My dad's old job story is WILD and I think about it constantly

So this happened like 10 years ago but my dad told me and I genuinely cannot stop thinking about it.

Dad got headhunted by some department head at a partner company. The guy was older, already got a decent signing bonus, and was basically planning to coast into retirement.

Here's where it gets messy. That company ran almost entirely on this one manager's personal connections. Like the clients came because of HIM, the deals happened because of HIM, and the company itself had basically zero presence without him. Dad said the CEO and ownership knew this. They knew. And they just... let it happen.

So the company's biggest client? My dad's company. And they could ONLY communicate through this manager guy. That was the whole setup.

Then the manager starts telling other employees "hey if you leave, you're done." Pressuring people to stay. Filed some kind of personal appeal so HE could retire while keeping everyone else locked in.

And the kicker. This company had no annual raise negotiations. Nothing. Just a flat "here's a tiny bump once a year" structure with zero discussion.