A Christmas Supply Chain Carol
Posted by Dave Jordan on Tue, Dec 20, 2011
Ebenezer Bruise, a miserly, cold-hearted CEO, who continues to berate his Supply Chain people even as Christmas approaches. As far as Bruise is concerned every problem in the company is caused by Supply Chain. He rejects a Christmas dinner invitation by muttering under his breath that the food would not arrive on time and the meat would be pigeon instead of turkey. In the whole company his is the only desk free of Christmas cards but full of corporate gifts he has kept all to himself.
This is a man who does not like the last quarter and particularly the year-end. Bruise knocks over snowmen and even boos when he passes the charity brass bands collecting money in the snowy street. His favourite past time appears to be shouting at his overworked Supply Chain Director, Bob Planit. Bob has been a loyal employee for reasons nobody seems to understand.
That night after putting his three-legged cat outside in the sub-zero conditions Ebenezer Bruise climbs into bed to sleep. Ordinary people may count sheep to get to sleep but for Bruise he counts the number of people he has dismissed from the company. When he reaches three figures he falls into a deep sleep while snoring like a pneumatic drill digging into concrete. During the night, Bruise’s former Sales Director Jake Barley, dead for seven years, visits him in the form of a ghost. Barley's spirit has been in suspended turmoil since he died one day before payment of his annual bonus as punishment for being consumed with working in a Sales silo and sniping at other departments, especially Supply Chain. Barley has come to warn Bruise and provide the opportunity of saving him from the very same fate. The warnings will be delivered on time in full by three visiting spirits.
Bruise falls asleep and into snoring oblivion once again and wakes up to find the Ghost Of Supply Chain Past, a small, elderly man not unlike Mr Bean. The Bean-like Ghost uses his I-Pad 6 to show Bruise scenes from history that follow Bruise's career development from a young boy with a clutch of A levels. The scene shows Bruise, lonely but with the potential for happiness, to a young man with the first traces of ignorance and ambition that would deny love and real friendship in his life. Surprisingly, Bruise shows tearful emotion when studying the images and seeing his former self. An indication of the effect this spirit was having was that Bruise had not cried since school when he sat on a chair full of drawing pins in the Physics lab. The collective guffaw of the class is still fresh in his mind.
Bruise returns to his pneumatic sleep and almost immediately he is awakened by the Ghost Of Supply Chain Present. This spirit has but a fleeting time on earth and quickly shows Bruise several local scenes of Christmas joy and charity, then with a slide of a finger down the screen shows him into the Planit household on the I-Pad. The Ghost informs Bruise that unless the future is changed, the Planit’s crippled yet good-hearted young colleague, and lodger, Jolly Tall will die from stress and overeating carbohydrates in an impoverished diet. Finally, ragged boy and girl misty figures float out from beneath the Ghost's robes. The Ghost introduces them as Ignorance and Ambition and warns Bruise to beware of both in equal measure.
Again; to deep sleep but not for long. The quiet, black-clad Ghost Of Supply Chain Yet To Come takes the place of the other ghost. The Alice Cooper-like figure shows Bruise several scenes of people discussing someone's dismissal yet no one seems upset by the departure. Indeed, every single person in the vision seems overjoyed and happy with the news. Bruise does not yet realise the identity of the unfortunate person. He learns that Jolly Tall has sadly died after developing pneumonia through a hole in his shoe rather than the expected mal-nutrition. Bruise finally discovers that he is the one who has been dismissed and whose departure has only pleased people. Through misty eyes Bruise pleads that these scenes of the future can be altered, and vows to incorporate the lessons of the past, present, and future ghosts into his adoption of the Supply Chain Christmas spirit.
Bruise wakes up back in bed and realises that the whole adventure took only one night and it is now Christmas Day. The snow is falling and Slade can heard bashing out their 1970’s Christmas anthem in the distance. Wrapping up well, Bruise brings the cat inside the thaw and walks into the town. On his way to the office he smiles and shakes hands with to everyone he sees, bringing started looks upon their faces.
He sends a large turkey to the Planits, gives a sizable donation to the charity worker he previously insulted, and has a wonderful time at Fred's party. The next day he gives Planit a raise. Bruise continues his kindly ways after Christmas, befriending everyone and becoming a second father to Tiny Tim, who does not die. He never sees the ghosts again, but he keeps the spirit of Christmas alive in his heart as well as anyone.
Image credit: HikingArtist.com