CONSPIRACY OF FOOLS: A TRUE STORY PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

Kurt Eichenwald | 746 pages | 15 Jan 2006 | Random House USA Inc | 9780767911795 | English | New York, United States Conspiracy of Fools - Kurt Eichenwald

You can trust the others. You're at a Fortune 50 company, so don't sweat the small stuff. Just don't make me look bad. This book is soon to be made into a movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio. View all 4 comments. In it, Eichenwald does a decent job of combining the best of the three others, as if he poached some from each. Conspiracy reads as a novel, combining facts and details with presumably fictional conversations. The sometimes outrageous discussions between characters left me feeling that Eichenwald embellished a little too much, and at Conspiracy of Fools is the fourth Enron-related tale I've read Smartest Guys in the Room, Enron: The Rise and Fall, and Anatomy of Greed being the other three. He often leaves out the nitty gritty details best described by Smartest Guys in the Room, and relies too much on dramatics, like in Anatomy of Greed. And unlike Smartest Guys by far the most well written and complete chronicle of the rise and fall of Enron , Eichenwald has a definite bent to his story, almost insisting that Andrew Fastow was entirely to blame, while painting Jeff Skilling as a basket case whose emotional baggage blinded him to any wrongdoing, and Ken Lay as a social and political juggernaut with blinders on. Other former Enron executives, like Richard Causey and Rick Buy, take far too little blame for their roles in the special purpose entities that ultimately drove Enron under. Conspiracy of Fools is a fairly entertaining, however one-sided it may be, read despite dragging on Smartest Guys in the Room, and the documentary based on the book, are much more highly recommended. View 1 comment. Apr 17, Donitello rated it it was amazing. This book gives sobering data, while reading like a best-selling mystery--a bona fide page-turner. The book is particularly relevant when we put the story of Enron into perspective: Geo. Bush's longtime personal friendship with Enron head Ken Lay; Bush's own businesses in the s--Arbusto and Spectrum also collapsing shortly after HE sold out his personal stock; numerous other financial giants coincident with Enron eg. This book gives a detailed view of the process. I was continually astonished as I read. But then, I always am. People sometimes accuse me of being cynical, but I can honestly reply every time: "To the contrary--I'm constantly amazed! We can't say we weren't told Mar 02, James rated it liked it Shelves: finance. Very pleasant and interesting to read. But is it all true? I find that hard to believe. In any case, Skilling is still in prison. And CEO's are still looting companies with excessive pay and outrageous stock options. Feb 13, Ericka Clouther rated it really liked it Shelves: 0-own , nonfiction , book-club-dad , business , crime , , own-read , own-nonfiction , economics , author- male. Very thorough and interesting account of all the myriad of things that went wrong at Enron and Arthur Anderson. The culture is very familiar to me from my days in big law. View all 3 comments. Jan 29, Valerie rated it it was amazing. It is very rare for me to give a book a 5 so the fact that I gave this one 5 stars should give a hint how much I liked it. I'm not sure what I found so compelling about this book but I was up late several nights reading it. Even though I knew how it was going to end it was sort of like watching a disaster movie, you know it is going to turn out ugly but you still have to watch or read in this case Once things started unravelling, Eichenwald kept up the tension through devices like after an eve It is very rare for me to give a book a 5 so the fact that I gave this one 5 stars should give a hint how much I liked it. Even though I knew how it was going to end it was sort of like watching a disaster movie, you know it is going to turn out ugly but you still have to watch or read in this case Once things started unravelling, Eichenwald kept up the tension through devices like after an event saying this deal would only be in place for two weeks. Really it has an obvious villain, an obvious dupe, and an out of touch king, all classic fiction types. The one piece that I would have liked is an addendum to list who was tried for what crimes and how they fared. The book ended with Ken Lay at his arraignment. Jun 16, Scott Hawkins rated it it was amazing. There are occasions--plane crashes, Chernobyl, Long Term Capital Management--when smart, highly trained people fuck up in a way "oops, my bad" just won't cover. I'm not sure why, but I can read about that stuff endlessly. I think my interest might have to do with the way it exposes gaps in our thinking? Or maybe it's just prurient. I don't know. Probably you're one of the But if you're nodding slig There are occasions--plane crashes, Chernobyl, Long Term Capital Management--when smart, highly trained people fuck up in a way "oops, my bad" just won't cover. But if you're nodding slightly to yourself right now, pick up Conspiracy of Fools. It's the good stuff. Sep 08, Michael Chrobak rated it it was amazing. By far the best 'behind the scenes' look at what was a very public and heavily reported event. The early chapters set the stage perfectly. A company that was far more lucky than skilled, filled with executives who had far more confidence than talent, doing transactions they were never meant to do. By the middle of the book, I was astonished at how deep the criminal activities and outrigh By far the best 'behind the scenes' look at what was a very public and heavily reported event. By the middle of the book, I was astonished at how deep the criminal activities and outright arrogance had penetrated throughout the company. By the final chapters, I was