As an employee of a leading Fortune 500 company, you observe behavior on the part of your senior manager that would prove harmful to both stockholders and the public. You discuss it with a friend who argues that if you report it, you will be the one hurt. "The bosses never get punished" and "you'll be the fall guy." You need your job and can't afford to lose it. You also know that your senior manager is up for promotion and may take you with him with a promotion for you. Discuss what you are going to do.
If my senior manager is doing something that would prove harmful to both stockholders and the public and I have complete proof of this, I would take the chance to tell the next person higher. Everyone has a moral and ethical way of thinking and how he or she would feel after their actions. For me personally, I would have to say something, I don't think I could keep that type of secret to myself. I would also hope that my other coworkers who might have witnessed this act would also stand behind me in this decision. It is better to have more than just one person talking about such an act. My "friend" might be thinking of me in a financial way of thinking, but that wouldn't make me feel better about that potential promotion.
Think about it - what if you didn't say anything and you gained that promotion. Could you live with the secret you know and how many other lives you might have ruined?