The Life and Times of Ben Boa

If you follow me, you may be aware of the series I have run this year about Ben Boa. A couple of months ago, I was privileged to be recognised as one of the runners-up in the "Almost There” challenge. That story, “The Story Behind Ben Boa," is here if you haven't read it.

https://vocal.media/critique/the-story-behind-ben-boa

I explained that I had created the character Ben Bao while I was working. I was in charge of compliance for six countries in Asia-Pacific, including China. I spent much of my time investigating inappropriate behaviour by sales personnel. I also had to find ways to convey the compliance message to employees in an acceptable way. Ben Bao was born!

As the story unravelled, it developed a cult following in the company. In my mind, at least, it had it all. Calvernicus, the godfather of compliance, who offers wise advice. Ben and Tina Goodytweoshoes have a rocky, on-and-off relationship. Tina is the rock-solid compliance investigator. Meanwhile, Ernie, Ben’s best friend, is the accountant who suddenly goes missing. The Chinese mafia gets involved. A U.S. special agent from the Food and Drug Administration also gets in on the case.

When I joined the Vocal community, I began reworking Ben Boa. I hope to eventually turn it into a full fictional piece. Vocal has given me the impetus to keep pushing on this.

To date, two of the three parts have been published.

STOP the PRESS –

Part 3, where all the action happens, debuts on September 14.

By way of background, if you have not read any of the previous episodes, here is a brief catch-up so you are prepared. You can find all episodes on my profile or in the Chapters community by searching for “Ben Boa.”

Part 1

I introduced Ben to the community with a five-chapter series. These centered on how Ben met the love of his life, Tina Goodytwoshoes. Ben is not blessed in the fine art of courtship or romance.

Ben had accidentally poured coffee over this lady (Tina Goodytwoshoes) on the train. One thing led to another, and after a couple of dates, he was smitten. She worked in Quality and Compliance at the pharmaceutical company Laxo Smut Klump. Just as their relationship was starting to blossom, she had to go to China on business.

Ben learned that Tina worked in compliance at a pharmaceutical company. He then became eager to impress her with his knowledge of compliance, even if he didn’t know much about it. With Ernie's help, he tried to take a crash course in ethics and compliance. He desperately wanted to impress Tina. They got together a few times, only for Ben to make a fool of himself.

Part 2

Part 2 was twenty-three chapters. While Tina was still nowhere to be seen, Ben kept getting himself into trouble. He decided to leave his company, Fartbender Pharmaceuticals, and go to Smut Klump. A problem developed. He caught a couple of people shredding documents. It threw his life into chaos. Ernie got fired and then vanished, making things even harder.

Ernie gets the job at Smut Klump. He also starts a love-hate relationship with Penny Promo, one of the secretaries. For some reason, she has it in for Ben. Ben, along with his boss and the VP of Sales, gets caught bribing doctors and misusing company funds.

As the story unfolds, we are introduced to Calvernicus, the Godfather of compliance. He becomes Ben’s alter ego and compliance guide. As the investigation progresses, Ben just gets deeper and deeper into trouble. Ernie briefly reappears from witness protection. The head of compliance finally asks Ben to go undercover to gather information.

Ben creates a plan called “Speak Up.” This encourages employees to report any noncompliance they notice in the company.  It is a huge success, and Ben becomes a bit of a hero.

Tine returns to help him but makes it clear there is no deep-seated love, much to Ben's disappointment. On the back of the successful campaign, Ben is asked to go to China on a special assignment, with no one but Tina by his side.

On the eve of leaving for his special assignment, Penny approaches Ben to ask for help with a problem she has.

The final episode of Part II is here if you want to read it.

 https://vocal.media/chapters/bens-project-gains-momentum-but

Now that you are all caught up, you are ready for Part III.

Bon Boa PART III: "In the Land of Dragons"

What happens with Ben and Tina in China?

What has happened to Ernie?

Is Calvernicus a help or a hindrance, and are Chinese people really nice or not?

You will have to tune in to find out. 😊😊

Ben Boa is based (albeit loosely in parts) on actual fact. The “Speak Up” campaign was a real program I introduced into the company. If I associate with any character in this story, it is Calvernicus, hence the name. He became the alter ego for many of the elements of the Speak Up campaign. That said, I dressed up several times for company conferences as Ben Boa (see the photo above).

This is the greatest undertaking I have done. I have always been a writer of sorts. I started in my early twenties writing original songs for bands that I played in. After finishing Uni and starting work, I wrote scientific papers and articles. Most were about compliance, ethics, quality, and management, but I also wrote other factual articles.

As my career wrapped up, I turned to fiction and, most recently, poetry. Vocal gave me the perfect outlet for my creativity.  Those who have followed Ben have inspired me to keep going.  Isn't that what a writing community is all about?

Till next time,

Calvin