1. What activities and practices of Enron’s management team do you believe were unethical and/ or illegal?…
Some investors that are misled lost chunk if not all of their investments. The public, investors, employees, pension holders and politicians were so outraged and wanted to why Enron's failings were not spotted earlier. Enron did not do these all alone, they have accomplice in the name of another giant accounting/auditing company called Arthur Andersen where they helped the firm overlooked significant debts that are not the Enron’s financial statement. They knew that Enron was over its head but they let the company conceal its debt over a long period of that which eventually led to the downfall of the company. The highlight of this section is that Enron’s top managements self interest, greed led to presenting the investors and board of directors misleading financial statements. Because of their greed and self interest, a crime was committed that led to prosecution of some of the Enron’s top managers. For example, Former Enron executive Michael Kopper pleads guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. While Andrew Fastow Former CFO was charged with securities fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering and conspiracy. To avoid another Enron, the US Congress passed a law called Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002…
1. Based on Alex Gibney’s film version of the rise and fall of Enron, do you accept Joel Bakan’s argument that the corporation shows “psychopathic” traits?…
1. Is there sufficient evidence of fraudulent intent to convict Ken Lay for stock manipulation "beyond a reasonable doubt"? Why or why not?…
References: Dharan, Bala G.; William R. Bufkins (2004), Enron: Corporate Fiascos and Their Implications, Foundation Press, ISBN 1-58778-578-1…
Athens has long prided itself and itself as a hub for stimulating intellectual conversations, spurring philosophy, mathematics, and the arts. The reason that new and exciting ideas come from Athens, the democrats argue, is that merchants and sailors are permitted to travel to far off countries and expose themselves to new ideas, and bring them home; foreigners are likewise permitted to enter the city and have conversations with the Athenians as equals. Having these different ideas challenging one another spurred ever more ideas, and old ideas became better developed. The democratic environment, it seems, is the catalyst for new and exciting innovations, and innovation is what keeps Athens strong and adaptable.…
Enron’s failures began at the top of the chain which included management. According to Fayal, 1916, planning organizing, coordinating, leading, and controlling should be carried out by competent and efficient managers, and in looking at Enron’s management this was missing from its top executives. Although Enron’s top management consisted of 17 directors with MBA backgrounds and impeccable records, they were influential icons that lacked systematic approach to the business structure in regards to financial accountability and oversight of the daily business process. In contrast financial incentives for executives appear to have been a common struggle for many in the company, and were a common culprit in steering this business’s ethics into the wrong direction. In Enron’s case that green monster known as “greed” got the best of executives and destroyed what little was left of ethical business…
Enron’s name was formerly Northern Natural Gas Company, which was formed in 1932 in Omaha, Nebraska. But in 1985, it bought the smaller Houston Natural Gas and finally changed its name to Enron. The “crooked E” logo was designed in the 1990s. Enron was well known for transmitting and distributing electricity and gas throughout the United States. Enron developed, built, and operated power plants and pipelines while dealing with the rules of law. They owned a huge network of natural gas pipelines which spread ocean to ocean and border to border including Northern Natural Gas, Florida Gas Transmission and Transwestern Pipeline Company. They were the companies that brought in the most cash for Enron and investments. They were the only reason that Enron received significant profits. Enron was named “America’s Most Innovative Company” by Fortune magazine for 6 consecutive years, from 1996 to 2001. It made Fortune’s “100 best companies to work for in America” list in 2000. Enron was beginning to be looked upon for its large long term pensions, benefits for its employees and effective management until people found out about corporate fraud. The first to publicly disclose Enron’s financial fallout was Daniel Scotto who in August 2001 issued a report telling investors to sell Enron stocks and bonds at any and all cost.…
