Executive Affair

by Ber Carroll

  ‘What do you mean?’ She made a conscious effort not to sound defensive.

  ‘How do you two get along?’ he shrugged, as if the meaning of his question was obvious.

  ‘Well, now that you’ve brought it up, not very well.’

  ‘He has asked if he can report directly to me rather than through you,’ Robert stated in a very matter-of-fact way.

  She was furious and had trouble disguising it. She couldn’t believe that Alan had approached Robert on his first day – he was obviously a lot more politically astute than she gave him credit for.

  ‘Did he say why?’ she asked, her voice amazingly controlled.

  ‘He feels that he has much more experience than you and should report to someone more senior.’ Robert was watching her carefully again and she didn’t flinch outwardly.

  ‘So, what did you say?’

  ‘I told him that his reporting line wouldn’t be changing and to get over it,’ he said, finally grinning.

  The charm was back. Not usually a great admirer of charm, Claire found she was much happier to glow in its warmth than to endure the coldness of his scrutiny.

  ‘I also told him that I was grooming you for finance director and that he’d better stay on your good side,’ he continued.

  She gave him a small smile, not sure if she should take him seriously.

  He took Emma’s job description from the file she had left open on the table.

  ‘Emma has been with the company some time now,’ he commented as he read the single page.

  ‘Ten years.’

  ‘Is she happy in her role?’

  ‘I think so. She did apply for my position when it was vacant but apparently she wasn’t successful because she didn’t have a formal accounting qualification.’

  ‘Do you have a career plan in place for her?’

  Claire was impressed with his line of thought and glad that she had a positive answer for him. ‘Yes, she’s now enrolled in CPA.’

  He went back to the file, turning the pages slowly. ‘And James has been here a year, is that right?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I remember seeing something in the external audit report about Accounts Payable. I can’t quite recollect the context but I do remember there was an issue.’ He was clearly expecting Claire to supply the details that eluded him.

  ‘That was an issue about segregation of duties. It’s still a problem. James can set up vendor accounts, process invoices as well as run the payments. The auditors would like to see those functions split out amongst three independent staff. They do acknowledge, however, that complete segregation isn’t practical for a Finance department of our size.’

  ‘I remember now. Most of our subsidiaries have the same issue. We’re assessing the option of centralising Payables in Ireland after the upgrade project is rolled out. If we decide to go ahead, it would resolve this issue.’

  Claire suddenly remembered what Susan had said about centralising IT and Finance in Dublin. It seemed she had been on the right track.

  Robert didn’t give her the opportunity to ask for more details about the proposed centralisation and if it would mean redundancies in the Australian Finance department.

  ‘How about Stacey?’

  ‘Stacey’s great. She does the work of two people. I should tell you that I’m pretty flexible with her hours. She usually comes in at nine-thirty and leaves at four-thirty.’ She quickly looked at him for his reaction. She continued when there was no sign of disapproval. ‘She’s got four kids. She doesn’t take a lunch break and she takes work home.’

  ‘Sounds reasonable to me.’

  She was relieved. Flexitime was not officially endorsed by the company and he could have taken a harder line.

  They spent the rest of the morning discussing the structure and productivity of the department. He was impressed that each individual had a formal development plan in place. He was keen to introduce some productivity measures for the group and asked her to think further on what would be some meaningful indicators of performance. At one she suggested a break so she could go out and get sandwiches for them both.

  He was reading the monthly results package when she returned.

  ‘Who prepares this?’ he asked.

  ‘Mostly me, but I get various people to complete the sections that are specific to their area.’ She put the sandwiches on the table and took hers from its paper wrapping.

  ‘That’s a good idea. I like to involve all levels of staff in reporting. Who do you distribute the report to?’

  ‘The senior management team.’

  ‘Do they read it?’

  ‘Some do. Others wouldn’t read it even if I printed Playboy on the cover,’ she said with a grin.

  He laughed. ‘Do you think there is any merit in giving a copy to each employee?’

  ‘Maybe. I suppose I could include a glossary to help explain some of the terminology.’

  ‘Would it be a lot of extra work?’

  ‘If I could get some secretarial support it would be okay. Maybe Samantha could help.’

  Samantha used to be Harry’s personal assistant and now worked for Robert.

  ‘Okay, let’s give it a try next month and see what kind of response we get.’

  He was interested in the detail, interested in the people, and at the end of the day she had a few pages of notes. He wanted her to provide extra information and her considered opinions on his suggestions for improvement. He was inspiring to work with and she left his office feeling really excited about her job.

  Claire went back to her desk and set about clearing her inbox. She had dozens of unread messages. She noticed that one was from Susan and kept it until last.

  Hi Claire,

  How goes it? You haven’t written to me in ages – I want you to know I’m taking it personally! Your replacement has fitted in well. She was fairly studious at the start and showed the rest of us up. We beat that out of her, though.

  I ran into Michael in Maguire’s last night. You won’t believe this – the bastard is getting married. Before you ask, she isn’t pregnant. He was very offended when I asked. I told him that you were having a ball in Sydney.