simply appalled at the blatant ignorance of leadership and the complete disregard for basic financial controls in a company that had already collapsed several months, perhaps even a few years, before anyone at the firm began to grasp that something was wrong. A great example of the extent that corporations placed profits and growth above everything else during the turbulent years of the rise and fall of the dot com business world. Jul 26, Kurtbg rated it liked it Shelves: historical , fiction-non , business-economics. This book presents Andy Fastow, Enron CFO, as the principal architect behind the fall of Enron, diminishing the legitimacy of the US financial institution, feeding the CA energy crisis and international problems, specifically in India and Latin America. Fastow created accounting entities which were used to hide Enron debt. He initially named himself the owner of these entities and got the board to dismiss any conflicts of interest. He then played loose with accounting rules and received required This book presents Andy Fastow, Enron CFO, as the principal architect behind the fall of Enron, diminishing the legitimacy of the US financial institution, feeding the CA energy crisis and international problems, specifically in India and Latin America. Why wouldn't you trust your CFO, right? Fastow takes fees for running these entities - which ultimately end up being recognize as Enron years later. Basically he embezzled and gave others a piece of the pie to go along with it. Skilling, Lay and the board don't go into details so they think it's all on the up - hey, Fastow is reducing expense and increasing profit. Gotta love it. Enron's profits are huge. They're the big guy on the block. Well, how do you get this by the external accounting review arthur andersen and the ratings companies Moody? Well, both those companies receive money from Enron for other business. If you don't sign off, maybe that business will go somewhere else. You're numbers will be down, then you're job will be on the block. It's a soft approach to a strong-arm tactic. Politics uses a version of this too. Ask the wrong question of the president and you're access to the white house is cut-off. You can't be a WH correspondent and not have access. You get the SEC to sign-off by describing partially what you are doing. Lay's a big Bush family friend. This is obviously a trustworthy company. All during this Enron has a number of other shady things going on. It sales is eager to book deals a multi-billion facility in India but without any review of what actual costs are. They also get creative and create an energy market in CA which they then manipulate to shakedown a state by holding them as captive consumers. The snowball effect happens no, not Warren Buffett , things start to leek. The culture of loyalty and pettiness internal starts to crumble. Deals fall through, economic triggers are hit. The hidden debt's ugly head appears and the company is actually billion in debt. Just as a deal for Enron to be bought by Dynergy, the 2 company always made fun of by Enron, an economic trigger hits, an additional millions is owed, and the final nail is driven into the Enron casket. Really, this story is about greed. There needed to be regulations and review in place that were completely third party, without conflict of interest or influence. Every system, ultimately, is as good as its people. In a culture of greed and unfettered profiteering this is what happens, and will happen again. There's a saying about Texas businessman and how they take pride in your great losses as much as your great wins. The cost those losses are to everyone else never seem to make it to the balance sheet. So Fastow, the inflection point in this crime, created multi- billion debt, destroyed a company Enron would have rebounded from their other problems if Fastow didn't do what he did, and perhaps they never would have engaged in those endeavors without his presence , damaged the world economy, contributed to the destruction of an accounting firm, destroyed peoples livelihood, retirements, jobs, and more That's all. Skilling received 14 years and Lay died before his sentencing. The issue with an unregulated capitalism is that you only know that you shouldn't have done something after the fact. By then, all the potential destruction has already been done. Case in point: the dodo. The book should really have been titled "Conspiracy for Greed" as they weren't fools - just greedy businessmen. Apr 28, Meg rated it it was ok Recommends it for: CEOs interested in blaming a scapegoat, the very bored and boring. Shelves: nonfiction. I can't believe how many pages I slogged through for absolutely no reason. What a waste of perfectly good pieces of paper. First of all, let me say that I generally mistrust nonfiction books that have so much dialog, particularly when it stretches back into the s. Seriously, did everyone involved have such photographic memories. And, while Eichenwald does a whole thing at the beginning about what is and isn't true to life, it still felt weird. Not, however, as weird as the many comments I can't believe how many pages I slogged through for absolutely no reason. Not, however, as weird as the many comments along the lines of: "X was quietly repulsed by Y chewing with his mouth open". Are you kidding me? Eichenwald so obviously aches to be the John Grisham of nonfiction. Kurt Eichenwald. He reveals previously undisclosed information from the terror wars, including never before reported details about warrantless wiretapping, the anthrax attacks and investigations, and conflicts between Washington and London. Reviews Review Policy. Published on. Flowing text. Best for. Web, Tablet, Phone, eReader. Content protection. Learn more. The Film Archives. New York Times. Retrieved 27 October Categories : Enron scandal. Hidden categories: Pages using web citations with no URL Articles needing additional references from January All articles needing additional references Books with missing cover. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. Conspiracy of Fools by Kurt Eichenwald

