“Hello, Mr. Kingston,” he said. “I am Wyatt Rogers.” He shook my hand firmly, and I could see that although young, he was clearly in his element and well-suited to his family business.
“It is nice to meet you,” I said. “And please, call me Josh.”
“All right, Josh,” he said. “If you would come with me, I will take you to the conference room where we will have a conversation with the rest of our leadership team.”
I nodded my head as if that was exactly what I was expecting him to say, but I was shocked to find out that I was going to be meeting with the entire leadership team at that very moment. The meeting was turning out to be much more serious than I had imagined it would be.
We went into the conference room, and I noticed it had breathtaking views of the Thames River. The room was expansive, with floor-to-ceiling windows that let in an abundance of natural light. The table was a polished mahogany masterpiece, and the chairs were plush and comfortable, designed for long meetings. The walls were adorned with framed photographs of the Rogers family's accomplishments over the years, giving a sense of history and continuity to the room.
There, I met the rest of the Rogers family. While they were all very clearly related, with similar features and mannerisms, it quickly became apparent that the second eldest Mr. Rogers in the room, Paul Rogers, was the one in charge.
“Well, Josh,” Paul said, leaning his elbows on the table. “Welcome to London. Thank you for coming out here on such short notice.”
“Thank you for having me,” I said. “I am happy to be here.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “I’m curious, do you know why we asked to meet with you today?”
I shook my head. “Honestly, I am not sure.”
“That is actually good news,” Paul said, smiling. “We have been making some plans, and I really did not want those plans to get out to the public. The fact that you don’t know why we have you here lets me know that things have stayed under wraps. But I am not going to drag this out or keep you in suspense. The reason we have you here is that we are once again expanding our international business, and we would like to bring you on board as the Director of our North American partnership.”
I sat for a second and tried to get my head around what he had just said. I knew this was a tremendous honor and an incredible opportunity, but I wasn’t quite sure what all it would entail.
I took a deep breath and decided to match his frankness. “I recognize the honor of what you have just said to me, sir, and I very much appreciate it. However, I need to know more of what this would entail and what your vision is for this role.”
In response to my question, the eldest Mr. Rogers slapped his hand against the table and laughed. “Excellent question, Son,” he said.
“That is an excellent question.”
Paul Rogers nodded, and then looked over at his son. “You were right, Wyatt,” he said. “He would be an excellent fit.”
Confused, I looked between the three men. I didn’t know what they were talking about.
Paul looked at me and smiled. “Your response tells us that you are cautious, and you weigh your decisions carefully. A lot of people would have heard what I said and jumped at the idea of it without knowing what was truly behind it. They would have just wanted to work with our company, but would not have truly considered what we were asking.”
I nodded, because I knew he was right. Most people would not have hesitated or asked any questions at all. However, I couldn’t be rash. I had to know more information.
I listened as Paul and Wyatt took turns explaining to me the details of what I would be doing. In short, they wanted me to oversee all of their projects that were taking place in North America. They had a few projects in Canada and a few in Mexico, but the majority of their other work was in the United States.
I would have to move, as I would be working out of the London office, and I would also be traveling quite frequently. However, they would pay all of my moving expenses, and my salary would nearly double.
I took a deep breath and tried to project calmness as I thought about everything. On the surface, it sounded like an amazing opportunity, and one that would skyrocket my career.
“That is a very intriguing offer,” I said.
Paul nodded. “We know that it would mean a complete change of your life, as you are a partner in your business. You would have to give all of that up and move over here. So rest assured that we are not expecting you to make this decision right now, but we would like to spend the rest of the day showing you around some of our projects here, and just helping you understand more of what everything would look like. Tomorrow and the next day we would like to show you even more, and give you the opportunity to speak with some of the people here in the office. But even then, we will give you some time to really consider this.”
“I appreciate that,” I said. “When would you like your answer?”
“How about two weeks from today? That would give you time to really think it over.”
“Yes, I appreciate that. However, while I am here I would like to see the different schooling options that are here in London. I am sure you are not aware, as I work very hard to keep my private life private, but I have a son who will be starting highschool this next fall. Obviously, he would move with me, and I would like to see what life would look like for him.”
I could see by their reaction that they did not know about Rylan.
“Yes,” Paul said. “Of course! We can show you several different options, as well as direct you to people who can answer any further questions you may have.”
“Thank you,” I said.
