foreignanalyst
Junior Member
New Jersey - I worked for a publishing company with over 100 employees on payroll where I was a mid-level manager.
The company is run by CEO. The company is ultimately governed by the Board of Trustees consisting of individuals including the CEO and senior managers..
About me: I was born overseas. While I have perfect command of the English language (oral, writing and reading) I do still have a very slight accent that’s noticeable after a lengthy conversation.
FACTS OF THE CASE
MONTH 1 - I become aware of the opening for a CEO position in the company. The CEO would be hired after three rounds of interviews (first with the current CEO, second with the senior managers, third with select Board members.) I applied for the position and was called in for the first interview. I was invited to the second and third interviews. The board had previously chosen the CEO based on the current CEO’s recommendation. Though the person recommended me to the board, yet the board picked the other finalist.
MONTH 2 – The outgoing CEO called me to offer me a position as mid-level manager to start up a new division in the company with generous compensation. She said they had been meaning to start the position for quite some time and would like me to start in it. I accepted and came on board.
MONTH 3 – I started and began conducting a series of projects. My relationship with the new CEO was always smooth. All projects assigned to me were executed successfully and many exceeded all possible expectations.
MONTH 12 – The CEO selected the year before was leaving, for reasons not relevant to this case. So a recruitment process for the next CEO began. The current CEO encourages me to apply. The outgoing COO gives me strong incentives as well so I apply. After the search run for two weeks the board chairman calls the CEO and tells him to “extend the search to ensure we get the biggest pool of applicants”. This happened because of a lack of qualified applications. There were just three applicants. The process is extended.
MONTH 13 – I am invited to the first interview, the second interview and third interview. Of the two finalists (me and Mr. X) the current CEO suggests that Mr. X be offered my position and that I am offered the CEO position. The Board selection committee selects Mr. X as CEO. I am informed of the decision and told by the current CEO, “we understand how awful you must feel, if you determine you’d like to leave because of this we want you to understand we are OK with it. You can leave if you choose to.” I refused to be so immature as to leave and continued doing my job.
MONTH 14-15 - My main task was project management and planning. During month 14 I executed a project that was the most successful the company had ever seen. To illustrate, success was measured at 350% higher than previous years. It was one of the biggest programs the company has. “By far the most successful project we ever held” in the words of the outgoing CEO and board members who were involved. All reviews of my job were excellent and there were no complaints. On Monday 1st the new CEO takes over and calls me for a meeting to be held on Thursday 3rd. I come to the meeting to be told that he, along with the board chairman, would be revaluating my position and that I would no longer continue working until the evaluation is completed. If they decided to continue with the position after the evaluation is complete I would have to reapply and they’d consider my application. I told them there was an oral agreement with the previous CEO that I would continue working in that capacity. He apologized and said this was not personal but that regardless of my amazing performance I was being let go. This came as a shock to all my coworkers who could attest to my excellent job performance and were puzzled by the decision he made being on the job for 72 hours.
I believe this is wrongful termination. After not being given the CEO position and being told it would be OK to leave I choose to stay. Once the new CEO takes over I am dismissed in 72 hrs. The former CEO said he was surprised by the decision. Yet the board chairman said the decision had been reached some time prior to the new CEO arriving. If such is the case how could they have an oral agreement with me to continue through the position? What rights, if any, do I have?
The company is run by CEO. The company is ultimately governed by the Board of Trustees consisting of individuals including the CEO and senior managers..
About me: I was born overseas. While I have perfect command of the English language (oral, writing and reading) I do still have a very slight accent that’s noticeable after a lengthy conversation.
FACTS OF THE CASE
MONTH 1 - I become aware of the opening for a CEO position in the company. The CEO would be hired after three rounds of interviews (first with the current CEO, second with the senior managers, third with select Board members.) I applied for the position and was called in for the first interview. I was invited to the second and third interviews. The board had previously chosen the CEO based on the current CEO’s recommendation. Though the person recommended me to the board, yet the board picked the other finalist.
MONTH 2 – The outgoing CEO called me to offer me a position as mid-level manager to start up a new division in the company with generous compensation. She said they had been meaning to start the position for quite some time and would like me to start in it. I accepted and came on board.
MONTH 3 – I started and began conducting a series of projects. My relationship with the new CEO was always smooth. All projects assigned to me were executed successfully and many exceeded all possible expectations.
MONTH 12 – The CEO selected the year before was leaving, for reasons not relevant to this case. So a recruitment process for the next CEO began. The current CEO encourages me to apply. The outgoing COO gives me strong incentives as well so I apply. After the search run for two weeks the board chairman calls the CEO and tells him to “extend the search to ensure we get the biggest pool of applicants”. This happened because of a lack of qualified applications. There were just three applicants. The process is extended.
MONTH 13 – I am invited to the first interview, the second interview and third interview. Of the two finalists (me and Mr. X) the current CEO suggests that Mr. X be offered my position and that I am offered the CEO position. The Board selection committee selects Mr. X as CEO. I am informed of the decision and told by the current CEO, “we understand how awful you must feel, if you determine you’d like to leave because of this we want you to understand we are OK with it. You can leave if you choose to.” I refused to be so immature as to leave and continued doing my job.
MONTH 14-15 - My main task was project management and planning. During month 14 I executed a project that was the most successful the company had ever seen. To illustrate, success was measured at 350% higher than previous years. It was one of the biggest programs the company has. “By far the most successful project we ever held” in the words of the outgoing CEO and board members who were involved. All reviews of my job were excellent and there were no complaints. On Monday 1st the new CEO takes over and calls me for a meeting to be held on Thursday 3rd. I come to the meeting to be told that he, along with the board chairman, would be revaluating my position and that I would no longer continue working until the evaluation is completed. If they decided to continue with the position after the evaluation is complete I would have to reapply and they’d consider my application. I told them there was an oral agreement with the previous CEO that I would continue working in that capacity. He apologized and said this was not personal but that regardless of my amazing performance I was being let go. This came as a shock to all my coworkers who could attest to my excellent job performance and were puzzled by the decision he made being on the job for 72 hours.
I believe this is wrongful termination. After not being given the CEO position and being told it would be OK to leave I choose to stay. Once the new CEO takes over I am dismissed in 72 hrs. The former CEO said he was surprised by the decision. Yet the board chairman said the decision had been reached some time prior to the new CEO arriving. If such is the case how could they have an oral agreement with me to continue through the position? What rights, if any, do I have?