Executive Affair Read Online Free Page A

before starting work.
    When she finally went to her desk, she turned a blind eye to her brimming inbox and connected to the Amtech homepage. She was instantly surprised by the number of roles advertised in Vacant Positions, some in countries she barely recognised. But then Amtech was the fifth largest software company in the world; and at the end of the year when it released a new version of its main product, a human resources information system, it was expected to move up to fourth place.
    Donald Skates had been the president for twelve years and held the record for the longest standing president in Silicon Valley, the fickle IT capital of the world. He had been with the company when it had had only one hundred employees. It was now the proud employer of ten thousand people acrossforty-nine countries. In some ways, the real secret of Amtech’s success was Donald’s conservative streak. It was a differentiating characteristic in an impulsive industry and it went down well with large government and financial sector customers.
    Until now, it had never occurred to Claire to use Amtech’s international presence as a means of travelling overseas, and she felt a little ashamed that it had taken a personal disaster for her to appreciate the opportunities that were literally at her fingertips. She used the search function to select finance management positions only. Her search yielded three hits: two roles in San Jose and one in Sydney. She skimmed through the role descriptions, skills and qualifications for each. She knew before doing this that she would go for the one in Sydney. She still had Fiona’s photo in her head: her carefree grin and sun-kissed skin, the expansive white sand and clear blue skies, and the enveloping feeling of summer. Claire wanted a photo like that of her own.
    She felt nervous as she knocked on Mark’s door. She opened the door slightly and he beckoned her to enter. He was on the phone. She sat down and waited for him to finish.
    He grinned at her as he put the phone down. ‘Hey, what’s up?’
    She handed him a printout of the job advertisement. ‘I want to talk to you about this role in Sydney …’
    â€˜Oh.’ He was taken aback, the grin slipping from his face.
    â€˜Sorry, Mark, I should explain myself,’ she said, recognising that she had started at the wrong place. ‘Look, you probably know by now that Michael and I have split up …’
    He nodded.
    â€˜And as much as I try to be professional and not let itinterfere with my job, the fact is that my world has turned upside down …’ She paused and tried to control the catch in her voice. ‘I can’t act as if nothing has happened when I see him at work.’
    â€˜I understand,’ he nodded again.
    â€˜So, either I leave Amtech and go to another company … or I see if I can transfer overseas,’ she concluded.
    He picked up the role description. ‘It’s undoubtedly a good career move for you, Claire, a promotion.’
    â€˜I thought you would approve.’ She smiled, relieved to notice that he was looking more receptive now. ‘What do you know about Amtech Australia?’
    â€˜Well, they’re quite a bit smaller than Dublin – it’s a sales and marketing subsidiary, not manufacturing like we are. I think they have about three hundred people. Harry Fielding is the finance director. I don’t know him personally but Robert Pozos speaks highly of him.’
    Claire took a deep breath. ‘Will you support me if I apply for the role?’
    â€˜Yes, I will,’ he answered, looking tired. ‘I don’t want to lose you from our team here but this seems like the lesser of two evils. Send Harry your résumé. And I’ll mention it to Robert.’
    Robert Pozos, based in San Jose, was the senior vice-president of Finance and a member of the board of directors. Claire knew that he travelled extensively but she had