For the first episode of Season 3, I’m talking about Enron and the company’s spectacular rise and even more spectacular fall. It’s a story about how creativity can sometimes mean stupidity, how culture impacts a company’s survival, how hiring decisions matter, how ideas mutate, and how companies that put stock price and profits above all else can easily be the architects of their own demise. And--how blind people can be about a lot of things if what they are doing is making money.

Who was responsible for Enron? What were the major causes of its bankruptcy? Who spoke up, and who listened (or didn’t?) And what insurance responds when half of your executives are being criminally charged, and the shareholders and creditors are suing everyone they can think of? Join me to find out!

Selected Sources and Links:

1.       Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) - IMDb

2.       Guest Post: D&O What to Know: A Guide to the Evolution of Directors and Officers Insurance from 1933 to the Present | The D&O Diary (dandodiary.com)

3.       https://nypost.com/2001/12/13/oh-boies-this-is-bad-ex-enron-cfo-hires-top-defense-lawyer/

4.       The defendants of the Enron era and their cases (chron.com)

5.       Enron Executives: What Happened, and Where Are They Now? (investopedia.com)

6.       SKILLING v. UNITED STATES (cornell.edu)

7.       ARTHUR ANDERSEN LLP V. UNITED STATES (cornell.edu)

8.       Enron: Annual Reports (enroncorp.com)

9.       Enron: The Good, The Bad, The Lessons, Lori Zulaf, Peter Grierson, International Business & Economics Research Journal, Volume 1, Number 11

10.   Enron: A Financial Reporting Failure, Anthony H. Catanach Jr. & Shelley Rhoades-Catanach, Vol 48, Villanova Law Review, 2003

11.   The Other Enron Story, Toni Mack, Forbes, October 14, 2002

12.   Is Enron Overpriced? Bethany McLean, Fortune, March 5, 2001

13.   Monster Mess, Bethany McLean, Fortune, February 4, 2002

14.   Hidden Risks, Toni Mack, Forbes, May 24, 1993

15.   Why Enron Went Bust, Bethany McLean, Fortune, December 24, 2001

Sources with Paywall:

1.       Timeline: A chronology of Enron Corp. - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

2.       Disgraced Ex-Enron CFO warns D&O insurers on fraud risk (insuranceinsider.com)

Books:

1.       The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron: McLean, Bethany, Elkind, Peter, Nocera, Joe: 9781591846604: Amazon.com: Books

2.       Conspiracy of Fools: A True Story: Eichenwald, Kurt: 9780767911795: Amazon.com: Books

3.       The Chickenshit Club: Why the Justice Department Fails to Prosecute Executives: Eisinger, Jesse: 9781501121371: Amazon.com: Books

4.       Power Failure: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Enron: Swartz, Mimi, Watkins, Sherron: 9780767913683: Amazon.com: Books

5.       Ensuring Corporate Misconduct: How Liability Insurance Undermines Shareholder Litigation: Baker, Tom, Griffith, Sean J.: 9780226035154: Amazon.com: Books

6.       A Financial History of Modern U.S. Corporate Scandals: From Enron to Reform: Markham, Jerry W: 9780765615831: Amazon.com: Books

Music Credits:

·         Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Boulangerie, LynneMusic | NeoSounds music library

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