Tag: Loren Steffy

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The Hill Country Podcast

The Big Empty On 5 Economic Issues Facing Texas Today: Part 4-Culture Clash

This is a special podcast series on current economic and culture issues faced by the state of Texas, its governments and its citizens. We will explore these issues with author Loren Steffy, through the prism of his book The Big Empty. The Big Empty set in 1999, is a tale about the sense of place and tells the story of a fictional company AzTech which builds a semi-conductor plant in the dying west Texas city of Conquistador. The attempt is beset by the clash of culture in bringing Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs to rural Texas. The book also raises multiple economic issues facing Texas as we move towards the mid 21st century. Over this 5-part podcast series we will consider the following issues facing Texas today; including water, power, land investment, housing and the clash of cultures.

In Episode 4, we consider the clash of culture when a new employer moves into a small, rural town. Early in the book is ‘the punch’ where local leader Trace Malloy, punches Blaine Witherspoon in the face, breaking his nose. Much of the book follows from this act in detailing the clash of cultures brought to the tiny west Texas town of Conquistador. We consider what led up to the punch and how both sides deal with it going forward. Witherspoon goes on a roundup and Malloy visits a semi-conductor plant clean room. Finally the book shows how both communities can come together in a time of crisis and how they can use this as a basis to move forward together. As more people move to Texas, how will native Texans adapt to their new neighbors.

Purchase The Big Empty

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The Hill Country Podcast

The Big Empty On 5 Economic Issues Facing Texas Today: Part 2-Power

This is a special podcast series on current economic and culture issues faced by the state of Texas, its governments and its citizens. We will explore these issues with author Loren Steffy, through the prism of his book The Big Empty. The Big Empty set in 1999, is a tale about the sense of place and tells the story of a fictional company AzTech which builds a semi-conductor plant in the dying west Texas city of Conquistador. The attempt is beset by the clash of culture in bringing Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs to rural Texas. The book also raises multiple economic issues facing Texas as we move towards the mid 21st century. Over this 5-part podcast series we will consider the following issues facing Texas today; including water, power, land investment, housing and the clash of cultures.

In Episode 2, we consider power in Texas. In the book, the massive power lines to the plant play a seminal role in the story. How do you bring the massive amounts of power needed to run a semi-conductor plant to rural west Texas. How is power generated? The Texas power grid has sustained three major failures over the past 12 years, does the Texas Legislature have the political will to ever fix it? What about alternative forms of power and why is Texas uniquely situated to exploit wind and solar power? Many companies and homeowners are now onsite power generation. What does this mean for the Texas power grid? For Texas to continue to bring high tech manufacturing facilities, the state will have to address these issues.

Purchase The Big Empty

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The Hill Country Podcast

The Big Empty On 5 Economic Issues Facing Texas Today: Part 1-Water

This begins a special podcast series on current economic and culture issues faced by the state of Texas, its governments and its citizens. We will explore these issues with author Loren Steffy, through the prism of his book The Big Empty. The Big Empty set in 1999, is a tale about the sense of place and tells the story of a fictional company AzTech which builds a semi-conductor plant in the dying west Texas city of Conquistador. The attempt is beset by the clash of culture in bringing Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs to rural Texas. The book also raises multiple economic issues facing Texas as we move towards the mid 21st century. Over this 5-part podcast series we will consider the following issues facing Texas today; including water, power, land investment, housing and the clash of cultures.

In Episode 1 we consider water and water resource in a time of water scarcity. In the book, the newcomers build out a lake which sits in the front of their gated community and is used to water their private golf course. We explore questions of where water is found and how is it delivered, transmission to move to water where you need it and what happens if you have too much water. We consider the clash of culture in using water to create a water feature for a gated community that is either seen as a positive by its residents or a waste of water in the time of draught by the locals. Water as a sustainable commodity is a question facing Texas today and for the future.

Purchase The Big Empty.

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FCPA Compliance Report

Loren Steffy on Putin’s Oil Heist Podcast


In this episode of the FCPA Compliance Report I welcome Loren Steffy, now podcast host. Steffy is in the middle of a limited series on the theft by Russian President Putin on the publicly traded Yukos Oil Company back in 2007.  Key areas we discuss on this podcast are:

  •  Why this series and why now.
  •  What is the genesis of this story?
  • Who is Bruce Misamore and what was his role in Yukos.
  • Where can listeners find this podcast.

