Aaron Beam is a popular, highly regarded speaker at universities, healthcare companies, auditor meetings and conventions, securities training seminars and ethics institutes across the U.S. He has spoken to student audiences as a guest lecturer at many business schools (Univ. of Chicago, LSU, UAB, Penn State, Stanford, Arizona State, and over fifty other schools) over the past four years.
Mr. Beam was the first CFO at Healthsouth Corp., and as a co-founder witnessed first-hand the series of accounting, stock manipulation and leadership failures that led Healthsouth to the $2B securities fraud scandal and ultimate prosecutions of Richard Scrushy. He relates to students and professionals the heights of success, followed by the unethical and illegal mistakes that led to his professional downfall. Serving three months in federal prison for his role in approving fraudulent quarterly numbers in 1996 and losing his CPA credentials, led Mr. Beam to his current speaking career; trying to make a positive difference by educating others about the pitfalls of unethical business practices. Through his Ethics First message he identifies early warning signs, influences and the bad choices he and others made at Healthsouth, allowing the audience to apply what they learn to their business practices and the organization's culture and environment.