I had entered the building with the protection of a CEO appointment I hadn’t yet announced.

Nia had worked there for years without that protection.

She had learned to become small so she could stay employed.

We held a listening session the following week, with independent facilitators and anonymous reporting available.

I deliberately did not ask employees to describe Bridgett publicly.

I wanted to hear about the system, not stage a trial.

The problems were wider than one assistant.

Some managers treated schedules as rewards for personal loyalty.