Due Diligence: Changing of Seasons - From Volume 11 Issue 6 of CI Times

Due became a free man once again as the pending charges involving Ray Robinson’s truck were finally dropped. Due must also decide what to do with his freedom this time. Due will have to focus on the contract with the park so that he can keep his lawn care business running. This will require Due to get back on track with his community service hours. But the question remains, has the damage already been done?

The first step for Due is to prove to Clean Slate Disaster Relief that he is ready to come back to continue his community service work. Due gets a copy of the final disposition from the court to show Clean Slate that the charges were dropped and that he is a free man. Due is hoping that Clean Slate Disaster Relief will take him back because he needs more community service hours in order to keep his lawn care contract with the park for the 2016 season.

Now is the crucial time period to get community service hours because it is the off season for Clean Cut Clippings. Due wants to do everything he can to stick with Clean Slate Disaster Relief so he sets up a meeting with Clean Slate. At this meeting Due is planning on asking Clean Slate if he can become a volunteer once again. Due attends the meeting and afterwards is feeling like everything went well. A few weeks later Due receives a call and is told that he has been officially reinstated as a volunteer with Clean Slate Disaster Relief. Due is very excited, and is starting to feel like everything is back on the right track once again.

Now that everything is settled with the volunteer organization, Due decides to get back to his company for the end of the fall season. Due stays for a while to help Patty Larceny finish up the fall cleaning work at the park. While working at the park, Patty and Due begin to brainstorm other ways to make some extra money during the off season. Patty mentions that a client of the lawn care business approached her and asked if they provide snow plowing services along with the lawn care. Patty and Due agree that it would be very helpful to have some extra income during the winter season. After some thinking, Due and Patty agree that it would be a good idea to offer a snow plowing service during the winter season. They both feel that the extra money would be great and Due believes that this would be a good way to expand Clean Cut Clippings.

Both Due and Patty are excited about this new expansion of the company and feel that this would provide the extra money they need to live comfortably all year round. Now that Due is looking into the snow plowing business he will need a place to stay near Clean Cut Clippings during the winter. Due and Patty agree that the snow plowing business should have a different name than Clean Cut Clippings because this is a completely different line of work with a different set of clientele. Patty wants the name to be catchy and something that people will remember and she comes up with the name Snow-Must-Go Plowing and Removal Service. Due agrees to the name and begins to search for some clients.

Due approaches many different business in the area and eventually comes across a large shopping center called No Boundaries Shopping Plaza. The manager of the shopping center states that he would like to hire Due as an independent contractor to do all of their snow plowing over the winter. There is only one thing preventing Due from getting his first big snow plowing client. The property management company for the shopping center requires that any independent contractor on location for a certain amount of time pass a background check. The property management company, Uncommon Property Group wants to make sure that there are no criminals working on the property as there are many different businesses in this location. Due agrees to a background check and is hoping for the best. This would be a big move for Due and his company but background checks have been an issue for Due in the past.

Due has the opportunity to expand his business to the next level, but will he be able to reach this goal? Will he and Patty get this new contract with the shopping center to start his snow removal services? Will Due pass a background check or will this be another setback?

SEE THE FULL CI TIMES ISSUE FROM NOVEMBER 2014 HERE!