Since his team was the most productive and produced the highest quality output of the entire corporation, YY Corp left The 97 alone. His bosses left him alone in so many other ways. They even allowed him to keep his team and run his projects the way he saw fit. It may have seemed as though no one in the hierarchy had noticed or even cared beyond their padded wallets about anything or anyone else, but to a certain extent they were mired in bureaucracy, and they actually did care in their own way. His bosses seemed quite ruthless to other teams and crews, however, but somehow, they knew that James had a heart of gold, and they noticed enough to know YY Corp would tank without him, so they left him and his crew well enough alone, enough to put him there in that position, and keep him there. It was enough for him, for now, to shield his 96 employees from the “titans” up at corporate.
James was no stranger to reason, common sense, intellect, emotional intelligence, and he had a keen eye with a fine balance of rational thought and intuition, so it was second-nature for him to know who would fit in well and where within his various teams. If the truth were told, everyone worked well with each other because James had routinely taken the time to interview them. He integrated them within the various teams, resolved their concerns and doubts, motivated them toward higher learning, and was deeply involved with anyone who struggled. His crew and their teams were the best because he would lead by example and manage with common sense while affording them the opportunity to shine and cross-coordinate between the various teams and their members. He helped them to build and foster goodwill from one worker or team lead to another, no matter the title. Wearing his rank on his sleeves was never his thing; he led well.
Their meetings were as adult meetings ought to be, where each of his crewmembers was present with open-minds, they were well-studied and had thoughtful and problem-solving mind-sets creating a positive and innovative collaboration for a smooth rhythm of events. An atmosphere of constructive behavior, clarity on what steps would be taken each day on the various projects, and appreciation for productivity graced each meeting. Because of the type of management style, James chose, of integrated experience and input, and clarity and common sense in communication and ideas, the workers were all actually very closely-knit. Along with collaborative meetings, he would interview his workers individually at least once a month and ask each one ‘how things were,’ what could be done to improve processes, increase productivity, the quality, morale, and the overall features of the buildings and facilities they put up.
He had a very organized way of spreading the wealth of responsibilities while integrating his teams with each other. Like a well-greased bicycle chain, everything operated smoothly and helped the mission move forward. Corporate left him alone, even when they carried out their annual budget-cutting, people firings, and its own uninspiring downward spiral, among the other crews, which was quite an exemplary representation of the behavior demonstrated by many companies throughout the country, and unfortunately this critically affected the overall economy.
From the vantage point of anyone who took pride in proper management, everything that corporate was doing wrong, he was doing right. His team was keeping the corporation afloat, and the corporates knew it. So, of all the things they did wrong, perhaps the one thing they did right was to leave him and his team alone. They knew that as long as James and his crew did what they did best, the corporation would never disintegrate into bankruptcy.
What they should have done long ago was promote him and his team members, each of them leaders in their own right, allowing him to continue to lead in his own way and have his management and leadership style influence the entire company, but they didn’t. Rather instead, they continued to hire, and fire other team leads, other project managers, and other regional representatives, in order to acquiesce the established status quo of mediocre management and a bane to the quality of life. Other than James, the other leaders were merely intent on promotions, status, money, and wielding their power in a manner that resulted in a revolving door, to include the rest of the corporation. They viewed people as chess pieces and their foolish intrigues as a part of the game. They thought they had the macro view, but they failed to see that while caught up in greed and lust for power, they were stuck in myopia, forgetting the greater aspects and the untold wealth of resources in the minds of their own people and the Universe itself. It seemed to be that YY Corp was awash in hiring merely to feed the toxic cycle. This they did because their primary focus was something other than the well-being of those who worked for them or their customers. For YY Corp, it wasn’t about the company, the products, or the customers, it was solely about pleasing and padding the wallets of the investors, the shareholders, and pulling the strings. It was about power without true or benevolent purpose. In summation, the rest of the company forgot to invest in the employees and the customer.
James saw everyone who worked for him as more than a pawn, they were real, they were visceral, just like the value he saw in himself and his efforts, he saw value in them, and he viewed each one of those under his purview as precious, unique, and pivotal within the team. Virtues such as these, deeply woven within his character and demonstrated through his choice of management and leadership resulted in the highest-quality of outcomes that in-turn bred loyalty within his crew, and both worker and customer satisfaction.
On occasion, there would be a heartfelt retirement, where the closest crewmembers to the retiree would go out of their way and pool their resources to pay for a nice meal for their entire crew and their families, provide meaningful retirement gifts, talk about the retiree’s contributions and highlight how their efforts led to significant improvements over time. They would even talk over nice beverages about the years ahead. Every year, even those who retired would join in on the large crew-wide vacation with James.
Because James’ crew and each of his teams had high morale and motivation, they also had high levels of ingenuity, innovation, integrity as a team, exceeded safety standards, developed common-sense work ethics, and were like family members—always checking in on each other and aware of those who were struggling for whatever reason. They even made it a point to include those who had retired and passed thoughtfully-worded cards around for each members’ special occasions or sympathy cards and meaningful gifts for any tough times.
