Billy stared out the window of his office while the meeting continued on without him.

Last quarter’s numbers exceeded the proposed budget by 12%, although receivables are still lagging…

Billy had been running the company his father had started for the last fifteen years. Billy and Bill Sr. were never close. People around the office called Bill Sr. “Bull”. Bull made deals with handshakes, but broke a few hands along the way too. But the rock crushing business was like that. You couldn’t be weak. At least that’s what Bull always said.

Bull had sent Billy to college to study business, assuming he would take over the company one day. Billy was more interested in science, but Bull was a lot better at negotiations in those days.

An MBA, a wife, and two sons later, Billy was the youngest executive in the company. A sudden heart attack for Bull forced the company to draw up a clear succession plan and Billy became a thirty year old Vice President. A second heart attack made him an orphaned CEO.

Import sales are continuing to pick up on a month-by-month basis, with granite showing the largest gains…

Billy had done good things with the rock crushing company. He combined his ingenuity, passion for technology, and his father’s continued influence to grow the company into a nationally recognized name. He was the first in his region to start international operations and made opportunities where none existed.
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