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Author's note: If you are looking for wall-to-wall sex, look elsewhere. 
This book is a romance with a business setting. Beyond that, the sex is 
comparable to - or less than - what one would find in almost any work of 
popular fiction.

Permission is granted to post on any free site, as long as the copyright 
statement is included. Please advise the author of any such postings.

Comments are welcome and encouraged. Please address me at 
morg105829@aol.com.

I hope you enjoy the book. My plan is to post a chapter each weekday; it 
will take about three weeks for it all to be up. This is chapter 10 of 
16.

Six-Month Turnaround

Copyright 1992, 1998 by Morgan. All rights reserved.

Chapter 10

Early the next week, Cliff had a rare staff meeting to review the 
company's condition subsequent to the Magna cancellation. He was 
surprised to find that things were as good as they were. The sale of 
stores had progressed far faster than he had expected. They had 
concluded the sale of the western stores and a surprising number of 
buyers - three - were interested in all or parts of their northeastern 
properties. The search for new business had gone remarkably well. They 
had made up almost half the lost volume. But Cliff realized their 
success was highly dependent on the success of the Kaga work. With the 
hoped-for Kaga volume added to the other new business, they would have 
made up all of the lost Magna volume. Everyone had his fingers crossed 
on that one. He turned to Jeff Stover. "How do things look to you, 
Jeff?"

"Very good!" was the reply. "We seem to be cutting raw material waste to 
the bone. Of course, we're saving big money on personnel due to the 
staff reduction in production. We hope to cut sales allowances, too. 
Then we've done a pretty good job on below-the- line costs, as well. 
We've shed some fairly high-priced executive payroll. Finally, Sandy's 
cash management program has succeeded far beyond anything I would have 
believed possible. Between the sale of property and the cash freed up 
there, we may even be cash ahead. Cliff, the key to this whole thing is 
the effect it's having on our cost position. When we looked at the 
business in the planning session we were cost disadvantaged against Ajax 
and had inferior quality. I think we may now be the low-cost producer. 
I'm sure we're lower-cost than Ajax, at any rate. Now the question is 
product quality."

"Yeah," Cliff said, "Product quality. Bill, what about it? How are we 
doing?"

"Cliff, we're doing better than I could possibly have hoped. My people 
have their fingers crossed. We think the statistical system for quality 
assurance is working, but we can't really tell until the customers use 
the stuff. But we couldn't have a better attitude on the floor than we 
do now. What we can't be sure about is whether we can maintain it. 
There's still a sense of euphoria from the meeting Max ran. The people 
still seem all charged up. What we're hoping is that as the euphoria 
wears off - and it has to - it will be replaced by a sense of 
accomplishment as they see what they really can do on their own, without 
a battalion of inspectors looking over their shoulders. If a sense of 
accom plishment comes, that *can* be maintained. Let's hope!"

Bill continued, "Cliff, I have a question. You're the one guy around 
here who doesn't seem to be surprised at our accomplishments. We always 
worked on a basis of redoubling our inspection efforts and clearly that 
isn't the way to go: We had the wonderful combination of sky-high costs 
and lousy delivered quality. Why did you think this approach would 
work?"

"First, Bill - your choice of words is apt: 'You think'. I would have 
used the word 'hope' myself. However, there are two parts to the answer: 
First it works elsewhere, and in places requiring less skill than we 
require. Second, but related to it, is the idea people *want* to do a 
good job. We spend a lot of our time working. We do a hell of a lot 
better if we do something we like, something that gives us satisfaction. 
I'm relying on these people to derive personal satisfaction from a job 
well done. You can see that having bunches of people looking over your 
shoulder can be counterproductive. You feel that you aren't being 
trusted. And you know what? You aren't! It's easy for a person to get 
the feeling that it doesn't matter whether his work is good or bad. Then 
it gets bad because he doesn't care anymore. Let's keep our fingers 
crossed and hope the experiment works." Then he turned to Sandy and 
asked, "Do you want to summarize? How does the position of the company 
look to you?"

