Bad Boys

The business world has an unsavory side, one that supports the public’s image of businesspeople as greedy and unethical. While these qualities are hardly the exclusive province of the business community, daily headlines in the media chronicle the missteps, misbehavior, and wrongdoing of many players. Entrepreneurs are mostly known as hard-charging, “take no prisoners,” “eat their young,” action-oriented individuals. No one ever says that they are virtuous. The most successful company founders aren’t guaranteed entrance through the pearly gates. Sadly, even when their gambles succeed some entrepreneurs misplace their bearings, cut corners, and lose perspective, breaking the rules with the hope and expectation that their company might go further, faster, and become more profitable. While it is often unclear whether they expect to get away with their transgressions, the quest sometimes suspends common sense, the fear of losing trumps their better judgment, or the publicity surrounding their success becomes so addictive that they can’t stand not being in the limelight. While most entrepreneurs stop when they get to the edge, some cross over the line of permissibility. When they do, the end result is not pretty, as federal prosecutors orchestrate public perp walks, the lawyers ramp up, and some great innovative businesses melt away beneath headlines of misdeeds.