When vacation time came around, since they all shared schedules, they would plan for a group event with their coworkers and families to go to lakes on houseboats, adorned with hikes and a myriad of exciting activities, to include backpacking to potholes or swim holes that were a result of waterfalls coming from snowy mountains forging peaks into the clouds above, and were only accessible after a sizeable journey. With safety in numbers and associated high morale, everyone naturally carried their own weight, and these trips would result in phenomenal success and provide the much-needed break from the routines at work. On weekends, they would go camping and look up at the stars with high-powered telescopes that the crew had purchased to gaze at deep sky objects, distant galaxies, and the details of planets and stars nearby.
They would often go to museums, zoos, engage in the healing art of passive ornithology, visit art centers, anything educational and fun, and they would do it together. Together, life was fun, the spouses, the children, those who had no children, or no spouse, no date whatsoever, all were a part of the fun. Looking out for each other and helping each other out where help was needed and asked for, further bonded them as a cohesive unit. So often, they would spot each other for holidays, visit sick family members at home or in the hospital, or prepare the latest of healthy and delicious cuisines for coworkers and their families, as they were grieving.
All of his efforts, from vacations, to work, to higher education, to provide an inclusive environment for those who had retired, and for all family members and significant others, resulted in work output that was met with high quality and high efficiency. His leadership, his virtues, his personal ethics, and his management and working style proved succes
sful, resulting in technologically advanced buildings with infrastructure built from the ground up for the customer and the community in top-notch condition. He, his team leads, and every person in his crew made certain that each person that worked for him was properly taken care of, and he negotiated regularly with YY Corp to safeguard their employment and their benefits. He also did everything he could to ensure that they could go home each day knowing they had done amazing work, could be proud of their efforts and were properly compensated.
While austere to some, the corporation seemed like an alright place for him to make his mark. His biggest concern was for his team, protecting The 97, and that included everyone and everything special in their lives. Those who worked for him were his responsibility, he had their backs, and it was on him to protect them from the negative slope of chaos provided by his “superiors.” Since he had no spouse, no children, no dog waiting for him at home, he gave himself to those he worked with, if anything to ensure that those he knew had a wonderful and happy life of comfort, purpose, and meaning that would drive their future goals. Even though he was thirty-five, he was an old soul and a boss who his employees were proud of, both in public and in private. One of the biggest agreements with corporate he considered an immeasurable success, was the ability to take his crew, The 97, on two-month vacations, anywhere in the US and throughout the world.
His crew had been to many places few could only dream of. They’d been ice fishing as close as they could get to the North Pole in Greenland. They’d enjoyed the Northern Lights and Igloo Resorts in Norway. They’d been on cruises from Alaska to Chile. And now, on this occasion and for this vacation trip, James, his crew, his retirees, any significant others, and their children had planned to go to a Massachusetts college town called Cambridge. Now, they were there to check out Harvard and MIT for three of the crew’s children who were planning to go there for higher education. They had also made plans to visit a variety of hotspots in the surrounding area. Little did they know that things were about to get quite a bit more interesting.
Chapter 12: James Cooper, Section 2
With his entire crew early on in 2008, he went on a vacation that would change everything and much of it beyond their wildest of imaginations. As was typical for James and his crew on vacation, every day, late in the morning, everyone would meet up for group check-ins at a rented grange which had been pre-arranged and paid for by James. While there, everyone would share stories over brunch and ensure they were well-fed. James would speak, then others would come up as agreed upon, and he made sure everyone had the ability to keep in contact throughout the day and that they had a daily itinerary. As a crew, they wanted to ensure that no one was lost, the children were safe, and everyone had plans that were amenable to change so that no one was alone— “no one should be left out.” Everyone was allowed some “me time,” but the intent was to ensure no one was lonely or at risk for malevolent exploitation.
On this particular day, after getting ready, sharing breakfast, directing his meeting at the grange, and spending time with his entire crew, he was with a small group of thirteen. They’d visited the campuses of MIT and Harvard and had walked around town seeing the sights and sounds. It was just before dusk and they found they were famished. There it was, the T.O. This restaurant was on the street they happened to find themselves on. So, his group, which consisted of seven employees, three team leaders and three crew members, one of whom was in training, a retiree, and six family members, to include a crew member’s spouse and his eleven-year-old son, a team leader’s wife and his thirteen-year-old son, and the retiree’s seventeen-year-old granddaughter, were all mingled together. “The T.O.,” as it read in big blue and white artistic letters and a rustic cedar wood background, seemed quaint yet eclectic so they decided to venture inside for dinner.
While at the T.O., after gathering everyone’s dinner requests, James stood in line to make the group order, when he engaged in a conversation with an intriguing young lady who happened to be standing in the line right in front of him. Something drew him in to talk to her, although he couldn’t figure out what it could be, so he asked her if she had been to this restaurant before. This very attractive young lady introduced herself. During their brief conversation, he discovered that she was there by herself, and he offered her a place at his table with him and his crew.