"I think it looks about as good as it possibly could under the 
circumstances. In fact, based on what Jeff says, I'm going to pay down 
the $25 million we borrowed from the bank. Strangely enough, Charley 
Adams will love us. There's nothing quite like having a customer paying 
interest on a loan when the money never even left the bank. From the 
sound of it we lost revenue but reduced our expenses even more. Is that 
right, Jeff? Do you think profits may be ahead of where they were?"

Jeff nodded and smiled. "That's exactly the way I see it, Sandy. I 
didn't really say it very clearly because I know what a shock the loss 
of the Magna business was. And I also know how tenuous our position is 
with Kaga. But the fact is right now I believe our profits are up. If we 
lose out on the Kaga order, though, things could change for the worse in 
a hell of a hurry. Also important is how well we do with our stores in 
Southern Region. We're spending a lot of money on warehousing, new 
inventory and store upgrading. Basically, that's marketing spending. As 
Cliff stressed in the meeting, the reason Market Penetration as a 
strategy is considered very high risk is the activities have little or 
no salvage value. If we can't build volume through the stores as a 
result of improving their physical appearance, the money is essentially 
down the drain."

"Good point, Jeff," Cliff said. "Steve, with your permission and Jane's, 
I would like to visit Kaga Motors. What's the general manager's name? 
Saito?"

"That's right," Jane responded. "I'm sure he would be very pleased to 
see you. I'll set it up. When would you like to go?"

"When is the first trial order scheduled to be shipped?"

"Tomorrow night to arrive at ten o'clock Thursday morning. You're not 
thinking..."

"I sure am thinking," Cliff smiled. "What do you think about the idea of 
being at their plant to welcome the first shipment of Murphy 
Manufacturing's parts? Would Mr. Saito allow it?"

"I'm almost certain he would," Jane replied. "In fact, I think he would 
consider it an honor. You know how so many Japanese in the States feel 
that they aren't really welcome? I think he would be very pleased. Can I 
call him now?"

"Please do! Let's see if we can make this work."

Minutes later Jane returned to the room grinning from ear to ear. "Mr. 
Saito asked me to say that he would be most honored if the president of 
a major United States auto parts supplier condescended to visit his 
humble facility. And Cliff, that's more or less a direct quote. He was 
so excited, he referred to welcoming Fitzpatrick San to his plant. Boss, 
you started me thinking. Would it be overkill if we tried to get a 
banner made or something. You know, 'First Shipment of Murphy 
Manufacturing Company Parts to Kaga Motors, USA'. Something like that?"

Bill Stevens jumped on the idea. "I think it's great. And I have an idea 
I want to bounce off Max Kaufman if you approve the banner idea." Cliff 
grinned at his colleagues and was delighted at their enthusiasm. Plans 
went forward, although Bill never told him what he wanted to see Max 
about.

It was about six-thirty in the evening when Cliff and Sandy walked 
through the plant on their way to his car. Sandy had decided that 
everyone knew where they were sleeping and no one seemed to care, so her 
contribution to the economy drive was her gas money. They both felt good 
about the way the whole facility was starting to look. Not only were the 
production machines sparkling after their overhaul, but getting rid of 
dead inventory had freed up a lot of space. They had noticed that a lot 
more attention was being spent on housekeeping to make the place look 
like the precision manufacturing facility it was. Then Cliff was 
surprised to see working lights still on in the area of one of the 
production machines. They walked over and found Bill Stevens with a 
machine operator.

Bill was looking at a bright set of rings he was holding carefully in 
his hand. "Cliff, I don't think you've ever met Jim Wozlowski. He's one 
of our machinists producing rings. He talked to his supervisor, and I'm 
really glad he did. Jim has been working on the Kaga order. He has the 
idea that they could get better engine performance if they used a 
different metallurgical formulation for the ring metal. This is another 
benefit of your talk, Sandy. Everyone took it to heart, and the 
communication both ways has never been better. At any rate, Jim has been 
working on his own time to machine a set of rings to Kaga specs, but 
using the different metal. Our tech people agree with Jim, by the way. 
Of course, we don't know nearly enough about the internal arrangement of 
their pistons, operating temperatures, pressures and so forth. We 
produce to a specification, but we seldom know how the specification was 
derived. But what do you think?"

