Dave, Fredo & Bernard.

We once hired a salesman--let's call him Dave--who was a really good guy. Dave was the kind of guy with whom you loved to hang out. The kind of guy who just had a natural presence about him that seemed to make everyone he met like him. In short, Dave was the kind of personality that every salesperson secretly wishes he or she was--the kind that customers want to do business with. And he wasn't lazy either. Dave had a strong work ethic with a desire to succeed.

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Oh, sure he had his soft areas--he was not particularly astute when it came to numbers (something that not enough similarly deficient salespeople admit), and his technical product knowledge was somewhat lacking. But those weaknesses could be addressed and supported by others within our company without detracting from his chances for success. Dave was a natural salesman, born to be out in the field meeting face to face with customers, a more professional version of Chris Farley's character in Tommy Boy (a film remembered less for Farley and David Spade, its two stars, than for Cheryl Tiegs's amazing ability to be credible as both Rob Lowe's mother and wife in the same film! But I digress.)

Dave lasted one year with our company.

Several months into his tenure, Dave visited a customer whose account was significantly delinquent in its payments, even more so than usual. The owner of this company sat Dave down in his office and proceeded to tell him how we had screwed up his last label order by printing the wrong address on the label, and that we were lucky he wasn't demanding payment for his costs incurred in recalling the product and having to relabel it. Obviously taken aback, Dave asked to call our plant, which he did over the speaker phone so that the customer could listen to the call. When our customer service supervisor came on the line, Dave relayed to her what the customer had said and then, referring to the plant, demanded, "How could you guys screw this up so badly?"

My reaction to Dave's handling of this situation had nothing to do with the reality that we hadn't actually made a mistake. It didn't matter to me that in fact the customer had ordered an older version of the label by SKU number and not realized the difference in addresses. I didn't even care that the customer had signed off on a proof with the old address prior to that production run. It didn't even matter to me that when faced with all this evidence, the customer ultimately paid the bill. (Well, all right, that mattered a little.) What mattered most to me was the reaction of our customer service manager, as well as several others within our company, to Dave's query. "How could YOU guys screw this up so badly?"

Like so many other salespeople in just about every industry, Dave viewed himself in a sales capacity as distinct from the operations of the company. From his perspective, the plant and its production professionals were not there as the manufacturing arm of the business producing the very labels he was selling. Rather, in a scary, almost conscious way, Dave viewed the plant only as a potential obstacle to his success, out to subvert his wonderful sales efforts with defective products, out to undermine his carefully constructed relationships with delayed deliveries, and out to reduce his performance based compensation through substandard customer service.

Obviously, this is not the kind of attitude that lends itself to success in a custom manufacturing business. Unfortunately for us--and for Dave--this was not the only manifestation of his attitude. In my opinion, this "I am salesman, hear me roar" attitude, conveyed in almost every manner of interaction with plant personnel, was the primary reason for Dave's inability to achieve the kind of success at our company that both he and I had anticipated. As I now include in my discussions with everyone at all levels and in all departments within our company, forget Michael Porter and listen to Michael Corleone: "Never take sides with anyone against the family."

The importance of supporting your fellow employees, regardless of department or level within the company, to the outside world cannot be understated. Like any family unit--and regardless of size, every company is a family unit--dirty laundry is to be aired in private. Now, it didn't take a rowboat and a shotgun in the middle of Lake Tahoe to dispense with Dave, but it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience either. Dave lives--his own life, doing something else for himself--and in our memory as a warning about the potential Fredo in our midst. (To remind our readers: In The Godfather, Fredo Corleone was the loser son of Don Corleone, who took Mo Green's side in a dispute with the new Don, Michael. After being reprimanded by Michael, Fredo returns to the shadows, until he betrays Michael once again in The Godfather II, which leaves Michael no choice but to put a hit on his own brother.)

On this subject (sort of), I will cut this column short in order to share with you a recent cover letter I received with a resume from a job applicant. This letter clearly falls into the "truth is stranger than fiction" category, and speaks for itself. I've protected the syntax (or lack thereof), but changed the names to protect the innocent, guilty or just plain idiotic. Enjoy ... or be horrified.

Dear employers,

I am searching for good work and ending up with places like Tempacoat of Springfield that purposefully bounce multiple payroll checks while they reportedly buy their family cars and cocaine with company money.

I once ended up Assistant Manger Trainee at Sid's Custard that score 79 on sanitation and disobeyed multiple labor laws ... that lasted two weeks. One of their improperly guarded (and of course, filthy) machines even took some skin off the end of my finger. They fired me for no reason on my day off. I found out they lied to their insurance company. They will be in district court being sued March 23 unless they rally enough good-old-boys at their local Lodge to lock me away somehow. Believe me they try.

McKay Brothers Distributors underpayed and breached contracts (and lost to little old *me* in small claims court) and are going to district court again and to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

If you are like those I mentioned then do not offer me a job. If you will be fair to me and work with me in good faith you will get more than your money's worth. You have my contact information.

See attached resume; ONLY If you are sincere and honest should you hire me.

I work efficiently and tell the truth. I don't mind telling you that a few of the other jobs I have gotten around Springfield have been CRAP! Unworthy of my time. And the people in charge have been dishonest and cruel.

Bernard Templeton

Elisha Tropper is president of Prestige Label Co., of Burgaw, NC, a CFG company, headquartered in New York City.