Woytek held Borget's records up to the light. No lines. No shadows. No telltale signs anywhere of an alteration. Somebody had put a lot of effort into this. Woytek chuckled. These traders were planning to defend themselves to Lay— using dummied-up records? This meeting was going to be even more interesting than he had thought. Those two are gonna be fired today. Woytek and Beard gathered up their papers and stood to greet them. Everyone immediately followed Lay into the office and took a seat around the conference table. After some chitchat, Lay opened things up. So, Lou, why don't you go ahead? We want to go through them so that you know why these were done. I think everyone will be very satisfied with what they hear. Because of their huge profits in , they explained, company managers had asked them to find a way to shift income into , the current year; that way, Enron would have a jump on hitting its profit projections. Then, that December, Mastroeni and Borget entered into trades that gave profits to the competitors and losses to Enron. The plan was to reverse the trades in , with Enron gaining the profits and the three others getting the losses. All the parties would walk away even and with exactly the results they wanted. The Eastern Savings account had been opened as a precaution, Mastroeni explained, to hold the money until the trades were completed. But since it was in the company's name, Mastroeni said, he had transferred the money to personal accounts, ready to be returned to Enron once the trades were conducted. As the traders' words tumbled out, Woytek breathed deeply. This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Sulentic broke in, looking Lay in the eye. Lou and Tom really believed they were acting in Enron's interest. I say we accept that mistakes were made, do what needs to be done to correct them, and move on to a profitable The transactions must be reversed and the off-books bank account shut down. And there would be other consequences. New controls, new oversight. This would not happen again. Lay sat back. Heads nodded all around; they agreed Enron would report all of its profits in that year and pay the taxes. Woytek glanced at the traders. By raising such a tangential issue first, he seemed to have lowered their guard. They looked relaxed, confident. Time to move in for the kill. Home 1 Books 2. Add to Wishlist. Sign in to Purchase Instantly. Yet, even given all the attention to detail, the book is an easy, page-turning read. Eichenwald structures his narrative as a scene-by-scene cinematic thriller The last hundred pages, a minute-by-minute account of an imploding company, is a riveting slice of business journalism that bursts with chaos, adrenaline and despair. But Conspiracy of Fools may be the most comprehensive, with a sophisticated grasp of the big picture tempered by considerable human drama. The style makes gripping reading Clearly, with the trials of Lay and Skilling yet to come, the story of Enron remains unfinished However, Eichenwald's account will rightly be judged the definitive book to date. He recreates the dialogue of the principal characters as convincingly as if he had been at their elbow taking notes. The picture that emerges of Enron is that of an out-of-control corporate culture that ignored the basic principles of business, allowing it to be manipulated by greedy incompetents for their own personal gain. The focus on reporting profits — rather than actually making money — created a situation that both encouraged and enabled a small group of insider criminals to " game the system ". Enron's business losses were masked by accounting tricks, while the insiders raked off huge "profits" and bonuses for themselves. The game was eventually undone by huge losses, bad investments and the structure of the outside partnerships themselves, the solvency of which depended on ever-rising Enron stock prices. When Enron's stock began to fall, the financial structures imploded, leaving Enron with billions of dollars in losses and few assets. Kurt also reminds readers that Enron fell not just because of the greed of the company people, but also because of the greed of thousands of investors who fell for this Ponzi scheme. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This article needs additional citations for verification. NPR Choice page

But nonfiction isn't Grisham, things aren't that cliched in real life, and Grisham is an awful writer anyway. But here is the real bad stuff: most of the time, sources are anonymous. To be expected in this kind of book, perhaps, but sorta unnerving when the author basically takes the stand that both CEO Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling were both just crappy supervisors who, when it came down to it, didn't ask the right questions of Andy Fastow, wicked and evil villain of the piece who, by the way, may have been smart enough to pull the wool over everyone's eyes, but was actually a pretty dull bulb himself. I feel like I did learn some stuff about the Enron fall, and the actual mechanics of the kind of accounting and deals that led to the disaster, but I question Eichenwald's notions of motivation. The way the book was written, it really seemed as if the company was operating in a vacuum without any sort of connection to other businesses except those, like Arthur Andersen, who were directly implicated or to the country as a whole. It also seemed strange that so many people were so outraged by Andy Fastow and the Enron schemes but really never opened their mouths. Less a case of forest for the trees as "Couldn't see the Sahara for that two or three grains of sand you kept staring at crosswise. A corporate culture of greed, a