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Early morning reading Pepys and then sitting with the kids in bed discussing their hard school experiences before hard time catching up at work and retaining branch staff as we have to retest all stock communicators with disk issues. Late planning June’s work for Monday and speaking to Diana about her family problems which are worrying her
Slept well but woke at 6.00am and read a good section of Samuel Pepys Diaries until morning tea was brought up by Diana and Debby and Daniel joined me in bed. Daniel is talking more of his new school now and is settling in with the customary traumas. They are certainly working him hard and homework is ensuring that he is kept busy in the evenings as well. He now has friends in class and on the bus, has learnt to tie his tie properly and completed his first week with some confidence. Debbie has been tired after four consecutive days at Rising 5’s and I taught her about spiders this morning, she having drawn out the lesson in a nice picture by tonight.
To work and an irritable and disorganised day. We all of us from yesterday’s meetings troubled with catching up on our work and not wishing to continue the debates. I made contact with Peter King and Geoff Lynch by phone after writing the minutes and discuss the personnel problems at length resolving to keep Barry Lock at Xitan and Trying to retain Debby Garrett at Byte Shop Southampton. Busy today dealing also with aspects of the Comart Production deciding to retest all communicators from finished goods which have two 96 tpi tandem drives within – some 22 in all. Late at the office preparing a list of priority work for June’s return on Monday.
Tonight a long talk with Diana who is upset by the break up of sister Sue’s marriage and the start of Breast Cancer in her mother. Reassured but weary from talk we retire at 11.00pm to bed.
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Busy morning in Southampton on Xitan accounts and people problems, then rush to London to chair BMMG meeting with Commodore being declined membership and home late to children’s problems struggling with hard school work. 3% public sector pay caps and Israel’s begin resigns.
A hot night in the Hotel but outside very wet and cooler but still muggy. Even after a 12pm retirement to bed I was awake by 6.00am and soon down to breakfast with Peter and John. The drive to Cumberland Place was interesting as I saw for the first time the partial old walls of the City and the gate towers. The Byte Shop Southampton meeting demonstrated good sales and profit results and a resolve to try to bring product policy back in line with other branches. Principal dispute over the admin staff with a will to obstruct the Accounts Supervisor from taking up the planned transfer to Xitan.
A fine salad lunch at Totton and then a Xitan Board Meeting. Good progress in establishment at the new premises but, with many new people and holiday commitments, still a lot of stress on existing staff. If the accounts supervisor does not transfer I anticipate acute difficulties. A brief introduction to all new staff and then a mad rush by car to London to chair a BMMG Council Meeting, phoning ahead my apologies as I was to be late. A good BMMG meeting but all council members very busy and not very much achieved. No new members this time and we turn down an application by Commodore Business Machines. A new BMMG logo has been chosen and will appear on all members stands at the forthcoming Compec exhibition.
Home by 10.00pm to hear of troubles with the children over their schools – they are being worked harder than they are used to!
News tonight of a government policy to constrain Public Sector pay increases to 3%. Also of Premier Begin’s resignation as Israel’s Prime Minister with his physical and mental health in decay.
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Difficult domestic school arrangements before Chairman’s tour of Comart and paperwork, and then lunchtime Byte Shop manager job offer telephone calls before off to London for Datafit press conference (meeting industry and government contacts to secure our products continued use)and late wet evening meal with my three company MD’s to plan things.
A morning’s rush over breakfast as Diana struggles to get Daniel ready for school, Debbie ready for “rising 5’s” and packs my own suitcase for a night away this evening. Debbie now attends these classes four mornings a week and the idea is to provide the interim activity between Playschool and Primary School. There is a more structured environment with the introduction of the first ‘classes’ of physical education, stories, drawing and being taught to write.
To the office and the first hour visiting and talking to personnel in each Comart department. There is a stomach ‘bug’ going the rounds at the moment, now that the weather has turned chillier and the kids are back to school to spread these things back to their families. Poor Carlton Lowe is suffering from either it or something else and had to retire back to his Hotel during the day. He had a good day yesterday, however, interviewing key personnel and starting to build up a picture of how things are and ought to be from a manufacturing viewpoint.
Then to a morning’s work of paperwork and a closer look at the mail and resolution of aspects it revealed about the present way we are conducting our business. At lunchtime, my sandwiches and a long phone call with our new Manchester Manager, Robin Pimlott, declining several requests for variations from our normal personnel procedures but nevertheless agreeing Job Offers for certain new staff. We have above 20 vacancies at the moment on top of our total group establishment of over 160 positions.
