The McCain and Obama Debate in the corporate world...

Last night, I watched the debate between McCain and Obama. On the left, a man with years of experience. On the right, a man who talks as smoothly as the commentators who speak about him. How would they both fair if they were in private industry? Who would get hired for the job?

Have you ever hired anyone? What did you look for? Did you look for a person who is charismatic, personable, educated, and has great ideas? Or, did you look for a person who has experience, who has delt with the types of problems you’re facing, who has a proven track record your can depend on?

If we were hiring Mr. McCain and Mr. Obama for a position in a company, here's what we would find:

Mr. Obama comes in, shakes hands, sits down, smiles broadly and is very friendly. His resume shows he has gone to an Ivy League College. Very impressive! He’s worked in the community for a non-profit organization, then worked a short time in two positions related to your type of business. He’s an up and coming young man and well-liked.

He starts the interview by telling you he has great ideas for your company. He promises to improve it by offering new products your customers can't do without. He'll have to add departments, of course, and hire more people in order to grow your business, but it will be great.

You tell him the employees are unhappy because some of them don’t have a healthcare plan. You’d like to be able to offer it to everyone. What would he do? No problem, he says. Why not bring healthcare in-house? You can afford it. Of course, you’ll have to hire more personnel: doctors, office staff, healthcare facilities, etc. You’ll need to pay the hospitals and pay for prescription drugs, but people will want to work for your company because you offer this great benefit.

The thought of running your own healthcare is scary. You ask him about the expense. How can you afford it? I’ve got an answer for that, he says. No problem. He'll just raise the price of your merchandise for a small percentage of your customers, only 5% of them. You know, the ones who currently put at least 60% of your profits on your books? The "best" customers. They won’t notice it. It’ll be painless.

You wonder about this. Will they be mad? After all, the smallest group is already paying the greatest percentage. They help you keep the costs low for the smaller companies you deal with. Will they cut down on purchasing your product, or pass the increased cost onto their customers, or maybe leave your company? You try to think of the implications. They aren’t a popular group. Everyone hates them because they’re the most cash flush. Still, it’s something to consider.

You talk about one of your biggest expenses; the cost of energy. It’s cutting into your profit margin. You are seeing a drastic increase in transporting goods and running your factories. What can he do about it? Mr. Obama suggests an alternative energy source. A clean source. You realize that’s a good idea to cut down on pollution. Yet, you’re still using gas. Hmm. When will this new energy source be available? You’re hurting now. And, the energy costs are still rising.

You deal with many foreign countries. In fact, you have factories in some of these countries. You ask Mr. Obama’s strategy for dealing with difficult customers. How would he handle them? How would he keep your employees safe? He tells you he would negotiate with the difficult customers directly. Sit down at the table with them and talk it out. You’re a little distrustful of this technique. You know these guys. Some of them are dangerous and corrupt. But, maybe he’s right.

So, how would he keep your factories and employees safe while they’re in some of these corrupt countries? Well, he would ensure that there’s adequate protection. He guarantees you he could handle it. You’re not sure of his experience with this type of challenge, but you believe him.

You wonder how he does in a crisis situation. You ask the question: If you were out of town on a important sales call and there was a crisis in the company, what would you do? Mr. Obama says he can multi-task. Just give him a call. He can do two things at once.

You shake hands, impressed with Mr. Obama. It was a great interview. He threw out a lot of ideas that seemed possible. He seemed to have a handle on everything.

Next, Mr. McCain walks in. He’s confident, friendly, seems to have a quiet, calm personality. He begins by telling you about his experience with these troubling countries you have to deal with. He’s dealt with them all. In fact, he’s been to all of them. He knows how they think. He was held captive in one of the worst of them for five years. When he got out, he made sure that all the other employees in that violent, corrupt country were released. He successfully negotiated with the same people who had held him captive, who had tortured him. You are quite impressed. In fact, you are amazed that he got out alive, yet was determined and brave enough to return to get his employees out safely.

You change the subject. What about the factory and employees here? What are your ideas? He tells you he knows your company is in trouble. There’s too much spending going on in some areas and some employees are taking advantage of the company. You unhappily know this. Everytime you hire a new employee to fix the problem, he says he’s going to fix it, then becomes part of the problem. You feel helpless.

