Page 5 of On the Fly
Could the business be saved? He’d built his career on saving drowning businesses and moving them to the next stage of their evolutionary cycles. And the answer to his question was a riskymaybe. If this were a client, he’d tell them they’d have to reorganize and get things in place for success, but even then, they’d need a hefty dose of luck. He wasn’t sure they had that much luck.
His brothers and sister would have to get involved. There was no choice. The current senior executive staff had been in place from almost the beginning. It was time for new blood. Ander didn’t feel bad at all. These older gentlemen had golden parachute clauses for their retirement and those funds were housed in separate investment accounts. It wouldn’t even cost the company any accessible funds to change out the staff. And if he worded it well, he might even get the senior team’s buy-in for the changeover.
In fact, saving Rora would take the buy-in of the parties currently running the show and the entire Jorgensen family. Ander closed his eyes and imagined a scenario that ended with a healthy balance sheet for Rora.
If Ander had his way, his brother Erik would come home to head public relations. He had a full-time job as a speech writer for some politico in DC, but Erik had been looking for a change, disillusioned by the backbiting and drama in the nation’s capital. His natural charisma could keep the conversation diverted off Rora’s bottom line and redirect the discussion, hopefully until they could repair the damage or at least set the course for correction.
His brother Lukas, affectionately known as Lucky for his laid-back, everything-works-out attitude, could run their fleet operations. Lucky was a damn fine pilot, but his knowledge of airplane mechanics was unsurpassed. He had an innate understanding of what it took to keep a fleet of planes in the best possible condition without breaking the bank to make it happen. He flew legs for Rora from time to time when they needed him but ran his own small charter company for day trips and destination excursions. Lukas enjoyed his quiet life, but he’d have to suck it up and get back to town if he wanted this company to succeed.
His baby sister, Skye, would be perfect as the CFO. She’d gotten her CPA license a few years ago and just finished her master’s degree in forensic accounting. She’d been working part-time through school and had feelers out for a full-time position the last time he’d spoken to her. Well, he had the perfect position for her. Might not be what she had in mind, but Ander couldn’t care much less about that if he tried.
His other siblings would have to step up as well in whatever ways they could. They each had such specialized talents that could be put into place. Some couldn’t get away from their current work or lives, but if he was going to take on this project, he wouldn’t do it alone.
He’d have to give it to his parents; they’d practically hatched an entire airline dream team. If they could all get on the same page, they might have a small shot at success.
Outside of that, in a world where everyone was a critic, they had to swiftly correct Rora’s struggles with on-time arrivals and cabin comfort. The airline was rated bottom of the leaderboard in both categories. They needed to expand their routes and home in on their current strength—remote non-stop routes—and begin to play as if they were a competitor in their niche.
His initial assessment, coalescing over the last few hours, was that his father had created a family out of the staff. Everyone was overly familiar with one another, not a professional one in the bunch, all laid-back with jokes and back-slapping and the occasional hug. Funny how his father had a family of his own, and yet they weren’t nearly as tightknit as the people working for this airline.
Ander didn’t want to stomp on that congeniality though. He wanted to harness it. If he could take the connection these employees shared and market it to the world, he was certain their customer base would grow. Slogans like “we treat you like family” or something equally cheesy kept running through his head as taglines. He’d get with the marketing department and discuss that idea.
He was on to something.
He scrubbed a hand over his face and worked at stifling a yawn so as not to let the current department head presenting to the room think he was bored. The yawn couldn’t be contained, though, and he finally let it rip. When a hand touched his shoulder, he looked over to see Mandy, his father’s very pretty, young assistant, holding his cell phone.
“Lyla is on the phone.” She’d been instructed to watch his phone and answer if her ID popped up. He needed to stay up on his business in Atlanta, and Lyla only called with important information or questions that needed immediate answers.
He nodded and took the phone. The presentation had paused for the interruption, so he told the group to continue on without him for a few minutes before quietly leaving the room. He strode directly to his father’s office two doors down, which he’d commandeered as his new office upon his arrival, and then put the phone to his ear. “Yes.”
“Yes,” Lyla mimicked. He raised a brow, and what felt as though it had become a permanent scowl intensified. Talk aboutfamiliarstaff.
“I don’t sound like that,” he said, shutting the door behind him. Her laughter made it clear she disagreed.
“Give me my fun. I’ve been working all day to transfer your files, and the partners aren’t loving this idea.”
Ander suspected they wouldn’t. Just more decisions that would have to be made. His consulting firm was successful. He and his partners had built it from the ground up and all carried full loads, making them one of the most successful restructuring firms in the southeast.
“My last question tonight is on the Butler account. They’re not keen on a transition to a new account head right now. They feel like this could jeopardize the sale. They want you to finish. Apparently they’ve been calling your cell, but you haven’t answered, which is freaking them out.”
“I haven’t had my phone.” He racked his brain to remember exactly what was involved with Butler properties. They were in the final stage of a merger. Maybe he could tie it up in the next few weeks without having to transition them during any crucial stages. As the day wore on, Ander could see he would have to relocate, or at the very least, live between California and Georgia. Guilt more than anything else had him agreeing to finish Butler. “Let them know I’ll oversee the final items for their contract, but I’ll have to transition them for the short run to handle pop-up issues.”
“So you’re for sure going to do this?”
Ander dug his fingers into this forehead to relieve the tension. “I feel like it’s a sinking ship, but maybe I’m projecting. It’ll take me a few days to get a better feel. I might need you here.” No one could get things done the way Lyla could. She practically read his mind most of the time. He needed people around him he could trust.
“I’m not opposed to relocation. You’d have to double my salary. California’s expensive.”
“We’ll talk about that next week. You pulled me out of meetings. I’ve gotta go.” Ander smiled for the first time in hours. He doubted she’d let the negotiation go with just double her salary, but that was a discussion for another time.
“No problem. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
As he ended that call, another came through. His mother’s name appeared on the screen. As the noose tightened around his neck, he almost rejected the call, but answering gave him yet another reason to avoid returning to the meetings. He slid a finger across the screen and looked over his desk. He was starving. His box lunch from earlier still sat there so he went that direction.
“Hello.”
“Hello, my number one.” His mother’s sing-song voice was the exact opposite tone of his gruff voice. Her positive, sunny disposition rarely changed, no matter the situation. As sad as she had been at the funeral, she still radiated an upbeat lightheartedness that he envied at times.
“I’m busy,” he said, but there was no bite to his words as he took his seat and put the call on speakerphone so he could dig into the lunch.
