Inside Arthur Andersen: Shifting Values, Unexpected Consequences

by Cynthia J. Smith, Lorna McDougall, William R. Yeack, et al.

Book Overview

Why did Arthur Andersen really collapse? What crucial lessons can be learned from Andersen's experience? "Inside Arthur Andersen" uncovers the roots of Andersen's implosion, tracing its spectacular... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0131408968
• Release Date: June 2003
• Publisher: FT Press
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 1.17 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.9" x 0.6" x 6.2"

Customer Reviews

Well Written - Really Drives Home Impact to Those Affected but Not Involved

I never thought about the thousands of people all over the world who conscientiously practised their profession but were brought down by a series of scandals by people they never knew working in offices they never dealt with. This book is the fall of Arthur Andersen from their point of view. It details the history of Arthur Andersen from its founding until the end and tries to makes sense of what happened. They do a powerful job, making the reader sensitve to the size and corporate culture of Andersen and explaining how changes in the company to accomodate the changing demand for audit services opened the door to this kind of thing to happen. If you couple reading this book with books about Enron itself, you will definitely be feeling that only the people in Anderson involved in the scandal should have been brought down. That being said, they do leave in the "smoking guns" - the former scandals that had caused the SEC to say basically, "One more time and your dead" to Andersen. Enron was the one more time. Still, this book made me think that there might have been a better way of handling it.

Very interesting prespective

I was with Andersen for 8 years up until the fall of the firm. This is the first book I have read about the firm the takes a methodical look at what exactly happened at one of the most prestigous firms in the world. If you are interested in Andersen's rise to power and some insight as to what it was like inside during the fall, then its a must read.

Inside Arthur Andersen

Loved it! By taking the view of culture the authors hit at the marrow of the Arthur Andersen debacle. Arthur Andersen created a phenomenal franchise in a sector that demands integrity as a precept. The cultural erosion of that precept inside our public accounting sector is a particularly chilling realization for an average 401k investor.

Unexpected Consequences Indeed

Excellent book. I've known folks from Arthur Andersen for some years and, given their professionalism and stalwartness, was dumbfounded by the firm's steep and abrupt fall. While a small part of the book's story won't be new to followers of the NYT business page, overall it provides a very sharp and readable narrative of AA's path from what Arthur Andersen (the man) saw as a public trust to it's name (and his) becoming synonymous with duplicity. My biggest surprise came with learning of how straight a shooter the founder was. Somewhere Mr. Andersen must be spinning.

Required Reading

The aim of this book seems to be to offer an account of how Arthur Andersen's culture of consulting developed over the decades, to tell it like it is, rather than a tell-all. When the time came this crucial shift away from audit, mirrored in the other major financial firms, led to Andersen receiving one hundred percent of the blame for the $62 billion losses record in the Enron debacle. The authors make a cogent case for considering the warning that deflecting this blame onto Andersen paves the way for future financial misfortune. It also encourages professional readers and investors to think carefully about the future of audit and the financial sector. This book steers clear of being a prurient tell-all, and avoids the whining tone of its competitors, with the added bonus of having the solid, referenced data and coherent argument it takes to make determined Andersen-haters a little more cautious about laying all the blame at their now-closed door.