Mr. McCain explains that he has a long history of battling this type of abuse and will make sure it’s stopped. He hates abuse of power, stealing and wasteful spending.You hear the commitment and forcefulness in his voice. You can see his track record on his resume. There’s a long list. He’s even taken on some of his friends, he tells you. You feel excited at the possibility that someone might finally be able to do something about this problem. He seems like an independent thinker.

But, he’s also concerned about the employees, he says. He’ll make sure, by cutting the fat that’s not needed, by curbing overspending and reining in the abusers, he’ll make the company more profitable and financially secure. That would be great, you think. You'd be able to pay off some of the huge debt you've racked up.

With this cost cutting, Mr. McCain says, he'll be able to offer your employees a large discount on healthcare, so that all of them can afford it. He won’t have to hire new office staff and doctors, or pay for their healthcare or drugs directly. The idea makes you think this may be the solution. This plan would save you money over the in-house healthcare plan proposed by Mr. Obama and the employees could choose who they want to cover them. Plus, there won’t be any threat of mismanagement, fraud, or abuse this way.

You bring up the cost of energy. It’s draining the company. How can he help? He smiles. He knows there’s a problem. The solution is a multi-pronged attack. First, he will make sure the company has enough oil to survive and thrive until eco-friendly alternatives are produced. With more oil, the costs will be kept down. He suggests that the oil be produced here, rather than buying it from foreign companies, some of whom are not our friends. That way, the billions spent in oil will stay here.

Mr. McCain also suggests the cleanest energy possible. Used safely and successfully in France and other European countries; it’s nuclear energy. It's one of the most inexpensive energies to produce and will keep the expenses down, too. And, when new eco-friendly products are finally developed, tested and brought to market, you can slowly convert to them, phasing out oil while minimizing your expenses to re-fit your factories. It is a plan that takes us from today into the future.

He goes on to discuss your customers, the lifeblood of your company. Slowly, you have been losing them and have had to lay off employees because of it. You don’t want to lose any more customers. It’s hurting the company. First, Mr. McCain lets you know that he'll keep the cost of your products the same. It wouldn’t be a good business decision to increase the cost of your product when you’re competing with cheaper, foreign companies.

Mr. McCain says he will be able to offer a price cut, a discount, for the few who purchase the majority of your products; the 5% who make up 60% of your profits. That way, they'll stay with you and won't go with your rivals in China and India. Your price cut will enable them to hire more employees and you’ll be able to keep yours. In fact, these companies may do more business with you and you'll need to add employees. You think about this. Why punish the companies who pay the majority of your profits? It doesn’t make sense.You like his suggestion.

You ask the "crisis" question: If you were out of town on a special sales call and there was a crisis in the company, what would you do? Mr. McCain tells you he would make arrangements with the client to meet at another time and would fly right home to help with the crisis. You are comforted by this. He’s given you the right answer.

You ponder your interviews. You're impressed with both men. You’re on the fence, actually. It’s almost 50-50.

Mr. Obama’s ideas sound exciting. Maybe he can accomplish all of them without raising expenses. You call his references. They tell you he was a wonderful community leader. He worked hard and accomplished much.

His other former employer says the same thing. But there’s a problem with his current employer. They tell you he spent more money than expected, millions in fact. And, some of the money went to companies and clients who had done favors for him. You’re not happy with that. Isn’t that what you’re trying to fix? Overspending and cronyism?

And, there are some questions about one of his first employers, a Mr. Ayers. He was in trouble with the law. Also, there’s a friend who helped him get up the corporate ladder, a Mr. Rezko. He wound up in jail on federal corruption charges. You are shocked at the news. Mr. Obama seemed so trustworthy. Maybe it’s just a coincidence.

Mr. McCain has a long list of references. You give them a call. They tell you he has a proven track record of success and years of experience dealing with difficult problems. He's shown through action that he’s true to his word. He's honest, sincere and does what he says he's going to do. He gets things done. He doesn't back down when the going gets rough. He doesn't follow the crowd, but thinks for himself. There are no shady business dealings.

You ponder your dilemma. You really liked Mr. Obama. He was charismatic. But, Mr. McCain has the experience, the results, the integrity. You make your decision. You know who’s the best man for the job. You call Mr. McCain and offer him the job.