BlackRock says the wording in the memos is sloppy, inaccurate and inconsistent with the purpose of the surveys and the firm's ethical standards.
At Boeing, Harry Stonecipher was called out of retirement to lead the scandal-hit firm and raise ethical standards, only to commit a lapse of his own, being sacked (it seems) for sending e-mails to a lover who was also an employee.
Mr. Everson (pronounced EE-ver-sun) said more such actions would follow until a rising tide of tax cheating was stemmed and both legal and accounting firms raised their ethical standards.
He replied equably, saying, "It was a private partnership then, and a firm of the highest ethical standards," but it had changed when it went public.
The fund is described as a "dark green" fund that screens out firms that do not adhere to strict ethical standards, including firms that are "in breach of internationally recognised conventions on biodiversity and companies in energy intensive industries which are not tackling the issue of climate change".
"Oppenheimer recognized the need to address these legacy issues head on, and we are confident that we have put in place safeguards to ensure that our advisors and other employees meet the highest ethical standards," the firm said.
The contractor "community" itself has made efforts under the International Stability Operations Association, to "promote high operational and ethical standards of firms active in the peace and stability operations industry".
That will create pressure within these firms to raise their standards back home.Doing well by doing goodIn the early 1990s, when GE decided to adopt uniformly high ethical standards throughout the firm, "we accepted it was a cost, but that the benefits outweighed it.
Did that help to reduce ethical standards in auditing firms, or among lawyers and investment bankers working on corporate deals?
"Only two weeks ago I wrote to you about the absolute need for everyone at this firm to act in accordance with the highest ethical standards," Cobalt wrote to employees in a memo following the announcement.
Its aim is to increase the long-term profits or survival of a firm through constructing positive public relations and high ethical standards, in order to reduce the business and legal risk and build shareholder trust.