focus on fast profits, a few bad eggs, and a ridiculous lack of board, executive, and accounting oversight combined to turn Enron into a catastrophic failure. The most interesting thing for me was that a few Enron employees were aware of what was happening, but either didn't want to speak up, or spoke up and were ignored sometimes repeatedly. While I was reading, I wondered whether the shenanigans would have been exposed earlier if data was made available to all A corporate culture of greed, a focus on fast profits, a few bad eggs, and a ridiculous lack of board, executive, and accounting oversight combined to turn Enron into a catastrophic failure. While I was reading, I wondered whether the shenanigans would have been exposed earlier if data was made available to all Enron employees for scrutiny, and a process was in place for employees to take up concerns. The alternative structure which led to Enron's downfall was a system of trust between Enron and Andersen who audited but also consulted for Enron , and Enron's execs and board. The Andersen guys faced pressure to let some of Enron's accounting misdeeds slip by for fear of jeopardizing huge consulting revenue. And the board would rubber-stamp crooked deals because the execs had signed off on them. All in all, a worthwhile read Jun 13, Anthony rated it it was amazing. This is a long book - almost pages - but an easy read. Everyone knows the story of Enron from the anecdotes, and I've read a few other books on the subject, but this is by far the best and most complete. It does a great job of tracing how some minor decisions years earlier - to use mark-to-market accounting, to form off-balance-sheet entities that really weren't, managed by Andy Fastow, who probably shouldn't have been managing a McDonalds - led to it's ultimate collapse. The "Conspiracy of F This is a long book - almost pages - but an easy read. The "Conspiracy of Fools" title is fitting- while Fastow and a few others committed massively illegal acts, much of the other players - including Lay and Skilling - are portrayed primarily as incompetent - they didn't bother to find out what was really going on. The book also highlights a few other people, especially Jeff McMahon - who sounded warnings about the behaviors and were ignored. There are a number of lessons from this book, but the biggest is probably that you should read anything you sign. Mar 27, Janet rated it really liked it Shelves: non-fiction. If Shakespeare was alive, he would have stolen this book's plot and written a play: The Tragical Death of Enron. It's got it all. An aging ruler must choose his successor - a boring, responsible guy or an exciting, dashing, brilliant risk taker. He chooses the risk taker. But although his successor is exciting and bold, he lacks the inner strength and moral compass to guide the kingdom. Things quickly start to go wrong, so he chooses a clever man to look after the kingdom's money - one he knows w If Shakespeare was alive, he would have stolen this book's plot and written a play: The Tragical Death of Enron. Things quickly start to go wrong, so he chooses a clever man to look after the kingdom's money - one he knows will cheat and lie for him. But in the end, the clever man cheats and lies for himself, and the new leader, full of hubris, is brought down by his inability to face his own failure. The kingdom ends up in ruins, the risk taker is imprisoned, the old ruler dies broken and shamed, and the thief walks away with millions. It's a great story, and all true. Jun 20, Stefan Kanev rated it it was amazing. I first heard about Enron around when it happened circa Back then, it didn't mean anything to me, yet I somehow remembered. It's gripping. It reads like a novel. There is mystery, drama and action — all surprising to find in a book about a corporate accounting scandal. It's quite long, but very readable. It was tricky to keep track of the huge cast of characters, but that's with real events. I don't know how accurate vs. Overall, it did really feel like a conspiracy of fools. The outcome of all the crime and negligence felt predictable and at the end, I couldn't help but wonder how the executives really let it happen. Dec 19, William Lutz rated it it was amazing. The whole book was remarkably well done. I've never read a non fiction book that feels like a great fiction narrative. I believe this story should be mandatory for every MBA student's graduation. For the non-business nerds, it is still a fascinating look at the inner workings of corporate greed to an extreme level. Very well written. Oct 06, Daeus rated it really liked it Shelves: history-biography , audio-books. One of the roots of the problem brought on by Jeff Skilling mostly was mark-to-market accounting, where forecasted future profits were counted as actual profits. This led to everyone prioritizing getting a deal done over the actual merit and consequences of the deal. New ideas were celebrated for their newness, for their potential; tried and true businesses like the pipelines were almost derided. It suddenly struck Mince as so obvious. The executives entrusted with reviewing all the LJB transactions; Causey, Buy, the boar, approached their duties casually, giving everything just the once over. They seemed to figure that somebody else was doing the tough analysis, but no one was. If you have a culture where that person will be shot and receive a terrible bonus, and get a terrible review for 'not being a team player' then you're on the path to having me knock on your door. Ultimately, when you punish people for standing up for their integrity and reward people for cutting corners, you will go further down the path of illegality than you could ever imagine Aug 14, Kamille rated it really liked it. Enron is not just a story about numbers, it's a human tragedy. I read this book with my mouth wide open. I am not the smartest cookie in the tub but