Resources
Putin’s Oil Heist on Stoney Creek Publishing
Loren Steffy on LinkedIn
Putin’s Oil Heist on the Compliance Podcast Network

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Putin's Oil Heist

Putin’s Oil Heist Episode 3: The Theft of Yukos


“We really didn’t have much of a choice, as one of the largest oil companies in the world, other than continuing to run it and implement our strategies.” Yukos was left reeling after their CEO was arrested. Putin’s Oil Heist is an insider’s account of the Yukos Affair. In this episode, host Loren Steffy follows up on the arrest of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and the theft of Yukos with first-person accounts from Bruce Misamore, former Chief Financial Treasurer.

Learn about:

  • The incarnation of Misamore’s worst fear. In the months after the arrest, Vladimir Putin made his thoughts on foreign executives like Misamore running one of Russia’s biggest oil companies very clear. He levied large tax charges on Yukos, and despite being cleared by Russian tax authorities, they were under fire two months later from a random tax assessment that totaled some $30 billion. Khodorkovsky attempted to distance himself from Yukos after his arrest to avoid dragging the company down with him, disposing to his partners all his shares in an attempt to keep the Kremlin away from Yukos. Unfortunately, it did not work. 
  • Khodorkovsky’s threat to Putin. By 2003, Putin had viewed Khodorkovsky as a political rival. Taxes were Putin’s weapon of choice for eliminating political threats. Even before his arrest, Yukos was facing inquiries from Russian tax authorities about the state of its taxes. 
  • The fabrication of fraud. The government began assessing taxes on Yukos going back four years, and the numbers kept growing. In some of the years, the tax assessments exceeded the company’s gross revenue – it was all clearly fake. Still, trying to battle the tax claims in court proved futile, as the judges were quite literally told over the phone how to rule.
  • Misamore’s efforts to save Yukos. Thwarted at every turn, Misamore decided to go on the offensive as much as he could. He called one of Yukos’ international lawyers asking how to protect their rights in Russia, and they came up with the European Court of Human Rights. They hired a specialist attorney and filed a case against Russia in April 2004, which they ended up winning. Despite this, however, Yukos’ assets were frozen, and the company was drained of resources by the repeated tax levies and penalties. The final blow came from Rosneft,the state-controlled oil giant. Rosneft used a syndicate of lenders to force Yukos into bankruptcy using the loans that the banks had made to Yukos for oil export contracts. Misamore, though, wasn’t about to give up.

 
Resources
Loren Steffy on LinkedIn
Stoney Creek Publishing
 

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The Hill Country Podcast

Loren Steffy – The Big Empty


Welcome to The Hill Country Podcast. The Texas Hill Country is one of the most beautiful places on earth. In this podcast, Hill Country resident Tom Fox visits the people and organizations that make this the most unique areas of Texas. Join Tom as he explores the people, places, and activities of the Texas Hill Country. In this episode, I visit award-winning author Loren Steffy about his first work of fiction, The Big Empty. Some of the highlights include:
·       What led to Steffy writing a work of fiction?
·       Character development in the book.
·       Financial, power, water, and economic themes in the book.
·       How did Steffy draw out the 2 co-stars of the book?
·       How did Enron get into the book?
·       What’s next for Steffy?
Resources
Loren Steffy Blog
Loren Steffy  Website
The Big Empty

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Greetings and Felicitations

Loren Steffy on the Energy Issues from the Russia Invasion

Welcome to the Greetings and Felicitations, a podcast where I explore topics which might not seem to be directly related to compliance but clearly influence our profession. In this episode, I visit with business journalist and long-time energy issue reporter Loren Steffy about what the Russia invasion of Ukraine means for the world energy scene. Highlights include:

·      Russia is the second largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia.
·      Russia provides 40% of the energy for the EU.
·      60% of Russian GDP comes from energy production and sale.
·      What will be the response of US producers?
·      What will this mean for shale production?
·      Where does LNG fit into all this?
·      Can the US upgrade its energy infrastructure?
·      What about a US energy policy?
Resources
Loren Steffy in Forbes.com
30Point.com

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Enron: Trial of the Century

The Enron Trial Episode 5 – What is the Legacy of Enron and the Trial of the Century?


The final episode in The Enron Trial series is here. In part 5, Tom Fox and Loren Steffy take a look at Enron’s legacy, fifteen years after the trial. 

