Richard Bowen

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October 7, 2021 By Richard Bowen

Citigroup to Facebook, it’s about power

Side-by-side image with Frances Haugen's 60 MInutes interview on the left and Richard M. Bowen's 60 Minutes interview on the right.

While our stories come from different industries, both situations involve manipulating people. All the similarities between our stories come down to one: Powerful people exploited those who lacked power in order to increase personal gain.

Tagged With: business ethics, ethical leadership, Ethics, Facebook, Financial Crisis, whistleblowing

September 28, 2021 By Richard Bowen

The Con Docuseries More Widely Available

Movie Post for The Con docuseries.

I have just learned that the documentary, The Con, a five-part investigative docuseries revealing massive frauds committed by large banks which led to the Great Financial Crisis, is being released through multiple channels… Apple TV, Amazon, Xbox, Vimeo, and Comcast On Demand.

Tagged With: business ethics, Citigroup, Ethics, Financial Crisis, The Con, Too Big to Fail, whistleblowing

February 27, 2020 By Richard Bowen

Life on the Fast Track

Photo of Elizabeth Holmes wearing a blazer and collared shirt.

Elizabeth Holmes dropped out of Stanford at age 19 to start a new career. She founded Theranos, which was a privately held health technology corporation initially touted as a breakthrough technology company in the blood-testing market. The money and glory were huge. In a few short years, Ms. Holmes grew the company to a valuation of $9 billion. Ms…. [Read More]

Tagged With: ethical leadership, Ethics

January 30, 2020 By Richard Bowen

Corruption Rules!

Graphic showing the highest six and lowest six corruption index scores. (Top in green: Denmark, 87; New Zealand, 87; Finland, 86; Singapore, 85; Sweden, 85; Switzerland, 85. Bottom in red: Congo, 19; North Korea, 17; Afghanistan, 16; Yemen 15; Syria, 13; Somalia, 9)

The recently released 2019 Corruption Perceptions Index produced by Transparency International, the world’s leading anti-corruption coalition, shows some disturbing trends. The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is an index published annually since 1995 by Transparency International, which ranks countries “by their perceived levels of corruption, as determined by ‘expert assessments’  and opinion surveys.” This year’s study highlighted the relationship between… [Read More]

Tagged With: Corruption, Ethics, Perceived Corruption

January 2, 2020 By Richard Bowen

The National University of Ireland Focus on Ethics

Photo of Richard M Bowen speaking at The Whitaker Institute with a slide of his 2007 email to Rober Rubin.

The last of my Ireland speaking adventures culminated at the National University of Ireland at Galway (NUI Galway), speaking to both students and alumni of their Executive MBA Masterclass on November 22nd and to their graduate students, faculty and alumni on November 25th, sponsored by the Whitaker Institute. NUI Galway is consistently ranked in the… [Read More]

Tagged With: Ethics, Speaking, whistleblowing

November 14, 2019 By Richard Bowen

Transparency and Ethics in Ireland

Irish flag against a blue sky with white clouds.

This coming week I’m off to Ireland where I’m presenting to several groups, Transparency International, Ireland, the Institute of Banking and the National University of Ireland. The core of each presentation is on ethics and integrity, using as a springboard my experience and resulting outcomes at Citigroup. I find that somewhat ironic given the present… [Read More]

Tagged With: ethical leadership, Ethics, Financial Crisis, Speaking

November 7, 2019 By Richard Bowen

The Fall of an American Icon

Image looking up at a McConalds sign against a blue sky from the ground.

The lack of ethics has become a household norm. Whether it be in the political arena from which it is blatantly absent or in business, ethical violations have become the new normal. Still how disheartening to see a business we grew up with, our kid’s happy meal place, a pillar of our community be struck… [Read More]

Tagged With: ethical leadership, Ethics

October 24, 2019 By Richard Bowen

How Will It Look in the Newspaper?