I could not fathom how so many people allowed so many crimes to happen. It absolutely changed America's perception of our homegrown companies. Captivating, absolutely fascinating story. This book was beyond throughly written. I had watched a few docume Enron is not just a story about numbers, it's a human tragedy. At times, the author tried to pinpoint which mistake led to the inevitable downfall of the company but that is an impossible task. Kurt also tried to find the main perpetrator behind Enron's demise and while many will debate that Andy Fastow is that person, I'd have to disagree. There isn't one Enron executive who is clean. I knew how the story was going to turn out and I was still captivated. Great book. Feb 06, Wendy Capron rated it really liked it. Should be required reading for anyone in love with the unfettered free market. But why is Andy Fastow not still in jail?? And is Ken Lay really dead? Oh yeah, they're all scumbag Republicans and they all loved Enron. The book explains why, when asked to find a VP for Bush, Cheney only came up with his own name - it's because he and Karl Rove were too busy sucking up to Ken Lay at the time to do any research. Jul 13, Benny Pulver rated it really liked it. This book provided a very comprehensive overview of the Enron scandal. It is very long pages , but the writing was engaging throughout. The amount of detail provided was necessary to get the full picture of what happened at Enron. Apr 18, Heimir Tomm rated it really liked it. Very easy to read and understand. The author goes to great lengths to explain the mechanism behind the various schemes Enron utilized in order to fake their profits. Highly recommended. Feb 05, Sharon Orlopp rated it really liked it. Very thorough, detailed, and insightful view into the players and actions at Enron and Anderson. Feb 06, Lea rated it it was ok. Maybe too much time has passed, but there was so much dialogue and detail that the overall story was hard to follow. Jun 13, Ella Chochrek rated it it was amazing. Highly recommend this for anyone interested in financial scandals, corporate greed and legal drama. While not some one especially well-versed in the intricacies of trading, I found the author offered a sufficient level of detail to allow me to understand what Enron execs were doing wrong — while still writing dialogue that was compelling. Jul 17, Meredith Burd rated it really liked it. The book, at pages, was very long but still an interesting read. The amount of research that must have gone into writing this is astounding, as it is all based on true facts and interviews! I ultimately found this book to be very well done and would recommend it, especially to those starting a career in accounting, like myself. Oct 10, Grant Perkins added it. This book was excellent. I had never read any literature in the genre of business before, and this book was a great introduction. My favorite part of this book was the section detailing the fake charitable organization that was the Fastow Family fund; I found that it quite literally was for the family. Nov 10, Sivaram Velauthapillai rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: anyone interested in business history, investing, corporate crime. Shelves: business. You may have heard of the collapse of Enron, a massive energy conglomerate that went bankrupt in the early 's. There have been several books, articles and documentaries that covered the event. This book by Kurt Eichenwald not only provides the most authoritative behind-the-scenes look at what unfolded, but is also one of the best business books written in the last 20 years. This book most reminded me of Too Big to Fail, another great book that covered a subsequent event, the financial crisis You may have heard of the collapse of Enron, a massive energy conglomerate that went bankrupt in the early 's. This book most reminded me of Too Big to Fail, another great book that covered a subsequent event, the financial crisis of If you liked that book, you will love this one as well. The book is written like a narrative story and always keeps the reader interested however, you do need to know a little bit about investing or finance so it will be a bit tougher than the usual book. The author does a good job fleshing out many of the key characters and does a good job of presenting a balanced view of them; there wasn't just one bad guy but a bunch of them and it's never obvious if what one is doing is unethical or illegal. Eichenwald has spent a considerable amount of time on the research behind the events and does an admirable job piecing together all the disparate and highly complex financial actions carried out by the numerous characters. It's almost like a business detective story. It is a tale of global reach—from Houston to Washington, from Bombay to London, from Munich to Sao Paolo—laying out the unbelievable scenes that twisted together to create this shocking true story. Eichenwald reveals never-disclosed details of a story that features a cast including George W. With its you-are-there glimpse into the secretive worlds of corporate power, Conspiracy of Fools is an all-true financial and political thriller of cinematic proportions. More by Kurt Eichenwald See more. Serpent on the Rock. Kurt Eichenwald. He reveals previously undisclosed information from the terror wars, including never before reported details about warrantless wiretapping, the anthrax attacks and investigations, and conflicts between Washington and London. Reviews Review Policy. Published on. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. The Film Archives. New York Times. Retrieved 27 October Categories : Enron scandal. Hidden categories: Pages using web citations with no URL Articles needing additional references from January All articles needing additional references Books with missing cover. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history.

