Tom Brady, Culture, and Growth (Yes, Really)

Anyone who knows me personally knows I have an (unhealthy?) obsession with Tom Brady. Growing up 57 miles from Gillette Stadium, this is hardly unusual—he’s a god walking amongst men in those parts. But where I live now, in the epicenter of New York sports fandom, it’s to most… well, irritating at best (and, as a side note, the thought of my kids becoming Jets fans keeps me up at night).

Why bring up Tom Brady, culture, and growth?

Tom recently started publishing a weekly blog on greatness, and last week’s edition focused on organizational culture, one of the key pillars of his success. One line, in particular, resonated with me as someone who spent 16 years on a trading floor:

"The best investment banks don’t appeal to people with mediocre work ethic who don’t care about making money or having success. Those folks don’t share the values of the typical investment bank’s culture, so they don’t even bother to walk through the front door."

Having lived it, I can vouch for that statement. Investment banking culture has always been—and will continue to be—about discipline, hard work, hustle, and relationships. Those values remain the foundation of success. In this industry, the primary mission is revenue growth. Culture is only valuable if it directly supports that outcome. But in 2025, are these traditional values alone enough to sustain competitiveness?

Markets, client expectations, and technology are evolving faster than ever, demanding that the sell-side evolve with them. “Nice-to-haves” like strategic marketing, client analytics, and technology-driven processes should not be optional, they should be required revenue engines. Underinvesting in these areas quietly erodes market share and weakens client relationships. The damage is rarely immediate: systems grow clunky, client experiences lag, and top talent leaves for more modern platforms. By the time the problem is obvious, fixing it costs far more than investing early would have. Other industries prove this every day: retail chains that ignored e-commerce, manufacturers that resisted automation, media companies that delayed digital transformation. In every case, acting late cost more money, market share, and credibility than acting early would have. Banking is no different.

The firms that will thrive will combine the discipline of traditional values with the insight and efficiency enabled by modern capabilities. They won’t cling to “how we’ve always done it” just because it feels safe or less resource-intensive. They won’t view evolution or capital allocation in these areas as a threat to revenue or personal bonuses—they’ll see it as the path to sustaining and growing both. It’s not about dismantling what works; it’s about enhancing it with tools, people, and methods that strengthen the competitive edge.

Happy to chat on this further with anyone who is interested. I look forward to connecting.

KTB