Lessons from Olympus

Within days of the Enron debacle’s 10th anniversary and three years from the Madoff Ponzi scheme, a new scandal emerged at the Japanese electronics giant Olympus. This fraud — complete with fresh allegations of financial manipulation, management abuse, special purpose entities, conflicts of interest and complicit auditors — shares many of the issues of Enron. Olympus may show just how little we have progressed since Enron — a bellwether in business ethics and corporate conduct.

Unethical behavior of insiders at Enron and Olympus manifested in overstating operational value. Both companies gained operational advantages by exploiting laws and common business or accounting practices, sometimes with their auditors’ concurrence. Therefore, management of both companies deceived their shareholders and most of their employees. Of course, Enron tanked, and, as of press time, we don’t yet know the future of Olympus.

OLYMPUS' ETHICS