"Hungry for Success" by English Professionals. EPISODE 5 : An American Dream (part 2)

The conference call with Macrosoft doesn't go quite as Tim had hoped

Transcript

Hungry for success

5. An American Dream - part 2

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

Tim and James sat as if frozen, On Tim’s small laptop screen they could see what was obviously a vast conference room. Around the conference table sat about ten people. Each of the ten people were staring directly at Tim and James - or at least it seemed that way. Beyond the table they could clearly make out floor to ceiling glass windows through which could be seen a city landscape of towering skyscrapers. Suddenly the two Lightning Systems participants felt very small and insignificant. Tim’s heart sank as he waited for James to speak.  James however appeared to have no intention of saying anything. He remained paralysed neither moving nor speaking.

The silence was broken by a somehow familiar voice.

“It’s great to see you guys in the flesh as it were”

“Where had he heard that voice before?”, thought Tim. Then, as the speaker stood up and stepped towards the camera, he realised that the voice belonged to none other than the chairman of Macrosoft,  Sebastian Walker. The man was almost a legend. He had single-handedly built up Macrosoft from scratch only twenty years earlier. Friend and confidant of presidents and a mover and shaker in the IT industry, when Sebastian spoke, the markets moved. If the two were nervous before, they were terrified now. James had still not spoken and Tim felt obliged to reply on his behalf.

“Hello” said Tim. “It’s a pleasure. I’m Tim, Head of Finance, and this is James, the chairman of Lightning Systems”

“Oh I know who you are” said the booming voice of the legend that was Sebastian Walker ,“I had my people do a full profile some time ago” 

If this was designed to make Tim and James relax, it had the opposite effect.  Tim felt like he was part of a spy movie. He remembered the countless scenes when James Bond breaks into a criminal’s lair only to be greeted by a man with a cat saying “good evening, Mr Bond. We’ve been expecting you.” 

At least Sebastian Walker didn’t have a cat!.

“I just wanted to say howdy and then I have to move on to something else - Joe is probably waiting for me already”. 

Tim didn’t dare to wonder who Joe was. 

“So I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Libby. She can introduce you to the guys. See you next week - looking forward to it”

Next week? Tim and James resisted the temptation to look at each other. What was happening next week?

The internet connection in James’ office was a little weak. The wifi signal came from a router positioned in reception and so had the unfortunate habit of dropping from time to time. Normally this was not a problem. However during a video conference it presented some challenges. As if waiting for it’s moment in the limelight, Lightning System’s wifi decided that now was a good moment to misbehave. Libby Jones stood up and started to go around the table introducing her colleagues. Every other word was lost as the audio stuttered. Tim’s laptop struggled valiantly to cling on to its internet connection. Libby’s voice continued but instead of video as she moved around the conference table, her image froze on the screen - at an unfortunate moment. On the screen Libby’s mouth was half open and remained so for the next few minutes as she continued to speak. Not seeing a video feed Tim and James struggled to process the various introductions that were made.

“This is Samuel - head of technical….. Randolph - responsible for International sales ……”

Tim began to hope that this painful episode would finish soon. Then his ears pricked up when he heard Libby say “so we’ll be arriving on Monday - can you arrange transport from the airport and a place to put us up?”

Arriving Monday ?

COMMENTARY

Obviously not a very comfortable experience for Tim and James.  Both are intimidated by the ten important people in the impressive conference room. Sitting in James’ office around Tim’s small laptop screen is a  big contrast. Tim’s heart sank. This expression means to suddenly feel worried or upset. Despite his earlier confidence and desire to show the world that he was not a loser, faced with what was unfolding around him and the reality of the situation, Tim’s heart sank. 

Sebastian Walker is a mover and shaker. This means that he is a powerful person who initiates and influences important events - he literally moves and shakes the environment around him. He is incredibly influential in the IT industry. His words can even move markets - which means the prices of stocks and shares on the stock exchange can go suddenly up or down because of something he said. No wonder then that he is a friend and confidant of presidents, A confidant is someone in whom you put your trust. In other words presidents tell him things and trust him to keep those things secret. The implication is also that they listen to his advice. Tim considers him a legend.  A legend in this context is a way of describing an incredibly influential and talented person - particularly someone who has made great contributions in a specific field. Sebastian Walker is a legend in the IT field. . Sebastian introduces himself saying he is happy to communicate with Tim and James in the flesh. In the flesh means physically - ie not through a telephone call or an email. In this context he is not really physically seeing them - only a video of them on a computer screen. Sebastian  clearly makes no differentiation between a video conference and an in-person, physical  meeting. 

Sebastian Walker is an American and uses some words and phrases which are only really used in USA. Howdy is one of them. You may have heard “howdy” on cowboy movies. It’s simply a way of saying hello - possibly a little old-fashioned now.

One useful phrase which would be good to remember is when Sebastian hands over control of the meeting to Libby. He says I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Libby. This is the phrase that you can use when passing control to someone else. It is also a small compliment to the person you are handing to. You are saying they have capable hands - in other words you believe they will do a good job,

You can say “I’ll leave you in the hands of …..” but adding the word “capable” - I’ll leave you in the capable hands of …” is more courteous.

As if the tension of the meeting is not enough, now the wifi connection starts to misbehave - to not behave in the correct way.  When the wifi drops it means that the signal has been lost. The effect on a video call is significant. Firstly the audio starts to stutter - in this context it means that not every word is heard clearly. Some words are lost. You may have also heard the term “breaking up”. Sometimes when you have a poor mobile phone signal you might say - I can’t hear you properly - you’re breaking up. Tim and James .lose video and see instead a still image of Libby on their screen. Tim, however, hears her say “so we’ll be arriving on Monday” and pricks up his ears instantly. If you prick up your ears it means that you start listening intently - probably because you have heard something relevant or interesting . Macrosoft are coming to down in a week’s time.  Libby wants Lightning Systems to “arrange…. a place to put us up”. If you put up someone it’s a colloquial way of saying  you’re providing them with accommodation. Libby therefore wants Lightning to arrange a hotel for them - ie a place to put them up.

Clearly the news of an imminent and unexpected visit from Macrosoft has shocked Tim and James. Find our what happens in episode 6  “Playing at Home”

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