Don't Be That Boss E-Book

Mark Wiskup

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 276

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2009

Beschreibung

An executive coach shows you how better communication leads to productivity and profitability Communication is the key to success when you manage other people. But it's not enough to just communicate; you have to communicate in the right way to get the results you want from your people and teams. In Don't Be That Boss, renowned executive coach Mark Wiskup shows you how to communicate effectively with colleagues and workers to create a healthy, productive, happy work environment. The story follows two leaders through a typical workday and all their typical communications-including meetings, conferences, one-on-one discussions, break room banter, phone calls, and even emails. Based on real situations you'll probably recognize, you'll watch as two committed, intelligent people take different approaches to communication and reap very different results. Along the way, you'll realize what good communication is, how it works, and how it makes your business better in virtually every way. * Written by an experienced communications coach who works with Fortune 500 clients, CEOs and managers across the country * Shows that how you communicate in the office is just as important as what you communicate * Explains why excellent communication skills are vital to individual and organizational success * Effective communication is vital for the success of both large and small businesses * Mark Wiskup is also the author of The It Factor and Presentation S.O.S. Whether you're an executive, manager or small business owner, this book will show you how to improve your communication skills to better your business.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Acknowledgements

Introduction

7:00 AM - Connections Made and Missed Out of the Gate

7:05 Forgetful Mike Lucks Out

7:06 Dry Cleaners Disappointment for Chad

7:25 Chad Plays “The Big Man” in the Break Room

7:50 Tarantino Debate Outside Louis’s Office

7:55 Chad Strikes Back at West Coast Phil

7:57 Mike Picks Up the Phone

8:00 AM - Sales Rundown: Reality Behind the Numbers

8:01 Chad Admires His Handiwork

8:13 Mike Is Behind Schedule, Again

8:15 Chad Would Die if He Knew About This Bet

8:18 Wins and Losses for Mike’s Team

8:26 Chad Worries About Phil on the West Coast

8:27 Jeanie Gets the Info to Mike

8:27 The Numbers Mislead Chad

8:52 Mike Busts Dave

8:54 Chad Is Still Sweating About the West Coast

8:59 Mike Gives Louis a Leadership Lesson or Two

9:00 AM - Financial Reports: A Star Is Born

9:01 West Coast Frustration for Chad

9:10 West Coast Jeanie Comes Through

9:13 Why Mike Likes the Financial Stuff

9:14 Phil Blasts Back at Chad

9:15 Mike Likes “Apples to Apples”

9:28 Chad Goes into Deep Thought

9:30 Chad Makes a Good Catch

9:53 Mike Invites Ellen to Mahogany Row

10:00 AM - Frustration and Satisfaction: Strategic Plan Update

10:01 Lynn Gives Chad Some Breathing Room

10:15 Kim, for Better or for Worse, Leads Mike’s Planning Process

10:16 Chad Delivers Vague Praise Way Too Early

10:20 Mike’s Team Discovers the Employees Want More

10:45 Hits and Misses for Chad’s Team

11:00 AM - Customer Standoff: Accept Real Blame but Never Fall on Your Sword

11:05 Mike Readies Louis for Combat

11:07 Chad Comes Up with “The Perfect Storm” Tactic

11:15 Louis Takes the Early Hit

11:16 The Customer’s Not Buying What Chad and Jody Are Selling

11:36 Denise Asks for More Than Louis Offers

11:42 Chad Overplays the Apology Card

12:00 PM - Chad Negotiates When Mike Doesn’t Have To

12:01 Chad Offers an Olive Branch

12:06 Mike Finds the Shoe on the Other Foot

12:15 Chad Makes His Case

12:20 Mike Paints His Picture of the Future for Colleen

12:35 James Starts to Negotiate; Chad Is Ready

12:45 Colleen Weighs In

12:46 James Accepts the Offer, but Makes One More Push

12:54 Mike Makes the Offer

1:00 PM - Vendor Negotiations: Winning When You Don’t Have the Strongest Hand

1:03 Mike Preps Kim and Himself

1:10 Chad and Randy Unveil Their Request

1:21 Mike Lets Kim Take the Lead

1:23 Chad Hands the Reins to Randy, but Doesn’t Let Go

1:50 Mike Starts Asking Jonathan Questions

1:52 Tracy Bursts the Bubble

2:00 PM - Disciplining an Employee: Hit Them with Specifics or Don’t Hit Them ...

