Appraisal Day......

I was starting to think my boss was too busy to appraise me...he had been swamped for the last month or more...

...my boss, Chee Ming, a 20-year veteran Citibank and our Country Legal Counsel...

my appraisal was scheduled last Friday and he told me in the evening that he was leaving for the day and said Monday was better....he was supposed to have been off last Friday but due to the impetuous nature of the job as Citibank's Country Counsel, he needed a couple more days....

Monday came....I had been stuck with the boys from Compliance & Control (C&C) and Wealth Management trying to draft and tweak up the most appropriate new-to-bank client's on-boarding letters and existing client risk disclosures in view of new investment policies by APAC Legal with direct orders from Citigroup NY....by the time I knew it, it was night and my boss had left..... :( *perplexed and worried....

I remember my ex-boss postponing appraisals on several occasions, only keeping me in suspense ...so I couldn't help but ask whether history was repeating itself?

...but I knew my current boss is very different....no matter what the tasks beckons....he will deliver....

and so...he called me into his room today...

my heart skipped a beat although, I was confident I could maintain a composed disposition in the presence of "the man behind the DESK" ....

A sigh of relief....my boss says he is happy that all business units I have serviced were all positive about me....save for him noticing a few silly, careless mistakes in drafting.... which called for the conventional assurance of exercising more vigilance ....

So, that was the impetus to push on pass my impending confirmation with "the Citi which never sleeps"......someone from IBIS told me if HSBC is "the world's local bank", then Citibank is "the world's GLOBAL bank"....*proud beaming smile!!

... it is indeed a new beginning..... God has seen me through...yet another year....

...my boss has taken the rest of year off, but not before posting an organizational-wide email informing that in his absence, my colleague, Mew San would be acting Country Counsel and in her absence, my other colleague whom I belong in the same team with, Yvonne Chin would be acting Country Counsel...

This means a little teasing....I went up to Yvonne and cheekily told her " since you are 2nd acting country counsel (at which point I mock-handed over my drawer keys to her) I am under instructions to hand over to you, the keys to our nuclear silos and the launch codes".....

Yvonne: ....

...the monotony of the day was abruptly interrupted by virulent laughter, suffice to say.....

Next target.....Mew San.... before I left, I wished her "good night",....took two steps and then back and said, "Oh ... I meant, good night BOSS!"....amused and by her impression, I could read that she had been the butt of every one's teasing when she said "You all are terrible!!!".... *grin

All in a days work and back home....straight to the gym....