Eileen Nolland works for a small company that employs twelve people who all work in the same office. She is responsible for various duties ranging from answering phones and entering orders into the system to tracking inventory and updating client files. She performs many of these duties as a back-up for other colleagues. Over the years she has worked herself into a position as “the go to person” for her boss, Jack Barns. Eileen has made quite an effort to gain Jack’s confidence. She handles the sales staff commissions and employee benefits, and makes most of the purchasing decisions for the office. She is often found sitting in Jack’s office, doing her daily work and chatting with Jack about both work and personal issues.
The rest of the staff resent Eileen’s connection to Jack, the boss. Many of them feel that she gets preferential treatment. Eileen does work hard, but she also has a way of setting her own hours. She is often overheard complaining about how tired she is after having to stay late at night to fix some filing error. Jack is often the one to inform other employees that Eileen is working flexible hours because some of her duties require her attention at times outside their normal working hours.