Reference no: EM133176133

Questions -

Q1. Describe all of the points of failure such as internal controls, leadership, internal organizations, external organizations, that did not do their job, corporate cultural failures, etc. How did each fail?

Q2. Greed and ambition will always exist in human nature. Market economies must expect that some senior executives will have this inclination, thus organizational controls are needed to prevent catastrophic failures. Search online for a summary or key provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002). Which of the provisions would have helped prevent the Worldcom fraud and how?

Q3. What are the pressures that lead executives and managers to "cook the books?" Which of these pressures applied to Worldcom? Is Wall Street also to blame for emphasizing short term results?

Q4. What is the boundary between earnings smoothing/management and fraudulent reporting?

Q5. Why were the actions taken by Worldcom managers not detected earlier? What processes or systems should be in place to prevent or detect quickly the types of actions that occurred in Worldcom?

Q6. Was the Board of Directors blameworthy in this case? Why or why not?

Q7. What were the organizational issues that prevented Internal Audit from detecting the fraud earlier?

Q8. What were the problems with the external auditor? Why did they not detect this fraud?

Q9. Is Betty Vinson a victim or villain? Should criminal charges have been brought against her? Given the limited employment opportunities in Clinton, Mississippi, and what the failure of Worlcom would do to her community's economy, did she have a choice? How should employees react when ordered by their employer to do something they do not believe in or feel comfortable doing?