“Ok, that’s great. You can get back to your work. I’ll announce your promotion later today. Do consider the candidates for your assistants. I’ll be making necessary arrangements to prepare them after the meeting.”
Hannah acknowledged his instructions and then returned to her work desk. However, she was not in the mood for work. Instead, she leaned against her chair, toying with a pencil.
She was worried about the predicament she had landed herself in. On the one hand, she feared that Fabian and Xavier would think that she used them deliberately for her own benefit. On another hand, she could not help but bemoan Vivian’s decision to promote her.
“What’s this? You’ve really played your cards well, huh? To others, you were the one who improved the company’s performance and reputation. But what about me? This whole situation made it seem like I befriended the two guys so that I could get a promotion.”
After pondering over the issue for a long time, Hannah overcame her sullenness and opted for more positive thinking. Every company is the same; they will look out for the most capable employee with the best performance. Hence, I need to work harder and prove my capabilities so that people won’t have the impression that I depend on luck or some company president to help me climb the corporate ladder.
Thereafter, she channeled her focus into selecting two assistants for herself.
Two assistants? First, they must have some experience in interviewing a company president. Social skills are a plus point. No, wait. A sensitive mindset is more important. Due to the disparity in our identities, many big bosses look at magazine journalists with disdain…
Running through the selection criteria in her mind, Hannah had shortlisted a potential candidate, Jim Leek.
This person has maintained a good track record in our team. Although he’s only joined the company for about a year, his perseverance has enabled him to interview about fifty to sixty company presidents. His interviewees aren’t comparable to Fabian or Xavier, but undeniably, some of them do come from large companies and have a stuck-up attitude.
Hannah recognized Jim’s good work but was unsure if he would be willing to work as her assistant. If he is not happy with the arrangement, it’s useless to have a competent assistant whom I can’t draw help from. I’ll count him in for now and seek his opinion later.
Hannah started contemplating the second person who would fulfill all her expectations, like Jim. However, she could not think of one. As a result, she had to go for the second-best, someone who was easy-going and would not complain.
Oh, what about Winona? She joined the company later than Jim, only about six months. She’s never applied a single day of leave over the months and has a perfect attendance thus far. In addition, I’ve not heard her grumble even once. We’re quite close too… With that, Hannah had shortlisted two individuals as her potential assistants.
Knock! Knock! Knock! Bob was at her door, inviting her to join the meeting. After fixing her clothes, Hannah followed him to the meeting room.
Everyone was surprised to be summoned for an ad-hoc meeting. Usually, they had meetings on the evenings of Mondays and Fridays as the team was quite busy during other working hours.
“Why do think Mr. Dijon called us over so urgently?”
“Who knows? I’m sure it’s something big.”
“Could it be some sort of shocking news that needs all of us to publicize?”
“All of us to publish one single headline? You must be joking.”
The chattering continued.
Hannah kept quiet even though she knew the specific agenda for the meeting.
“Hannah,” Winona walked over and greeted her with a smile.
Hannah was quite confident that Winona would agree to her request. “Hey Winona, can I ask you something?”
“Sure, ask away.”
“Well, the interview I did recently was a success. The top management plans to assign two persons to join me in interviewing more company presidents. Having said that, I’d like to ask if you’d be willing to work with me on this?” Hannah presented her request, then she stared at Winona, anticipating her response.
“Oh, definitely! I’ll say yes to this great opportunity.” Without a doubt, Winona accepted it in a split second.
