“Ronan! Any comments on the latest venture?”
“How do you juggle so many successful enterprises while being a doctor?”
With a polite smile and brief replies, I navigated through the crowd, “Thank you for your interest. I’m focused on the workand my incredible team.”
Inside, the atmosphere shifted to calm professionalism. The lobby featured a grand staircase and a mix of vintage and contemporary art.
“Good, you’re here,” Rachel said, relieved, holding her iPad. “We’ve got a two-hour-long meeting.”
“Two hours?” I groaned. “What are we discussing for that long?”
“A lot. Payments, upcoming trips, and remember your session with Dr. Saad. Then you’re free for the rest of the day.”
I groaned again, already frustrated, and entered the meeting room. The space was sleek, with a long oak table, ergonomic chairs, and large windows offering a city view.
“Good morning, everyone,” I greeted chirpily. “Let’s get to it, shall we?”
As the meeting commenced, the conversation quickly turned to my numerous ventures.
“The new menu at your bar in SoHo has been a tremendous hit,” one department head remarked. “We’re seeing a significant uptick in reservations.”
“Great,” I responded. “There is a health department visit upcoming. How are we on that?”
“As good as always. Our last score was a hundred, spot on.”
I smiled, pleased, and moved on to the next topic, “And what about the Solar Seasons Hotel? How are the renovations coming along, as well as upkeep and staff?”
Another head replied, “The renovations are on schedule, and we’ve already booked several high-profile events for the grand reopening. The upkeep is great, and we sent you the documents of our newly hired staff a week in advance. The only glitch thus far was a land issue, but we contacted Mr. Reyes for the contract, and it was sorted.”
“Excellent. Our projects in Europe, Africa, and Asia?” I asked,looking around the table.
“Progress is steady,” the international operations manager said. “We’ve established strong partnerships and are seeing promising returns.”
“Thank you for the reminder,” I said. “As of now, Mr. Reyes is our official lawyer, all transport goes through Elite Rides, and our European and Asian ventures are set for expansion.”
The room buzzed with polite agreement as everyone made their notes.
“Rachel will hand out personalized folders with the updated terms and our goals. Understood?”
“Yes, sir,” came the unified response. We moved on to discuss managerial training, language courses, customer service, and finances. As some members excused themselves, I spoke with the finance and operations managers.
These meetings were held tri-monthly to ensure everything was running smoothly.
At the end, I nodded, satisfied. “Let’s keep this momentum going. We’re on the right track.” Once the room emptied, Rachel placed a stack of papers in front of me, and I got to work.
I approved payroll, capital expenditures, acquisitions, and mergers, then sent everything to Arnoldo for a final review before submitting to audit.
“Is that all I have left before therapy?”
“Not quite,” she noted, pulling up another, much shorter list from her iPad. “Attendance. Look through and let me know which you will be attending.”
Surveying the list, I said, “Dillon’s gala, the children’s hospital, St. George’s University school speaker, and all the Italy-based events.”
“Perfect!” she asserted. “I will have these emailed, the files re-collected from Mister Reyes, and finish up my tasks.”
“Thank you, Rachel. Take the rest of the day off when you’redone,” I demanded. “You deserve it.”
“Thank you.” She exhaled, smiled, and walked out of the room.
