SORRY, THE BOSS IS IN BAGHDAD

摘要

When Todd and Teresa Uterstaedt returned to their Cincinnati home after a holiday trip in January, 2002, the newlyweds found an ominous FedEx package waiting for them on the kitchen counter. Inside were orders for Todd, a 34-year-old ex-military intelligence officer and Army reservist, to deploy―fast. Uterstaedt, a vice-president at organizational consultancy Right Management Consultants, had 10 days not only to get his personal affairs in order but also to brief clients and match them up with other consultants. For his colleagues and boss, it meant a frenzied scramble to deal with Todd's orphaned workload and easing in his new temporary replacement. "I left behind six or seven high-level projects," says Uterstaedt. "It put a big burden on my co-workers."