  I hope you’re over him enough by now not to be too upset …

  Write soon,

  Susan

  Her face stung as though it had been slapped. She couldn’t believe that she’d mattered that little to him. There he was, ready to marry someone else just six months later, while she’d had to go to the other side of the world to recover. It was mean not to respond to Susan but she wasn’t capable of even stringing some bland lines together. She shut down her PC and locked her office door, dangerously close to tears.

  Robert was the last person she wanted to see but there he was, holding the lift for her as he saw her approaching. She murmured her thanks.

  Unfortunately, he seemed keen to make conversation. ‘Anything interesting planned for the rest of the evening?’

  ‘Just home,’ she replied, her voice so subdued that it could barely be heard.

  She stared into space until they reached the ground floor and then said goodbye without meeting his eyes.

  By the time she got home, her emotions were seesawing between rage and despair.

  ‘Michael is getting married.’ She marched into the kitchen and flung her bag on the table. She didn’t expect James to be there.

  ‘Who’s Michael?’ he asked innocently.

  ‘He’s an asshole,’ Fiona snapped, glaring at him pointedly and he retreated to the living room to leave them alone. ‘Are you serious?’

  ‘It’s from the horse’s mouth. He met Susan last night and passed on the happy news. I’m so … so furious that he fed me all that … that … bullshit about having fun before he settled down!’ She started to cry. ‘What is wrong with men? Either they’re lying bastards, like Michael, or they pester the hell out of me, like Paul!’

  ‘Is she pregnant?’ Fiona started.

  ‘No, I can’t even console mysel
f with that!’ She wiped her wet face with the back of her hand, streaking mascara across her cheekbone.

  ‘So are you upset because you still have feelings for him or because he fed you bullshit?’ Fiona asked gently, putting her arm around Claire to comfort her. She had never seen her so upset before and didn’t quite know what to do.

  ‘I still have feelings for him … I suppose I always will … but I’m more angry that he made a fool of me than anything. He must have been seeing this woman seriously while we were going out if they’re getting – married – already!’ She gulped the last few words, finding it difficult to cry and talk at the same time.

  Fiona gave Claire a tight hug before extracting herself and opening their ‘drinks cabinet’, a long narrow cupboard under the kitchen sink.

  She poured a generous vodka, adding only a little lemonade. ‘Here.’

  ‘I mean, how can he do a flip like that?’ Claire went on. ‘One minute he’s breaking up with me because he isn’t ready for marriage … then surprise, surprise, with his new girlfriend, it seems like the right thing to do.’

  Claire took a gulp of her drink, spluttering as the undiluted vodka burned its way through her system.

  ‘God, are you trying to kill me?’ she managed to laugh.

  Fiona shrugged. ‘How did your meeting with Robert go today?’ she asked brightly.

  Her effort to change the subject of conversation was not intended to be subtle.

  ‘Nice try,’ Claire retorted, ‘but I’m not finished tearing strips off Michael just yet.’

  Robert’s phone rang when he was in the car on his way home. Home was a serviced house in Kirribilli with an expansive view of the harbour and an outdoor spa.

  ‘Hi, honey, it’s me.’

  ‘Hello, Julia. How are you?’ He made an effort to inject some enthusiasm into his voice.

  ‘I’m good … but I’m missing you. How’s Sydney?’

  ‘Beautiful. It’s winter here so it’s cool in the mornings and evenings. But the days are still in the high teens and there’s plenty of sun.’

  ‘It sounds lovely. How’s the job? I hope you’re not working too hard.’

  ‘Things are in reasonable shape, better than I expected considering the role was vacant for a few months.’

  There was a pause and he knew what she would say next.

  ‘When can I come out to see you?’

  ‘Now’s not a good time, Julia,’ he responded, his voice kind to take the hurt from his words. ‘I’ve only been here a few days and there’s a lot to do.’

  ‘I’m very lonely without you, Robert.’ She sounded miserable.

  ‘I know you are. Why don’t we talk about a trip in a few weeks, when I’ve settled in and have less on my mind?’ He felt bad about giving her false hope but he knew that this was the wrong time for the confrontation they needed to have.

  ‘A few weeks is a long time to me right now,’ she whispered.

  ‘You’ll be surprised how fast it will pass … I have to go now. Take care, I’ll call you soon.’

  Robert pulled up at a red light. His thoughts moved to Claire. She had seemed upset in the lift. Had something happened at work or was it personal? He was surprised at his need to know.

  Chapter 11

  The senior management team made a more serious effort at keeping their commitment for the July meeting. After all, the form and frequency of the meeting itself was the first item on the agenda. And Robert Pozos was going to be there, a senior vice-president who had the ability to wipe out the entire team if he wasn’t impressed by the standard of their performance.

  Robert had asked Claire to attend the meeting with him as she was closer to the numbers than he was. Samantha was there to take the minutes, another change in Robert’s honour.

  ‘Good morning, everyone,’ Steve began, clearing his throat. ‘I believe that we’re all present. Before I move to the first item, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Robert to the team. Robert will assume the finance director’s role for the next six months as our external search was not successful. Needless to say, Robert will continue to perform his vice-president’s role from Sydney … so make sure you all take advantage of the fast track that Robert can offer to Donald Skates.’

