A gorgeous woman slinks up to a CEO at a party and through moist lips purrs, "I'll do anything - anything - you want. Just tell me what you would like." With no hesitation, he replies, "Backdate my options."

So goes a new rendition of the jocular tale that Warren Buffet used in his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway Investors a few years ago. In a fit of blatant pandering, boards have acted foolishly to give top management an unearned perk.

More than 100 companies are under government investigation for charges related to backdating executive stock options. Executive departures related to backdating already have taken place at Apple Computer Inc., software firm Comverse Technology, computer-security firm McAfee, CNet Networks, and the UnitedHealth Group. Who will be next?

The most recent dramatic development is the case of Dr. William W. McGuire, a medical entrepreneur who built the UnitedHealth Group into a colossus in its field. He was forced to resign from the company early this week and forfeit a portion of the $1.1 billion in stock he holds.

Am I missing something at Hewlett-Packard?

The Justice Department has been investigating the company for fraudulent investigative techniques that aimed to uncover who among its directors might be leaking information to the press.

Then this past week, CEO Mark Hurd announced that he would assume the role of chairman following the resignation of Patricia Dunn - the former non-executive chairman of the board.

Admittedly it's standard corporate operating procedure when a scandal hits: Find a villain to take the rap (in this case the hammer fell on Dunn) and circle the wagons. But am I the only person in the business world who wonders how Hurd can be promoted and given additional responsibilities when so much deception took place on his watch as CEO?

How private do you expect your personal contact information to be?

Consider the following scenario: A mutual friend tells us that we should get together for lunch because we share an interest in, say, corporate training. We have a great conversation, and at the end of lunch exchange business cards with the plans to stay in touch. I return to my office and immediately sell your contact information to a Website that gets combed over by sales and marketing professionals. Do you feel betrayed?

One of my favorite business writers over at the San Francisco Chronicle, Dan Fost, called me last week to get my take on the company that rewards people to do that very thing. You can read his more exhaustive story at sfgate.com. But here's the short take.

Jigsaw Data Corp is an online marketplace where individuals can obtain fresh and accurate business contact information. Members of Jigsaw are invited to provide business contacts, and then Jigsaw assembles them for the benefit of its community.

Social innovators around the world have begun to reach a disquieting conclusion: Inspired vision, impassioned leadership, enthusiastic volunteers, government subsidies and a phalanx of donors are not always enough. But there comes a time when most founders begin to understand that living from year to year does not ensure the future, and that is the moment when they begin migrating from innovation to entrepreneurship. They turn toward commercial markets, gradually exploring the possibilities for earned income, many for the first time, and often with reluctance given their uneasiness about the profit motive.

The above paragraph is essentially how my friend Jerr Boschee starts his new book, "Migrating from Innovation to Entrepreneurship: How Non-Profits Are Moving Toward Sustainability and Self-Sufficiency." Jerr provides an overview of the forces that led to the emergence of social entrepreneurship in the United States. As fascinating as that may be, I found his 14 "critical success factors" for building a successful social enterprise the most significant part of the book.