Financial Collapse of Corporate America.
In the last decade, America had one of the strongest economies in the .
world. Companies made billions of dollars in profit, both for the shareholders, and .
themselves. This tenure of economic growth was spurred on by unprecedented capacity, .
consumer's hunger for new technology products, and the shear growth of the American .
economy. In fact, according to the U.S Labor Department, in 1998, we were at our lowest .
unemployment rate in nearly 20 years, it hovered at nearly 4.6%. Corporate America has .
built enormous businesses that have reached global and international markets. However, .
many pundits questioned if the economic boom would last into the 21st Century. .
However, these pessimists seemed sure that the market would collapse. In 1999, the .
world witnessed the unfolding of an economic crash. In order to rationalize this fall, we .
need look into the issues that probably that caused this crash: (1) Corporate Ethical Issues .
(2) Recent Corporate Scandals, and (3) The Economic Impact. Let us first look at the .
ethical practices of with regard to business.
In her book, Managing Business Ethics, Linda K. Trevino discusses the.
issue of ethics and states, " It is the role of every CEO to ensure sound ethical practices.
are enforced from the top down. The leaders must demonstrate to all employees.
what ethics is all about in the business environment- (p.189). This statement has lasting.
implications and is the foundation upon which many businesses operate. However, in the .
aftermath of the recent economic boom, many analyst have suspected unethical practices .
at some of the world's largest companies.
According to Barbara Ehrenreich, author of, Nickel .
and Dime, "Our Corporate CEO's have gone from rocking to reeking in .
a mere two years. At the height of the dot.com bubble, when they had won distinguished .
awards "that of ethic and credible "role models- and even "icons,"" many investors .
