Could it be that some of the management missteps that dogged Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) through the financial crisis resulted from the firm's long but awkward transition from a private partnership to a publically traded company? After going public, the partnership culture slowly diminished even as the transparency demands on Goldman Sachs and all public companies increased.

Although I don't think we can say that all vestiges of the old partnership mentality have been wiped away.

"The diminished influence of the partnership has forced Goldman, albeit begrudgingly, to shed some of its secretive corporate personality, especially in recent years as its opaque business model has come under scrutiny in Washington," notes the New York Times. "Although a small cadre of executives still steers strategy and runs the day-to-day operations, the financial firm now must act more like other publicly traded companies, responding to criticism over pay, adjusting strategy to placate shareholders and dealing with outspoken activists at annual meetings--all of which was unheard of a decade ago."

The nearly 500 partners now own less than 10 percent of the company, compared with 60 percent upon the IPO. The partnership mentality eroded slowly in part thanks to the rough treatment many partners undergo after five or six years. It is no longer a partnership for life arrangement, and we may see more de-partnering in the investment banking unit soon.

Still, one could argue that vestiges of the partnership mentality lingered longer than they should have, and that prevented Goldman Sachs executives from reacting as fast as they should have, especially when it came to communications.

For more:
- here's the article
- check out the nifty interactive feature that provides info on all the original partners

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