Business Fairy Tales: Grim Realities of Fictitious Financial Reporting

Business Fairy Tales: Grim Realities of Fictitious Financial Reporting by Jackson, Cecil W.. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780324305395.

On the heels of the Bernard Ebbers conviction, executives are beginning to realize that there are many lessons to be learned from the barrage of fraud hammering corporate America— including how to spot signs of future impropriety. In a gripping, intriguing read, Business Fairy Tales uses real-world scandals to illustrate the seven most common frauds. It explains each fraud with a detailed, engaging story of the company and its officials that committed the most spectacular incident of that kind of financial reporting fraud. It goes behind the scenes to describe the organizations acts of deception to the public, as well as the character failures of the leaders. In addition to the specific cases, the book presents a compelling argument for the kind of reform that is needed within the industry. Ultimately, it equips and empowers readers with the skills to spot potential signs of fraud in financial statements so that they can be forewarned of future financial shocks. An appendix presents a list of publicly traded companies whose financial statements contain signals that may indicate an overstatement of assets or profits or an understatement of liabilities.