Executive Boardroom Maneuvers — Ep 5: Graceful Executive Resignation Terms | English C1-C2
Shadow this lesson: play a line, pause, and repeat it out loud — matching speed and intonation.
Conversation Script
Chairman
Let's not pretend this is amicable; we both know the board forced your hand.
Executive
Fine, but I'd still like my departure framed as a mutual decision, not a dismissal.
Chairman
That's a generous request considering the shareholder letters piling up on my desk.
Executive
Generous, perhaps, but hardly unreasonable given everything I've delivered over the years.
Chairman
No one's disputing your track record, but optics matter more than gratitude right now.
Executive
Then let's shape the optics together instead of leaving it to the press.
Chairman
Alright, propose your terms, and I'll tell you honestly which ones survive the room.
Executive
A twelve-month severance package, retained equity, and a joint statement praising my tenure.
Chairman
Seriously? Twelve months feels like a reward for the mess you're leaving behind.
Executive
Call it insurance against a lawsuit you'd rather avoid airing publicly.
Chairman
That's a thinly veiled threat dressed up as a negotiating position.
Executive
Not a threat, just a reminder that discretion benefits both of us equally.
Chairman
Six months, no equity, but the joint statement I can probably sell to the board.
Executive
Then let's shake on six months, half the equity, and call it settled.