Ethics is related to the forms of values ​​and morals that an individual or society finds desirable or appropriate. Ethical theory provides an important reference point in the form of rules and principles. These rules and principles help make decisions about what is good or bad, right or wrong in a particular situation. Indeed, ethical theory provides a basis for understanding what it means to be a morally decent human being (Northouse, 2016, p. 330). In regards to leadership, ethical theory is about what leaders do and who leaders are. The choices leaders make and how they respond in a given circumstance are informed and guided by their ethics. In other words, a leader's choices are influenced by his or her moral development. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay We often read about good kings and bad kings, great empires and evil empires, strong presidents and weak presidents. But what about good companies and bad companies? Ethical leadership in corporate America is just as important as ethical leadership in a political environment. I thought it would be very interesting to take a closer look at the Enron scandal of the early 2000s and examine the company's lack of ethical leadership. For those who are unfamiliar with the Enron scandal, most of the top executives were tried for fraud after it ended. revealed in November 2001 that companies' earnings had been overstated by several hundred million dollars. At the time, Enron was ranked as the sixth largest energy company in the world. Enron's top executives sold their company stock before the company's collapse, while lower-level employees were prevented from selling their shares due to 401K restrictions. Enron filed for Chapter 11 protection in December 2001 and immediately became the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history at the time. This has left thousands of workers with worthless shares in their pensions. Lower-level employees lost their life savings in the collapse. The US Department of Justice subsequently opened a criminal investigation into the collapse of Enron in January 2002 (CNN Library, 2016). The dark side of leadership is the dark and destructive side of leadership as a leader uses leadership for personal ends. Lipman-Blumen suggests that toxic leaders are characterized by destructive behaviors such as leaving their followers worse off than they found them, violating the basic human rights of others, and exploiting their basest fears (Northouse, 2016, p. 339) . The actions of Enron executives that led to the company's collapse show us that they lacked integrity, insatiable ambition, arrogance, and reckless disregard for their actions. The managers exhibited all the dysfunctional personal characteristics found in destructive leaders. Jeffrey Skilling, the CEO, developed a staff of executives who, through the use of accounting loopholes, special purpose entities and poor financial reporting, were able to hide billions of dollars in debt from failed deals and projects . Andrew Fastow, the chief financial officer, misled Enron's board of directors and audit committee about high-risk accounting practices and also pressured the accounting and auditing firm to ignore the problems. Enron rewarded their efforts and paid $680 million to the top 140 executives in the.