How to prevent corporate corruption with Eric Ries

Corruption in organizations is one of the biggest problems of our time, and many people believe it may be unsolvable—but Eric Ries doesn’t think so. As entrepreneur and author, Eric has dedicated his career to helping businesses succeed and do the right thing. His new book, Incorruptible, focuses on how to help organizations stay aligned with their ideals. In this episode, Adam and Eric break down why it’s so easy for modern companies to go astray from their missions, the incentives that encourage organizations to deprioritize their principles, and what differentiates companies that have managed to avoid corruption over long periods of time. Eric recommends a series of practices that any workplace can adopt, and shares what he learned from establishing a stock exchange anchored on long-term value instead of short-term returns. Follow our podcasts! ReThinking with Adam Grant: https://link.mgln.ai/kdYcyx The TED Podcasts is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Podcasts videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

Eric RiesguestAdam Granthost

Jul 16, 202630mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: July 16, 2026
Duration: 30m
Channel: Re:Thinking with Adam Grant
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Corruption in organizations is one of the biggest problems of our time, and many people believe it may be unsolvable—but Eric Ries doesn’t think so. As entrepreneur and author, Eric has dedicated his career to helping businesses succeed and do the right thing. His new book, Incorruptible, focuses on how to help organizations stay aligned with their ideals. In this episode, Adam and Eric break down why it’s so easy for modern companies to go astray from their missions, the incentives that encourage organizations to deprioritize their principles, and what differentiates companies that have managed to avoid corruption over long periods of time. Eric recommends a series of practices that any workplace can adopt, and shares what he learned from establishing a stock exchange anchored on long-term value instead of short-term returns. Follow our podcasts! ReThinking with Adam Grant: https://link.mgln.ai/kdYcyx The TED Podcasts is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Podcasts videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

SPEAKERS

Eric Ries
guest
Entrepreneur and author best known for The Lean Startup and for work on corporate governance and long-term capitalism.
Adam Grant
host
Organizational psychologist, professor, and host of the podcast Re:Thinking with Adam Grant.

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Re:Thinking with Adam Grant, featuring Eric Ries and Adam Grant, How to prevent corporate corruption with Eric Ries explores eric Ries argues governance reforms can make companies truly incorruptible Ries defines corporate “corruption” broadly as making money without creating value, arguing modern incentives normalize this behavior beyond bribery or embezzlement.

RELATED EPISODES