This column is the first in a three-part series on audit committee responsibilities. The next column in the series will be published May 23, 2005. Click here for previous columns by Richard Steinberg. Serving as an audit committee member of a corporate board is among the most challenging roles in today’s business environment. Responsibilities have […]
Ethics & Culture
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Global Warming Gets Hot; Ford To Issue Climate Report
Environmental issues continue to make inroads into the mainstream of the activist governance set. In fact, in a new survey just released by Mercer Investment Consulting, 73 percent of 190 regional investment management organizations predict that the incorporation of social and/or environmental corporate performance indictors will become mainstream within 10 years, and 65 percent predict […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Ethics Waivers Rare; Most Posted On Corporate Web Sites
Waivers to company codes of ethics have been relatively rare, and when they have been made they have generally been revealed on the corporate Web site rather than in 8-K filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Under SEC rules adopted in January 2003 under The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, companies are not required to […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
True Stories: Why Setting The Right Tone Really Matters
Whatever your role in your company—be it director, CEO, or senior executive—you’ve undoubtedly heard a great deal about the need for your company to set the right “tone at the top.” But what is the “right” tone? Well, that’s usually easier to identify than articulate; the answer to the question is similar to the oft-paraphrased […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Stonecipher Post-Mortem: Powerful Boards, And HR’s Role
Boeing’s decision last week to sack CEO Harry Stonecipher after it learned about his relationship with a female executive raises a host of critical governance questions, and underscores how personnel policies are set—and resolved—at large public corporations. Stonecipher Boeing said its board ordered an investigation after receiving information that was sent anonymously to board chairman […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Stonecipher Post-Mortem: Powerful Boards, And HR’s Role
Boeing’s decision last week to sack CEO Harry Stonecipher after it learned about his relationship with a female executive raises a host of critical governance questions, and underscores how personnel policies are set—and resolved—at large public corporations. Stonecipher Boeing said its board ordered an investigation after receiving information that was sent anonymously to board chairman […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Abbott Divisional VP Ethics, Compliance: Lessons Learned
This Guest Column is one in a series of first-hand accounts written by senior executives at U.S. public companies. The goal of the column is to provide “lessons learned” during the implementation of various governance and compliance programs. To be considered as the author of a future column, public company executives should email the editor […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Trials Show Job Requirement No. 1 For CFOs Is Courage
In federal courtrooms about 1,000 miles away from each other, two high-profile criminal trials of corporate CEOs are proceeding with so many similarities that it sometimes can be hard to keep them straight. In New York, a jury will likely reach a verdict this week on whether former WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers will go to […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Case Study: Ethics And Compliance Training At Alcoa
This “case study” is the latest in a series of articles aimed at helping public companies understand how other organizations are using technology to comply with new regulations and standards. These are not advertisements or marketing vehicles for the companies mentioned; Compliance Week’s editorial staff speaks with the public company that has deployed the technology, […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Q&A With SVP Ethics At $700 Million Irwin Financial
This profile is the latest in a series of weekly conversations with executives at U.S. public companies who are currently involved in establishing and developing compliance programs. An index of previous conversations is available here. So, we hear that you were once a judge in the College Ethics Bowl. Yep. I was approached by a […]
