Robert Shanley had been the most prominent and diversified building contractor in the Napa Valley for three decades. Whether it was a winery, a school, or a shopping center, if it was being built in Napa, there was a decent chance that Valley Builders was involved in some significant way.
Unfortunately for Bob, none of his kids was interested in taking over the family business, instead choosing to be restauranteurs, stockbrokers, and high school teachers. And that's why Bob called his nephew to see if he knew anyone who might be interested in running the company in a couple of years when Bob retired.
It wasn't the first time that Bob had turned to his nephew for advice. Jeff had helped him on a few occasions in the past, and actually consulted to the executive team a year earlier on a substantial project around teamwork, which was one of the firm's values. Jeff had focused his efforts on building more effective teams at the highest levels of the company.
Bob loved the work Jeff did, and often bragged about his nephew during family reunions, usually saying something to the effect of “this boy is my best advisor.” His cousins teased Jeff, pretending to resent their father's favoritism.
Bob thought so much of Jeff that he had absolutely no expectation that his ambitious nephew in the exciting world of high tech would ever be interested in working in construction. Which is why he was so stunned when Jeff asked, “Would you consider hiring someone without industry experience? Someone like me?”