The Genius They Underpaid

My childhood friend and I had built a company together for seven years, and my proprietary algorithm was what kept the entire business running. However, his new girlfriend started targeting me the moment she joined the company. "Why does some nobody in data deserve 80,000 dollars? All you do is plug things into templates and run a few programs. Your salary is cut to 2,000 dollars from now on. You'll only handle basic data processing. I'll take over the core model." My childhood friend said nothing, silently allowing his girlfriend to rip me a new one. When I noticed that, I didn't argue. I simply agreed to the pay cut. A week later, the company's regular clients saw their conversion rates plummet, putting us on the hook for massive termination fees. His girlfriend came to me in tears, clutching a pile of useless data. "How could you just stop helping?" I smiled and held up the contract. "2,000 dollars a month, remember? So, all I'm responsible for is plugging things into templates." Chapter 1 The First Strike It began at Monday's weekly meeting. Linnea Gardenia, my childhood friend's new girlfriend, started attacking me right from the start. The sales director had just finished reporting on the new clients' sky-high conversion costs when the atmosphere in the conference room instantly turned icy. Luke Zephyr, my childhood friend, rubbed his forehead and looked at me. "Savannah, what does the data team have to say?" Before I could answer, Linnea cut in, saying, "Mr. Zephyr, may I say something?" Luke had always indulged her. "Go ahead." Linnea stood, her eyes fixed on me. There was no mistaking the challenge in them. "Savannah, I studied the data. The reason we've been able to retain our existing clients is that our ad campaigns have a conversion rate as high as 30 percent. That's impressive. However, I also noticed that the cost structure of this model is far too rigid. "The iteration cycle is slow, too. It relies entirely on the algorithm and lacks any real insight into human behavior." As she spoke, she opened her PowerPoint presentation. "This was an advertising campaign I worked on with my student club while I was in college. We had a budget of 500 dollars and generated 30,000 inquiries." She presented it with complete confidence, as if it were not some student club practice project, but a multimillion-dollar business case worth bragging about. I said nothing, waiting for her to actually get to the point. Sure enough, she changed tracks and finally revealed what she was really after. "Mr. Zephyr, I'm not questioning Savannah's abilities. I just think the company is paying too much for this kind of stability." She glanced around the conference room before saying slowly, "Savannah makes 80,000 dollars a month. Honestly, the work this position involves could be handled by an experienced optimization specialist for 30,000 dollars. "After all, the key to advertising is creativity and insight, not writing code." The conference room fell completely silent. An intern had just publicly challenged the compensation and value of the company's technical backbone at a weekly meeting. I turned to look at Luke. I had known him for 22 years, and we had been business partners for seven. The intelligent ad-targeting model I had spent six months working around the clock to build was the foundation on which we had built this company from scratch. It was also what gave him the confidence to make such bold promises to our clients, yet he was now avoiding my gaze. The company had been burning through cash to expand into new business lines, and our cash flow was under serious strain. Linnea's proposal to "cut costs and improve efficiency" was clearly appealing to him. Several department heads around me had already begun whispering among themselves, some even agreeing with Linnea. Luke remained silent for a long while before finally speaking, effectively making the decision. "Savannah, Linnea has a point. The company is under a lot of cost pressure right now. Here's what we'll do. Your salary will be temporarily reduced to 2,000 dollars. Linnea will be taking over the advertising model." Chapter 2 The $2,000 Salary "You have the experience, so you can lead the creative review team. Just help everyone review the materials and make sure the content stays compliant," Luke said. 2,000 dollars. That was 28,000 dollars less than the 30,000 dollars Linnea had suggested. It was obvious he was deliberately humiliating me. He added, "We're all on the same team here. So, let's not sweat about the money. Once this round of expansion is over and the company starts making money, I'll make it up to you through your share of the profits." I stared at that familiar face and found it unbelievably foreign for the first time since forever. I didn't argue about how