Before 24 Billion and Counting

Chapter 15 Part 1 A remotely controlled Board Meeting

Returning an hour later I met Vernon, sitting on a chair outside the suite. He gave me the thumbs up and said, "I'll be here until you finish. Just press the call button on the table if you hit a problem." 

Inside the suite I walked into our Auckland boardroom, admittedly through the endwall. Vernon and Simon had done some fine tuning. The color balance and sizing of the image was very true. 

Betty Stapleton, iron grey haired, square jawed, showing in her high cheek boned face and dark skin the mix of Maori and European descent that brought a fine instinct to judging the worth of anything we did, sat already at the further end of the left hand side of the table, absorbed in reading her papers. She was the newest member of the board and occupied the post of Creative Director, and I didn't know how she would shape up in a fight. 

"Good morning Betty." 

She jumped, "Holy Jesus - you gave me a fright Charles. So that's why Simon is hovering in the corridor. It's very impressive. Presumably you're still in London." 

"Mm - The Thatcher hotel. I'm using their set up." 

"I tell you Ward's going to be blazing. I'm sure he wanted to bulldoze this through without you." She held up a copy of Ward's script. 

Ned Oldfield walked in. He was our accounting genius and trained in corporate law. He hated to play any part in the creative assessment. He said if you can't measure it, it's a gut feel, and he was quite happy to admit he was gutless. He was a quiet firm man and would never voice an opinion without having analysed it first. He sat to my immediate left. 

"I'm glad you've managed to create a presence. I'm not sure that Ward is going to be very logical today." 

Ward, accompanied by Clark Stratford, and Gerald Scaife walked in. Ward said to me, "How the hell did you get here?" 

"Were you not expecting me at a board meeting of my company Ward?" I teased, "Did you engineer that situation deliberately?" 

"Hang on you're faking it. It's a hologram. We can turn it off." 

"No,you can't do that," said Ned, "attendance by holographic image interchange of directors at board meetings has been a right since 2025 in New Zealand corporate law. Deliberately to interfere with the transmission at the meeting site is considered to be equivalent to a physical assault of someone present, and is treated the same as regards the effect on the meeting. Charles is entitled to be here in person or by hologram as he thinks fit."  

Ward sat down at the far end of the table with bad grace. "What's this?" he said, indicating the scanner. 

"If you want me to read anything that I haven't already been given just put it through the scanner. Like for instance an agenda, which although I had notice of the meeting, was conspicuous by its absence." 

"I'm not obliged to give an agenda." said Ward aggressively, "If I want an extraordinary meeting all I need is a notice. You had that. Ned said it's alright." 

"To be accurate, Ward, I said that was the minimum legal requirement but courtesy to your fellow directors would dictate some indication of the purpose of the board meeting." 

"Well," I said, "it seems we don't have an agenda. It is now nine o'clock precisely. I am asking for the recorder to be switched on, on my mark. Ned would you oblige? Five four three two one mark." Ned pressed a red button I knew to be on the wall behind me, and a red LED on the bottom of the central light fitting over the table illuminated. "I will call the board to order. With six of us we have a quorum. I believe Ted Mcnulty is on holiday. Has he been informed of this meeting?" At that moment Kelly came into the room.