Shortly after john mack took over as chief executive of Morgan Stanley nearly three months ago, he held a town-hall meeting with the company's brokerage division. The audience had reason to worry. After all, the brokerage unit, known as Dean Witter before merging with Morgan in 1997, had been run by Mack's predecessor, Phil Purcell. But with Purcell out, many brokers believed Mack would sell off the division. Mack had other ideas. "I'm a big believer in what you do, I think you're a hidden asset, and I'm here to support you and I want to be your partner," he said during the presentation, according to a transcript. Mack received a standing ovation. "These were guys who were crying just a couple days earlier after hearing Purcell was gone," according to a broker who attended the event. "John definite-ly said all the right things."
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