Thursday, October 14, 2004

Siebel Sees Sarbanes-Oxley Taking Toll On Economy

Speaking to a gathering of private equity investors and startups seeking funding Tuesday night in Silicon Valley, the founder and chairman of Siebel Systems Inc. questioned whether the biggest business opportunities lie in the United States, blaming the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and all the hand-wringing over how stock options are expensed for a business environment that's taken top execs further away from their customers than ever.

"We might have killed the goose that lays the golden egg," Siebel told those gathered for an annual cocktail event put on by Silicom Ventures, a sort of private equity matchmaking group. Siebel said the costs associated with Sarbanes-Oxley haven't been calculated yet, as management teams spend increasing amounts of time sweating over issues that affect margins rather than on big-picture business decisions. Perhaps the most damaging impact, he said, is the creation of an increasingly risk-averse business infrastructure. "You're mitigating every possible risk that can be conceived," Siebel said. "Risk didn't use to be a bad thing."

Siebel Sees Sarbanes-Oxley Taking Toll On Economy

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