I said a few words.

I thanked the engineers, as Malcolm had taught me a decent leader always begins with the people.

I did not mention Damian, because he was not part of this story anymore, and had not been for a long time.

And then I stepped down, and I let the evening belong to the company rather than to me, and I spent most of it at the edges, talking to the floor staff and the apprentices and the account managers, the way I liked to.

The apprentices were my favorite part of any such evening, because they were the proof that the company had decided to have a future.