Conspiracy of Fools - Wikipedia Apr 28, Meg rated it it was ok Recommends it for: CEOs interested in blaming a scapegoat, the very bored and boring. Shelves: nonfiction. I can't believe how many pages I slogged through for absolutely no reason. What a waste of perfectly good pieces of paper. First of all, let me say that I generally mistrust nonfiction books that have so much dialog, particularly when it stretches back into the s. Seriously, did everyone involved have such photographic memories. And, while Eichenwald does a whole thing at the beginning about what is and isn't true to life, it still felt weird. Not, however, as weird as the many comments I can't believe how many pages I slogged through for absolutely no reason. Not, however, as weird as the many comments along the lines of: "X was quietly repulsed by Y chewing with his mouth open". Are you kidding me? Eichenwald so obviously aches to be the John Grisham of nonfiction. But nonfiction isn't Grisham, things aren't that cliched in real life, and Grisham is an awful writer anyway. But here is the real bad stuff: most of the time, sources are anonymous. To be expected in this kind of book, perhaps, but sorta unnerving when the author basically takes the stand that both CEO Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling were both just crappy supervisors who, when it came down to it, didn't ask the right questions of Andy Fastow, wicked and evil villain of the piece who, by the way, may have been smart enough to pull the wool over everyone's eyes, but was actually a pretty dull bulb himself. I feel like I did learn some stuff about the Enron fall, and the actual mechanics of the kind of accounting and deals that led to the disaster, but I question Eichenwald's notions of motivation. The way the book was written, it really seemed as if the company was operating in a vacuum without any sort of connection to other businesses except those, like Arthur Andersen, who were directly implicated or to the country as a whole. It also seemed strange that so many people were so outraged by Andy Fastow and the Enron schemes but really never opened their mouths. Less a case of forest for the trees as "Couldn't see the Sahara for that two or three grains of sand you kept staring at crosswise. A corporate culture of greed, a focus on fast profits, a few bad eggs, and a ridiculous lack of board, executive, and accounting oversight combined to turn Enron into a catastrophic failure. The most interesting thing for me was that a few Enron employees were aware of what was happening, but either didn't want to speak up, or spoke up and were ignored sometimes repeatedly. While I was reading, I wondered whether the shenanigans would have been exposed earlier if data was made available to all A corporate culture of greed, a focus on fast profits, a few bad eggs, and a ridiculous lack of board, executive, and accounting oversight combined to turn Enron into a catastrophic failure. While I was reading, I wondered whether the shenanigans would have been exposed earlier if data was made available to all Enron employees for scrutiny, and a process was in place for employees to take up concerns. The alternative structure which led to Enron's downfall was a system of trust between Enron and Andersen who audited but also consulted for Enron , and Enron's execs and board. The Andersen guys faced pressure to let some of Enron's accounting misdeeds slip by for fear of jeopardizing huge consulting revenue. And the board would rubber-stamp crooked deals because the execs had signed off on them. All in all, a worthwhile read Jun 13, Anthony rated it it was amazing. This is a long book - almost pages - but an easy read. Everyone knows the story of Enron from the anecdotes, and I've read a few other books on the subject, but this is by far the best and most complete. It does a great job of tracing how some minor decisions years earlier - to use mark-to- market accounting, to form off-balance-sheet entities that really weren't, managed by Andy Fastow, who probably shouldn't have been managing a McDonalds - led to it's ultimate collapse. The "Conspiracy of F This is a long book - almost pages - but an easy read. The "Conspiracy of Fools" title is fitting- while Fastow and a few others committed massively illegal acts, much of the other players - including Lay and Skilling - are portrayed primarily as incompetent - they didn't bother to find out what was really going on. The book also highlights a few other people, especially Jeff McMahon - who sounded warnings about the behaviors and were ignored. There are a number of lessons from this book, but the biggest is probably that you should read anything you sign. Mar 27, Janet rated it really liked it Shelves: non-fiction. If Shakespeare was alive, he would have stolen this book's plot and written a play: The Tragical Death of Enron. It's got it all. An aging ruler must choose his successor - a boring, responsible guy or an exciting, dashing, brilliant risk taker. He chooses the risk taker. But although his successor is exciting and bold, he lacks the inner strength and moral compass to guide the kingdom. Things quickly start to go wrong, so he chooses a clever man to look after the kingdom's money - one he knows w If Shakespeare was alive, he would have stolen this book's plot and written a play: The Tragical Death of Enron. Things quickly start to go wrong, so he chooses a clever man to look after the kingdom's money - one he knows will cheat and lie for him. But in the end, the clever man cheats and lies for himself, and the new leader, full of hubris, is brought down by his inability to face his own failure. The kingdom ends up in ruins, the risk taker is imprisoned, the old ruler dies broken and shamed, and the thief walks away with millions. It's a great story, and all true. Jun 20, Stefan Kanev rated it it was amazing. I first heard about Enron around when it happened circa Back then, it didn't mean anything to me, yet I somehow remembered. It's gripping. It reads like a novel. There is mystery, drama and action — all surprising to find in a book about a corporate accounting scandal. It's quite long, but very readable. It was tricky to keep track of the huge cast of characters, but that's with real events. I don't know how accurate vs. Overall, it did really feel like a conspiracy of fools. The outcome of all the crime and negligence felt predictable and at the end, I couldn't help