2:03 Chad Reaches Out to Mike

2:15 Mike Spells It Out for Gary

2:18 Chad Follows Up with Lynne

2:27 Gary Gets No Sympathy from Mike

2:29 Chad Treads Very Lightly with Susan

2:36 Mike Shows Gary What Success Looks Like

2:43 Chad Completes the “Criticism Sandwich”

3:00 PM - Employee Promotion: Supervisor Becomes Assistant Manager

3:01 Chad Perceives a Silver Lining

3:02 Mike Wastes No Words

3:04 Tracy Blindsides Chad

3:04 Mike Lays It Out for Lucy

3:15 Chad Lays It On Way Too Thick

3:32 Mike Writes a Personal Note

4:00 PM - Chad’s Production Meeting: Just the Facts, Ma’am

4:01 Chad Relinquishes Some Power

4:06 Balancing Customer Demands with Profit Margin

4:13 Simone Stands Strong . . . for a While

4:28 Randy Changes the Routine

4:39 Back to the Regular Routine

4:47 Simone Comes Back with a Win

4:55 Mike Asks for Chad to Return the Favor

5:00 PM - Mike’s Production Meeting: Not Exactly Kumbaya, but Lots of Give-and-Take

5:02 Chad Receives a Warm Welcome

5:05 Lots of Great Info, but No Numbers

5:15 Leslie Explains Why a Chore She Dislikes Has Helped Her

5:30 Rebecca Needs to Work Harder

5:40 Chad Thought He’d See More Backslapping

6:00 PM - AFTER WORK DOWNTIME: Mike and Chad Hash It Out

6:01 Chad Loosens Up

6:15 Mike Starts In

6:20 Chad Wants to Hear More

6:30 Mike Owns Up to His Failures

6:40 Mike Gives Chad a Lesson

6:45 Chad Listens to Mike

Copyright © 2010 by Mark Wiskup. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Wiskup, Mark.

Don’t be that boss : how great communicators get the most out of their employees and their careers / Mark Wiskup.

p. cm.

eISBN : 978-0-470-54964-3

1. Communication in management. 2. Interpersonal communication.

3. Interpersonal relations. 4. Supervision of employees. 5. Management. I. Title.

HD30.3.W574 2010

658.4’5—dc.4’5—dc22

2009017155

Acknowledgments

It’s hard being the boss. I found that out well enough when I ran my own company for more than 15 years. But I never realized the bizarre array of stresses and dilemmas that some bosses must handle until I began speaking to CEOs and management groups for Vistage International. This opportunity to work with more than 3,000 bosses in a wide variety of industries across the United States and Canada has given me a rare insight into leadership spirit, drive, and fortitude. For this, I’m honored and grateful.

Dan Ambrosio, my editor at John Wiley & Sons, Inc., provided tremendous insight and a strong guiding hand as we designed this fable and the troubles poor Chad would encounter along the way. It was a blast working with him.

My literary agent, Bob Deforio, did a wonderful job creating the perfect give-and-take environment for Dan and I to work in. I know I’m not Bob’s only author, but I’m amazed at the level of detail he’s able to focus on in the miraculous process of bringing my books to publication.

I want to thank Stan Levy, the Southeast Region Managing Partner for Grant Thornton, as well as Partner Matt Dumar, also of Grant Thornton, for giving me speedy and easy-to-understand advice (for a non-financial person like me) that kept the exchanges between the characters accurate.

Finally, I’ve learned a lot about how to have a positive impact on employees from my 20-year friendship with Mark House, Managing Director for the Florida Division of The Beck Group. Several of the nice touches that Chad admires in Mike come right from Mark’s playbook.

