Gilbert Fiorentino may not be a household name, but millions of online shoppers recognize the name Tiger Direct.

In a nod to the corporate excess and bad culture, as represented by John Thain and disgraced CEO Dennis Kozlowski, we now have Fiorentino.

The truly shocking part of this story is found in the comment section; the stories from employees whose descriptions of their work environment will raise your hackles even as they make you cringe.

Dell sued TigerDirect for trademark infringement for “repeated and blatant” violations regarding the resale of its computers and in 2008 the Florida Attorney General’s office sued for failing to pay advertised rebates to consumers.

But this isn’t just another CEO running amok.

Fiorentino may have founded Tiger Direct and be CEO of CompUSA (bought out of bankruptcy), but Systemax owns the whole shebang.

And it is Systemax that turned a blind eye for all those years as Fiorentino created and maintained a culture of intimidation and abuse of both employees and vendors for more than a decade.

“He was making a lot of money for the company and I think people looked the other way for a long time. … If he wanted it, he took it, for whatever reason,” –William “Cully” Waggoner, a former employee who was fired in 2009 after five years with the company, but won a court settlement challenging the action. A blind eye until a worm turned and made that fateful whistleblower call.

Now Systemax claims it wants to change its corporate culture.

A memo last week to employees talked about embracing changes like a more “open management style” and elimination of competitive postings of hours worked by each employee. “The prior management regime was not the reason for the Company’s success – you were.” –Systemax Executive Committee

This is the same executive committee that was blind all those years.

If you believe them I have a great buy on a gorgeous orange bridge that would look terrific on your front lawn.

Flickr image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/salim/402620871/

Oh what great examples are presented to kids these days.

Some of the worst types of hypocrites are thriving.

The first are all the ‘leaders’ who turn out to be crooks—Dennis Kowalski, Jeffrey Skilling, Bernie Madoff and a host of other hedge fund managers—to name a very few.

Then there are those who don’t practice what they preach; worse, they preach from very high profiles and at very loud levels.

I hate using political examples, but they’re the most prevalent.

One such is former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who acknowledged having an extramarital affair even as he led the charge against President Clinton over the Monica Lewinsky fiasco—which was also hypocritical.

But the bottom of the barrel are folks such as Senator John Ensign, a ‘leader’ of Promise Keepers, an organization which, among other things, promotes a teenage abstinence policy of education, who chose to screw around (pun intended).

Gone are the days when kids listened wide-eyed and respectful to the words flowing from political, business and parental lips.

These days the kids listen, and then check out the actions of the bodies attached to those lips, either directly or by Google.

It’s not about the sex; sex and power having gone together since time immemorial. And it’s not even about who lied when caught. Almost every human lies about sex, including the kids.

A few centuries ago when I was young there was a saying, “People in glass housed shouldn’t throw stones.”

So before you become a ‘leader’ for any cause or attitude, do make sure that your own actions conform to what’s expected of those who follow you.

But be warned; reasons, excuses and apologies don’t cut it with today’s cynical youth.

And if you’re thinking of following, Google the person and make sure that their actions conform to your own standards of ‘acceptable’.

(Be sure to check out Biz Levity’s irreverent look at the Ensign scandal.)

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Image credit: heyjoewhereyougoinwitht hatguninyourhand on flickr

CEOs have been envied for decades; the pedestal kept getting higher and we all know that the higher the pedestal the further the fall. Things started changing in the eighties and now CEOs as a group are scorned and reviled as symbols of ego and greed who caused most of the problems we’re facing.

Certainly some do qualify for that title, but tarring all CEOs with that brush is plain stupid, as stupid as judging any group based on the actions of a tiny minority—no matter how high profile its is.

Today’s links offer up info on the folks in the corner office, whether they’re one of the vast majority who work hard and are getting a bad rap or one of the folks who screwed up.

First for the good guys.

The Milken Institute’s Global Conference 2009 offers a video discussion at their recent conference called CEO: How Will It Stop Being a Dirty Word?

And a new website offers a place where CEOs post stuff to show that Not All CEOs Are Jerks.

Do you apologize when you screw up? An article in Chief Executive says that an apology can improve performance; while Steve Pearlstein talks about an almost confession from a Wall Street bigwig—as he says, it’s a start.

Last is a bad guy; an interview with a jailed CEO courtesy of the BBC. Remember Dennis Kozlowski? He of the $600 shower curtain? Listen to what he has to say about himself and current events.

Your comments—priceless

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Image credit: nono farahshila on flickr