but wonder how the executives really let it happen. Dec 19, William Lutz rated it it was amazing. The whole book was remarkably well done. I've never read a non fiction book that feels like a great fiction narrative. I believe this story should be mandatory for every MBA student's graduation. For the non-business nerds, it is still a fascinating look at the inner workings of corporate greed to an extreme level. Very well written. Oct 06, Daeus rated it really liked it Shelves: history- biography , audio-books. One of the roots of the problem brought on by Jeff Skilling mostly was mark-to-market accounting, where forecasted future profits were counted as actual profits. This led to everyone prioritizing getting a deal done over the actual merit and consequences of the deal. New ideas were celebrated for their newness, for their potential; tried and true businesses like the pipelines were almost derided. It suddenly struck Mince as so obvious. The executives entrusted with reviewing all the LJB transactions; Causey, Buy, the boar, approached their duties casually, giving everything just the once over. They seemed to figure that somebody else was doing the tough analysis, but no one was. If you have a culture where that person will be shot and receive a terrible bonus, and get a terrible review for 'not being a team player' then you're on the path to having me knock on your door. Ultimately, when you punish people for standing up for their integrity and reward people for cutting corners, you will go further down the path of illegality than you could ever imagine Aug 14, Kamille rated it really liked it. Enron is not just a story about numbers, it's a human tragedy. I read this book with my mouth wide open. I am not the smartest cookie in the tub but I could not fathom how so many people allowed so many crimes to happen. It absolutely changed America's perception of our homegrown companies. Captivating, absolutely fascinating story. This book was beyond throughly written. I had watched a few docume Enron is not just a story about numbers, it's a human tragedy. At times, the author tried to pinpoint which mistake led to the inevitable downfall of the company but that is an impossible task. Kurt also tried to find the main perpetrator behind Enron's demise and while many will debate that Andy Fastow is that person, I'd have to disagree. There isn't one Enron executive who is clean. I knew how the story was going to turn out and I was still captivated. Great book. Feb 06, Wendy Capron rated it really liked it. Should be required reading for anyone in love with the unfettered free market. But why is Andy Fastow not still in jail?? And is Ken Lay really dead? Oh yeah, they're all scumbag Republicans and they all loved Enron. The book explains why, when asked to find a VP for Bush, Cheney only came up with his own name - it's because he and Karl Rove were too busy sucking up to Ken Lay at the time to do any research. Jul 13, Benny Pulver rated it really liked it. This book provided a very comprehensive overview of the Enron scandal. It is very long pages , but the writing was engaging throughout. The amount of detail provided was necessary to get the full picture of what happened at Enron. Apr 18, Heimir Tomm rated it really liked it. Very easy to read and understand. The author goes to great lengths to explain the mechanism behind the various schemes Enron utilized in order to fake their profits. Highly recommended. Feb 05, Sharon Orlopp rated it really liked it. Very thorough, detailed, and insightful view into the players and actions at Enron and Anderson. Feb 06, Lea rated it it was ok. Maybe too much time has passed, but there was so much dialogue and detail that the overall story was hard to follow. Jun 13, Ella Chochrek rated it it was amazing. Highly recommend this for anyone interested in financial scandals, corporate greed and legal drama. While not some one especially well-versed in the intricacies of trading, I found the author offered a sufficient level of detail to allow me to understand what Enron execs were doing wrong — while still writing dialogue that was compelling. Jul 17, Meredith Burd rated it really liked it. The book, at pages, was very long but still an interesting read. The amount of research that must have gone into writing this is astounding, as it is all based on true facts and interviews! I ultimately found this book to be very well done and would recommend it, especially to those starting a career in accounting, like myself. Oct 10, Grant Perkins added it. This book was excellent. I had never read any literature in the genre of business before, and this book was a great introduction. My favorite part of this book was the section detailing the fake charitable organization that was the Fastow Family fund; I found that it quite literally was for the family. Nov 10, Sivaram Velauthapillai rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: anyone interested in business history, investing, corporate crime. Shelves: business. You may have heard of the collapse of Enron, a massive energy conglomerate that went bankrupt in the early 's. There have been several books, articles and documentaries that covered the event. This book by Kurt Eichenwald not only provides the most authoritative behind-the-scenes look at what unfolded, but is also one of the best business books written in the last 20 years. This book most reminded me of Too Big to Fail, another great book that covered a subsequent event, the financial crisis You may have heard of the collapse of Enron, a massive energy conglomerate that went bankrupt in the early 's. This book most reminded me of Too Big to Fail, another great book that covered a subsequent event, the financial crisis of If you liked that book, you will love this one as well. The book is written like a narrative story and always keeps the reader interested however, you do need to know a little bit about investing or finance so it will be a bit tougher than the usual book. The author does a good job fleshing out many of the key characters and does a good job of presenting a balanced view of them; there wasn't just one bad guy but a bunch of them and it's never obvious if what one is doing is unethical or illegal. Eichenwald has spent a considerable amount of time on the research behind the events and does an admirable job piecing together all the disparate and highly complex financial actions carried out by the numerous