The recent scandals have taken their toll on the way the general public views large corporations and the way they operate. There is a lot of distrust, and corporations find that they need to rebuild trust in their companies if they want to continue a successful operation.

Education

Colleges and universities have changed their approach to educating students who plan to make a career in business. Accounting firms, such as Arthur Andersen, have taken a big hit during the scandals because of the shredded financial documents and their creative bookkeeping methods. The scandals haven’t kept students from wanting to go into accounting as a career, but it has meant colleges need to address ethics more strongly. They are also presenting more “real life” situations in the classrooms, all to better prepare the students for the hard choices they’ll have to make.

In the Workplace

One of the biggest changes in the workplace since the scandals is the way workers view pension plans. Pensions were hard hit during the scandals, and many retirees, as well as employees, lost their pensions. In the past, companies like Enron and Worldcom convinced employees to invest their 401(k) monies into company stock, which went belly-up during bankruptcies. Today, many employees have little faith in employer-provided pension plans, although there has been no sign that employees are taking the initiative to save for their own retirement. Thanks to the recent scandals, over half of all Americans believe that they will need to work a full-time job well into their 70s, if they ever get to retire at all.

There has been more stress on overall ethics within the workplace, as well. Part of the problem with the scandals has been the culture within corporations, almost an anything-goes mentality. Salaries and incentive packages for top-level executives have helped cultivate this idea that executives deserve anything they can take. Now there is more of a push on ethics within the workplace. Whistleblowers are being given more protection than in the past.

Auditing regulations have also been made tighter. Corporations are changing the way they deal with auditing firms. Auditing committees within corporations are separate from management, which means top-level executives can no longer manipulate the way books are kept.