Terminal Value by Thomas Waite

determined. His entire appearance was a study in confidence, and yet his demeanor was warm and friendly.
    â€œHi, guys, good to see you,” he said, shaking their hands. “Come on in.”
    Tony and Dylan followed Joe across the open space towards his office. They walked past the twenty employees, most of them glued to their computer screens. This was one aspect of Hyperfōn’s distinct advantage. A small company with very little overhead was about to change the way people viewed smartphones forever. The inexpensive price tag assigned to the product would undercut their bigger competitors, with their massive buildings, elaborate distribution systems, exclusive contracts, and enormous executive salaries.
    For the next hour, the three of them hovered around the conference table in Joe’s austere office and reviewed every detail for Hyperfōn’s impending launch. By ten o’clock, with all questions asked and answered, Joe cocked an astute eye at Dylan.
    â€œSo, how’s life at Mantric treating you?”
    â€œGreat, Joe. It’s as if nothing’s changed.”
    â€œYeah,” added Tony, “except now we’ve got the technological resources to guarantee Hyperfōn will stay in front of the competition for years.”
    â€œWell, boys, that’s nice to hear,” said Joe, folding his arms and leaning back in his chair. “Our advertising campaign starts at the end of the week, which means we’re about to spend a hell of a lot of our venture capital money.”
    â€œI know, Joe,” Dylan said, smiling. “And we’re ready for the launch. You’re going to blow the doors off this market. And then you’re going to be seen as the greatest mobile genius since Steve Jobs. We can’t wait to see it happen.”
    Joe leaned forward and stared into Dylan’s eyes. “Launching the marketing campaign is only the beginning, Dylan. What concerns me is how important I’m going to be to you once it is up and running. We’re going to need a lot of help figuring out what’s working and what isn’t. Screwing that up could make or break us.”
    â€œWe know that, Joe,” said Tony. “And that’s why I’m here. I wanted to personally reassure you I’m not going to take my eyes off the ball. Not for a minute.”
    â€œSo, does that mean I can count on you to stay personally involved in this project?”
    â€œAbsolutely!”
    Dylan shifted uneasily in his chair. He knew Joe was especially fond of Tony, but Tony was walking a fine line. His new responsibilities at Mantric wouldn’t allow him to spend the same kind of time he had on Hyperfōn in the past. His mind went back to the conversation the previous evening, when Tony talked about his two new projects. In order to succeed, Tony would have to drop some projects or delegate. On the other hand, if Tony could attend all the key meetings with Joe, that might be enough. After all, the critical work was really in the hands of the mobile application developers now. And they’d assigned their very best to Hyperfōn.
    â€œWhat about you, Dylan?” Joe asked. “How do I know you’re not going to be preoccupied with your own IPO? When I heard the IPO had been moved up to May, I figured you’d be taking off just about when we launch.”
    So that was what had triggered Joe’s anxiety. Dylan took a deep breath. “Joe, we may be owned by Mantric, but you’re MobiCelus’s flagship client. Without you, we wouldn’t have become the success we did. I owe you this one.”
    Joe got up and paced his office. “You know, that sounds great. That really does. But the fact is, I haven’t seen much of you guys lately.”
    â€œMatt Smith has been managing the launch,” Dylan said cautiously, “and we meet with him constantly. And Rob has remained involved as well.”
    â€œMatt’s good. In fact,