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James Gorman

Former Executive Chairman, Morgan Stanley

Search every verified James Gorman interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. James P. Gorman, former executive chairman of Morgan Stanley and current chairman of The Walt Disney Company, participated in a C-Suite Conversation hosted by the Institute of Global Politics on October 1, 2026, where he discussed his career in finance and leadership lessons. During the event, moderated by former US Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew, Gorman reflected on guiding Morgan Stanley through the 2008 financial crisis, noting that the bank's stock fell from $80 to $6.71, that it received $10 billion in TARP funds which it repaid with interest, and that senior executives forwent bonuses during that period. He also described how the bank's risk limits expanded from roughly 200 to 25,000 during his tenure, attributing this to regulatory changes and improved system resilience. Gorman also commented on current financial risks, stating that the amount of debt being raised to support the AI sector is "staggering" and that not all of it will perform, raising questions about who ultimately bears the cost, including potential government or taxpayer intervention. He distinguished the current situation from 2008, calling that crisis "special in a horrible way," while noting that the financial system showed greater resilience during the Covid test. Additionally, Gorman shared personal reflections on career development, drawing on his time at McKinsey, where a formal up-or-out policy created a culture of experience rather than failure, and remarked that at age 68 he is "reinventing" himself.

Recent appearances

Notable quotes

“I think the banks did what they had to do. I mean, Morgan Stanley's stock dropped from $80 to $6.71. That's a lot of pain. A lot of people lost their jobs. They took given $10 billion from the US government in TARP money during that period, senior executives couldn't take bonuses and they were actually legally responsible to pay back that money and we paid back that money with interest, the institution where it is to”

“The regulated sector I feel very good about the amount of debt that is being raised to support the AI sector is staggering. And not all of that will perform. So who ends up paying for the system? Because it's the government, taxpayers, they have to get in to save the system. I don't think it's remotely the same as 2008 was. 2008 was special in a horrible way. Yeah. And I actually had a test during Covid, and the syst”

“The job of a CEO is to present viable candidates fit for purpose. The job of the board with the succession committee doing a lot of the leg work is to ensure inside and outside the company you've considered all options. And then properly test and arrive a decision and it requires a board vote. We looked at I mean I had so many people giving me names of people they thought could run Disney. It was a joke. I said do yo”

“Young people are nuts if they're not in the office. That's where mentoring happens. We got the opportunity, we were mentored, we were developed because other senior people were around. Even as simple as would you, when I was a young lawyer, one of the senior partners one day said, 'Would you walk with me?' It was like four blocks to the court for a trial he had. I wasn't involved in the trial, but he was smart enough”

“Employees should stop feeling like tenants looking for their next bonus and start feeling like landlords. It only works if we all make it work. If it's just about you getting your piece, 98% is you. If everybody does that, that's a war of attrition that won't end well.”

“This company's trading at 15 times earnings. That's nuts. I mean honestly there are very few companies that have this quality of assets, this quality of bones, than what we have.”

Other executives at Morgan Stanley

  • Michael Wilson, Chief U.S. Equity Strategist & Chief Investment Officer
  • Edward Pick, Chief Executive Officer & Chairman of the Board

The summary and quote tags on this profile are produced with AI assistance from verified, first-person interview transcripts, then checked by our team to confirm the speaker's identity and the accuracy of every quote. See how we verify →