CEO’s Son Fired Me for Not Wearing a Tie – I Was About to Sign a $2.8 Billion Deal…

The End of a Twenty-Two Year Career

Tell everyone it’s been a pleasure working with them. The doors closed on his stunned face.

As the elevator descended, my phone rang. Scott’s name flashed on the screen.

I took a deep breath and answered. “Ryan Thompson, where are you? We’re all waiting in the lobby, ready to make history today.”

I’m Ryan Thompson, 47 years old, and I was about to have what I thought would be the worst day of my career. Turns out, it was actually the beginning of something much bigger.

“There’s been a change of plans,” I said, keeping my voice steady despite the cardboard box in my hands containing 22 years of my professional life.

“I’m no longer with the company.”

The silence on Scott’s end stretched so long I wondered if the call had dropped. Then: “What are you talking about? Ryan, this isn’t funny.”

“I’ve been terminated. Effective immediately.”

“Terminated? On signing day? That’s ridiculous. This has to be some kind of negotiation tactic. Nobody fires their lead negotiator on the biggest deal in company history.”

The elevator chimed softly as we passed each floor. I watched the numbers descend, each one taking me further from the executive suite where I’d spent the last 3 years orchestrating this merger.

“No tactic, Scott. Just reality. I suggest you speak with the company’s representatives about how they wish to proceed.”

The Golden Boy’s Fatal Mistake

The elevator doors opened to the marble lobby of Hammond Industries. Through the glass windows, I could see Scott Williams standing with his team from Pinnacle Industries.

Phone pressed to his ear, his free hand gestured in confusion. These were serious people—investment bankers, lawyers, executives who’d flown in from 3 different time zones for this moment.

Behind Scott’s group, I noticed Justin Hoffman had also arrived in the lobby, probably taking the stairs to make his grand entrance for the signing ceremony.

Justin. 28 years old, Harvard MBA, and son of our CEO Patricia Hoffman. The golden boy who’d just torpedoed the biggest deal of his mother’s career because I wasn’t wearing a tie.

I walked out of the elevator, box balanced in my arms like some corporate refugee. Scott spotted me immediately.

His expression shifted from confusion to alarm as he processed what he was seeing—his primary contact at Hammond Industries walking out with his belongings in a box.

He ended the call and strode toward me, his expensive suit and confident demeanor masking what I could see was growing panic.

“Ryan.” He wrapped me in a brief hug, as if physical contact could somehow make this nightmare make sense.

“What the hell is happening? We’re supposed to sign in 20 minutes. The press release goes live at noon.”

I took a steady breath, very aware that Justin was watching our exchange from across the lobby. The kid had that smug satisfaction written all over his face—the look of someone who’d just flexed his authority and was enjoying the results.

“Afraid not, Scott. Your lead contact just got fired. Deal’s off.”

Scott’s face hardened as he followed my gaze to Justin, who was now approaching us with the confidence of someone who clearly didn’t understand what he’d just destroyed.

“You did what?” Scott’s voice carried across the lobby, causing several of his advisers to look up from their phones and documents.

Justin’s expression began to shift from smugness to confusion as Scott’s words registered. Behind him, I could see the entire Pinnacle investment team—8 highly paid professionals who’d been working toward this moment for months—staring at him with growing disbelief.

“I was just enforcing company policy,” Justin stammered, suddenly looking less like a Harvard MBA and more like a child who’d broken something valuable.

He clutched the employee handbook like some kind of shield.

“His appearance violated our professional dress standards. No tie nobody was laughing at.”

Scott’s expression went from confusion to something much darker.

“You fired the lead negotiator of a $2.8 billion merger because he wasn’t wearing a tie?”

“It’s about respect for company culture,” Justin said, but his voice had lost its earlier confidence.

“Professional standards matter.”