Who: Lucy and Harry. What: An unconventional job interview. When: Mid-June. Where: OsCorp. Status: Complete. Rating: Low.
If there was one thing Lucy would be able to say about this it was that it was the most unconventional job interview ever, or at least the way she had obtained it was. But Harry seemed like a nice guy and at the very least she’d be happy to meet him. She had no official qualifications you’d need as a personal assistant but she knew her way around a computer, was pretty organised and was not easy to push around at all. She’d picked out a nice outfit, okay it wasn’t a business suit but it looked good at least.
Entering the building she looked around, it was pretty impressive that was for sure. Making her way over to the first person she saw she said, “Excuse me? Any idea where I can find Harry Osborn?”
It helped that Harry was, himself, unconventional. At least in the business world. The only time he’d ever spent around the company was when he was a young boy and then only in the last few months had he really seen how OsCorp worked before he was sent to California. He didn’t even have any university courses under his belt. But all the same, he had a vision for how he wanted his company to be run, and that was how he was going to do it.
The woman at the desk in the main entrance glanced up at Lucy. “Mister Osborn? Oh - are you Lucy? He told us to be expecting you. If you just sign your name in here and take this visitor’s badge, I’ll let him know you’re here and he’ll be down shortly.”
“Yes, that’s me. Thank you very much” Lucy said as she signed in and took the badge smiling at the friendly woman before waiting for Harry, Mr Osborn, to appear.
Harry didn’t take very long. He didn’t look like any sort of CEO, wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a suit jacket on top. Still, he had the presence of one even though he was pretty short, too, and he grinned when he saw Lucy.
“Hey!” he said, walking up and holding out his hand. “You came. Awesome.”
“Hi” Lucy said with a smile as she shook his hand, “How could I possibly resist this chance? Besides I wanted to meet you anyway” she admitted, he’d seemed nice on the net and she needed more friends. “Is this a convenient time?” she asked.
“It would be pretty stupid to miss it, it’s true,” Harry said, but there was a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Hey, I’m the boss, it’s always a convenient time when I want it to be. Come on, I figured we could just walk around. Talk a bit. It’s stuffy up in the office and if you’re gonna end up working here maybe, might as well start learning the place now.”
“Of course, how could I forget that’s what being the boss means?” she grinned at him as she nodded, “Sure, I have to say this place looks amazing” she told him honestly. It was professional but somehow not off puttingly so.
He laughed and motioned for her to follow him. “Thanks. I mean, you know, I didn’t design it, but it looks pretty great. Shiny and new and all that. It follow my father’s parameters pretty much to the letter, but I won’t lie to you, I’m already working on overhauling it all. You should know that I’m a fun guy, but I don’t mess around when it comes to this sort of thing.”
Lucy nodded, “That makes sense. Taking over from somebody else you want your own identity on things, not just staff but procedures, rules, general atmosphere. Everything will be different, more you. I think it’s good to find a balance between being a fun guy and still remaining someone who people take seriously and who gets the job done”
“Yeah, totally. I mean, let’s be real,” Harry said, “I’m twenty years old. I still wanna act like I’m twenty now and again.” He led her into an elevator where he spoke the name for one of the floors, then leaned against the wall. “So. Do you know anything already about OsCorp? It’s fine if you don’t. By the way.”
“You have to enjoy being twenty definitely” Lucy said as they stepped into the elevator. “I know you’re a pretty big name in medical and biological research but I have to admit that’s about all I know”
“That’s all right. That’s pretty much what most of the general public knows, anyway. Like they all know Stark does gadgets.” He gave her a smile. “But, yeah, that’s it in a nutshell. We do actual development that goes on the market, too. The New York branch especially does a lot in the way of medical equipment and over-the-counter treatments. This one is more focused on the research side of things. We’ll still do all the other stuff, but this is an opportunity to focus on all the projects that there isn’t much time for. We’re working on cross-species treatments, for example. Plants mostly. Looking at how they reconstruct and developing that into more ethical medicines.”
Lucy found herself listening to him with more interest than she'd thought she'd have initially. But it really did all sound fascinating. "You must have some incredible minds working for you"she said, "And how wonderful that they're contributing in such a good way. I know medical research companies don't have the greatest reputation for ethical practices"
“Well, to be honest, I’m not sure it’s one of OsCorp’s founding principals.” The elevator doors opened and Harry led her out, down the hall. “But it’s the market these days. Everyone wants something more natural, and we’ve got the skill to do it. This is the research department,” he mentioned. Just so she wasn’t lost. “But geez, listen to me talk. Tell me about you.”
Lucy nodded as she listened, taking note of her surroundings too. It might take her a while to find her way around if she got the job but hopefully not too long. "There's not much to tell. I finished school last year and decided to go travelling, so I backpacked around Europe then flew to Canada before missing my family so turned up at my brothers doorstep as a surprise" she grinned.
“You backpacked around Europe?” Harry brightened up. “I spent about two years after school there. I went to this awful boarding school in England and then just stayed. I loved Austria.”
"Really? That's great. I had such a great time, I agree Austria was lovely. Everything was clean and fresh. I loved Finland for that too, I stayed with some people my parents knew for a few days in their cabin on a lake" Lucy smiled brightly as she spoke about her exploits.
“I never made it up to Finland or Denmark or anything. Too bad, I really wanted to. But continental Europe was great. Way better than here, anyway,” Harry said. “But I like what backpacking says about a person. You know, it means you’re independent, organized - more or less - and definitely ambitious. Those are good qualities, you know.”
"I recommend it" Lucy said, "But really any part of Europe you see holds something fascinating, so I found anyway" she laughed and nodded, "I guess so. It definitely helped me think on my feet and make decisions"
“Any other good qualities?” he asked, continuing their tour through the building. “How are you at scheduling things? Keeping on top of important things, being stubborn, that sort of thing?”
"Oh I'm as stubborn as they come, ask my brother" Lucy grinned, "And I can be pretty neurotic when it comes to organising things. I keep appointments on my phone, computer and paper diary" she admitted, "But it helped me a lot when travelling"
“Great.” Harry nodded, listening to her. “That’s sort of a good thing in a personal assistant, you know? It’ll be sort of good to have someone my own age, too. You understand my needs as a young adult beyond the whole running a company thing.”
"Yeah I guess I never really thought about it before" she nodded, "But I totally get the age thing. Much better than some doddery old assistant who thinks your sole focus should always be work"
“I can’t even imagine.” And he couldn’t. Harry knew he needed someone that would be able to hold his interest when he started getting bored. “Do you have any plans to go travelling again soon? Or are you in Orange County to stay?”
"Don't try, it's too disturbing" Lucy advised with a smile. "No travelling plans. I'm kind of happy to be here for a while, I like staying with my brother and if I find the perfect job then even more reason to stay right?"
“Absolutely more reason.” Harry liked her. She seemed trustworthy and competent, and he’d rather have her than someone his father appointed. He got the idea that Lucy would crack down on people if she needed to. He was just about to open his mouth when his phone buzzed, and he checked it. “Apparently I have a meeting soon. See, this is why I need an assistant.” He laughed and motioned back to the elevator. “I’ll walk you out and then send you a message or something sometime. Once I get it all figured out.”
"Sure" Lucy smiled as they moved towards the elevator, "Thanks for seeing me too. I know it's not really the usual way to apply for a job" she added. She had a good feeling about Harry and the company.