High-Powered, Hot-Blooded

At four, his assistant buzzed to tell him a Ms. Morgan had arrived for their meeting. Duncan glanced at his calendar, then frowned as he couldn’t place the name. Someone from accounting, the note said.

“Send her in.”

Seconds later a short, fifty-something woman walked in and smiled shyly. She wore her hair short and had on a drab suit and sensible shoes.

“Ms. Morgan,” he said, pointing to the chair on the other side of his desk.

“Thank you for seeing me, Mr. Patrick.”

The woman had a folder in her hands. She looked both determined and nervous.

When she was seated, he offered her coffee, which she refused. She cleared her throat.

“I talked to Annie at the Christmas party,” she began. “She’s very nice and when I mentioned I had some ideas about making a few changes, she encouraged me to come talk to you.”

Typical, he thought, both annoyed and unsurprised. “Annie is a big believer in communication,” he said shortly.

Ms. Morgan swallowed. “Yes, well, I thought about what she said and decided to make the appointment. I’m a CPA, Mr. Patrick. I wasn’t sure if you knew that. I’m required to take continuing education every year. I recently attended a class on depreciation.”

“Rather you than me,” he murmured.

She flashed him a smile. “It was more interesting than it sounds. There have been several changes in the tax code that could have a big impact on the bottom line. If I could just show you.”

She opened the folder and passed over several pages. They went over them, line by line, as she explained how they weren’t taking advantage of new classifications and schedules. The small changes were significant when applied to his large fleet of trucks.

“The tax savings alone is well into the high six figures,” she said twenty minutes later.

“Impressive. Thank you, Ms. Morgan. I appreciate you bringing this to my attention. I’ll speak to the vice president of finance and make sure these changes are implemented.”

His employee beamed. “I’m happy to help.”

She was. He could see it in her pleased expression. He’d always been one to manage through fear and intimidation. He’d never nurtured anyone, preferring to do it himself rather than be part of a team. Growing the company had required him to change his style. Entrepreneurs either learned how to work in a large organization or their companies stayed small.

But while Duncan had learned the lesson, he’d never liked it. Now, watching Ms. Morgan gather up her papers, he saw the benefit of encouragement. Maybe Annie was right. Maybe he should talk to his employees more. Trust them to do the right thing. Reward good behavior. What was it she’d told him? Set limits and reinforce them often.

“You’ll be getting a check for ten percent of the savings,” he said.

Ms. Morgan blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“You’re saving the company a lot of money. I appreciate that. You’ll share in the benefit. It’s a new policy. I want to encourage people to offer suggestions that either grow the business or save us money. If we implement the idea, that employee gets ten percent of the increase in sales or the savings.”

The color drained from her face. “But ten percent of that amount is nearly my year’s salary.”

He shrugged. “That makes it a good day.”

She opened her mouth, then closed it. “You’re sure?”

He nodded.

“Thank you, Mr. Patrick. I’m—I don’t know what to say. Thank you. Thank you.”

She rose and hurried out. By the time she got to the door, he was pretty sure she was crying.

When he was alone, Duncan leaned back in his chair. He felt good—like he’d done the right thing. Maybe it was possible to find the occasional win–win scenario, he thought as he turned back to his computer. He began to type an e-mail to his chief operating officer, explaining the new policy of giving employees ten percent of saving or sales increases. Maybe someone in PR could leak the memo to the press. That should go a long way to getting him off the meanest CEO list.

After that, he would move forward with his plan to buy out his board and run the company himself. The way he liked—answering to no one. Although he would keep the new policy. Not for Annie, he told himself. He’d keep it because it made business sense.