Awakening, 2nd edition Read Online Free PDF Page A

are only recently out of diapers doesn ’t sound right . . . Who cares that these youngsters hold all the keys to the future ? There are too many skeptics. And they ’re seated too high up .
    Ten years ago, he would ’ve had a good chat with Phil . He would have understood . He had always been quick to understand and that ’s why he managed to turn the company into the crown jewel of its industry. But it ’s been eight years already since Phil left these walls. And two years since he left this world. As for the driver ’s seat, it ’s been occupied for quite some time by a seasoned nobody, who ’s only interested in keeping the ship afloat. He completely lacks a basic quality of a true leader—that intuitive, animal ability to feel the danger long before anyone else notices it. And while the machine that Phil had built and fine-tuned over the years rushes madly towards a steep canyon, nobody gives a damn.
    But an experienced warrior always has a few tricks up his sleeve. Take, for instance, this little reorganization. An insignificant scale, low risk, great prospects. And no connection of any kind to the dark and vague prophecies of the old worrywart. Plus, it ’s a brainchild of such an impressive, confident and unmistakably bright young man. It will take them some time to connect the dots and realize that this rather minor project , along with three or four similar ones , is a part of a bigger plan. A plan that will inevitably demonstrate the need for change. Everybody—well, almost everybody —will finally get the urge to act. But they will need the right man to run this humongous effort. And who is better suited for this role than someone who ’s been advocating this very change for the last three years? We ’ll see then who is best qualified to run this company . After all, the board of directors has the final say in this matter , and their opinion can be influenced. And this is where Chris and people like him enter the play.
    “Cutie pie,” said Barb when he first introduced them to each other at the company party. And that he was—a cutie pie. As cute and charismatic as they come. Women melted in his presence. Tall, well built, with this open and trustworthy face, confident and energetic, with that toothpaste commercial kind of smile . . . He could ’ve had great success as a model. But it wasn ’t Chris ’s charm alone that attracted Summers ’s attention when he was looking for his own right—hand man. After all, there wasn ’t a shortage of cutie pies to be found in the right circles in the company. And at least half of them were able to put on a nice show like the one Chris was hosting now. But most cutie pies lacked an invaluable asset that Chris had. Brains. Sharp, pragmatic brains not clogged by dogma and respect for authorities. It took Chris minutes to understand issues that would take others days to digest. He was great at picking up on hints and always did what Summers wanted him to do even if there was no direct order involved. He was a perfect man for the job. He reminded Summers of himself twenty years ago. And for that very reason Summers never forgot to remind his cutie pie of the huge distance that lay between them. He knew too well that without these reminders, Chris could very quickly become dangerous.
    “Well done,” Summers told Chris when he left the podium and made his way to him through the crowd of excited executives.
    “Nice job delivering the message. You probably scared them with the tax es bit , but it ’s not a big deal. I ’ll take care of that. Otherwise, very impressive. By the way, how big is your team these days?”
    “Hundred and twelve, ” Chris replied immediately.
    “All right . . . good . . . And how long have you been with the company?”
    Chris thought for a second.
    “I got here in February . . . Four years and six months.”
    “Good. Did you come here as a manager?”
    “No. Individual contributor over in Klutsky ’s group.