Talentdämmerung: Difference between revisions

[[Provocatoria Presuntuosa|Provocatoria]], a minor Venetian noble and head of the Presuntuosa family, summons her [[council of counsel]] — a kind of star chamber of her closest advisors — to plan the firm’s survival.  

The Queen’s [[counsel council]] comprises: [[Complicatio]], who is responsible for [[Operations|workings of the firm]]; [[Ingraziatoro]], who looks after the firm’s best [[senior relationship manager|clients]], [[Regolamento]], who is in charge of [[compliance]], and the hapless [[Triago]], who is [[general counsel]]. Also present is [[Jeremiah Nuncle|Nuncle]], the Queen’s diminutive special advisor — a sort of roving minister without portfolio, and [[Inclusivia]] from the [[personnel]] department.  

[[Ingraziatoro]], who speaks in [[buzzword]]s, complains that with insufficient quality salespeople to build the franchise bands of roving mercenaries are picking off the firm’s most lucrative trade routes and diverting traditional riches to the Americans. There is but one thing for it: we must pay these roving mercenaries to bring the trade back to our firm! The Queen asks Ingraziatoro where he got the idea from. He got it from McKinsey.

[[Complicatio]], accompanied by his personnel manager [[Inclusivia]],  presents his plan to change: a programme to relocate the firm’s operations to [[Proverbial school-leaver from Bucharest|Bucharest]], to outsource those than cannot be transplanted to [[Don Inago Montega]], a local [[celery peddler]] who supplies cheap labour under water-tight [[service level agreement]]s. This, he assures the Queen, will instantly save thousands of ducats. [[Jeremiah Nuncle|Nuncle]] and Inclusivia snipe at each other throughout [[Complicatio]]’s windy speech. The Queen asks Complicatio where he got the idea from. He says it was Ingraziatoro. Queen: And Ingraziatoro, let me guess? He nods sheepishly and says McKinsey.

[[Regolamento]] has acquired a “[[Legaltech|homunculus]]” machine to surveil and ensure compliance with rules and procedures at a fraction of the cost, and with far greater speed and accuracy than humans can do. <ref>There are many aspects of the plot that, in passing, borrow from {{Buchstein}}’s other works, notably ''[[La Vittoria della Forma sulla Sostanza]]'', which featured a similar “Homunculus”.</ref> Queen asks [[Regolamento]] where he got the idea from was it McKinsey, by any chance? No! protests Regolamento. It was from a Secondee in his department — who is seconded from McKinsey.

By fiendish trials of others’ making. <br>

Our staff are furious. <br>

These new fancy-pants are lording their great riches over everyone <br>

But they have not brought in any new business. <br>

In fact, they are making it hard for us to keep the business we already have. <br>

And now our own loyal staff are  leaving. <br>

We must therefore raise their salaries to match the new mercenaries!” <br>

{{Script|Queen}}: We must ''what''? <br>

{{Script|Ingraziatoro}}: We must compete! This daily war for talent is intense. <Br>

Cameth I down in the latest shower?}}