I manage to trace David Fear at an Export I.T. Council meeting for directions to a Datafit Press Conference where NCC Director David Fairbairn spoke in support of this new product. The Davids tell me in confidence afterwards that Export IT had been saved from extinction by some behind-the-scenes work with the D of I. CSA Director Derek Eyions had nearly finished it off as being competitive with the CSA’s activities but David had intervened just in time with Alistair Macdonald. The Datafit Conference with invited dignitaries and press was a necessary opportunity for Comart to underscore their confidence in choosing to present their product on the Comart Communicator Micro. To be seen to be supporting the event was necessary in David Fear’s case and desirable in mine to counter the common plea Datafit people receive of ‘Why not provide it on the IBM?’ The modularity of the Communicator suits their super expendable database software and we succeed in getting them to stick to their guns.
To the car in the Portman Square car park, not far from the Selfridge Hotel, and on to Southampton, arriving at 8.45pm at the Dolphin Hotel in the city/dock area. As I park the car I meet Geoff Lynch and John Lamb and rendezvousing with Peter King in the bar we go for a meal together in a local restaurant. We eat tornedos steak which is enjoyed but the service was so slow our enjoyment was spoilt and we were after midnight to bed. A wet evening.
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Another cold day with showers as I drive to Birmingham Byte Shop via three fine Rushden Antique shops before an evening helping Daniel with his homework. The US are in the Lebanon and the SDP say no to the Liberal suitors
Up early and after breakfast to leave at 7.30am to collect John Lamb at Rushden and on to Birmingham for a Byte Shop Board Meeting. There to join Jim Atfield, Peter King and Derek Weatherby and a good morning reviewing Birmingham’s sales, profits and assets. This branch is performing well and a good example to the others. Lunch in the new Chinese restaurant opposite where the Head Waiter arranges a full and varied meal – Peking style – with many beautiful duck and meat dishes. We manage all of these with chopsticks and take two hours finishing our lunch. We use the time well, however, and put the Byte Shop organisation to rights.
Then to meet the new personnel at the branch before setting off back to St Neots, dropping John off on the way. I notice in Rushden three fine antique and metal art shops and stop the car to marvel at the brass work – paraffin lamps in particular. Home to my evening meal to find Daniel struggling with his homework – His atlas had a misprint on the page numbers and he had misunderstood his maths homework, taking the instructions as data rather than question numbers in his text book. All to rights after an hours struggle and Daniel is doing all right with his school work.
I receive a strange letter from my Mum today with a tortuous explanation for her discomfort. I think they are confused and worried about their plight but much better able to cope than my sister Freda believes.
News today of an escalation of air support to the American troops in the Lebanon. Also the SDP party conference and a decision to stay a separate party from the Liberals. Overall they have done themselves no harm.
Another cold day today with showers. The warm summer seems definitely to have ended.
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Cold morning inducting a key manager and reviewing personnel policies, then rueing company car accidents of one per week and finally reviewing new customer services building plans as fighting rages in Beirut, an oil rig is righted and SDP/Liberal merger is mooted
Early today to the office and I make sure that the factory heating is on for the first time this year. A cold day with rain in the air. Today, my new Comart Manufacturing Manager Carlton Lowe started and the greater part of the day was spent in his training and induction. I discussed with him the Comart structure and organisation introducing him to key personnel with whom he will need to liaise. Then to assess with him the principal subordinates and their potential roles. Over lunch an opportunity to meet the Comart Directors – David Fear and Derek Weatherby – that were not present at his interviews. Lastly an in-depth review of my personnel policies and procedure concluding with the present status of production performance.
It now takes the best part of a day to complete the initial induction of departmental Managers but I feel that today has given him a reasonable chance. I am troubled today at the amazing number of company car accidents we seem to be experiencing. Almost one a week at the moment. In late afternoon I review the latest plans for the new customer services building with the architect.
Fighting today all around Beirut in Lebanon with their government appeal for United Nations intervention. The EEC foreign ministers failed to agree a statement condemning the Soviet action with Greece preventing anything but a statement of regret. The SDP leader Dr David Owen rejects talk of a merger with the Liberal Party. The Alexander Kelan oil rig is being righted at last.