Why Should the Trial Be Remembered? 
“What the trial really brought home for everyone was the human toll that these kinds of corporate malfeasance cases can have,” explains Loren. When companies try to do whatever is necessary to keep their stock prices up at all costs, a lot of long-term harm comes out of it, “Enron wasn’t only an accounting failure… above all else, it was a human failure.” 
Enron’s Innovations 
Looking back on Enron’s successes, you begin to wonder, ‘What if?’ Loren highlights how unfortunately it panned out for the corporation, stating that, “They really were out in front of a lot of these trends. Unfortunately they shot themselves in the foot with their accounting.” 
Fifteen Years Later – What Has Changed? 
There’s a lot that can be learned from the fall of Enron; corporate responsibility is viewed differently, now. It’s no longer only about shareholder value, but also an improved focus on corporate governance. “We’ve realised that our corporations have greater responsibilities in that they have responsibilities to their employees, and they have responsibilities to their communities,” Loren tells Tom.
RESOURCES
Loren Steffy | LinkedIn | Twitter 

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Enron: Trial of the Century

The Enron Trial Episode 4 – The Verdict Comes In

 
Loren Steffy and Tom Fox have another conversation as The Enron Trial series nears the end. In episode 4, Loren Steffy recalls the aftermath of the guilty verdict. 
 

 
The Verdict and Counts of Conviction 
Jeffrey Skilling was convicted of 19 counts, his sentence totaling 185 years, and Kenneth Lay was looking at 120 years in prison. Skilling was actually sentenced to 17 years, which was then reduced to 12. Kenneth Lay passed away prior to his sentencing, and so, the verdict was vacated. 
 
The Prosecution and Defence 
“The defense team was stunned,” said Loren, “I think that the attorneys, as well as the defendants, believed that they were going to get a not guilty verdict.” The prosecution, on the other hand, felt a great sense of relief and accomplishment; this was an uphill battle from a prosecution standpoint in many ways. Jeffrey Skilling appeared stoic; though there were stories that indicated he disagreed with the verdict, he seemed to have accepted his fate. 
 
The Jurors and The Judge 
Loren commends the jurors, believing they deserve a lot of credit for their involvement in the trial. “I think they did a really good job of listening to the arguments and considering them,” he said. What was interesting, to him, was their response to Andrew Fastow’s testimony, one that Loren found to be credible, “It was like that didn’t really factor into their decision nearly as much as we thought it would when we were watching all of it unfold.” According to him, the judge certainly understood the magnitude of the case, and tried to be very careful in his administration of the case to avoid mistakes that could have led to a mistrial, “Everyone really understood that this was a big trial, and they were playing on the big stage.”
 
RESOURCES
Loren Steffy | LinkedIn | Twitter 
 
 

Categories
Enron: Trial of the Century

The Enron Trial Episode 3 – The Testimony 


 
Loren Steffy and Tom Fox sit down for part 3 of The Enron Trial series. In this episode, they discuss some of the significant testimonies by witnesses, and the effect they had on the trial. 
 

 
The Star Witnesses
Loren names Andrew Fastow, former CFO, and Ben Glisan, former Treasurer, as the star witnesses in the trial. However, the most moving testimony for him, as an observer, was that of Joanne Cortez, Enron’s bookkeeper. “She was a very credible witness,” said Loren, “and to me, it just showed how there were so many innocent people at Enron that didn’t want to believe what was happening. And when they finally found it out, there was just no denying it.”
 
Employee Losses 
The goal of the prosecutors was to emphasize the real-world consequences of Enron’s malfeasance. Many employees were encouraged to invest their entire retirement savings into the company, and ended up paying a significant price. Loren details the heartbreaking story of a pipeline worker by the name of Johnnie Nelson. “He didn’t really know anything about the stock market,” Loren tells Tom. “Enron was a good company to work for, and they told him, ‘Take your retirement money, buy the stock. It’ll benefit you in the long run.’ He did it because that’s what they told him to do. Then, one day he comes into the field office, and everybody’s long in the face and looking scared, and he realizes he’s basically lost everything he’s been working for.”
 
Executive Testimonies 
The testimonies of Jeffrey Skilling and Kenneth Lay mimicked their personalities; Skilling being very professorial, and Lay acting like he was conducting an investor seminar. “I think they were very convinced that they were going to get off, or at least get a light sentence,” Loren told Tom. Ben Glisan’s testimony was very damaging to Kenneth Lay, revealing that Lay was more aware of what was happening at Enron than he let on. 
 
RESOURCES
Loren Steffy | LinkedIn | Twitter