Chapter 13: Ethics and Corruption from the Perspective of the CFO

Demands made upon chief financial officers grow more intense both in scope and in complexity. The concerns of a contemporary CFO in the sphere of ethics and corruption encompass technological complexity that poses previously unimagined risks involving intellectual property and information. These challenges are not challenges any one person can take on alone, or even as a member of a small team. Successful collaborative leadership has emerged as an essential attribute to add to the list of requirements for the role of CFO.

A comprehensive model enables us to focus our discussion of ethics and corruption on essential factors that CFOs influence. Our model is based on three perspectives: the individual, the organization, and the social contract. We have visually depicted the three elements of the model with concentric circles (see Figure 13.1). The individual circle is placed inside of an organizational circle, and the organizational circle is positioned within a circle that represents a society that governs through the creation of social contracts. Influence flows across all boundaries in all directions. Individuals comprise organizations, and individuals and/or organizations create social contracts. The key perspectives are: individuals, organizations, and social contracts. CFOs act on all three levels and CFOs need to consider the interactive effects of their initiatives. Following a brief discussion and overview of this model, we will revisit each perspective in turn.