  The directors laughed politely at Steve’s effort at humour.

  ‘Okay, moving right along … David, this first item is the issue you raised last month so I’ll hand over to you.’

  ‘Thanks, Steve,’ David said, leaning forward in his seat. ‘Over the last twelve months we’ve met a total of seven times. Of those seven meetings, there were only two where we were all present. Those statistics tell me that this meeting doesn’t make it onto the priority list of the members of this team.’

  ‘I think that’s a bit harsh,’ Steve interrupted, looking in Robert’s direction to gauge his reaction to the potentially dangerous accusation.

  ‘I don’t believe so, Steve. We have no other avenue to execute strategic planning. We have no other means of sharing what’s happening across the business with the other team members. If we don’t meet once a month, for at least a few hours, how can we possibly expect to successfully run this company?’

  David sat back and waited for the others to comment. There was silence. Nobody was prepared to disagree with him in front of Robert Pozos. He smiled because he could tell there would be no absentees as long as the vice-president was around.

  The next item on the agenda was the financial results and Claire began to talk through the divisional profit and loss.

  ‘I want to know about this “exceptional item” that you’re showing in my numbers. What is it?’ Frank asked, staring at her from across the table. He was smarting from his inability to challenge David on the management meetings. Claire was an easier target.

  ‘It’s a bad debt, Frank. We’ve taken a provision against a debt that’s been outstanding since last March,’ she explained.

  ‘Why wasn’t I consulted before my bottom line was hit?’

  She ensured her response was even, reasonable. ‘It’s corporate policy to reserve against debts that are over three months old – it’s an automatic process.’

  He threw his hands up in frustration. ‘It’s – not – the – corporate – policy – that I’m questioning,’ he emphasised each word with contempt. ‘It’s why I wasn’t informed about it.’

  Tension drenched the room. She could see the others watching her, expecting her to crack.

  ‘Frank, can we take this offline?’ Robert asked, glancing at Claire as he spoke.

  ‘It’s okay, Robert,’ she said calmly. ‘Frank, you’re right. I should have let you know in advance that this adjustment would be made in June. I apologise for surprising you.’

  The meeting went for five hours. It was intense and exhausting. When they finished, Claire left without delay to begin the walk from the hotel to the office. It was raining when she went outside.

  ‘Claire, hold on.’ It was Robert.

  She stopped and waited without turning around.

  ‘I’m sorry that happened,’ he said, out of breath when he caught up.

  ‘You’ve nothing to be sorry about. Frank was right to pull me up,’ she answered, starting to walk.

  ‘He wasn’t right to talk to you like that. It was way out of line. I’m sure Steve will speak to him about his behaviour.’

  ‘Robert … I’m not some little girl that needs to be protected. I can handle Frank myself. I don’t need you, or Steve, to fight my battles.’

  He looked at her – her face was wet from the rain. He could tell she was more upset about the incident than she would admit. They walked the rest of the way in silence.

  Mark called Claire later that evening.

  ‘Hello, stranger, we miss you over here.’

  She recognised his upper-class Dublin accent immediately.

  ‘Mark … hello,’ she said in surprise. ‘Long time no hear. How are you?’

  ‘Busy, very busy … and how are
you? Enjoying your new role, I hope?’

  ‘I was until today.’ She grimaced. ‘I got a bit of a hammering this morning but I’m sure I’ll get over it.’

  ‘There’s nothing like a good hammering – it makes you a better, stronger person. Right?’

  ‘Right,’ she agreed with a laugh.

  ‘Now, back to business – this is not merely a social call. We’re nearing the end of the Irish rollout for the payables upgrade.’

  ‘That went by quickly. How did it work out?’

  ‘Surprisingly smooth,’ Mark answered. ‘A few glitches but nothing major. Australia is now firmly in our sights and I wanted to talk to you about a rough timetable.’

  ‘The sooner the better, as far as I’m concerned. Our payables processes are quite weak and we’re looking forward to the improvements that the upgrade will bring.’

  ‘Good. I’ll forward you a timetable later today. Now, there was one other thing.’ He paused.

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘I just wanted to give you a heads-up that Michael will be the liaison for your rollout.’

  ‘Yes,’ she said slowly. ‘I expected that he would be.’

  Paul went off to Brisbane for two weeks before Claire had the chance to speak to him. Digicom was responding to a multimillion dollar tender with the Queensland government. Claire didn’t tell Paul that Amtech was bidding on the same deal or that Frank Williams was also in Queensland. In fact, Amtech had an existing relationship with the client and everyone felt quite confident they would win.

  Paul called her every day while he was away and by the second week she had nothing left to say to him. She had call display on her phone and didn’t pick it up when she recognised the Queensland number coming through. She had a week’s worth of voicemails that she hadn’t listened to when he returned to Sydney.

  She went around to see him after work Friday evening. As she rang the bell, she hoped he would be home now that she had psyched herself up for the long overdue confrontation. He opened the door before the bell stopped ringing. She didn’t have the opportunity to avoid his embrace.

  ‘Hi, stranger! I’ve been trying to call you all week. You’ve obviously been too busy to call me back!’ His tone was free from accusation.