complicated the model was. I didn't remind him what had brought in 80 percent of our clients. I simply looked at him calmly and asked, "Where's the contract? Are we signing it now?" My willingness to agree so readily left both Luke and Linnea stunned. Still, he quickly recovered. In fact, he looked relieved as he immediately told HR to prepare the reassignment agreement. A brand-new employment contract was placed in front of me in just five minutes. I didn't hesitate as I picked up the pen and signed my name with a flourish. Linnea walked over, her chin tilted up. Then, she spoke in a voice only the two of us could hear. "The data department is mine now. I'm definitely better than people who only got ahead because of connections." I smiled and ignored her jabs. … The reassignment took effect the next day. I moved straight from my private office to the farthest corner of the open-plan workspace. Linnea was now sitting in my old office. I had to admit, she moved fast as she called a meeting with everyone in the data department that very afternoon. The first thing she did was scrap the entire workflow I had established. Then, she introduced a vague theoretical framework she had pulled straight from a textbook to replace it. Several senior employees in the data department were furious, but they didn't dare say a word. So, they could only grit their teeth and put up with an outsider who clearly had no idea what she was doing. The company held the kickoff meeting for the e-commerce shopping event that Wednesday. It was the company's biggest project every year, and everyone was on edge. "This project is extremely challenging," the sales director repeatedly emphasized. "The user targeting has to be incredibly precise. If we target the wrong audience, not only will the budget go to waste, but it could also damage the brand's long-term reputation." Linnea stood up the moment he was done talking. She looked at Luke, her eyes shining with confidence. "Mr. Zephyr, let me handle this project. I guarantee I'll not only hit the KPI, but also increase the conversion rate by another five percent." Luke clearly liked her confidence and came to a decision in her favor on the spot. "Good. Linnea, you'll have full responsibility for the project. The company will give you our full support for whatever resources you need." After the meeting adjourned, Linnea walked straight to my desk. She slapped a stack of documents onto it. She looked down from her oh-so lofty height and instructed snootily, "Savannah, these are the first batch of test materials for the baby-products campaign. I need you to review them by the end of today." She didn't sound like she was talking to a colleague. Instead, she sounded like she was clearly ordering around a lowly slave. I didn't bother sparing her a glance as I picked up the top sheet of paper and skimmed through it. "Got it," I replied flatly. Alas, it seemed that my calm composure throughout the exchange had made her dissatisfied. So, she just had to get in a couple more digs before she was satisfied. "I never thought I'd see the day when you'd be doing this kind of basic work, Savannah." She folded her arms, a mocking smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "Checking typos and reviewing pictures all day must be pretty easy, right? Unlike us. We're responsible for tens of millions in revenue. The pressure is intense." I finally looked up at her. "Is that so?" "Of course." "Then, don't bite off more than you can chew," I drawled blandly as I set down the paper and looked at Linnea. Chapter 3 The Model "Especially when it comes to the baby-products campaign," I said, enunciating each word. "I spent three years building the model for the baby-products campaign. The logic behind its user labels is a hundred times more complicated than you think. "A word of advice? Don't touch a single one of the core labels. Otherwise, you won't be able to handle the consequences." Linnea's expression instantly darkened at my warning. Clearly, I had hit a very sore nerve. "Are you telling me how to do my job? Savannah, don't forget your place. You're in no place to tell me how to do my job! That outdated model of yours should have been scrapped a long time ago!" She immediately called Luke as soon as she snapped at me, as if to prove that she was the one in control. Her voice instantly softened, full of wounded indignation. "Luke, Savannah still hasn't given me the password to the model backend. I need to change the parameters, but I can't get in." Luke's call came through to my extension a moment later. "Savannah, give Linnea the backend password and cooperate with her." "The password changes dynamically. I need to log in and transfer the access permissions," I replied calmly. Luke came over to my desk 10 minutes later. Only then did I open the