Before beginning the orders, he briefly introduced each of his guests. As he did, they stood up, not out of obligation, but because Eliza exuded a very respectable authority about her.
Starting at the far end going clockwise, he began, “This is Anne and her boyfriend, Ryan, to her left.” Anne and Ryan, both of rather a large stature, blonde hair and blue eyes, and most likely of Scandinavian origins, nodded and smiled. She was dressed to impress and so was he. Her blonde locks were in a pristine up-do, and he was clean-cut, shaven, and his wavy hair was parted to the left. All the men kept their hair trimmed short on the sides and back, like James, and she could tell beyond their professional appearance that they were all very close, like a family.
“Hi, Anne and Ryan, nice to meet you. I’m Eliza.”
“It’s nice to meet you too, Eliza.” After saying so, Anne and Ryan nodded again, smiled, and took their seats.
“Next and to our right is Ethel, who worked for us for many years and retired from YY Corp about two years ago. She is here with her granddaughter, Crystal, to her left. Her husband couldn’t make it yet on this trip. His place of employment wouldn’t grant him leave, at least not until Monday. He’s on-call in Grayling, Michigan right now.” Ethel’s hair was silver, but Eliza could tell that at one time it had been red. Around her green irises, her fading limbal rings, or the black rings around the irises of people’s eyes, gave her away. She must have been a freckled and ravishing beauty in her day. Her persona was fine, she had lived a full life, but she had a very big future ahead of her, the likes of which she would never have guessed, and only Eliza fathomed.
“Nice to meet you both, Ethel and Crystal. Beautiful names. I’m sorry your husband,” she said, looking at Ethel, and then toward Crystal, “and your grandfather couldn’t make it.” Crystal’s eyes matched her name. She was an exquisite, blonde, and intellectual beauty.
“It’s quite alright, he’ll be here in a couple of days. Nice to meet you too, Eliza.” Ethel and Crystal sat down, grabbed their napkins, and placed them on their laps.
“This is Tom, to Crystal’s left.”
“Hi, Tom,” said Eliza. He too, was tall, had pale skin, dark hair, and blue eyes. He had a unique, yet attractive personality that suggested that he too might be a benevolent leader.
Tom tried not to swoon, but he blushed as he spoke anyway, “Nice to meet you.” Tom then did a minor curtsy, rather than a bow, considering the limited space between his chair and the table, he then smiled, and then he sat down.
“You each have wonderful manners. I suppose once we get to know each other we’ll be able to be a little less formal. Nevertheless, I am impressed,” said Eliza.
“Next to Tom is Joseph. His girlfriend wasn’t able to make it today. She is a paralegal, and the legal office she works at could not let her go since it is just after the New Year and they are swamped. I had a chat with her boss, so they agreed to let her come to meet us in a few days. She and Joseph are a cute couple though.” Joseph had brown hair and light brown eyes. He too was of large stature, very physically fit, and had a very benevolent personality.
“I’m sure both of you are! What a beautiful group you all make!” affirmed Eliza.
“Thank you, Eliza,” Joseph said, looking toward Eliza, then toward James at peace.
James continued, “We’ll be sitting next to Joseph.” Joseph nodded, smiled, and sat down.
“On the opposite side of the table and continuing clockwise, is Paul, with his wife, Holly, and their son, Jaimie.” Jaimie was eleven and had just begun going through puberty, so he found he couldn’t stop looking just below Eliza’s neckline, she caught him, smiled
, and then turned her gaze to Holly and then to Paul. Paul was a very handsome, clean-cut, tall and muscular man with black hair, glasses, and golden-brown eyes that contrasted well with his dark brown skin. His wife was elegant, graceful, and dignified like a Nubian princess, yet both exuded benevolence, charm, kindness, and each of them was dressed in their Sunday best.
“It’s nice to meet you three. You have a handsome son.” She turned to him and winked to let him know he was off the hook. He gathered himself together, looked into her eyes and smiled.
“Thank you,” said Molly.
“It’s an honor to meet you, and thank you,” said Paul, sitting down with Molly and Jaimie, as those before them had, after their introductions.
“This is Mike, his wife, Heather, and son, Edward.” Mike had blue eyes, brown hair, and just like the other men, he was tall, muscular, clean-cut and clean-shaven, and dressed to impress. Impress he did, his wife was impressed with his every move, and just like two youthful lovebirds they complemented each other quite well. She too had brown hair, blue eyes, and she was curvy yet physically fit in all of the breath-taking ways one could imagine.
“Nice to meet you, Mike, Heather, and Edward.” Just like Jaimie, Edward was in his teens, thirteen to be exact, and his jaw was agape, and like Jaime, he was caught by Eliza too. No one else had noticed. “Cute young man,” she said to let him know he too was off the hook.
“Finally, this is Brandy,” who, like Tom, had curtsied due to the space between table and chair. She smiled and stayed standing. Her green eyes, red hair, and freckles were pretty and her character in every way was breath-taking. James’ crew was one of a kind. They were close.
Further than Before- Pathway to the Stars Page 24