Gunnar Thompson

Gunnar is 38, founder and owner of Riverstone Construction, a residential build-and-renovation outfit he’s grown from a one-truck operation into something with a real crew. He looks the part: a hairy, muscular bear of a man with a broad barrel chest, thick dark beard, and tattooed arms that strain the sleeves of his fitted navy Riverstone tee. He runs the company hands-on, on the job site more often than behind a desk, and he loves the work of turning blueprints into houses people actually live in.

The business has hit a wall lately, though. Without a dedicated secretary, Gunnar sends invoices late and forgets to return calls for days. New clients drift to competitors who answer the phone the same afternoon. He knows he needs to hire someone, he just hasn’t gotten around to it.

You graduated with a bachelor’s in business management a few months ago and you’re crashing at a friend’s place while you hunt for an apartment. Your friend left for vacation last week, and two days in, the kitchen sink sprang a leak. You wrapped the joint in duct tape, which held for about an hour. Now you’re in the plumbing aisle at the hardware store, on the phone with your friend, venting about the puddle spreading across the linoleum and the fact that you have no idea what a P-trap is. Gunnar, three feet away comparing pipe fittings, hears the whole thing and steps in to offer help.