backend login screen in front of both of them. As I entered the password, I could tell that Linnea's eyes were fixed on my keyboard. My fingers moved quickly, but she watched me flit through the keyboard with unusual concentration. I logged out of my account once the access permissions had been transferred. "There you go." "That's it?" Linnea frowned. "Isn't there anything else you need to tell me?" I looked at her and said seriously, "There is. One last warning. Don't mess with the model." Linnea scoffed, grabbed Luke by the arm, and turned to leave. "Mind your own business." I stayed late at the office that night. As I passed the data department, I saw that Linnea was the only one still there. The impatience she had shown during the day was gone. Instead, an almost feverish excitement was in its place. I heard her muttering under her breath. "Why make it so complicated? It's all redundant code… People trying to conceive, new parents, families having a second child… What's the point of splitting the labels up so finely? "I'm going to simplify all of this, concentrate the budget, and go straight after high-value customers. Once I finish changing the parameters, I'll push the conversion rate to 40 percent. Let's see who dares question me, then!" I shook my head and left the office. Some people had to fall into a pit themselves before they realized just how deep it was. … I clocked in at exactly 9 a.m on the day of the shopping event. Compared with the days when I used to stay up late monitoring the data, my new 2,000-dollar-a-month content review job really was easy enough to feel like retirement. A sudden commotion broke out in the lobby at exactly 10 a.m. "What's going on? Why did the backend numbers just fall off a cliff?" "The client is demanding answers! They want to know why impressions are up, but we haven't gotten a single conversion!" I took a sip of coffee and casually opened the company's shared analytics dashboard. The red line representing the multimillion-dollar baby-products brand was plunging almost vertically. The conversion rate had plummeted to just 0.1%, compared with the usual 30%. "Linnea! What the hell is going on?" Luke's furious roar came from his office. A few seconds later, he stormed into the lobby, his face livid. Linnea shuffled behind him, her eyes red rimmed. "I-I just optimized the labels." Chapter 4 The Price of Access "I removed the narrower targeting labels for things like pregnancy planning and parenting and consolidated them into 'high purchase-intent audiences.' I figured that would let us concentrate the budget and go straight after better conversion rates. I didn't know…" The sales director came rushing over. He was clutching his phone, his face as pale as a sheet. "Mr. Zephyr, someone from the brand's executive team just called me. They blew 5 million dollars on the campaign today, and the system ended up targeting nothing but single men between 18 and 22! "Their brand account is practically being flooded with complaints, with customers asking if they've lost their minds for pushing nursing pads and breast pumps to college guys!" Sweat poured down the sales director's forehead, saying tremulously, "They want to cancel their contract with us immediately. They're also demanding reimbursement for the entire budget loss, plus triple damages for breach of contract. That's 12 million dollars in total!" Unfortunately, their troubles didn't end there. Just then, the data for more than a dozen other major consumer-goods clients that had been displayed on the giant screen began flashing red one after another. Linnea had altered the underlying core model. As a result, every project that relied on that shared model had gone down with it. "Cancelations… Claims for damages…" Luke swayed on his feet, nearly losing his balance. "Where's Savannah? Where is she?" Luke spun around and frantically scanned the room. Finally, his eyes landed on me, sitting in the corner and killing time. He hurried over to my desk, breathing heavily. "Savannah, check the backend! There's a bug in the model. Fix it now!" Linnea worried her lip as she dogged his steps, a trace of resentment still lingering in her eyes. I leaned back in my chair and looked at Luke, who was sweating profusely. "Mr. Zephyr, are you sure you have the right person? I'm in creative review now. I'm not responsible for maintaining the data." Luke was so panicked that his voice came out strained. "Savannah, this is not the time to hold a grudge. You wrote the model. You understand it better than anyone. Log into the backend and change the parameters back. Hurry!" I didn't move. Instead, I calmly pulled open the drawer on my right, and amid the clutter lay a national patent certificate. It was titled "Intelligent Advertising Placement System and Method Based on Multidimensional