In more than five decades with Citi, William Bill Rhodes, the firm's former senior vice chairman and senior international officer, has worked with senior business leaders, statesmen, and strongmen and brokered immense financial deals while looking across the table at finance ministers...and up the barrels of guns trained on him. He has earned the cooperation of Fidel Castro over cigars and the admiration of Rupert Murdoch, who said of Rhodes, By dogged hard work, Bill forms important and great relationships. Everyone knows Bill. Everyone trusts Bill.
From these and other experiences, Rhodes has learned a lifetime of lessons about managing amid crises - and, more important, how to lead prudently, decisively, and effectively to prevent crises from ever happening in the first place. In Banker to the World, Rhodes presents his collected wisdom, best-practices, analysis, and anecdotes in one essential volume on the creation of value through leadership - and on the importance of leading by one's values.
Dramatically illustrated by more than two dozen examples, Rhodes's principles offer an excellent foundation for leaders at all levels. Having honed his skills in high-level negotiations around the world - including those with the Sandinistas, heads of state, and corporate CEOs in situations ranging from the opening of post-apartheid South Africa and the defusing of the Latin American debt bomb to the forestalling of the nationalization of Citi assets in Venezuela - Rhodes dispenses invaluable advice, including: