Incentive Executive required for major corporation, Should be young, outgoing, physically fit and both receptive and creative regarding new forms of incentive to promote increased business within the organisation.
Applicants should be female aged between 20 and 29 with no commitments as regular travel will be a prerequisite for the post. In return we offer a substantial salary, a high quality motor vehicle and company financed apartment along with a substantial clothing allowance and expense account.
Helen read the advertisement 3 times barely daring to believe that such a post existed. She honestly wasn't quite sure what was expected of an Incentive Executive but there was no way she was going to pass this post up although deep in her heart she knew she would be applying against thousands of other would be high flyers.
She telephoned the number given and was greeted with an ansaphone message inviting her to submit a detailed handwritten letter rather than a CV. In the letter she was to set out her family background, ambitions etc. as life experience was of greater importance than educational qualifications. In addition she was to enclose a recent full length photograph of herself.
This was odd but looking again at the financial package on offer had her reaching for the letter pad and her pen.
The letter took 2 hours and many many drafts to complete and there seemed to be very little actually said, as an only child her parents had died in a road crash a year earlier, her only serious relationship had ended with her best friend luring away her boyfriend 6 months before the tragedy and as to ambitions she simply wanted the good life, who didn't?
Finding a suitable photo took a little longer, she finally settled on one taken a couple of months earlier in a night club. The short skirt and low top weren't exactly executive apparel but then they had said they wanted someone with an outgoing personality.
Two days later she had a phone call, a very business like lady summoned her to an interview with a Mr. Wallace at 2.30 p.m. the following day.
Hardly believing her luck she went shopping for a new black pencil skirt and white blouse and added a red cravat at the neck of the blouse. She tied her hair back and high on her head seeking the sophisticated look.
Mr. Wallace was the Sales Director and aged about 35. It was made very clear that she would be reporting to him and him alone although she would be given almost total autonomy however he skirted around the issue of exactly what her role was to be.
After about 30 minutes of her telling him almost her entire life story he finally said " How would you react if I said Id decided to short list you?"
Thinking of the amazing package that was a stage nearer to being hers she stared a moment then said " I could kiss you"
He smiled and looked at her steadily for a moment or two " OK, later perhaps.”
“For the next stage of the application procedure I want you to bear in mind that if you are successful you will be involved in a lot of corporate hospitality so I intend to take you for a meal tonight at "La Venecia" Restaurant. A car will collect you at eight. Is there a problem?"
"No no " She realised she was staring open mouthed at him. La Venecia was the smartest and most expensive restaurant for miles, she had never dreamt she would ever dine there.
A few minutes later she was outside the office block realising that she still knew virtually nothing about what an Incentive Executive was supposed to do. In fact he had said very little but had been very clever in finding out nearly everything about her life
That evening she wallowed in a deep bubble bath before dressing nervously. She opted for a long red velvet evening dress, it was back less with a deep slit up the front and hugged her body closely, so closely that she was obliged to dispense with any panties for fear of VPL. The back less design meant too that she could wear no bra so all she wore was the dress, a pair of high heels and a stole over her shoulders. She felt like a movie star but was still extremely nervous.
At 7.55 there was a knock on the door, it must be the taxi he had promised.
She opened the door to find a fully uniformed chauffeur standing there."Miss Simpson? I'm Daniel your driver for this evening, are you ready?"
She followed him to the street to see a long white limousine awaiting her.
Daniel opened the door and she climbed into what was basically a cocktail lounge on wheels with a large TV, fridge, mini bar and much much more. She heard a distant gentle purr and it took her a few minutes to realise that it was the car engine and it was gently moving away from the pavement and into the early evening traffic.
A little later the limousine pulled up outside the building in which the restaurant occupied the entire second floor. A liveried doorman opened the door and helped her out directing her to a fully carpeted elevator which glided up to the second floor. There a waiter was standing "Miss Simpson?" he inquired
"Mr. Wallace is waiting, will you come this way?"
Mr. Wallace stood as she walked towards him and reached for her hand and kissed it as the waiter pulled out her chair for her to sit, never had she felt so glamorous.
She realised Mr. Wallace was speaking "What would you like to drink"
She told him and the wine waiter appeared in seconds. " Now I'm sure you are wanting to know more about the position but lets order the meal first, and by the way my name is Tony so we can dispense with the Mr. and Miss rubbish now"
Over the first course Tony explained " All companies need to offer incentives not only to their sales staff but also to existing and potential customers or clients. The company which can lead the way with incentives is the company which will be the most successful so we need someone with imagination who can put themselves 110% into the role to come up with incentives which the staff and customers will be falling over themselves to gain.
"The lower a salesman's target then the smaller the ultimate prize but once they have won that prize we want them to be setting new goals for themselves so they can achieve a better and more exciting prize, in this way the company gains to the delight of the staff member, we find this works better than hanging the threat of dismissal over anyone who fails to meet our criteria. Does it make sense so far?"
She nodded, wondering what prizes she could come up with, videos, cars, cameras?
"It works in a similar way with clients. The ethics are possibly questionable but all companies offer something for their most frequent and valued customers, whether its tickets for a match or a holiday. As I said the company with the best rewards is the most successful and we are in a very competitive market. "
" Now I assume you are wondering what exactly your role in all this will be"
He paused as she nodded.
"Well we can discuss the details a little later but first lets enjoy the main course of our meal and tell me a little more about you, you mentioned your boyfriend who your friend stole from you, had you been going out with him long?"
As they ate she found herself explaining they had been together for two years and that he had been the third guy she had slept with and yes she did miss the sex but was determined not to put her trust in another guy for a long long time,never before had she spoken so openly to anyone about such personal issues