Introduction

Chad would be better off now if he had that nighttime mouth guard with him. The piece of molded blue plastic that stops him from grinding his teeth while sleeping might knock out some of this pain. Without it, he clenched and unclenched his jaw with growing pressure. He sat at his desk behind a closed door, slowly turning the pages in his year’s 360 degree review. His face burned. The vise around his head tightened as he read leadership scores and comments from the employees he managed.

Unfortunately for Chad, however, his colleagues had all displayed a damning consistency in their anonymous assessment of his performance:

• “Poor communicator”

• “Lack of clear strategic direction”

• “Leaves us in the dark”

• “Not enough give-and-take, if any”

• “Inconsistent in approach”

Then he turned to the real heart-stopper. His boss agreed in very similar vocabulary that his team was not performing up to goal and that he was responsible.

• “At times, Chad’s team lacks direction.”

• “Chad struggles with low morale.”

• “Higher than normal turnover needs to be addressed.”

Overall, it wasn’t a career-ending review; but it wasn’t going to help him, either. He was safe from the grim reaper, but he definitely was not moving forward at the company—at least not based on this document. There would be little or no performance bonus at the end of the year after this report went into the file. And it would knock Chad’s promotion train off the tracks for a good 12 to 24 months, if not longer.

Chad couldn’t stop gnashing his upper and lower molars because something about this just didn’t make sense. He knew that he was bright. Graduating at the top of his MBA class, his 3.9 in undergrad finance and, before that, a 1540 on the SAT in high school told him so. Most of all, he had been lauded for years before he became a division manager for his outstanding business acumen. He was in early, stayed late, and was always prepared. He knew he didn’t have a love fest going on with his employees, but he was never accused of being unfair.

Chad is right about all those things. He is not disrespectful of his employees or purposefully manipulative. However, he rarely connects with them. And, up to this moment, that has never concerned him. He is smart, after all, and can easily display powerful business intellect, which should create all the connections he needs. He is that boss.

“Wow, Chad . . . I’d say you looked like crap, but that would be, you know, unfair to crap,” joked his colleague Mike who had just walked into the washroom. Chad laughed, drying the cold water he splashed on his face in hopes of snapping the migraine’s grip. The water didn’t spruce up his reflection in the washbasin mirror. He admitted Mike was right. Chad looked pretty beat up.

After a quick glance around, he decides to take Mike into his confidence. “Just got my 360 and it was brutal. I’m reeling here. They all say I’m a lousy communicator,” says Chad. “I know I’m not the ‘feel-good’ rock star you are, but I don’t think I’m all that bad. What do you think?”

Mike and Chad are both division managers at the same privately held company. They’d started as rookies years ago at the same time and had received their promotions to “boss” status within 10 days of each other. They had different backgrounds, strengths, and approaches to their jobs. They had immediately liked each other and had become very good friends over the years. They work on the same floor in the office tower, so it’s not unusual for them to run into each other several times a day.

“I think 360s are a great help when you look at the whole process,” says Mike, pressing the soap dispenser and scrubbing his hands under the water. “They’re not perfect, but they’re useful. The downside is that some of your employees probably love this time of year because they can sit at their desks and calmly give it to you in the 360. They don’t have to back it up, and there’s no accountability or retribution. A few are going to be nasty just for sport. Forget about the especially mean comments. I get them, too.”

Mike turns away from the washbasin and faces Chad directly. “But, look, bud, you shouldn’t stop there. We’ve talked a lot about your team. You tell me most of them are pretty damn good. That means when they got the 360 document for you from the HR department in their Outlook mailbox, they probably sat at their computers and really concentrated on this process. Most of them take it seriously and want to help you and the organization improve. If more than one of them is pointing to the same warts on your management hands, you’ve got to listen to their voices. It means you’ve got work to do. So do it. You’re capable. This isn’t the first time you’ve had to blast through a wall.”