Graphic of newspaper with headline that reads, "Illegal action conflicted with values, staff felt terrible, never asked if participation was wrong."

There has been a strong spotlight on nonprofits in the last several years, from taxation issues to ethical concerns. Unfortunately, a few nonprofits have made the headlines as a result of ethical and governance malfeasance and so more nonprofits are under scrutiny and overall have lost public trust. I had the honor recently of leading… [Read More]

Tagged With: ethical leadership, Ethics, Leadership, nonprofit

August 22, 2019 By Richard Bowen

WE’RE BACK! …The corporate debt bubble strikes again!

Word cloud

  Inflated bond ratings were one cause of the financial crisis and it looks as if we haven’t learned from that experience. Here we are ten years later and we’re heading down that path once again. People are concerned right now about an imminent recession for just cause. So how did we circle back? This… [Read More]

Tagged With: Corporate Debt, Ethics, Financial Crisis, Too Big to Fail, Wall Street

July 25, 2019 By Richard Bowen

Ethics: Speak Up, Lose Your Job!

Image of a dark sheet with a blue megaphone and the words Speak Up drawn on it.

What makes for an ethical leader? The formula is not complex. [bctt tweet=”An ethical leader consistently does what is right, even if it presents a challenge.” username=”RichardMBowen”] It’s not about being ethical in public and not in private. It’s not about valuing profit or celebrity above people. It’s not about taking advantage of your prominence… [Read More]

Tagged With: business ethics, Ethics, Leadership, whistleblowing

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What People Are Saying About Richard M. Bowen

William D. Cohan"Richard Bowen is one of my heroes. His is a story of human fortitude at its best and Wall Street at its worst."

~ William D. Cohan, NY Times Best Selling Author
2017-06-30T10:08:59-05:00
"Richard Bowen is one of my heroes. His is a story of human fortitude at its best and Wall Street at its worst." ~ William D. Cohan, NY Times Best Selling Author
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/2556/

Eileen McDonnell"Richard Bowen reinforced my motto that "there is no right way to do a wrong thing.” Long after his presentation, the conversation has continued about personal responsibility and the courage to challenge things that appear to be wrong. We encourage this dialog and rely on it to help make our business stronger."

~ Eileen McDonnell, Chairman, CEO, & President, Penn Mutual
2015-02-13T19:51:19-06:00
"Richard Bowen reinforced my motto that "there is no right way to do a wrong thing.” Long after his presentation, the conversation has continued about personal responsibility and the courage to challenge things that appear to be wrong. We encourage this dialog and rely on it to help make our business stronger." ~ Eileen McDonnell, Chairman, CEO, & President, Penn Mutual
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/711/

Ben Stein"Richard Bowen, you are a star and a hero."

~ Ben Stein, Economist and Political Commentator
2015-02-13T19:50:26-06:00
"Richard Bowen, you are a star and a hero." ~ Ben Stein, Economist and Political Commentator
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/712/

Jim Farrell"Richard's speech at the April Financial Executives International dinner was informative, interesting, riveting, and fast moving.  The feedback from members was overwhelming positive, and Richard received one of the few standing ovations given by our membership."

~ Jim Farrell, Program Chairman, Dallas Chapter, Financial Executives International
2014-12-28T19:48:17-06:00
"Richard's speech at the April Financial Executives International dinner was informative, interesting, riveting, and fast moving.  The feedback from members was overwhelming positive, and Richard received one of the few standing ovations given by our membership." ~ Jim Farrell, Program Chairman, Dallas Chapter, Financial Executives International
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/532/

Dennis McCuistion"Richard Bowen has been there, done that, and has the scars to prove it, and his message of corruption at the highest levels of industry and government needs to be heard. I only wish that more bankers had the courage that Bowen exhibits. He is not only one of the most talented bankers I have ever met, he has more integrity than all the bankers on Wall Street put together. If his former employer had listened to him taxpayers would not have had to bail out Citi for the third time in the last 30 years."

