Lawyers should be turned into corporate governance gatekeepers. Put them in charge of the company's Stock Exchange filings. They would have to certify that all the statements were true and correct and they would have to sign a statement saying they weren’t aware of hidden booby traps in the accounts.
Significant news that Microsoft has overtaken Johnson & Johnson and topped the Reputation Quotient survey. The research was done before the Vista debacle but it doesn't matter anyway. Respondents were more interested in the philanthropy of Bill Gates than in whether Microsoft's products were any good.
Lawyers say a corporate counsel is in the best position to help the company build an ethical culture. But that won’t always work. Just ask the people at Herwlett-Packard.
Trust in business continues to fall with polls showing people now have less faith in the corporate world with only 18 per cent of people saying business executives had high or very high ethical standards. Business executives are now ranked in the same league as lawyers, insurance salesmen and HMO Managers. And the numbers are heading south.
What are the statistics for corporate crime? In most jurisdictions around the world, the numbers are usually messy and hard to collate. But here are some alarming statistics about what corporate crime costs the community.
Investors' gripes in Japan are getting louder. But Japan will never have a system where shareholders are in charge. But we are past the time when one Anglo-American style of corporate governance should fit all. Just ask the people at Toyota which will now overtake General Motors as the world’s biggest and most successful car manufacturer.
