Curt Verschoor On Ethics is a compilation of the best business ethics columns that will continue for years forward to be of lasting educational value. In a company setting, the columns can function as the basis for discussion on proper business ethics. In academia, the columns can serve as assigned readings over significant ethics events and issues. Some topics that are covered in the columns include:
- Value of a Strong Ethical Culture
- Studies of Ethical and Unethical Culture
- Public and Management Accounting Ethics
- Ethics of Executive Compensation
- International Ethics Standards
- Fraud Case Studies
- Small Organization Fraud Studies
- Regulation and Enforcement
- Whistleblowing
- Sustainability and Integrated Reporting
- Tax Avoidance Issues
Table of Contents
ABOUT THE AUTHOR 3
ABOUT THE EDITOR 4
INTRODUCTION 5
CHAPTER 1: VALUE OF A STRONG ETHICAL CULTURE
"The Value of an Ethical Corporate Culture" presents research that finds culture is important to operational management including attracting and retaining top-quality employees 7
"Is Business Ethics Getting Better or Worse?" describes conflicting evidence of whether corporate fraud and other unethical behavior is increasing or decreasing 9
"Top-Management Example and Peer Pressures Bring Benefits" shows how a strong ethical culture and effective tone at the top can permeate or benefit an organization 11
"Training Is Critical for a Strong Ethical Culture" reports research that supports the need for training to accomplish the benefits of a strong culture 13
"Overcoming the Fraud Triangle" says companies must reduce rationalization opportunities 15
"The Importance of Trust" reports global trust levels and the significance of trends 17
CHAPTER 2: STUDIES OF ETHICAL AND UNETHICAL CULTURE
"Is Non-GAAP Reporting Unethical?" discusses the ethical considerations of the use of measures other than GAAP to report financial performance 19
"Benchmarking Ethics and Compliance Programs" describes best practices published by the Open Compliance and Ethics Group 21
"Economic Crime Results from Unethical Culture" discusses research showing the necessity and benefits of a strong ethical culture 23
"New Survey of Workplace Ethics Shows Surprising Results" reports deteriorating ethical cultures and increased retaliation for whistleblowing 25
"Measuring Trust in Business" describes systems for measuring trust in business 27
CHAPTER 3: PUBLIC AND MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING ETHICS
"Ethical Behavior for Management Accountants" compares ethical codes published by various professional organizations 29
"Do Consulting Services Threaten Audit Performance?" examines the apparent trend toward independent auditors providing consulting services 31
"Can Truly Independent Auditors Be Co-opted?" surveys the field of defense contract auditing 33
CHAPTER 4: ETHICS OF EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
"Hypothetical Earnings Trigger Real Bonus Payments" presents discussion of unethical methods of determining bonus payment with the example of Exelon Corporation 35
"The Pay-for-Performance Misnomer" reports research showing a major disconnect between shareholder value and executive bonuses 37
CHAPTER 5: INTERNATIONAL ETHICS STANDARDS
"IMA Ethics Code Compares Favorably to Global Code" compares the IMA Statement with that of the International Ethics Standards Board 39
"IFAC Updates Code of Ethics" describes the efforts of the International Ethics Standards Board to provide a workable code of conduct that can be applied globally 41
CHAPTER 6: FRAUD CASE STUDIES
"Fraud Continues, but So Does Good Corporate Citizenship" reports the results of three studies demonstrating the incidence of fraud 43
"Penalties for Fraud Are Insufficient to Deter Wrongdoing" describes the fraud at Diamond Foods and the small penalties it generated 45
"Did Ernst & Young Really Assist Financial Fraud?" discusses the role of the independent auditor in the case of Lehman Brothers 47
"Toshiba’s Toxic Culture" documents the governance culture of silence that resulted in a $1.9 billion earnings overstatement 49
"The Volkswagen Problem" recounts the fraudulent emission testing scandal and its repercussions 51
CHAPTER 7: SMALL ORGANIZATION FRAUD STUDIES
"Small Company Suffers Massive Embezzlements" sets forth the Koss Corporation case where too much trust and poor controls resulted in large cash thefts 53
"How an Embezzler Stole Millions from a Small Company" gives details on how a fraudster was able to steal so much cash from Koss 55
"Comptroller Steals $53 million from City Funds" describes how a long-service employee was able to embezzle cash to support a lavish lifestyle 57
CHAPTER 8: REGULATION AND ENFORCEMENT
"Has SOX Been Successful?" focuses on areas of the Sarbanes-Oxley statute that deal with ethics and governance 59
"Complying with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act" presents how two federal agencies are dealing with enforcement of the fraud provisions of the FCPA 61
"Fight Against Corruption Escalates" presents the efforts of Transparency International to minimize corruption across the globe 63
CHAPTER 9: WHISTLEBLOWING
"Whistleblowing Reaches Center Stage" reports developments concerning whistleblowing 65
"New Whistleblower Rules Broaden Opportunities" outlines SEC rules for payments to whistleblowers 67
"Whistleblowers Need Encouragement, not Roadblocks" describes various hindrances that companies are using to minimize whistleblowing 69
"Retaliation for Whistleblowing Is on the Rise" reports findings of research concerning retaliation against whistleblowers 71
CHAPTER 10: SUSTAINABILITY AND INTEGRATED REPORTING
"Responsibility Reporting Is Getting More Attention" presents the findings of surveys of corporate reports of ESG, sustainability, and related matters 73
"Sustainability as a Strategy" discusses the issue of whether strategic use of sustainable tactics results in favorable financial returns 75
"Integrated Reporting Lags in the U.S." covers the results of surveys of corporate reports that combine reporting of ESG with financial information 77
CHAPTER 11: TAX AVOIDANCE ISSUES
"Maximizing Returns or Unethical Tax Avoidance?" discusses the use of off-shore tax havens to shelter earnings from U.S. taxation 79
"Six Unethical Practices that Need to Stop" presents six areas that some would consider unethical loopholes in the U. S. tax structure 81
CHAPTER 12: STUDENTS
"Ethical Behavior Differs Among Generations" reports the results of a survey of ethical attitudes of employees of different generations 83
"Social Networking at Work Is a Major Risk with Large Costs" describes the impact of the use of social media at work 85