Chad felt immediately better, but he couldn’t figure out why. Mike didn’t use this opportunity to patronize him by telling him not to worry about it. He also didn’t smack Chad when he was down by agreeing that Chad’s communication skills did indeed suck. Instead, Mike’s direct and quick washroom assessment gave Chad a boost of energy and a bit of brightness. Mike was right, thought Chad. I am capable. I can improve at this.

Mike’s employees know how Chad feels. Mike found the right words quickly to help Chad succeed; and it wasn’t an accident. Mike took his friend’s issue seriously and worked diligently, even in a chance conversation, to express the correct words that will help Chad. This is an example of the powerful communication skills and ongoing mental discipline that make Mike a stronger boss than Chad. Mike’s communication skills combined with his communication work ethic give him a tremendous advantage over other bosses, like Chad, who struggle with lackluster results.

Mike didn’t waste time gloating during this brief exchange. He easily could have, because his own 360 report—which Chad was too self-engrossed to inquire about—was a much different story. Mike received strong marks in all the communication and leadership sections that plagued Chad. Mike’s report was not perfect by any means; his employees and bosses both gave him lower marks and several negative comments on his time-management skills. But these were minor points in an overall outstanding 360 degree review.

Mike’s team was on goal for the year in very tough times. He was receiving the credit for the division’s success from those up and down the food chain. He needed to tidy up his work routine, but he already had a plan to get the coaching he needed, starting next week.

Later that night, at home with his wife, Mike chuckled at the irony in the whole washroom back-and-forth that Chad would never recognize. Chad easily dropped not so subtle allusions to his classy academic credentials regularly in conversations and meetings. This always contrasted sharply to Mike’s more pedestrian higher education campus, scores, and grades. Even a rockin’ B-school doesn’t have all the answers, Mike told his wife.

Mike did not resent Chad’s mildly patronizing academic boasting; instead he saw the value in having a bright light resource like Chad as a friend. Mike knew how sharp Chad was and didn’t hesitate to ask him to weigh in on perplexing business issues he was struggling with. Chad may brag a little, but he is loyal and always happy to help Mike and others across division lines. Mike and Chad are both strong employees for the company.

Despite his lack of a top-notch business education, Mike actually has much greater potential than Chad. The 360 reviews backed up what the bosses already knew about them: that Mike’s team consistently outperformed Chad’s team and most of the others in the company as well. While Mike wasn’t nearly as buttoned down as Chad was when it came down to the numbers and raw financial insight, he worked diligently at building valuable connections with every one of his employees—even in minor conversations.

The execs realize that Mike’s whole attitude was different. They could see he prepared more for his meetings with his employees, burning more mental calories during those conversations. He always evaluated his communication performance and asked others to weigh in to help improve his already powerful skill set. He had the same approach to management meetings. None of the execs or division managers spaced out, shuffled through papers, or checked their BlackBerrys when he spoke in the boardroom. Mike owned the room when he talked.

Mike, just slightly above average in business intellect, has become a great boss by understanding that successful communication with employees and everyone else is the key to superior team performance.

Chad easily admitted Mike’s strengths. He teased that Mike has an extra charisma gene that some people are just lucky enough to be born with. Chad never considered that Mike is actually working at his communication, that it’s not just the gift of gab.

Poor B-school genius Chad hasn’t been able to figure this out. He thinks if he just comes in a little earlier, reworks those spreadsheets, and uses stronger language in an e-mail, he can prove to his employees that he is right. Then they should do what he says, the way he says it should be done.

The next 12 chapters will chronicle, hour by hour, a mirrored day in the business life of both Mike and Chad. We’ll watch them experience similar everyday communication scenarios: group meetings in a conference room, one-on-one sessions in an office, chance conversations in the coffee room, telephone calls, and even e-mail correspondence. Some of these will be high impact and obviously stressful conversations; some of them will appear to be simple, but then become complicated.

