“… But I’m getting bogged down in details,” the officer is sayin’.
“In addition to your shipping efficiency, are you aware that the turnaround time for an order at your depot is less than a third the time it takes to get an order through any other depot?”
I am startin’ to see the direction this interview is goin’, and needless to say I am not enthused with it.
“That’s mostly Private Bee’s doin’ sir,” I sez, tryin’ to get the focus off me. “He’s been experimentin’ with a new organization system in our warehouse … as well as a new ‘reduced paperwork’ trackin’ system.”
“Private Bee, eh?” the officer sez, makin’ a note on his pad. “Tell him I’d like to see him when you get back to your unit. I’d like a bit more information about this experimental system of his … and speaking of experiments …”
He looks up at me again.
“I understand you’ve been using civilian transports for some of your deliveries. Is that another experiment?”
“Yes, sir,” I sez.
I figure he’ll be upset about this, so I am willin’ to take the blame. It seems, however, that once again I have misjudged the situational.
“You know, sergeant,” he sez, leanin’ back in his chair, “the army considered using civilian transports for the disbursement of supplies, but abandoned the idea as being too expensive. From the look of things, though, you may have just proved them wrong. Of course, you should have cleared it with me before implementing such an experiment, just as it was beyond your authority to authorize Private Bee to change established procedure, but it’s hard to argue with your results. Besides, it’s a rare thing these days to find a soldier, especially an enlisted man, who’s not afraid to show a little initiative.”