First Day
On my first day as a newly hired bookkeeper, the company’s owner appeared in the newspaper. He had been arrested. The charge involved alleged fraud connected to government-funded housing projects. That was how the assignment introduced itself.
Inside the office, nothing had stopped. Payroll still had to be completed. Schedules still had to be prepared and submitted to regulators. Desks were occupied. Phones rang. The absence at the top did not interrupt the routine beneath it. I reviewed the work and began. There were checks to issue, reports to compile, and forms that needed to be accurate regardless of circumstance.
Shortly after I arrived, the placement agency that had sent me there called. They were apologetic. They said they could reassign me immediately. The situation, they implied, was unusual (no kidding). I said he would stay and complete the job. There was no further discussion.
By the end of the week, the previous accounting manager stopped by. She asked how things were going. She reviewed what had already been doing and did not linger. She said it all looked fine.
Two weeks later, the owner returned.
Not long after that, another meeting was scheduled.
The company owed a consortium of related businesses a large sum of money—large enough that it was not discussed casually. A roundtable meeting had been arranged. I was asked to attend on the owner’s behalf.
There were five or six men in the room. They did not offer much of an introduction. They sat comfortably, waiting. It was clear that waiting was not something they intended to do for long.
They asked when they would be paid.
I did not guess. I didn’t make promises. I explained what I had been brought in to do: organize the books, establish a clear accounting of what was owed, and begin issuing payments as funds allowed. I said the process had already started.
No one interrupted. No one raised their voice. The conversation moved on.
After the meeting, the work continued. The business stabilized enough to keep going. Contracts were honored in stages. Payroll was met. The systems held.
I remained there for several months. When the contract ended, I moved on.
That accounting job was one of the few times when authority was distant, and responsibility was immediate.
Selected essays, short works, and publications: bayliss.com
