Enron - Ask Why - 2902 Words

Enron Ââ€" Ask Why? How Unethical and Illegal Behavior Ruined Lives Brief History of Enron Enron was an energy company based in Houston, Texas that dealt with the energy trade on an international and domestic basis. Enron formed in 1985 when Houston Natural Gas merged with InterNorth. After several years of international and domestic expansion involving complicated deals and contracts, Enron became billions of dollars in debt. All of this debt was concealed from shareholders through partnerships with other companies, fraudulent accounting, and illegal loans. By 1989 Enron diversified into trading energy-related commodities. In a few years, Enron had become the largest merchant of energy in the United States. By 1994 Enron had†¦show more content†¦Second, is the principle to desire the truth. Since we desire truth and knowledge, we should not speak that which is not true to others. Did Enron follow the golden rule? Enron traders clearly violated this and in fact spoke some of the time that what they were doing could possibly make som e of these traders retire by 30-40 years of age. Enron s trading strategies during the California were instrumental in the crisis that resulted in harm to many people. Although it is impossible to know the full extent of the harm caused by the crisis, some general categories include financial duress due to extraordinarily large electricity bills, the closure of some small businesses because they couldn t pay their electricity bills, and students sent home from school because their electricity was shut off. It is clear that Enron s behavior in the California energy crisis was unethical. In 1996 a bill was passed to deregulate electricity. This deregulated system was an odd compromise. Enron made sure this compromise would be put all on California. Enron would create these arbitrage opportunities in which they would create profits above and beyond the norm. The Enron traders would create these opportunities and make energy shortages. The company also published financial stat ements intentionally misrepresented the financial condition of the company. This misled analysts forShow MoreRelatedEnron And The Collapse Of Enron1254 Words   |  6 Pagesbelow one dollar. This happened to shareholders of Enron. The total debt amounted to over $ 16 billion, which was the largest corporate bankruptcy in American history. Shareholders lost 60 billion dollars within a few days, 4500 employees lost their jobs, and the employees lost billions in pension benefits. I had never heard the name of Enron nor Enron’s scandal until I watched a film, â€Å"Enron: The Smartest Guys in The Room,† but I realized the Enron scandal affected the whole of the business in theRead MoreThe Ethics Of The Enron Scandal1441 Words   |  6 Pagesinfluenced by others. However, in the business world, the influence of power and money has cost people their livelihoods as well as compromised their self-dignity on many levels. One highly publicized scandal that many have known and read about is the Enron Scandal. The motive behind what a person will do remains endless as it is seen in this unfortunate tale of lies and greed in one corporation. The part that many question even to this day is when the story unfolded it was announced that several peopleRead MoreEnron Case1075 Words   |  5 PagesMINI CASE: THE FILURE OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AT ENRON 1.Which parts of the corporate governance system, internal and external, do you believe failed Enron the most? In the evaluation of the Enron’s case; by trying to see the very big picture, it is not only about that the internal part of the corporate governance system was failed or but also the external part of the corporate governance system was also failed. As noted on the last paragraph of the mini case, many people from different positionsRead MoreEnrons Organizational Culture : Enron1643 Words   |  7 Pages Enron: [Don’t] Ask Why During the year 2000, Enron was exceeding all expectations, its stock was through the roof, and the company seemed to be on top of the world. The next year Enron declared bankruptcy. So how did a company rise and fall so quickly? The key in analysing this question lies in Enron’s organizational culture, which is defined as â€Å"a shared meaning held by members distinguishing an organization† (Robbins and Judge, Essentials of Organizational Behavior, 269). During its primeRead MoreThe Collapse Of The Corporate Rock Star1686 Words   |  7 PagesThe story of Enron is one of a perfect storm--the right people in the right places with the right ideas, but the exact opposite. Moreover, it is a story about accounting fraud, deception, the ugly side of corporate culture and, most of all, greed. In entry level accounting classes, it is taught that publishing accurate financial statements and being honest in accounting practices are fundamental to maintaining a healthy busin ess and achieving lasting success. Enron is a shining example of whatRead MoreEssay On Enron And Social Control1436 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Enron made greater use of social control as a means of guiding employee action, however, the company did have limited methods of formal control in place. By using social influence tactics, limiting dissenting opinion, and inflicting a sense of high cohesion among employees, Enron deceived millions into believing the company was more profitable than it actually was. Because Enron’s values and norms were not conducive to a successful, ethical company, the employee’s targets, attitudesRead MoreAccounting Scandals And The Enron Corporation1721 Words   |  7 Pageshappened in numerous companies. In one major case, the firm filed for bankruptcy, and many of its workers lost their jobs, savings, and investments from stocks. This major epidemic happen at Enron, an energy firm stationed in Houston, Texas founded by Kenneth Lay in 1986 (Frontain). On December 2, 2001, the Enron Corporation, an apparently strong and booming business, fell to an all-time low by shocking the wor ld when it filed for bankruptcy protection. Many people were left unemployed and withoutRead MoreEnron : The Smartest Guy Essay799 Words   |  4 Pagesscandals to come to mind would be the bankruptcy of Enron Corporation. If we apply and analyze the skills of a negotiator like Founder and Chairman Kenneth Lay, CEO Jeffery Skilling, and CFO Andrew Fastow it becomes clear how and why the actives of Enron were perpetuated for as long as they were. â€Å"This wasn’t about the numbers Enron was publishing, but rather it was about the people. This was a human tragedy† (Gibney). As expressed in the documentary, â€Å"Enron: The Smartest Guy’s in the Room,† the core issueRead MoreEnron - Ethical Dilemma Essay1129 Words   |  5 PagesEthical decision making: A dilemma 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 standRead MoreEnron : The Largest Energy Trader1669 Words   |  7 PagesEnron was the largest company for energy and natural gas made possible through the merging of Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth based in Omaha. The merger made Enron the largest energy trader in the country and the seventh largest in the world. The company advanced into new fields of business by launching a broadband service unit and Enron online, where people can go to trade commodities. Enron rose quickly to become one of America’s most valuable company. It had a peak of $100 billion in revenue