Though no two real division managers would ever have exactly parallel days, hour by hour, this story asks us to make a leap and accept that they do. In this block of simultaneous episodes during this typical business routine, we’ll witness the lackluster results Chad sees by concentrating solely on imparting accurate information and reasonable directives to his employees. Mike—who, on the other hand, consciously chooses to prepare for and work to build strong connections in every interaction—will enjoy significantly more success throughout the day.

Chad’s lousy 360 ruined his weekend. Monday morning, he vows he will change. He doesn’t know what steps to follow to reach the business metamorphosis; but he’s determined to find out.

7:00 AM

Connections Made and Missed Out of the Gate

7:05 Forgetful Mike Lucks Out

Mike weaves his way through the morning throng at the convenience store. He is headed, as usual, back to the coffee island where he will prepare his first fix of the day. Ngoc is holding court at the register—laughing, teasing with several regulars as well as newcomers. She trades newspapers, cigarettes, gum, donuts, and juice for money and debit cards with the deftness of a Monte Carlo croupier.

Without missing a beat, she also delivers a corrective shout to her employee, who is building a point of purchase display directly behind her. The tiny woman with a Beatles haircut reminds the young man that every 12-pack has to face the customer in the same way in order to meet the distributor’s display diagram.

“Extra large coffee for the extra large big shot . . . that will be $2.12 for you, Mr. Big Shot,” Ngoc deadpans to Mike.

“There are two reasons I come in here, Ngoc. One is the fresh coffee; the other is the dose of humility you dole out. My wife says you are the only one who can keep me in line,” Mike says.

“Your wife is a paradox. She says brilliant things like that, but she still had the bad judgment to tie herself to you. Is she smart or crazy . . . huh?”

“Maybe it was just a momentary lack of judgment,” Mike says as he starts to pat, pat, pat his pockets, looking for his wallet, which he isn’t finding.

“Yeah, that explains it,” says Ngoc, who speaks grammatically perfect English but with a heavy accent. She loves to display her hard-won command of English idioms and slang. “What’s wrong, Big Shot? So many things on your important plate today you can’t remember a simple thing like a wallet?”

“Geez, I’m a moron. Sorry for the trouble.” Mike heads back to the coffee island to dump out his cup, mildly irritated with himself. He wants the jolt of caffeine that first cup would provide. This is exactly the type of spacey behavior his bosses and his employees had pointed out in his 360 on Friday.

“Not so fast, Big Man. Today you’ll drink your coffee as a treat from me. Not a gift from the corporation, either. I’m personally going to take what little money I have out of my wallet and pay for Mr. Big Shot’s coffee,” Ngoc dramatically removes two ones, a dime, and two pennies from her clasp.

“Because this morning I’m the Big Shot . . . my daughter got into Cal Tech yesterday.” Everyone in line cheers as Ngoc awarded Mike his coffee.

“What about Princeton? Doesn’t she have an application there, too?” Mike asks, happy he could get that first sip in.

“Oh, she got the rejection from Princeton yesterday, too, but that’s okay. She will go to school with others like her, who can manage only a 4.5 GPA and a 1580 on the SAT,” she says with a wink.

“Princeton is more for a smarty pants like you,” she jokes. “We’re just humble products of the public schools in my house.”

Ngoc knows better than this, though. Over the past year or so, Mike has come in just about every morning. They have developed a nice friendship, and found that despite differing cultural backgrounds, they were similar in many ways. Through simple and direct questions over morning coffee purchases, Mike has learned Ngoc ran not just one but two of these stores for the publicly traded corporation. After the morning rush, she will hustle another store to bark instructions at her competent assistant managers. Her stores are the highest grossing and most profitable ones in the district.

Mike also asked about her family. That’s why he knew her daughter was an academic star who earned prestigious high school honors. Ngoc gave him weekly updates on the college application process. And Ngoc knows plenty about Mike, too. He is happy to share stories about himself as well. If the store is quiet, he’ll tell her about his projects and minor losses and successes at work. He never has to go into much detail; she is a quick study. She can commiserate with him, even though she isn’t familiar with his business or his customers.

