I have...and I bet you too...have heard or read about this one!
The guy (referring to a leader) is a miracle worker...
The guy (referring to a leader) is a miracle worker...
He makes money where others can't...
He is an alchemist...
He is worth every penny of his salary and bonus...
or...it he?
If it seems to be too good to be true...it probably is!
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The frequency of "late-breaking" news reports, about companies breaking the law...in pursuit of increased profits...is increasing at an alarming rate!
As of late...Murdoch and his empire is on the brink of toppling... simply because of the emphasis on "the BIG story" and the relentless pursuit of money...
The good news is that these people are getting caught...
The bad news is that many of our leaders think that it is OK to act like this...and many continue to get away with it...
Organizational Leadership has at its core two simple objectives...
1 - To make a company profitable
and...
2 - Prove that the organization's success (every dollar obtained) was not ill-gotten...EVERY DOLLAR!
Leaders need to drive their organization towards "air-tight" income...not "iffy"...and definitely not illegally gotten gains!
"Whoops!"...or..."I didn't know!" just doesn't cut it in the 21st century!
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Think about it...if a company breaks the law to make money...it is conspiracy...it is racketeering...it is organized crime!
If laws are broken...it is the responsible ones who should pay for the crimes...
AND...
That begs the question...
What should the penalty be?
Someone will pay for the crime...either the guilty...or society...
If they aren't getting caught...it is us that is paying for their crime...think about it!
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The White-Collar Criminal
White-collar crime is treated less harshly than others...I do not believe that this should be the case...
In fact...I believe that it should be as harsh as the most heinous crimes against our society...
Why?
Because their acts are actually acts against our society and what we (as Americans) stand for!
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Who should be punished?
The answers are rather simple...
The highest level answer is...
The ones actually committing the crimes...
AND...
The ones who are responsible for overseeing the organization's integrity...and are called to ensure that every dollar is obtained with complete integrity...and honesty...
Sorting through the "responsibility" side of guilt can be daunting...but it doesn't need to be...
It can simply be a Title search across the company's organization chart...
The CEO...The CFO...actually anyone with a "C" in their title!
They use plausible deniability as an excuse...but the fact of the matter is...it is (or should be) part of their job description!
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A Deeper Dive into Responsibility
Responsibility falls into 2 simple categories...
- Direct Responsibility
- Indirect Responsibility
Direct Responsibility is a "no-brainer" in most cases...but it is deeper than we normally accept...
The easiest one to identify is when an individual is directly responsible for the activity...which means...he or she does it...
In this instance...all of the EASY money obtained through their activity, is undeserved and all of the income; that of the organization and their personal income...including their salaries and bonuses should be seized and return to the public...(remember...this is a crime against the public)...
The individual should also serve jail time...because they have proved through their actions that they are a threat to our society...
WOW...THAT IS HARSH...BUT WAIT!
The second "Direct Responsibility" is also rather easy to identify...Activities that were conducted under the individual's direction and guidance!
In this instance...all of the EASY money obtained through their activity, is undeserved and all of the income; that of the organization and their personal income...including their salaries and bonuses should be seized and return to the public...
Hmmmmm...I am seeing a pattern here,,,are you?
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Indirect Responsibility...
At this point the responsibility gets more difficult...however...it is just as simple when we look at it for what it is?
"C-Level" leaders should know what is going on within their organization...
Good and bad...
They should be asking..."Why is this division doing so well?"...as well as...."Why is this division doing so poorly?"
I have sat in many "C-Level" meetings where great quarterly reviews were lauded...rather than questioned!
If a leader is doing better than the norm...it should be questioned and scrutinized...not let-off the hook!
A Great Leader Scrutinizes growth with as much attention as they push for answers about sub-standard performance...
Looking the other way or not asking those questions is condoning or authorizing the activity...this makes the leader an accessory to the crime
In this instance...all of the EASY money obtained through their activity, is undeserved and all of the income; that of the organization and their personal income...including their salaries and bonuses should be seized and returned to the public...
The individual should also serve jail time...because they have proved through their actions that they are a threat to our society...
This takes away the "I wasn't unaware" excuse...
By definition...they should have been!
Another criminal activity of poor leadership comes from the "Bottom-line" driven beast...
The leader whose relentless drive pushes his or her people to profitability...under the threat of termination...
Mr. "You're Fired!...if you don't perform..."
He or she may not know how their underlings achieved their success...but anything obtained through threat or coercion...is anti-liberty...anti-American! It is an act against the constitution!
You may recall that "Liberty" is the ability to act without threat or coercion...
It is a MAJOR breach of our American foundation...
In this instance...all of the EASY money obtained through their activity, is undeserved and all of the income; that of the organization and their personal income...including their salaries and bonuses should be seized and returned to the public...
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A Call to Accountability...
Ultimately our 21st century system needs to provide no ways out for illegal activity...
White-collar crime is what put the US in the place that it is in...
It is the reason behind the unemployment rate...
It is why our home prices fell...
It is the reason for every negative economic situation I can think of!
We need to make the consequences drastic for illegal and anti-American behavior...
These consequences are the risk that leaders have to take in order to hold their position...
Leaders draw HUGE incomes and...
There needs to be a HUGE risk associated with it...
If they are not held accountable...and pay for their crimes...it is us who are criminal...
We are just as guilty as the leader who doesn't question how someone made so much money!
It is us who pay for it by our "looking the other way...and not asking..."How did they make so much money?"
We may not serve jail time...but ask anyone who is unemployed and wants to work...if it is not a punishment...
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The biggest mistake that we can make is not starting!
It is time for us to push our government to hold organizational leadership accountable for their activities...
They should not be allowed to run businesses like criminals and walk away with a slap on the hand...and HUGE bank accounts or trusts in other people's names...
White-collar crime is a MAJOR crime...it is happening all around us!
And many of the C-Level individuals continue to sleep well at night because they believe that we are too dumb to catch them!
Make no mistake...the 21st Century is different!
We are not dumb...
This century will go down in history as the century of Organizational Karma!
Enough said!
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