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HR's role in corporate governance: Present and prospective
Author(s) -
Beatty Richard W.,
Ewing Jeffrey R.,
Tharp Charles G.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
human resource management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.888
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1099-050X
pISSN - 0090-4848
DOI - 10.1002/hrm.10084
Subject(s) - wrongdoing , corporate governance , prudence , limelight , public relations , business , dishonesty , credibility , accounting , stakeholder , shareholder , business ethics , function (biology) , political science , law , finance , philosophy , theology , electrical engineering , engineering , evolutionary biology , biology
Corporate wrongdoing is damaging investor confidence and tarnishing the credibility of the U.S. businesscommunity, guilty and innocent alike. Some misdeeds are clearly criminal, others simply unethical or damaging toreputations. They range from “massaging” numbers (“managed earnings”), whichtests the limits of financial prudence, to outright fraud. Caught in the limelight are U.S. corporate giantsrepresenting some of the world's best‐known brands and most famous CEOs, many only yesterday lionizedin the business press. We have explored this issue from the perspective of the HR function through a survey of the senior HRprofessionals who attended the Human Resources Forum. The survey was augmented with focus groups. Our purpose wasto understand current practices, attitudes, and behaviors with respect to legal standards and professional andethical codes. We also explored the roles of the CEO, HR leadership, and the HR function in minimizing ethicalbreaches that have diminished investor and public trust. We hope to shed light on the responsibilities, actions,and risks of the HR function and its leadership now and in the future. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.