characters. It's almost like a business detective story. I think this is one of the best narrative-style business books written in the last 25 years. Given the subject with complex financial transactions and confusing organizational structure and numerous characters , the book might be a little more difficult for those not familiar with finance, investing, or the energy business. Nevertheless, I would recommend it to all with an interest in business history. Those into investing should definitely read this book or others like it to get a feel for what can, and does, happen at companies--even one repeatedly ranked by Fortune as the most innovative company in America. May 03, Ben rated it it was amazing. I loved "The Informant" and have been excited to read this for a while. I was surprised to find that this was a far less salacious story. I figured the strip clubs and out of control expense accounts would factor in prominently and it gets barely a mention. It was more a story about management than scandal. But for that reason, it is meatier and more nuanced story. It is not a morality tale at all. Eichenwald's style of rebuilding sworn testimony into a narrative takes some getting used to. You I loved "The Informant" and have been excited to read this for a while. You get some scenes like: Jeff Skilling walked into the restaurant a few minutes late but no one seemed to mind. He was wearing a blue sport coat. The book will explain that Ken Lay ordered chicken parm and on and on. Eichenwald pored through old expense reports and receipts to add these amusingly banal details that would be crossed out by any editor of a novel. That "color" doesn't add a lot to individual scenes but over the course of a long book, it adds up to a rich character study. I found myself rooting for Enron a little at the end - not the bad guys but the people scrambling to keep the ship afloat. The major strength of the book - the facts told in a narrative - becomes an irritating liability at the end because you really just want to know who did what and why. You know the answers yourself but you want the author to issue a final judgement like there is at the end of any long piece of historical nonfiction. But, of course, you can just google the major players and draw your own conclusions. But still - it's a little strange to take the earnestness of a corporate criminal at face value. The little added first person asides like, "Are you kidding me? I have the same problem with this book as I do with many like it - I wish there had been more about the real people who were hurt. There are some good passages here, but it would have been nice to put the finger pointing in contrast with people who had their retirement accounts wiped out or were put out on the street without severance after thirty years of service. The failure to take care of their own employees is, to me, Enron's greatest sin. Overall a great book and so thorough about explaining the complicated machinations behind the downfall. For people who are interested in management, I can't recommend it enough. It's a perfect example of what not to do. Jul 11, Joris rated it it was amazing. Wow, I've been reading this one almost non-stop. I could not get myself to put it away. The enormous spending of corporate funding, the way the exec's are looking the other way, the numerous ways where Enron could have taken another road -away from bankruptcy-, the way the characters play together to create this huge chunk of corporate mischief, I loved it. The book reads very easily if you have some feeling of accounting or finance, next to that there are a lot of characters involved but they're Wow, I've been reading this one almost non-stop. The book reads very easily if you have some feeling of accounting or finance, next to that there are a lot of characters involved but they're introduced in a well written way, easing in and out of the storyline. There were moments where I kept my breath, moments of laughter and a lot of moments where I disturbed my partner again to tell her about the humongous ignorance of the main characters involved, it got to a point where she asked me to just send me the summary and just let her be and that's a very good sign for this book Bit of a spoiler here; The main characters Ken Lay, Jeff Skilling and Andy Fastow seem to me like three parts of an intricate triangle. Ken Lay being the grandfatherly figure, the soothing voice to comfort and heal relations. Jeff Skilling is marked by chaos, selfdoubt and hoping to do well and Andy Fastow just fumes and schemes away, I found him to be just a very, very bad person where I kept hoping he will get caught.. Mar 08, Bill Keefe rated it really liked it. I listened to this book on CD. Another pleasant surprise. Saw the 25 CD colossus on the shelf in the library and picked it up, figuring it would be interesting or deadly. Better, it was fascinating. Read like a mystery thriller but also gave real insight into the mess a business can be and the human frailties of the people who run and participate in businesses. I was thoroughly absorbed in the story I listened to this book on CD. I was thoroughly absorbed in the story, finishing it in less than a week pretty tough when you have to find time and places to listen. Eichenwald reveals never-disclosed details of a story that features a cast including George W. Eichenwald has accomplished a prodigious feat of reporting His writing is reader-friendly. He manages to convey a sense of the dizzying confusion and nerve-racking tension that infused the company years before it fell. Eichenwald has an encylopedic grasp of a watershed business collapse, and has turned it into a gripping read, a true tale for our times It is an excellent, entertaining tale. Eichenwald writes the book in a chain of ear-to-the-keyhole anecdotes of Enron meetings and conversations that show readers how the scandal unfolded. Yet, even given all the attention to detail, the book is an easy, page-turning read. Eichenwald structures his narrative as a scene-by-scene cinematic thriller The last hundred pages, a minute-by-minute account of an imploding company, is a riveting slice of business journalism that bursts with chaos, adrenaline and despair. But Conspiracy of Fools may be the most comprehensive, with a sophisticated grasp of the big picture tempered by considerable human drama. The style makes gripping reading

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