Cliff looked at Sandy and winked, then looked back at Bill and Jim. "I 
think it's great. Jim, you probably know I'm going over to meet the 
first shipment when it arrives at Kaga. Do you suppose we could get a 
fancy box - you know, like a jewelry box? - and put a set of rings in 
it? I would like to present it to Mr. Saito. And Jim, let's enclose a 
card. I would like you personally to sign it. Sandy, could you help with 
the wording?"

As they continued their walk to the car, he said, "It's working. Damn 
it! It's working! Let's pray it's good enough."

* * *

Jane and Cliff drove up to the entrance of Kaga Motors in a rental car 
at nine-thirty Thursday morning. He didn't know what to expect except he 
knew they were most welcome. When they arrived at the main entrance to 
the plant office, they found Mr. Saito and all his senior plant staff 
waiting outside to greet them. There followed the usual East-meets-West 
fumbling. Neither group was quite sure whether to bow or shake hands so 
they ended by doing a bit of both. The one constant was the very rapid 
dealing of business cards among the people. When they finished Mr. Saito 
led them up to his office. Cliff had done business in Japan, and it was 
easier when there were only three of them in Saito's office. He bowed 
gravely to Mr. Saito and presented him with a box wrapped in gay floral 
paper.

At the same time one of the general manager's senior assistants appeared 
with two boxes which he placed on his boss's desk. Saito - he informed 
Cliff his name was Kenichi, so please call him Ken - opened the box and 
saw the set of beautifully machined rings. Neatly folded on top was the 
letter Jim Wozlowski and Sandy had prepared. He unfolded it, carefully 
read it through, and then read it again. Then he carefully studied the 
rings without touching them. Finally, he presented gifts to Jane and 
Cliff "as a small remembrance of your visit."

After they took seats Saito looked thoughtful and said, "Mr. 
Fitzpatrick, I am very impressed with this gift. Would it be possible to 
get eleven more sets for testing? They would be shipped by air to our 
research center in Japan. As you may know, we work differently with our 
suppliers than your auto companies do here. We look for commitment. We 
look for ideas. It never occurred to me that your people could possibly 
care enough about us to think seriously about our requirements.

"I was wrong. Mr. Woz... Wozel... Jim... thought a great deal. He is 
apologetic that he doesn't know our pressures, temperatures, and so 
forth. I will make sure you have a full set of our technical data to 
bring back with you to Milwaukee. This counts for a very great deal with 
us. Thank you very much, and please thank him."

Just then they heard the loud squawk of a diesel truck's air horn. Cliff 
glanced at his watch, and noticed Saito did, too. They both smiled. It 
was exactly ten o'clock as the truck with the big red Murphy banner 
rolled into the yard. Saito smiled and said, "Score another for your 
company, Mr. Fitzpatrick. It's clear you understand the way we work. Ten 
o'clock is ten: not eleven, but not nine-thirty, either."

"Ken, I would appreciate it if you would call me Cliff. Everyone does. 
Now shall we go and inspect the shipment?"

It was obvious to Jane and Cliff that things were going as well as they 
possibly could for them at Kaga. Clearly, the things the Murphy people 
had done were being received in the spirit intended. When they reached 
the truck, Cliff was amazed to see Max Kaufman standing with the driver. 
He presented him to Saito. "Mr. Saito, it's my pleasure to introduce you 
to Mr. Max Kaufman. Mr. Kaufman is president of the union at Murphy 
Manufacturing. Frankly, I have no idea what brings him over today. Max, 
this is Mr. Kenichi Saito, general manager of the Kaga Motors plant."

