articles 11 to 15 of 50
Podcast: Thomas Dunfee on the Enron Verdict
On May 25, a federal jury convicted former Enron CEO Kenneth Lay and former Enron president Jeffrey Skilling on conspiracy and fraud charges, with sentencing to be decided on September 11. As has been repeatedly noted in press coverage of this trial, Enron is the incredible story of a once powerful company done in by a group of top executives whose greed and fraud was breathtaking even by post dot-com standards. But it is by no means the only high-profile criminal trial in recent days, nor is it likely to be the last case brought by the government against CEOs who abuse their positions, their stockholders, their employees and the public trust. Thomas Dunfee, chairman of Wharton's legal studies and business ethics department, and an expert on social contracts and the social responsibility of business, talked to Knowledge@Wharton's Mukul Pandya and Robbie Shell about the Enron verdict.
From: May 31, 2006
Linking Strong Moral Principles to Business Success
In Moral Intelligence: Enhancing Business Performance & Leadership Success, Doug Lennick and Fred Kiel look at the connection between strong moral principles and business success. Using original research, the authors show how the best performing companies have leaders who are able to promote moral intelligence throughout their organizations, despite the fact that the business world all too often rewards bad behavior, at least in the short run. Included in their book is what the authors call their Moral Competency Inventory, a metric that can help leaders assess where they and their organization currently stand.
From: November 21, 2005
Winners Never Cheat: Lessons for Today's Business Leaders
In 1970, Jon M. Huntsman started a small entrepreneurial firm with his brother. By 2000, Huntsman Corp. had grown to become the largest privately held petrochemical and plastics business in the world. Today, Huntsman is a billionaire philanthropist who recently donated $225 million to establish the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah. He has also contributed millions to help rebuild the country of Armenia, and supported organizations that feed the poor, house the homeless and protect victims of domestic violence. In his new book, Winners Never Cheat: Everyday Values We Learned as Children (But May Have Forgotten) (Wharton School Publishing), Huntsman offers a "moral compass" for business leaders and others to live by that is based on his own experiences.
From: June 01, 2005
Corporate Fraud on Trial: What Have We Learned?
The high-profile corporate scandals involving former WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers and former Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski are back in the news, refocusing attention on corporate fraud and inviting such questions as: What has changed since these allegations emerged a few years back? And will the criminal trials of these two men, under way this week, serve as a deterrent to other high-profile executives who might be tempted to forget the rules of fair play in corporate America?
From: March 30, 2005
Tiffany & Co: A Case Study in Diamonds and Social Responsibility
"Minerals should - and can - be extracted, processed and used in ways that are environmentally responsible." Those words, coming from Michael J. Kowalski, chairman and CEO of Tiffany & Co., set the stage for a discussion last week of the luxury jeweler and specialty retailer's recent efforts to bring about industry reform. Kowalski spoke to a Wharton marketing class that looked at such issues as how Tiffany should proceed in its campaign to promote responsible mining, what the campaign might do to its brand equity, and how the public commitment to reform could affect consumers and shareholders.
From: November 17, 2004
