Poetry at Work: A Poet Jump Starts a Company

A part of the company – the business that was the old heartland of the enterprise – was being spun off. The people going with the spin-off fully understood the meaning.

Companies don’t spin off operations or businesses that are highly profitable, with long-term prospects for success, no matter what anyone might say. No, companies spin off businesses that “no longer fit the portfolio,” won’t produce the desired level of profit, or – best-case scenario – will just chug along at a less-than-desirable return on investment.

It was a wrenching experience. The new company had nine months to prepare – create an organization, find a new name, fight over assets, select management teams, file a raft of legal documents, apply for stock registration, and prepare employees for a new world.

Management was struggling over the best way to launch the company. No one felt like celebrating. The situation felt more like a funeral than a birth.

The poet was asked to figure it out.

To continue reading, please see my post today at Tweetspeak Poetry.

Photograph by Petr Kratochvil via Public Domain Pictures. Used with permission.