User Profiles." I was the inventor. I pointed to the certificate and looked at Luke. "This core advertising model is my personal patent. I only licensed it to my former department for commercial use. I'm in creative review now. So, I no longer have maintenance access." Luke took a deep breath, suppressing the panic in his eyes. Then, he ordered me, "Then I'm authorizing you now. Go fix it immediately!" "I'm sorry. Verbal authorization isn't acceptable." I smiled and pushed the drawer shut. "If you want me to maintain it, we can start by discussing the patent licensing fee." Luke's expression darkened instantly. He slammed his hand against the desk and roared, "Savannah, you're taking advantage of the situation! The company has supported you all these years by paying you 80,000 dollars a month. Now that the company's in trouble, you're really just going to stand by and refuse to help?" "3 million dollars." I looked at Luke calmly. "The one-time licensing fee is 3 million dollars and not a penny less. Sign the contract first. Once the payment clears, I'll immediately restore the parameters." Luke's face went white with rage, and the muscle at the corner of his eye twitched. "3 million dollars? Savannah, why don't you just rob a bank?" Linnea shrieked, her voice painfully shrill, "Luke, don't listen to her! She wrote this model while she was working for the company. How can she possibly claim it as her personal patent?" Chapter 5 Time to Walk Away "Obviously, she used her position to quietly claim the company's work as her own!" Liennea screeched. I looked at Linnea, almost amused by her foolish audacity. "Linnea, I filed for this patent during my junior year of college. Luke and I hadn't even graduated then. The company hadn't even been incorporated yet. The application date is clearly printed on the patent certificate. Do you want me to make a copy and tape it to your face?" Linnea was left speechless. However, she quickly found another excuse to throw a fit. "Then, you must have deliberately left a backdoor! Why did the entire system crash just because I changed a few labels? You must have built a security vulnerability into the model, waiting for today so you could extort money from the company! "Luke, we should call the police and have her arrested!" She turned and clung tightly to Luke's arm, looking for an ally. Luke said nothing, but the look in his eyes had changed from desperation to something dark and sinister. Now that a great deal of money was on the line, it seemed like the 22 years of friendship we shared suddenly seemed as fragile as paper. He took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "Savannah, let's talk in private." I pointed to the coworkers around us, who were openly eavesdropping. "We can talk right here. Either pay me or watch the company go under. Those are your two choices." Luke's expression darkened. "Savannah, don't forget that you're still bound by a non-compete agreement. If you stand idly by and cause the company to go bankrupt due to your refusal to help, I'll sue you for deliberately damaging company property and refusing to follow work assignments." He paused, his tone taking on a condescending certainty. "You're a smart woman. You should know what happens when you cross a partner who has connections throughout the entire industry." When Linnea saw that Luke was siding with her, her brazen confidence flared to life once more. "That's right! And your salary and commission from last month are still sitting in the company's account. You won't get a single cent if you refuse to cooperate!" I looked them in the eye, reached up, removed my employee ID badge, and set it gently on the desk. "Then, go ahead and sue me." I stood up, opened the drawer, and put the patent certificate into my bag. "Savannah, what are you doing?" Luke's brow furrowed as he stepped in front of me. "Quitting. As for last month's pay, keep it if you want. We'll settle the non-compete penalty in court." "Savannah!" Luke growled, the veins in his forehead bulging. "Do you really think the company can't function without you? Let me tell you something. You'll never be able to walk through those doors once you leave the office today." Linnea sneered beside him. "Once I find another technical expert to fix the model, you won't even have a chance to beg us to take you back!" I ignored them both, leaving Luke's livid face and Linnea's taunts behind me. I strode out the company's doors under the complicated gazes of my ex-coworkers. I pulled out my phone once I was in the elevator. There was only one missed call on the screen. I called back, and the other person answered almost immediately. His tone was respectful as he said, "Ms. Eve, the chairman wants me to ask if you've had enough of 'experiencing life' at that little operation out there."