Richard Bowen

  • Home
  • About
  • Speaking
  • Videos
  • Media/Press
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • +1-214-604-5492

January 20, 2023 By Richard Bowen

What should you do before you report wrongdoing?

Photo by Gabrielle Henderson on Unsplash

Anyone who follows my talks and writings knows that I have grave concerns about our country and our corporate environment. Unethical and illegal behavior in both our corporate and government arenas caused our last financial crisis and will, inevitably, cause future financial crises which will harm millions more. Our only hope to change the dangerous direction our country is taking is for individuals who witness illegal and unethical behavior to effectively report that behavior.

In all of my talks members of the audience ask me what steps they should take if they see actions that will cause harm to others, and I always caution them to first seek competent legal counsel before taking any action. And when I say “competent” legal counsel, I mean counsel who is both experienced in providing guidance to potential whistleblowers and can be trusted to act in the whistleblower’s best interest. I tell them of people I personally know who were given poor advice and were subsequently retaliated against by their employers with their careers destroyed. I was almost one of those people.

In 2008, when I testified before the Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington D.C., I was given legal advice which later turned out not to be in my best interest. And I learned another counsel who had advised me early on blatantly lied and misrepresented my actions in another setting.

Fortunately, Sherron Watkins, the Enron whistleblower, subsequently introduced me to the Government Accountability Project (GAP) of Washington, D.C., the nation’s leading whistleblower protection organization, before it was too late. I truly believe listening to their advice and allowing them to represent me in dealing with Citigroup and the many government agencies is the reason I have survived my whistleblowing ordeal. And they kept up with what happened afterward. Recently, I spoke to Ian Herel for an article about my experience.

While I maintain that we should all speak up when we see something wrong, we must take the first step of protecting ourselves with trusted expert advice and representation. Without that, we become vulnerable to powerful employers, subject to retaliation, or forced to sign NDAs so the bad actors can continue to cover up wrongdoing. Continue documenting what you see on your personal devices or notebooks and connect with the GAP before taking any action.

Peace and happiness this holiday season

Tagged With: GAP, Government Accountability Project, Ian Herel, whistleblowing

Ethics on your mind? Subscribe to my ezine to get my latest article delivered right to your inbox. Click Here to Subscribe

Richard Bowen is widely known as the Citigroup whistleblower. As Business Chief Underwriter for Citigroup during the housing bubble financial crisis meltdown, he repeatedly warned Citi executive management and the board about fraudulent behavior within the organization. The company certified poor mortgages as quality mortgages and sold them to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other investors.

Related Posts

  • Speaking on Resisting Corporate CorruptionSpeaking on Resisting Corporate Corruption
  • Citigroup to Facebook, it’s about powerCitigroup to Facebook, it’s about power
  • The Con Docuseries More Widely AvailableThe Con Docuseries More Widely Available
  • Another Non-Ethical Poster ChildAnother Non-Ethical Poster Child

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/

Presentation Topics

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

Dark Citi: The Story of a Whistleblower

Want to Hire Richard?

Watch Richard

See What Clients are Saying

About Richard

Recent Posts

  • What should you do before you report wrongdoing?
  • Peace and happiness this holiday season
  • Wishing you a warm and happy Thanksgiving
  • Speaking at the University of North Texas
  • Resisting Corporate and Government Corruption

Categories

  • Business Ethics
  • Congress
  • Corporate Debt
  • Corruption
  • Ethical Leadership
  • Financial Crime
  • Financial Crisis
  • Financial Crisis of 2008
  • Fraud
  • Holiday
  • International
  • Mortgage Lending
  • Mortgage Meltdown
  • Relationships
  • Resources
  • Speaking
  • Texas Politics
  • The Fed
  • Too Big To Fail
  • Uncategorized
  • Updates
  • Wall Street
  • Whistle Blowers

About Richard

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

Read more

Connect with Richard

  Facebook   Twitter   Linked   YouTube

Contact Us

Phone: +1-214-604-5492

Email: Richard@RichardMBowen.com

Contact Richard

Copyright 2021© 2023 · Richard M. Bowen | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

X
Sign up to receive my blog posts via email!
Subscribe >>