The Ethical Barometer

News & Events

To Terminate or Not To Terminate Yahoo’s CEO for Missing Credentials: More Rationalizations Gone Wild

Yahoo CEO, for now, Scott Thompson, earned a degree in accounting and computer science from Stonehill College in 1979. Slight problem; Stonehill College did not offer a degree in computer science until 1983. This guy was REALLY ahead of his time. A hedge fund owner wants him ousted, and the board slogs onward to investigate because as an anonymous company source put it, “Maintaining him as CEO of Yahoo at this time is more important than whether he had a computer science degree or not.” And an ethical wizard from an executive coaching firm offered this nugget, “It would be catastrophic to Yahoo if they pulled him out.”

Actually, Cato, it would be catastrophic if they leave him in his position. For the employees, there is the morale problem as well as the signals on ethics. If they would be fired for the same offense, Thompson needs to go. For the investors, well, there is already a proxy battle, and it looks like the outside forces, who are not happy with the $10 to $20 per share hover for four years after the decline of a Microsoft $33 offer, have won, and all over a misrepresented degree. Thompson has only one full quarter as CEO under his belt. The company needs credible leadership.

What the Barometer finds interesting is the thinking on the various news websites about “to terminate or not to terminate, that is the question.” Herewith, more from the minds of our fellow Catos: (more…)

Rationalizations Gone Wild

Since the Greg Smith letter of resignation from Goldman Sachs via the op-ed page of the New York Times, Wall Street has been on defense. Well, more accurately, Wall Street has been in full rationalization/justification/”it’s just what we do” mode. Herewith a few of the classics:
• “Instead of ‘examining’ unprovable accusations, Goldman and other banks should ditch the ‘clients-first’ mantra they constantly recite and state clearly what they are about.” (Wall Street Journal columnist, Francesco Guerrera) Okay, here goes, the new approach to clients: “We’re in it for the money, not you, and we don’t make any bones about it, so invest with us.”
• “Banks aren’t charities—they should have said (more…)

Classic Quotes

“A tempest in a teapot.”

Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, just about a month ago, when asked about Chase’s London trading desk where there was wild and large hedging going on, aka “The London Whale.” Mr. Dimon announced yesterday that one employee at the London desk, aka Voldemort, had lost $2 billion. Other tempests in teapots over the years have included Nike Leeson, Joseph Jett, and Jerome Kerviel. Barings Bank (Leeson) and Kidder Peabody (Jett) are no more. Societe Generale (Kerviel) hung on, despite the losses. Tempests often destroy the teapot. How are the mighty fallen. 2 Samuel 1:19

“As with many great American institutions, i.e., General Motors, American Airlines, and many others who have utilized the strategic business tool called bankruptcy, Gary Busey’s filing is the final chapter in a process that began a few years ago of jettisoning the litter of past unfortunate choices, associations, events and circumstances that visited themselves upon this great American icon, to enable the start of a new and clear path to peace, happiness and success with his career and his wonderful new soulmate, Steffanie, and their son, Luke.”

From Gary Busey’s agent, an explanation of why someone who made millions need debt relief. The explanation may be the longest sentence ever, but it all boils down to one rationalization: Everybody does it, even GM. Who knew that bankruptcy was a business strategy?

“That is every song I’ve ever written, “Badlands,” “Prove It All Night” . . . Listen up, youngsters, this is how successful theft is accomplished.”

Bruce Springsteen, after singing The Animals’ We Gotta Get Out of the Place during his keynote address to 3,000 budding musicians at Austin’s South by Southwest Music Festival (SXSW). Good advice, although not necessarily what copyright lawyers for music producers like to hear.

“Am I shocked he tried to keep the money for himself? No. It’s human nature. I play by myself because I don’t trust people.”

Customer at the Magie Mart Food Store and Deli where Americo Lopes bought a lottery ticket while he was in a pool with five friends. One of the tickets purchased at the Magie Mart resulted in a win of $38.5 million, but Mr. Lopes said that ticket was one he purchased for himself. He tried to keep the money all for himself, but eventually told the others that he had won The others took him to court (more…)

Ethical Dilemmas

Returning Slightly Used Shoes

Even the well seasoned Dillard’s manager was taken aback by this one. A customer brought in a pair of moderately expensive dress shoes, expressing a desire to return them because they just weren’t quite right. As the manager processed the order she checked inside the box to be sure that the shoes in the box were the shoes the matched the box – past experience dictated that follow-up on returns. The shoes were the correct ones for the box, but the customer had another issue. The shoes had masking tape on the bottom – masking tape that was dirty. When the manager returned to the customer (more…)

Stunning Contrasts – What We Miss When We Don’t Help

In a seminar the Barometer was conducting, a participant indicated that he was carrying the guilt from something he had done last year. On his way to an important meeting, he saw a woman with four small children along the side of the road trying to flag down a car to help her with her broken down vehicle. He said he did not stop to help because of time demands. He also said that he has felt guilty ever since.

On the same day as the seminar, the Barometer was at a tiny post office in a rural town. The agenda was mailing a package of laundry back home from a too-long road trip. The elderly woman at the counter ahead of the Barometer was trying to do a “Return to Sender” on a package because she said she did not think she had ordered the book in the package. The postal clerk explained that once you have opened the package the “Return to Sender” option is no longer available. The clerk explained to her that she could package it up and resend it. “Could I do it some way (more…)