25th July 2023
AT THE GLASSGLOW COMPANY
"As the cameras rolled and media constantly eyed the whole voting process. Every vote counted with crystal-clear transparency, signified the beginning of a new journey for Glassglow….."
For the CEO role,
three candidates from three departments have been chosen. The chief of the commercial department, Ms. Mahasweta Banerjee, is the first candidate. She has seven years of experience with the organization and earned her MBA from IIM Calcutta. Mr. K. Subramanian, the company's head of marketing, is the next applicant. After graduating from IIM Bangalore, he has worked for this organization for about a decade. Our final applicant is Mr. Kunal Yadav, who has been employed by this company for the past year as the interim CEO and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School."
Kavya looked around the conference room speculatively. The lavishly decorated hall was filled to the brim and yet the silence was astonishing. Perhaps it was the kind of respect that being one of the best companies in the country demanded. As the daughter of two of the company's biggest stockholders, she was not accustomed to the dignified silence that they all attempted to maintain.
The ten board members were seated around the conference table and a makeshift stage had been set up at the front behind the President's chair.
The three candidates, the host and the "distinguished" Vice President Mr.Vikram Yadav were present on the stage. The media representatives were positioned at the opposite end of the conference room beside Kavya, continuously snapping pictures and notes of the proceedings.
The host went on with a pitiful voice: "...a year has passed since the unanticipated accident that resulted in our former president's untimely death.
.
.
.
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When Kavya heard it, her jaw tightened, and she became enraged at how quickly everyone had forgotten about the crimes against her family and how effortlessly they had been hushed up.
She felt her suppressed rage swirling inside her as she listened to the fabricated tales that the host sprouted from his mouth. She closed her eyes, and took deep breath ,"Breathe Kavya Breathe don't let them get to you and whispered to herself, "Hold yourself together, Kavya. You can't lose your temper like this. If you lose your temper, you lose this game. You need to keep your cool to get what you're looking for. So calm down."
"...So Mr. Yadav, the only present shareholder who laid the foundation for this company, has decided to withdraw from the election process..."
Kavya watched with growing amusement and disgust as the election process continued. She recalled the conversations she had heard around her. All the directors who had followed her parents like lost puppies were now following Vikram, and the reason for this was not unclear to her. After all, he was the largest shareholder in the company.
It was clear already that the election process was pre arranged in secret that the majority of the directors would vote for Kunal. She was willing to bet that the directors who didnot choose Kunal were instructed to do so to not make it obvious how rigged the competition already was. Kavya sat still, disgusted at how these people are two faced and greedy for a high position and money
"This people are so predictable running just after wealth and power so willing to be Vikram's puppet. "
Finally, the voting was done and it was time for Mr. Yadav, the longest serving director at the moment, who held the designation of Vice President, to announce the CEO in front of everyone. He stepped up to the podium to address everyone and Kavya's urge to ruin every moment in his life started to provoke her when she heard his voice for the first time in about a year.
Everyone in the audience eager to know the outcome started to debate amongst themselves.
A newbie reporter exclaimed "The dynamics in this room are complex. Who's really pulling the strings?"
"Vikram's got the upper hand for now" came a reply .
A warm smile dancing on his lips he addressed the audience,
"I appreciate everyone's presence. Today is a day that will be etched in my memory for many more years to come. Our company is finally choosing a CEO amongst its top candidates. This day holds mixed feelings for me. An excruciating deep pain does not allow me to be completely happy because my co-owners, my friends who were dearer to me than my own family,are not here unfortunately. The void that their loss has left in our hearts cannot be filled by anything. I pray Anita recovers quickly and that Abhinash will provide us heavenly blessings.
As the Vice President ,I myself have seen the effort that each candidate has put in for the company. We are proud to have such employees here. We assure the candidates ,not selected a raise their salary for their hard work.
"Please display the voting result at the screen for everyone to see. As everyone can see Mr Kunal Yadav, was chosen as the most eligible candidate for this prestigious position in our company. Congratulations Mr Yadav, Please say a few words" said Mr Vikram Yadav, his face beaming with joy.
Vikram had a satisfactory smile pasted on his face. "EVERYTHING IS GOING PERFECT till now it is time for Kunal to follow the script"....
As Kunal was about to take the mic proudly Vikram interrupted "As his father the overwhelming pride I feel for him at this moment cannot be expressed through words."
Some members had a delightful satisfied expression but others had their doubts---
"I'm not sure about Kunal. Will he make changes or stick with the status quo?"
--Seems suspicious I need to dig deeper "
"Well I also wish they both were here to tell us about their opinion."- Everyone turned in the direction of authoritative voice .
It was a tall, young woman impressively dressed in a fitted black pencil dress that hugged her curves in all the right places with a stylish white blazer. Her long hair was styled in loose waves, cascading over her shoulders and down her back.