~ Dennis McCuistion, Host of the McCuistion TV program
2014-12-28T19:48:06-06:00
"Richard Bowen has been there, done that, and has the scars to prove it, and his message of corruption at the highest levels of industry and government needs to be heard. I only wish that more bankers had the courage that Bowen exhibits. He is not only one of the most talented bankers I have ever met, he has more integrity than all the bankers on Wall Street put together. If his former employer had listened to him taxpayers would not have had to bail out Citi for the third time in the last 30 years." ~ Dennis McCuistion, Host of the McCuistion TV program
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/533/

Betty Garrett"Richard Bowen is a dynamic, entertaining speaker and story-teller - a CPA with a great personality!"

~ Betty Garrett, Garrett Speakers International
2014-12-28T19:47:50-06:00
"Richard Bowen is a dynamic, entertaining speaker and story-teller - a CPA with a great personality!" ~ Betty Garrett, Garrett Speakers International
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/531/

fred-timmons"I believe Richard Bowen is the only keynote speaker to ever receive a standing ovation from the Texas Society of CPA’s at any of its annual conferences."

~ Fred Timmons, Chairman of The Texas Society of CPA's
2014-12-28T19:47:22-06:00
"I believe Richard Bowen is the only keynote speaker to ever receive a standing ovation from the Texas Society of CPA’s at any of its annual conferences." ~ Fred Timmons, Chairman of The Texas Society of CPA's
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/530/

"The most emotional and impactful session was absolutely Richard Bowen and the Citi Mortgage case. I was somewhat aware of the challenges and hardships faced by whistleblowers. The HBR case and documentary on Sherry Hunt's experience provided a strong understanding of the case and overall situation. However, the nuance and emotion that Bowen brought in his lecture will be one of my lasting memories of the program. His unique perspective of the exhausting experience of constantly trying to do the right thing only to be stonewalled by his leadership, and later, the US government, highlights the challenges of doing the right thing, yet the importance of someone speaking up. Bowen made whistleblowing personal to us, and I will never forget his quote that if you see wrongdoing, you have two choices, "say something or get out." Taking a stand will have an enduring impact on your career and life regardless of the outcome. It certainly causes me to prioritize selecting the right corporate culture in my future organizations."

~ EMBA student review after Richard spoke to the class

2024-09-25T16:10:48-05:00
"The most emotional and impactful session was absolutely Richard Bowen and the Citi Mortgage case. I was somewhat aware of the challenges and hardships faced by whistleblowers. The HBR case and documentary on Sherry Hunt's experience provided a strong understanding of the case and overall situation. However, the nuance and emotion that Bowen brought in his lecture will be one of my lasting memories of the program. His unique perspective of the exhausting experience of constantly trying to do the right thing only to be stonewalled by his leadership, and later, the US government, highlights the challenges of doing the right thing, yet the importance of someone speaking up. Bowen made whistleblowing personal to us, and I will never forget his quote that if you see wrongdoing, you have two choices, "say something or get out." Taking a stand will have an enduring impact on your career and life regardless of the outcome. It certainly causes me to prioritize selecting the right corporate culture in my future organizations." ~ EMBA student review after Richard spoke to the class
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/4629/

Presentation Topics

Playing for High Stakes: The Principles and Practice of Ethical Leadership

Dark Citi: The Story of a Whistleblower

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About Richard

Recent Posts

  • ‘The Men Who Stole the World’ is on Amazon Prime!
  • Speaking at The Institute of Internal Auditors, Northeast Ohio, Fraud Day
  • Honored to speak to two highly ranked MBA programs this summer
  • Speaking at the 23rd ACFE Annual Emerging Trends in Fraud Conference
  • I was honored to present the 2024 J. Craig Smith Business Ethics Lecture at the University of Alabama

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About Richard

Now an ethical leadership speaker, Richard Bowen was Citigroup's Business Chief Underwriter during the housing bubble.

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