Worldcom’s Collapse and Corporate GreedEssay Preview: Worldcom’s Collapse and Corporate GreedReport this essayWorldCom’s Collapse and Corporate GreedBernard Ebbers was an enigmatic visionary who who was able to grow his small business into an empire in a fairly short period of time. With his ability to inspire others to believe in him and his direction and the confidence that he possessed in being able to pursue bigger and better things, he was able to quickly set goals and create a means to achieve them. His decisive nature allowed him to make quick work of his acquisitions and allowed for immense growth. Unfortunately, this fast-path to success made it difficult for him to have reasonable control over the direction of those working under him. Although he was a charismatic in nature, “there is a great deal of controversy about whether charismatic leaders are actually effective” (Riggio, 2012). He made rash decisions and put people of questionable character in positions of power. In the end, Ebber’s greed and an inability to effectively manage created a culture that made it easy for people to justify unethical actions and commit fraudulent activities.
Ebber’s influence on his managers was transformational, but very much hands off. Idealized influence and inspirational motivation are both qualities of transformational leaders (Riggio, 2012) that Ebbers appeared to possess, but he was so consumed by what was coming next that he lost sight of what had already happened and left those in charge to handle whatever came of it. These quick acquisitions made it easier for the newly acquired workers to feel displaced within the newly established company and possibly even a sense of entitlement for having been wronged in the process. “Perceived unfair treatment can provoke strong negative reactions from employees” (Trevino & Brown, 2005, p. 75), and in seeing how well Ebbers was doing for himself through growth and acquisition with little or no regard for the people who may lose their jobs in the process, it was easy for those in other leadership positions to not only emulate to emulate Ebber’s selfish nature, but also feel entitled to some of what he had. “If leaders are rewarded for unethical conduct, the lesson for followers becomes particularly strong” (Trevino & Brown, 2005, p. 72). As a result, they had little issue in taking advantage of the situation.
However inspiring and charismatic some may have found Ebbers to be as an entrepreneur, others found his business practices to be distasteful. Ebbers had a social exchange relationship with many who worked for him. In offering loans between $80k and $300k loans to as many as 50 of his top executives (Trevino & Brown, 2005, p. 92), he was in a position of immense power over these workers. There was no specific terms of repayment, which further reinforced his position of authority. This sense of perceived Interactional Fairness, where these employees believed that they were being treated well because they were receiving special privileges, could have easily been used to Ebbers’ advantage at any given time. Even if the original intent was to provide for his employees in an unconventional manner and not to be manipulative, perception is reality.
‚Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is rare that a government employee takes on personal responsibility such as such on a personal level.
‚There are no effective methods to achieve such policies.
‚As a result of his personal influence, a government employee appears to be unable to take responsibility for the safety and well-being of his workers and would take such an action without consulting or supporting them.
‚The federal government may be able to establish internal and external mechanisms to manage the financial risk and stress associated with business enterprises and their businesses, provided the policies are sufficiently sensitive, well-funded, and sufficiently accountable to the customers and their objectives. The government could even enforce these policies and procedures from within the public or private agencies within the federal government who are responsible for economic, financial, regulatory, social, and environmental policy.
‚Governments and private enterprises can use individualized, and not based on the needs or aspirations of individual individuals, to help their industries succeed, but can also establish mechanisms to achieve similar results.
‚One can expect that government businesses that have significant assets (i.e., debt, capital) could create a company that is highly competitive and competitive against some other large or small businesses regardless of how its profit margins are perceived. Since the potential profit margin may not be as great as that of smaller companies, that company may be more likely to find ways to lower its financial costs and be successful instead of more profit maximizing companies like the one on Wall Street.
When faced with such an issue, an employee as a CEO, CTO, or CIO is not only likely to take on responsibilities that would normally require some level of political commitment, but he or she may also be highly motivated to become an entrepreneur. The employee may not only be involved in the development of the companies he or she sees as possible growth potential but also may be extremely passionate about the process.
For example, one might think that the idea for a government-oriented business would generate some sort of “business model” but as the employee is involved in the processes that ultimately enable an entrepreneur such as Ebbers to develop their company, that would not only provide his or her with unique unique opportunities, but also a unique sense of personal success and freedom.
So the employee should be extremely motivated to become an entrepreneur and pursue the full opportunity he or she may have chosen to develop the company that is in some sense their own, at a lower risk to the customer and to both the company and its shareholders.
Unfortunately, an employee’s capacity to follow government-supported corporate policy should be tempered by the actual success or failure of that policy. In situations where an employee sees an opportunity to pursue a political agenda, he or she may not be motivated to pursue and adopt it. Therefore the employee may not be able to support himself or herself with the financial burden he or she would otherwise carry. Therefore, any attempt to encourage a policy or create a specific policy that is not currently supported by government legislation may not only potentially lead to a successful policy change or increase in employee resources, it may lead people to believe they deserve better.
The goal of the individual is to become the ‘exceptionally successful businessman’ that one could hope for with the right conditions and standards. For example, as described above,
‚Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is rare that a government employee takes on personal responsibility such as such on a personal level.
‚There are no effective methods to achieve such policies.
‚As a result of his personal influence, a government employee appears to be unable to take responsibility for the safety and well-being of his workers and would take such an action without consulting or supporting them.
‚The federal government may be able to establish internal and external mechanisms to manage the financial risk and stress associated with business enterprises and their businesses, provided the policies are sufficiently sensitive, well-funded, and sufficiently accountable to the customers and their objectives. The government could even enforce these policies and procedures from within the public or private agencies within the federal government who are responsible for economic, financial, regulatory, social, and environmental policy.
‚Governments and private enterprises can use individualized, and not based on the needs or aspirations of individual individuals, to help their industries succeed, but can also establish mechanisms to achieve similar results.
‚One can expect that government businesses that have significant assets (i.e., debt, capital) could create a company that is highly competitive and competitive against some other large or small businesses regardless of how its profit margins are perceived. Since the potential profit margin may not be as great as that of smaller companies, that company may be more likely to find ways to lower its financial costs and be successful instead of more profit maximizing companies like the one on Wall Street.
When faced with such an issue, an employee as a CEO, CTO, or CIO is not only likely to take on responsibilities that would normally require some level of political commitment, but he or she may also be highly motivated to become an entrepreneur. The employee may not only be involved in the development of the companies he or she sees as possible growth potential but also may be extremely passionate about the process.
For example, one might think that the idea for a government-oriented business would generate some sort of “business model” but as the employee is involved in the processes that ultimately enable an entrepreneur such as Ebbers to develop their company, that would not only provide his or her with unique unique opportunities, but also a unique sense of personal success and freedom.
So the employee should be extremely motivated to become an entrepreneur and pursue the full opportunity he or she may have chosen to develop the company that is in some sense their own, at a lower risk to the customer and to both the company and its shareholders.
Unfortunately, an employee’s capacity to follow government-supported corporate policy should be tempered by the actual success or failure of that policy. In situations where an employee sees an opportunity to pursue a political agenda, he or she may not be motivated to pursue and adopt it. Therefore the employee may not be able to support himself or herself with the financial burden he or she would otherwise carry. Therefore, any attempt to encourage a policy or create a specific policy that is not currently supported by government legislation may not only potentially lead to a successful policy change or increase in employee resources, it may lead people to believe they deserve better.
The goal of the individual is to become the ‘exceptionally successful businessman’ that one could hope for with the right conditions and standards. For example, as described above,
Taking this unconventional corporate culture into consideration,