May 10, 2009
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Bob Marley
The new job is a little interesting, a little different to the way it was portrayed in the interview, but what company is not? Still, when you get a visit from a foreign head of state, wanting to know more about your products, it’s quite a boost to the ego.
With a youth program in place, it was down to our interns to present the company, your humble scribe being put in to the background for the moment, just observing. Not too surprising really, given the fact that I had only been there a few weeks. So the presentation was handled – was done not fantastically, but in a way that gained respect from our guests.
Alas El Presidente (for it is he) was not properly catered for – water merely in bottles provided for him, with no glasses, and plastic chairs that would make anyone uncomfortable, especially a fat, African dictator who stole power in a bloodless coup. The seats were changed before the guests arrived, but still far from the luxury a man in his position is used to.
After talking through the blurb, and planting in their minds a seed of thought that we want to have an office and factory in their country, El Pres spoke. The other sales manager was introduced, taking all the questions, but doing it in an Asian way. Africans though are direct. Asians just don’t like this kind of direct question and so the sales manager was trying to duck for cover.
Your humble chronicler was trying to make eye contact with the sales manager to tell her I can sort this, and after much looking around for some help from somewhere, she finally saw me and introduced me. I showed that I had done my homework on the country by stating facts about his reign as president, without taking the piss too much about the coup. Or the embezzlement. Or the corruption.
I have essentially found a new career path – one that would never have been thought imaginable back in my younger, more carefree days. Diplomacy has – miraculously – become my thing. I answered the question with all the information he needed to be satisfied, and just enough to make him realise that I do actually know what I am talking about, and got all the smiles from the top government leadership that told me everything I needed to know.
As they then went on to a tour of our manufacturing line, I slinked back to where I had come from, keeping a low profile once more as our company president showed the Africans around. In typical African fashion, they were late (by a long way) for their next meeting, and after some frantic attempts at gaining their attention by the Taiwanese officials, it was off for a quick photo op.
But on the way out, El Pres is walking along, sees me in the background, and – much to the surprise of pretty much everyone in the office – changes direction to walk over to me and shake my hand. Yes mucker. I know you. He looks me in the eye, I look him back – nothing serious or threatening from either of us – just a mutual knowledge and understanding of one another. Just the way I like it.
Strange – other people were visibly nervous about being in the presence of this guy. I just looked down on him. Whereas he is the leader of a whole nation, he did not get that nation in a fair and democratic way, so why should I give him all the respect of being nervous in front of him? He does not deserve it. What he has done in the country is also not that good for all of his people. So in business I will show respect, on the outside, but the truth is… he’s just another tosser.
