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When it came time for the meeting, I sat in front of my laptop camera while the screen lit up.
“Dylan, so good to see you again,” Mr. Johnson greeted me in his usual stern tone.
I plastered a smile on my face. “It’s my pleasure, as always.”
“I just wanted to get an update on how the latest project is going,” he said, cutting right to the chase.
“My team is hard at work. So far, all the simulations that we’ve run have been a success. We have a lot of faith in the process,” I answered confidently.
“That’s fine, but do you have an estimated date of delivery?” he asked, the scowl on his face getting deeper.
“By our estimates, the project should be completed within the next three weeks,” I nodded.
“Three weeks?” Mr. Johnson blustered. “Dylan, you know how important time frames are for us. Three weeks is just too long.”
I pursed my lips, biting back what I really wanted to tell him. Once I was sure nothing offensive would come out of my mouth, I dared to open it.
“I understand, Mr. Johnson. But to ensure that the end result is of the highest standard, we really need this time,” my tone was painfully professional.
“No, that’s still far too long. Make sure that you have the project ready in one week. If not, I’m afraid we’re going to have to pull our investment,” he warned.
“… Of course, we’ll have it ready in one week,” I said, feeling the heat rising the back of my neck.
“Good! I always knew that we could count on you and your company.” The video chat box disappeared as Mr. Johnson ended the call without signing off.
I let out a loud groan and rang my secretary.
“Please set up an urgent meeting with all the employees working on the project for Johnson Associates in the next ten minutes,” I told her.
“I’ll get right on it.”
I braced myself for the meeting. I considered myself to be a fair boss. It was true that I had high expectations from my team, but I never gave them more work than they could handle. But now, with the new deadline looming over my head, I knew that I was going to have to play hardball.
“Is everything alright?” Kevin was the first person to speak up when the team had gathered in the meeting room. “What’s the urgency about?”
“The deadline for the Johnson Associates project has been moved,” I announced, scanning the faces of employees in the room. “It’s now due next Friday and we need to start picking up pace.”
Their reactions were as I’d expected.
“Next Friday?”
“That’s too soon.”
“Boss, how do you expect us to complete three weeks’ worth of work in one?” Kevin scoffed. Other employees nodded in agreement, but I noticed that Kathy was silent the entire time.
“I’m sure you knew this was a high-pressure position when you signed up for it,” I replied flatly. “And this is one of those times where you’ll have to figure it out for yourself.”
“Is there no way you can get the investor to give us an extension?” Kevin seemed adamant about not letting it go.
“If any of you think this is too much for you to handle, you already know where the HR department is. You are free to resign anytime,” I said, and a chilling silence fell over the room.
I knew I was being a hard ass, but it was the only way we would meet the deadline.
“I expect all of you to cooperate and do your best to get this done on time,” I concluded, before starting out the door.
Behind me, I heard Kathy’s voice. Timid, but audible above the buzz of disgruntled chatter I’d left in my wake.
“You have nothing to worry about.”