Despite her constant teasing, Ngoc realizes Mike isn’t just a frat boy made good. She appreciates that he worked his way through state school and takes his career and his supervision of his division very seriously. They compare notes frequently about employee issues.

“If she gets into Stanford today, can I get another free cup of coffee tomorrow?” Mike asks on the way out.

“No way, Dude,” Ngoc says. “One time deal, today only. Tomorrow: no money, no coffee for the Big Shot. But she won’t hear from Stanford for another week, anyway.”

“Okay, tell her congrats from me.” Mike hustles out, gets into his car, and shuffles his iTouch to AC/DC’s “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll).”

Then, just like he did back in high school, he turns up the volume too loud to be considerate of others in the parking lot. He is happy for Ngoc and can’t help acting out some. A little AC/DC in the morning never hurt anyone, he rationalizes as he headed for the office.

But he is still irritated about the wallet.

7:06 Dry Cleaners Disappointment for Chad

“Yes, sir, I’ll get the items on this ticket right away,” the lady behind the counter at the dry cleaners tells Chad. He in turn manages a polite grunt of recognition as he keeps his head down, thumbing his BlackBerry. He is dismayed by one e-mail from the West Coast that popped up. His impulse is to fire off something immediately, but, remembering Friday’s critical 360, he decides to let it sit until he got to the office. Making just a sliver of eye contact, Chad hands the lady behind the counter at the dry cleaners his debit card, signs the slip, and walks out with his shirts. He jumps into his car, turns up the audio on his MP3 download of the best-selling Freakonomics, and congratulates himself for never letting a moment of the day go by without being productive.

The “lady behind the counter at the dry cleaners” is named Joan, but Chad doesn’t know that, even though he’s been a customer for years. Their discussions only cover the day’s temperature or impending precipitation. She wears a large plastic nametag on her polo shirt with the store logo. He’s never noticed it.

In reality, Joan is scared to death of Chad. “Intimidated” is probably a more accurate term, but it sure feels a lot like fear to Joan. With his meticulously measured conversation, hurried manner, and smart, trim fashion sense, Chad always makes Joan feel inadequate. He is obviously well educated and very successful. Chad is never rude or unkind, just uninterested.

Joan knows she is just the “lady behind the counter at the dry cleaners” to Chad, and that she shouldn’t take it personally. She loves getting to know her customers and takes seriously the faith they placed in her to take care of some of their dearest possessions. She learned quickly that Chad values speed above all else, so she always bolts through his counter transactions in an effort to please him.

Usually, this attention to customer needs pays off nicely for Joan and her husband. They own this store as well as a second one in a nearby suburb. They are profitable and have nine employees. Last year, the biggest guys in town offered to buy them out at a nice price. But Joan and Bob felt they were not done with what they were building, so they politely refused.

Chad would be shocked to know that this “lady at the dry cleaners” and her husband earned more money last year than he did. They have a nice bit of net worth, as well. Even with a depressed real estate market, they are still sitting on a ton of equity in their two well-run, prime location stores.

Chad’s BlackBerry vibrates in his shirt pocket. He sees it is his wife, so he turns down Freakonomics, jams the Bluetooth Jawbone in his ear, and clicks the on button.

“Hi honey. What’s up?”

“Hey, have you been to the dry cleaners yet? I wanted to make sure you picked up a suit I brought in the other day. The lady says it would be ready by yesterday. I want to wear it to the partner lunch tomorrow.”

“No, she just gave me my shirts. Did you put it in under your name, or mine?”

“Oh, I just gave her our last name.”

“Well, then she should have gotten it for me. I swear to God, service people really take no pride in their work these days. Jesus!” Chad swears when he is upset—mildly though, only when he’s really angry. He never drops the F-bomb. He thinks it is overused and inelegant.

“Well, honey, I really should have given you the ticket, or at least told you to ask her for the suit. Don’t get so frustrated. And don’t be so hard on her. They do a good job for us.”

