John Thain, the new CEO of Merrill Lynch, seems to understand the power of active communication. He did a video clip with the Financial Times, in which he makes clear that he is changing the way Merrill Lynch approaches risk. A good indication is the altered bonus structure, which calls for bonuses to be paid based on the firm's performance not individual departmental P&L. Thain says he will ratchet down risk and does not expect CDO squared or a lot of synthetic CDOs to ever come back. Cash CDOs and CLOs, however, seem to be okay with him. It comes down changing the culture, and he intends to do that. It is wise for the firm to get its message out. A CEO in his position needs to be branded as a change agent.  

For more:
- here's the article