It is hard enough to do work with pressure on top of you, but having someone constantly peck you with a stick is nonsense. The saddest part is that probably Belok is based on many real life bosses who have no remorse for the job, and I hate that. Probably any compos mentis person should understand why it is a bad idea. I have been taught my whole life that hard work comes first, and seeing a villain do exactly the opposite from that is so frustrating, he is not even aiming towards a productive goal or something one can identify with, he just screws around, complaining about the money and then saying «Oh you know what? Now I don’t care about the money, I just want the credit.» There is really no reason to be complaining really, I seldom think anyone would disagree with my opinion. But now we have this guy over-delaying the business with the CMM level crap, it is ludicrous. He is just topping beaurocratic work after beaurocratic work!
Speaking about CMM, I think the author should mind explaining us a little about how CMM works. If a company is qualified up to level 2, to what extent can they do what Mr. Grosz’s and skip requirements for a project? Is CMM not just a grade of quality assurance? Are they always so strict when it comes to it? If so, why did Tompkins not worry about his teams skipping steps? There are some parts in this chapter which need explanation, I would say.
There is also something about the way Tompkins approaches Director Menotti. Even though Mr. T is regarded as a terrific manager and is well-known around the industry (at least in Morovia), I would not have reached out the leader of a government institution so bluntly. Tompkins literally arrives and tries to scrub his issue on the director’s face, which he decides to shove off until the tea arrives. I would have expected a little more tenderness from Tompkins, especially when we are talking about straight out convincing a government official to do him this favor, a favor which could cost him his life. When you do something this big, you should at least try to get the guy to like you first, it is a rule in the book of persuasion. You need to take up interest in that person to get to that!
You know, you’re not the first who’s had some misgivings about what we do.
Dr. Menotti, Chapter 14, Page 168
What does Tompkins do after hearing these words from the man he is trying to convince? He interrupts directly, trying to get to the point about his problem, which of course, Menotti could not care less about. Is this the attitude of a man who knows how to convince? It was just a lucky break for Tompkins when he dealt with President Konoros, only to find out he was more compliant and even wanted to work for Tompkins. Luck. It was luck that helped Tompkins. I was expecting to see some kind of challenge to our protagonist, and I know that sometimes the challenge is not to do, but to go out and find, but I was expecting a little bit of a push from the author.
So far, we have already made it halfway through the book, and I have not found any attributes in Tompkins that can identify with. In my opinion, his involvement with the story has been mere luck, and I am not really into that type of character, more so when it is a good story that teaches us the struggles about management, and I feel the author has served Webster everything on a silver platter.
Coder Bebop 