If there is a conviction, there may be some increased public trust of business, although not a lot.  If there is not a conviction, I think public's perception of business will be that a CEO can get away with anything.  That is likely to be the perception accompanying a not guilty verdict even if the evidence supports such a verdict.  The public is convinced that this was a moral disaster regardless of what the jury says.

Timothy L. Fort
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Lindner-Gambal Professor of Business Ethics at George Washington University Business School

A conviction will give people a sense that justice has been served and may in a small way help to restore the public trust in business. Restoring the public trust in business, however, is a long road and will have to be accomplished company-by-company and industry-by-industry over time.

R. Edward Freeman
Academic Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Elis and Signe Olsson Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

Enron is now shorthand for business failure rooted in corruption—in the public mind, it stands for all of the recent scandals.  The current challenge being taken up by the hundreds of ethical business leaders is how to restore the public perception of business as the engine of employment, economic growth, innovation, and long-term value creation.

Dean Krehmeyer
Executive Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics

This trial is VERY important.  Although many other companies have been involved in scandals, Enron became the poster child for corporate malfeasance.  The public has been waiting for a long time for these trials and it will be important for them to perceive that justice was done.  Doing so may not change the public's perception of business, but hopefully it will change the perception that crime pays.

Linda K. Trevino
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Professor of Organizational Behavior and Cook Fellow in Business Ethics, The Pennsylvania State University

The trial provides a small but important signal that corporate executives can and should be held accountable for the gross misconduct that happens within their organizations. Indeed, when incidents like Enron happen, we should start with the assumption that top management is aware of, and complicit in, such activities. It is also a reminder that white collar crime is a serious problem that needs to be addressed.

Andrew Wicks
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Associate Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

Not by a long shot.  There will be plenty more.  Fifteen years ago it was Michael Milken. Twenty to 25 years ago, we were talking about bribery scandals.  If it isn't accounting scandals it will be something else.

Timothy L. Fort
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Lindner-Gambal Professor of Business Ethics at George Washington University Business School

New regulations may have been necessary, but they don’t fix the real problems. The scandals are rooted in two mistaken ideas: a view that sees business and ethics as separate, and the belief that good management consists only in increasing the company stock price. We need to make business and ethics go together and we need to see management’s role as creating value for all stakeholders.

R. Edward Freeman
Academic Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Elis and Signe Olsson Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

Sarbanes-Oxley did not fix everything, nor did the amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, for that matter.  However, the executives and directors we speak with indicate that it has helped them to discover new insights about their company processes and systems that have improved their controls – which is certainly beneficial.

Dean Krehmeyer
Executive Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics

We have certainly not seen an end to large business scandals.  Anyone who has been around the business ethics field for a while knows this.  Every round of scandals is followed by new regulation and perhaps better behavior for a while.  Nevertheless, it seems that some people will find new ways to get around laws and regulations.  So, it will continue to be very important for regulators and others to keep their eyes on industries that are ripe for new types of scandal.  Elliott Spitzer's focus on unethical "business as usual" in whole industries has been particularly helpful in this regard.

Linda K. Trevino
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Professor of Organizational Behavior and Cook Fellow in Business Ethics, The Pennsylvania State University

Absolutely not. There will always be scandals like this. The lessons of the day are to remember that there will always be such people. Scandals can’t be “fixed”, but we can learn from them to create more awareness, more accountability, and remember how important it is to find ways to put business and ethics together.

Andrew Wicks
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Associate Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

Well, for some, it may not make any difference, but for a lot of managers, sure, ethics can be taught. The question is the systemic structures that align managers’ performance with short-term outcomes.  If an investor can change stock positions a dozen times a day on corporate news, how can an executive build in long-term strategies where things like goodwill, reputation, etc. matter?  It isn't impossible to do so, but the deck is loaded against it.

Timothy L. Fort
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Lindner-Gambal Professor of Business Ethics at George Washington University Business School

The upside of the recent scandals is that they have led to widespread public concern about ethical business practices. This heightened level of engagement creates a moment—a unique moment—to make lasting difference in corporate practice. We can be the generation that makes business better.

R. Edward Freeman
Academic Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Elis and Signe Olsson Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

We lead seminars for CEOs, senior executives and directors and we do it because we believe it makes a real difference. Executives and managers who want to be ethical leaders can always learn new ways to bring their firm’s values to life. Becoming an ethical leader is a career-long process, not an innate ability or something learned in six weeks. The best learning often comes from peers, mentors and role-models.

Dean Krehmeyer
Executive Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics

Ethics can certainly be taught.  People can be taught to recognize ethical issues when they arise and they can be given decision making skills and told what expectations are.  But, education isn't enough.  Most people are susceptible to influences from the environments in which they find themselves. Therefore, organizations and their leaders must create strong ethical cultures in which ethical behavior is supported and unethical behavior is seriously disciplined.   This happens by focusing on multiple systems (including reward and disciplinary systems) that all point employees in the right direction.  Senior leaders who deal with the most ambiguous ethical issues should be thoroughly vetted for their moral courage and ethical leadership.

Linda K. Trevino
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Professor of Organizational Behavior and Cook Fellow in Business Ethics, The Pennsylvania State University

Pushing companies to take ethics seriously – not as a band aid, but as a way to re-envision what it means to be a great business. Ethics can be taught to adults, even though such training may never convince a criminal to change their behavior. Particularly when it is done right and has the backing of the organization, ethics can provide a powerful influence – through the culture of the organization, peer pressure, and the expectations of authority figures – on individual behavior within organizations.

Andrew Wicks
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Associate Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

Enforcing regulations and penalties is important, but a clear message from Enron and other business scandals is that creating and fostering an ethical culture—and not rule changes alone—is the only effective way to prevent wrongdoing. It is a sad fact that Enron had a model ethics program with guidelines well-known by employees. The organizational values widely-recognized by the acronym RICE —Respect, Integrity, Communication, and Excellence—are terrific principles for any organization. The problem is these values were not alive in Enron’s culture in the way they needed to be.

R. Edward Freeman
Academic Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Elis and Signe Olsson Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School

We live in the age of transparency. Managers should assume that the public will learn how they have conducted business—and, in the end, you can not fake value creation. Falsely reporting financials to meet short-term earnings expectations is a death spiral that destroys companies—period.

Dean Krehmeyer
Executive Director, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics

The Enron case teaches us that the business "paradigm" never changed as some would have had us believe.  Ethical business practice requires commitment to honesty and transparency as it always has. 

Linda K. Trevino
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Professor of Organizational Behavior and Cook Fellow in Business Ethics, The Pennsylvania State University

It provides a reminder that the temptations for cutting corners and defrauding others are great. That power, money, and knowledge can foster arrogance and a sense of entitlement that lead to truly shocking behavior.

Andrew Wicks
Academic Advisor, Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics
Associate Professor of Business Administration, The Darden School