Two years after Enron filed for bankruptcy in 2001, Nancy b. Rapoport wrote this essay expressing her unique perspective on the real cause of Enron’s demise. This essay catches the reader’s attention instantly, because unlike abundant other articles written on the biggest corporate scandal in American history, the author here rejects Jeff Skilling’s (former president of Enron) argument1 of what brought about Enron’s downfall. She instead uses another metaphor, arguing that Enron’s downfall was more like Titanic’s- hubris and over reliance on checks and balances that led to its demise rather than a ‘Perfect Storm’ of events. The purpose behind her preference of the metaphor ‘Titanic’ over ‘Perfect storm’ clarifies and warns readers about not being misled into believing that Enron’s downfall was based on factors ‘outside of the company’s control’ rather was caused by a ‘synergetic combination of human errors’. In justifying the Titanic as a more apt analogy to the downfall of Enron, the author offers strong arguments such as how the Enron is in some sense a larger-than-life disaster much like the Titanic. While Titanic’s failure was tied to the unrealistic faith in technology to protect passengers, Enron’s failure was tied to the unrealistic faith that formal and informal checks and balances could always keep the market honest. However, her strongest argument of ‘hubris’ found both in the top executives of Enron as well as the officers of Titanic is not convincing. As much as the greed for money is evident in Enron employees and their arrogant behavior, her equivalent assertion that the Titanic can trace the loss of life directly to human arrogance (pg 209) lacks adequate evidence. Whether her proof of…
The collapse of Enron is known as one of the biggest corporate scandals in the twentieth century lead by greed, lack of leadership and bad investment. Employees of Enron loss their retirement saving, jobs and some even committed suicide as a result to the down fall of Enron. Enron known as the world’s largest energy companies in the United State failed due to unethical accounting techniques and poor leadership. One may wonder how this is possible with the cleaver work of chief executive officer of Enron this transformation of making Enron a financial trade company done by hidden huge amount debt and inflating earning. Companies put lots of trust in their key employees many time no question ask in their decisions. In Enron this form of one man show leadership contribute to its demise. In a well structure business everyone is consider a key employee and decisions are made to benefit every employee. In the case of Enron failed to intervene in the wrong doing of the management staffs because sales were increasing which is…
am detailThe ENRON Scandal is considered to be one of the most notorious within American history-White Collar…
2. What role did bankers, auditors, and attorneys Enron worked with play in the company’s demise?…
Did Enron’s bankers, auditors and attorneys contribute to Enron’s demise? If so, what was their contribution? One part of the fallout from Enron's demise involves its relations with banker, auditor and attorneys. Although the banks knew there was a problem with Enron finance, their underwriting filings on debt issues sold to the public proved that wwithout its bankers, of course, Enron could never remained its schemes on the investing public. The auditors were…
Ethical issues have greatly transformed in our lives since the great Enron, Xerox and other huge corporations proposed big profits showing earnings of billions of dollars and yet in reality facing bankruptcy. These corporations faced great trouble with the federals and state for manipulating financial statements. But not only corporations can be blamed on this, accounting firms were involved in this as much as the corporations were. With the business stand point, ethics comprises of principles and standards that guide behavior. Investors, traders, customers, and legal system determine whether a specific action is ethical or unethical. Ethical issue is a vast subject, but we will look at the niche areas of financial accounting and audit fraud where ethical dilemmas are encountered and how federal government has taken steps to ensure compliance and regulations regarding this matter.…
Enron’s code of ethics prided itself on four key values; respect, integrity, communication, and excellence. Codes of ethics should be a reflection of what the owners, investors, and employees work towards as an organization. Executives overlooked those values as they deliberately corrupted Enron by engaging in money laundering, accounting fraud, falsifying income, and other conspiracies. Employees continued to work their scheduled routine hours and showed loyalty by working through lunches and doing overtime, unaware that their invincible company would soon go under leaving them scrambling for answers. As the company struggled and faced financial ruin, executives betrayed their dedicated employees by informing them that Enron’s foundation was solid and continue to be profitable and had not allowed them to sell their stock in the company. At the same time, executives sold their share of the company and received millions of dollars before filing for bankruptcy and being investigated by the United States Justice Department. The unfortunate employees believed that they helped Enron develop into a successful company that it was and saw everyone as family. A combination of motivation and influential theories can explain Enron’s ultimate failure.…