Ethical issues still arise in the modern workplace, a problem that Michael Kerner says is important to address.

Kerner, who graduated from Binghamton University in 1986 with degrees in mathematics and economics, delivered the 28th annual Abraham J. Briloff Lecture on Thursday afternoon in the Anderson Center. He spoke about his vision of accountability in the business world and what students graduating in the coming years can expect when entering a post-recession climate.

“Despite the fact that it has been a long time, the topic of accountability today is still just as relevant as when the first Briloff Lecture was delivered,” Kerner said. “Even today, things like the recent Volkswagen emissions scandal keep the relevance very high.”

Kerner became the CEO of general insurance for Zurich Insurance Group and is currently the senior advisor for the company. In his lecture, Kerner spoke about about how accountability and ethics must be reinforced by policies both from individual firms and throughout the respective industries.

He emphasized the need to clearly define rules and reporting systems for wrongdoings in businesses. Following the financial crisis of 2008, businesses have become more wary of ethical issues because of the media and press. But according to Kerner, this is not enough.

“First, you need a clear set of rules, whether they be laws, regulations, guidelines or professional standards,” he said. “But underlying it all, you need a culture that encourages the right behaviors.”

Kerner also spoke about accountability in terms of the individuals and institutions responsible for the economic downturn of 2008.

“When we see accountability for the Great Recession, we see it in terms of the fines … we see it in terms of termination of employment for individuals, but we don’t see prosecutions,” Kerner said. “The reality of it is that you can’t throw people in jail for poor business judgment, or because outcomes are worse than expected.”

He expressed his opinion that even if actions should have been forbidden at the time, governments cannot enforce laws that they have not written. This, he said, is why it is important to have clearly defined rules.

“We can’t prosecute people for breaking laws that should have been in place, even if they weren’t,” Kerner said. “It’s a big step to go from ‘there should be a law’ to ‘there is a law.’”

In response to a student’s question on whether ethics can be taught in a classroom setting, Kerner that it is not only is it possible, but also very important to do.

“I think you absolutely can teach ethics,” he said. “It is important to have the opportunity to experience some of the things that are out there in advance.”

Yale Smolar, a junior majoring in marketing, said that Kerner’s practical examples and experience within the actuarial community was informative and served as a good picture of the real world.

“It was good to hear from an insider’s perspective about ethics on that level,” Smolar said. “This speech is like the first steps in teaching and implementing all the things he talked about.”​

Upinder Dhillon, the dean of the School of Management, said that there are still ethical problems in the business world and these talks serve as a reminder of that.

“We are continually reminded of the importance of this lecture as society continues to deal with ethical failures,” Dillon said.

The lecture also served as a memorial for late professor Abraham Briloff, who taught accounting at both BU and Baruch College, for whom the series is named. He passed away in December of 2013.