Siblings by K. J. Janssen Page B

manager.
    “It looks like the fourth quarter revenues that will be reported on January 3rd will be off about ten percent year-to-year. The fiscal year will be up about four percent.”
    “The shareholders will never stand for that. We’ve had forty-one consecutive quarters of increases since we incorporated. Our yearly growth trend has averaged over nine percent. There’ll be a lot of questions, especially from John Baker over at the Harvest Investment Fund. We represent a large part of their portfolio.”
    “I tried moving things around every which way, but no matter how I worked the numbers I couldn’t change the bottom line. I have to be very careful; too many footnotes send up flags for discerning analysts.”
    Ron sat quietly for a few minutes to let the full impact of the problem sink in. Finally he leaned forward and asked, “What if the figures somehow included estimated revenues from the in-house drug dispensary and the physical rehab center?”
    “I can’t use those figures. Those two companies haven’t even been approved by the New Business Committee. Sure, the estimated revenues would be more than enough to offset any revenue reduction, but even if they were approved before year end, we wouldn’t see any income until the end of the first quarter of next year. It would be unethical to include those figures in our current financial report. I could use them as fluff in my outlook for next year, though.”
    “I always thought of you as inventive, Pete. The biggest corporations in the world practice creative accounting. Hell, many of them have billions in revenue and don’t pay any corporate income taxes. I’m not asking you to lie, just to be a little resourceful.”
    “That’s easy for you to say. I’m the one in the spotlight.”
    “I have to sign the reports too. Anyway, all we have to do is get the addition of Mitchum’s Pharmacy and St. Stephen’s Rehabilitation Center approved by the New Business Committee. John’s had the applications for two months already. I’ll go talk to him. In my opinion you can carry this due diligence thing too far. He’s had more than enough time to do whatever vetting is required by his committee.”
    Dr. John Hazleton, head of the Cardiology Group, was chairman of the New Business Committee. The committee was responsible for investigating and approving any enterprise seeking to join the Symington Medical Center, Inc. group. Dr. Hazleton ruled the committee with an iron fist. He resented anyone trying to circumvent the stringent procedures that he established upon taking on this responsibility. He was especially bitter because Ron took advantage of his absence the previous year to ramrod the approval of a new business. Ron waited until John was off on a vacation cruise to call the New Business Committee together and pressure them into approval of the Wallington Sleep Disorder Clinic. John Hazleton wasn’t a man to forget, or to easily forgive.
    “I wish you luck, Ron. I’m concerned that the bad blood between you two is going to be a potential road-block for approval of the two new companies. Don’t forget that I can’t do anything until you secure those signatures. Even then, I still have a queasy feeling about this. We have a catch twenty-two with this whole thing that may come back to bite us in the ass.”
    “You don’t have to remind me. I’ll just have to make him understand how important it is that we sign those two up by year end. Hell, I don’t even care if the leases are only three years instead of five. We need to do whatever it takes.”
    “Remember that this only gets us off the hook for our last quarter. In light of what will still be a flat finish for this year, the stockholders are going to be expecting a bright forecast for next year. The way things seem to be trending, even with the addition of these two lucrative businesses, I don’t see any super fireworks for next year.”
    “You worry too much, Pete. First things first. After we