Professorial Lecture to Focus on Enron Collapse
One of the country's leading experts on corporate accountancy and auditing will deliver his Professorial Inaugural Lecture at Bournemouth University next month. Chris Swinson, recently appointed as Visiting Professor to the University's Centre for Corporate Governance and Regulation, will deliver the lecture In the Shadow of Enron on Wednesday, 19th April, 2006 . During a long and successful career, Professor Swinson has held many major positions and was appointed Comptroller and Auditor General for Jersey towards the end of last year. As well as being former senior partner of BDO Stoy Hayward and President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales , Chris has been a Chairman of the Audit Committee of HM Treasury and a member of the Financial Reporting Council. He is the author of several books on aspects of accounting and auditing. Professor Swinson's role as Visiting Professor to Bournemouth University will allow him to share his wide knowledge of business and other organizations with both students and academics. During his lecture, Professor Swinson will focus on the role of corporate governance in the downfall of US giant Enron. “The common assumption underlying the law-making that followed Enron was that the collapse was caused by a corporate governance failure,” Professor Swinson contends. “Boards or agencies that should have monitored, warned or cautioned did not. That they did not is often attributed to the debilitating effect of conflicts of interest. Not surprisingly, rule makers have concentrated on the elimination of conflicts of interest. “There is another explanation for Enron's collapse, either complete or partial, and should not be forgotten,” he continues. “The corporate risks that Enron was running were substantial and novel. Their assessment cannot have been straightforward even for a board of directors as experienced as Enron's board. However respectable Enron's corporate governance should have been, similar risks may have been run with the same result. Rules are no substitutes for proper caution and judgment on the part either of boards or stakeholders.” Chris Swinson's Professorial Inaugural Lecture will commence at 6.30pm in the Allsebrook Lecture Theatre on the Talbot Campus of Bournemouth University . All are welcome to attend although pre-booking is requested by contacing the University Conferencing Office on (01202) 961045 or emailing: conferencing@bournemouth.ac.uk
3rd April 2006Return to events menu page |