Cliff and Jane watched in amazement as Max made a deep bow to Mr. Saito 
who gravely returned it. Max then took a large scroll and presented it 
to Saito who untied the ribbon securing it and unrolled it. Cliff was in 
a position to see it over Saito's shoulder. It was a handsomely prepared 
scroll that said the workers at Murphy Manufacturing believed they were 
as dedicated to quality as they knew the people at Kaga were. 
Accordingly, each of the production workers involved in the trial order 
from Kaga had signed below, indicating his personal dedication to 
producing the quality he knew Kaga expected and needed.

Meanwhile, the truck had backed up to the receiving dock and the 
unloading had begun. Cliff saw quality control inspectors selecting 
random boxes to be opened for checking. This was the moment of truth. 
Ken asked Max to join them and asked if he could give them a tour of the 
plant, an invitation they gladly accepted. First, Cliff was interested, 
and second, it beat sitting and chewing his nails while waiting for the 
inspection report.

The facility was as clean, neat and organized as Cliff had expected it 
would be. Finally, they went back to Saito's office. There was a piece 
of paper in the center of his desk: the verdict. Saito studied it 
carefully. "The shipment meets our specifications. Thank you very much." 
He then reviewed the report with Cliff and Max. It met spec... but just. 
They talked about ways to improve, and Cliff was pleased to see Max was 
taking very careful notes. Afterward, they went to the cafeteria to eat. 
As at Murphy, everyone in the facility ate in the same place.

They returned to Ken's office and prepared to leave. Then Saito asked if 
Murphy had a fax machine, and Cliff said they did and gave him its 
number. He said it was the preferred method of communication in his 
company.

Finally he said, "Thank you, Cliff, and you, Max, for coming over. It is 
premature, perhaps, but not by much, for me to tell you that I sent a 
fax to Japan recommending that Murphy Manufacturing be accepted as a 
regular supplier. Jim's rings are now on their way by air to Japan. I 
will file a full report with my headquarters. I will tell you, though, 
they will be very impressed. The new metallurgy, whether it works or 
not, counts for a great deal. It demonstrates you are very interested in 
us. I gather, Cliff, you did not know Max was coming or that the workers 
prepared the lovely scroll for us. That, too, says something very 
important to me and to Kaga Motors. It says that your people care about 
us as customers. It says they care deeply about Murphy, as well. It is a 
tribute to you and your management.

"Finally, may I congratulate you on being represented by Miss Miller? 
She has done the best job of any sales person calling on us in terms of 
taking the time to understand our requirements and the reasons for them, 
and, in turn communicating these requirements in Milwaukee. We hope she 
will continue to call on us. Thank you so much for coming. May I visit 
you, someday, in Milwaukee?"

Cliff assured him he would be welcome at any time, and they went back to 
the car. When they were driving toward the airport, he was the first to 
speak. "Are you taking the plane? If the wind weren't in the wrong 
direction, the way I feel I could just float back to Milwaukee. Jane and 
Max, you've just saved the company. That's all I can say."

Jane smiled at them both. "Max, do me a favor? Give me a big whack on 
the back to start me breathing again? Cliff, that has to go down as the 
best day of my business career, bar none, and at the same time, the most 
nerve wracking. I feel like laughing and crying at the same time... and 
if either of you even *thinks* 'emotional woman,' I'll kick you in the 
shins!"

"I know just how you both feel," Max said. "You know, what came to my 
mind was when my wife had our first child. It was great when it 
happened, but it was agonizing right before! I want to say something 
else: Cliff, I was right about you... more right than I knew. You came 
into Murphy and did all the right things from the very beginning. Even 
some things, like chopping the product line, that scared hell out of me. 
The boys and me... Well, we know about your contract. We know it has 
performance requirements in it, although we don't know what they are. 
Frankly, we don't give a shit. I also know you and Sandy have been 
coming and going in the same car, and I don't think it's a car pool. We 
do care about that. We love it! With you two together, we really feel 
good about Murphy. Damn, it feels good to win one once in a while!"

"Max," Cliff said, "Let's drink to that! I'm buying when we get to the 
airport."



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