eight years ago, adding: 'A lie can't live forever. Eight years is a long time, but not forever.' Eight years ago, in 2017, former actress Meghan was dating and became engaged to the now-Duke of Sussex, and began preparing for life as a member of the royal family. The year also included Meghan's first meeting with the now-Princess of Wales and the beginnings of the Prince of Wales's fall out with Harry after William urged his brother not to rush into the relationship. Grede asked Meghan: 'I want to say this to you in the best way, because I wonder if you could rewrite your public narrative from scratch, is there anything that you would do differently?' Meghan replied calmly: 'Yes, I would ask people to tell the truth.' The Duchess gave no specifics about to whom who she was referring, but later referred to a 'lie' told eight years ago - in another apparent dig about her life in the public eye as a member of the Royal Family since she began a relationship with Harry. Grede said: 'You're very measured about it. I would just get so angry if I felt like everyone was lying about me all the time …' Meghan said: 'Peaks and valleys… Of course, I've gone through those chapters and you do a lot of work, you do a lot of self work and go, what's the why? It's happening for a reason.' She added that her 'dear friend' tennis champion Serena Williams told her 'a lie can't live forever'. The Duchess said: 'She told me years ago, a lie can't live forever. Eight years is a long time, but not forever.' In her 2021 Oprah interview, Meghan said she could not be expected to stay silent if 'the Firm' 'is playing a part in perpetuating falsehoods' about her and Harry. She also publicly singled out Kate as having made her cry in the run-up to her wedding and said it was important for people to 'understand the truth'. It was a disagreement over flower girl dresses, but according to Harry's memoir this happened in 2018 in four days before the wedding, with Meghan saying the Palace failed to correct reports which said she left Kate in tears. In the YouTube footage of the podcast, which was peppered with numerous ad breaks fronted by Grede, Meghan acknowleded her life now was 'very different' from when she was an actress. She also addressed her recent twerking video, which showed her dancing to the Baby Mama song in a bid to bring on labour with Princess Lilibet, describing it as a reminder of a 'real authentic fun life.' The Duchess said it felt liberating to back on social media where she can share things on her own terms. 'That wasn't yesterday. That was four years ago so it's also a really great reminder that with all the noise or whatever people do, there's still whole life, a real, authentic, fun life that's happening behind the scenes,' Meghan said. 'I'm just grateful that now, being back on social as well, I have a place where I can share it on my own terms.' She added: 'It feels liberating.' Grede asked Meghan: 'Would you ever do something just for the money?' Meghan replied: 'I have turned down a lot of opportunities that do not feel value-aligned. 'It's very easy to say no, no matter the price, if you aren't gonna be able to sleep well at night.' The Duchess was also asked whether she any sense of imposter syndrome, but she said she had no fear of failure. 'I don't feel imposter syndrome. I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be right now,' Meghan said. She added: 'I don't see the possibility of failure, not when you can learn from everything you've done.' Meghan also said she wanted to speak to Grede about diversifying her own brand into fashion at some stage. The Duchess said: 'I think there'll certainly be a time for fashion. You and I can talk about that later.' She also claimed in the podcast that she struggled to get acting roles early in her career because she is mixed race. Meghan told how she would get plenty of auditions but was regularly rejected by directors - which was a 'lot to chip away at your self-esteem'. The former actress, who eventually rose to fame in US legal drama Suits from 2011, said she was often put forward for 'girl next door' roles because she was 'half white'. But she said these characters were 'typically blond-haired, blue-eyed and a certain look' – and if they 'had any sort of ethnicity, there was always a bit of an edge'.

Daily Mail​

an hour ago

• Daily Mail​

Berkeley reveals leadership shake-up as housebuilder plots £7bn strategy rethink

Berkeley Group has revealed major leadership changes and a new 10-year strategy to lift the housebuilder after profits came under pressure last year. The housebuilder said on Friday that chief executive Rob Perrins, who has held his post since 2009, will replace Michael Dobson as its executive chairman following its annual general meeting on 5 September. Richard Stearn will succeed Perrins, having been Berkeley's chief financial officer for the past decade. After working at accounting giant PwC, Stearn joined Berkeley in 2002 as its financial controller, before departing nine years later to go and work for Quintain Estates and Development, a property developer in Wembley. His promotion to CEO comes as Berkeley embarks on a 10-year strategy called 'Berkeley 2035' to grow the business. The Surrey-based group intends to deploy £7billion of capital, with £2.5billion going towards land investment, £1.2billion on build-to-rent, and £2billion for shareholder returns. It told shareholders the strategy will help the UK Government achieve its goal of constructing 1.5 million new properties over the current parliament. Berkeley said it was 'very conscious of the complexity of today's operating environment in our industry, the role of housing in the government's growth agenda and the importance of the current executive team to maintaining Berkeley's unique business model and culture.' Britain's housebuilding sector has struggled over the past few years with elevated interest rates, housing unaffordability, and the rising cost of raw materials. For the year ending April 2025, Berkeley reported that its pre-tax profits decreased by 5.1 per cent to £528.9million, although this was above the company's forecast of £525million. Turnover increased by 0.9 per cent to £2.49 billion, with higher commercial revenue and land sales compensating for the decline in residential sales. Berkeley sold over 500 more homes in London and South East England during the period - 4,047 versus 3,521 in the prior 12 months - but these properties sold for an average of £593,000, compared to £664,000 the previous year. For the coming year, the firm expects its pre-tax profits to shrink significantly to £450million. Following the release of its results, Berkeley shares slumped 8.2 per cent to £37.78 on Friday morning, making them the FTSE 100's biggest faller by some distance. Adam Vettese, market analyst at eToro, suggested that the drop could be due to a 'changing of the guard at the top level'. He added: 'Regulatory costs as well as stickier interest rates, which are softening demand, could pose further challenges.'

Reuters

an hour ago

• Reuters

Buyout firm Penta chooses bankers for sale of Britain's Amber River, sources say

LONDON, June 19 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Penta Capital has enlisted bankers to sell financial planning company Amber River, four sources familiar with the matter said, in what would be the latest in a wave of dealmaking to hit Britain's financial advice industry. Advisers at Rothschild have been lined up to prepare the company for a sale, which could take place before the end of the year, two of the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is not public. Penta is looking to sell at a valuation north of 800 million pounds ($1.07 billion), one of the other sources said, adding the fund could retain a stake in the company. Rothschild and Amber River declined to comment. Penta Capital did not respond to request for comment. A sale of Amber River, led by Mary-Anne McIntyre, would be the latest in a string of deals across Britain's fragmented financial planning industry as private equity investors look to snap up smaller independent firms and capitalise on demand for personalised financial advice. Last year, 127 financial advice deals were announced publicly at a "significantly higher" cumulative valuation than those in 2023, according to a report by research firm Next Wealth. Dealmaking in the sector has drawn scrutiny from regulators, however. The Financial Conduct Authority kicked off a review of financial advice consolidation last October and called on firms to request approval prior to any deals, warning that companies must "hold adequate financial resources at all times". Founded in 2019 as Socium Group, Amber River was given 160 million pounds by Penta Capital to buy up smaller financial planning outfits with the aim of creating a "national financial advice business", Penta said at the time. Amber River has since acquired over 70 businesses, according to corporate registry filings, and now has around 194 financial planners overseeing 14.6 billion pounds in assets for around 38,000 clients, according to its website. ($1 = 0.7439 pounds)