“Whatever,” Chad fumes. “I’m sick and tired of people doing just enough and, God forbid, not one bit more than they need to, just to get along. Would it have killed her to look harder for other items with our name?”

Joan at the dry cleaners would have agreed with Chad. She would also be mortified to know she had not done her best for a customer. Normally, she would have taken a minute to check the computer more carefully for other items with Chad’s name. But he rattles her so much every time he comes in that she rushed through the transaction and missed the suit for his wife. She appreciates the business Chad and his wife bring to her store, and she would never want to disappoint them. But today she had.

“Get over it, babe,” Chad’s wife says. “It’s not a big deal . . . I’ll get it on the way home tonight.”

“Alright, love you. See you tonight.”

Chad clicks off the Jawbone and turns up the audio in his car to continue his self-improvement on the way into the office.

7:25 Chad Plays “The Big Man” in the Break Room

Once he hit the office, Chad launches into his Monday morning ritual. For about a year now he’s taken up the deliberate practice of spending about 15 minutes first thing every Monday morning in the break room. He sits facing the door, sipping a fresh cup of chamomile tea with a dollop of honey, while perusing the front page of the Wall Street Journal.

The WSJ is merely an affectation. Chad would rather read it in his office. No, he is really there to greet employees and show that he enjoys touching base with them—whether or not they work for him. He believes that his being “out there” and making small talk display good leadership skills.

“Hi Lindsay, how was your weekend?” he asks the corporate receptionist who opens the refrigerator, looking for half-and-half.

“Oh, you know, busy as usual,” Lindsay replies. “How was your weekend?”

“Great . . . great. Can’t believe it’s Monday already, though,” says Chad.

“Yeah, me too. It seems like we just walked out of here on Friday afternoon. Well, have a good day.” She pours the half-and-half in her coffee and turns to walk out.

“Yes, you too, Lindsay.”

Chad repeats this exercise 10 times in the next 15 minutes. Turns out, everyone’s weekend was “great” or “restful” or “busy.” It is no different from the same shallow call and response of every other Monday.

Chad still has that disconcerting e-mail from the West Coast to contend with, but he proudly maintains vigil. He feels good about it. He demonstrates to all employees he is concerned and available.

Lindsay and the others don’t think about the interaction that way, though—because they don’t really think about it at all. It is too brief and meaningless to have any impact. If pressed, they might realize that Chad mans this post every Monday morning; but they never do. There is no reason to find it significant.

Undaunted, Chad calculates constantly. He likes to keep track in his head how many colleagues he greets in his Monday morning routine. There’s solace in numbers and head count. The more people he greets in the break room—instead of reading the WSJ prop—the more credit, and perhaps productivity, he’ll get during the week.

7:50 Tarantino Debate Outside Louis’s Office

With his coffee room “meet and greet” assignment completed, Chad heads to his office. He approaches Mike, who is in the hallway leaving his sales manager’s office. Mike is still talking to Louis, who is hidden from Chad’s view. “Well, you make a good case for it, but Jackie Brown’s not going to go in my Netflix queue. For the last 10 years I’ve been hearing would-be hipsters like you say it’s all stylistic and cool, but I find Tarantino’s violence just too gratuitous. See you in the conference room in a few.”

“Your loss,” Chad hears Mike’s sales manager try to get in the last word, “Samuel L is definitely on the top of his game every time he and Quentin team up.”

Mike shoots back, “Yeah, well, I’ll still feel I’ve lived a full life if on my death bed Reservoir Dogs is the only Tarantino film I’ve seen.”

“Well, it’s still my mission to broaden your limited horizons,” Louis replies, as he brings an end to the banter.

Chad and Mike walk down the hall side by side. Chad asks, “Since when did you and Louis become Netflix buddies?”

“Well, we’re not. He doesn’t need Netflix like I do. In the last 10 years Louis has amassed this huge DVD collection. He spends every spare dime and free minute watching movies. He was a film major at NYU.”

“Wow, how did he get here then . . . I thought he had an MBA in marketing?” Chad asks.