As we start our tale, we find ourselves in the 130 year old cottage which serves as the office of River Heights Consulting.   Frank Hurtte, the organization’s founder, seems totally absorbed in his work.   Glancing around the office, we see several mementos of Hurtte’s long association with Kris Kringle and the Santa Organization.   There’s a picture of Kringle carrying his legendary bag.   The likeness of Kris keeling in front of an ancient manger is prominently displayed near a time worn photo of a much younger Frank seated on Kris’ lap.   The phone rings; the answer is a seasonal combination of Christmas Cheer and morning routine.  But in a flash, we see Hurtte spew some of his coffee and snap to attention.  The conversation goes like this: FH:   River Heights Consulting, Frank Hurtte speaking. Elf:   Frank, this is Elf Alabaster Snowball.  You don’t know me, but I know all about you, including that pouting incident back ...

'Tis the season. When my daughter was young, I loved telling her stories. After a while, I got tired of the classic princes kisses frog and lives happily ever after kind of tale. If I had to make them up, why not make the sales guy the hero. For the next several years, my daughter heard a collection of tales where bad guys in business suits were fed to hungry dragons and purchasing types turned into frogs. This year we are determined to spin such a tale. Trust me, there will be a happy ending. Talk about seasonal surges, Santa’s North Pole Enterprises experiences the largest single seasonal surge in any venture, anywhere. It calls for dedication, it demands expertise and it demands for some really fancy footwork during the last days of December. As President and CEO, Kris Kringle has seen some changes. Quoting him directly: “Back in the old days, most of the goodies we delivered to the good boys and girls were made of wood. We simply chopped down a few trees, brought ...