“One Day to Go”
I have one more day of work to go – EVER! As of July 1st, I will be fully retired. I was very touched by this company wide note from our CEO. Diana came down from her office/gym to tell me that farewell notes don’t get much better than this:
From: EZCORP Internal Communications <EZCORPInternalCommunications@ezcorp.com>
Sent: Friday, June 27, 2025 11:36 AM
Subject: Thank You, Keith – Farewell to a True Original
On June 30, we say a fond farewell to Keith Robertson, who will be leaving the company after nearly seven incredible years of leadership and impact.
Keith joined us in October 2018 as CIO and quickly became the steady hand behind some of our most ambitious and complex digital transformations. From major system upgrades to new tech rollouts, Keith led with vision, pragmatism, and calm confidence.
He built and strengthened an IT organization that today is faster, more resilient, and better aligned to the business than ever before. He championed simplicity, clarity, and teamwork, and brought a refreshing approach that made even the most complex tech discussions engaging.
After stepping into the CIO Emeritus role in January, Keith has continued to guide the transition and support of the team behind the scenes. But now, he’s officially signing off, for real this time.
Keith, thank you for your leadership, your humor, and your lasting contributions to this company. You leave a strong legacy and a grateful team behind.
Wishing you all the best. May your next chapter be free of escalations, outage bridges, surprise updates, and full of fast Wi-Fi and bottomless cloud storage.
With deep appreciation,
Lachie
I’ll share one other note. This was from our head of HR, replying to a note that I sent:
Reading your message meant so much… You’ve made a lasting impact here, not just through your work, but in the deep friendships you’ve built.
The word “legacy” really is the right one. You’ve set a standard that reminds the rest of me what great leadership looks like.
It’s been an absolute privilege to work alongside you. You will be missed!
Wishing you nothing but great things ahead.
I will certainly miss these kind and generous colleagues.
We had a belated anniversary dinner at Gautreaux’s on Wednesday night. This is a classic New Orleans neighborhood restaurant – tucked in just behind Julia’s house. The menu is a mix of French and Creole.
We started with scallops (absolutely delicious and perfectly cooked) and foie gras (came with an interesting side that was almost like a desert.
Then Diana had the redfish and I enjoyed the trout with sauce Provençal. Both dishes were very good.
We decided to have a Happy Hour on Sunday to celebrate the coming last day of work. Diana chose Chais Delachaise which has wonderful food, wine and Happy Hour special prices. We had our usual moules frites. It was nice to see that the road construction around the restaurant was finally finished.
I always enjoy new stories from David Sedaris and thought I’d share this one from the New Yorker magazine:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/06/30/your-hip-surgery-my-headache
My book this week was “Careless People” by Sarah Wynn-Williams. Sarah was a high level executive at Facebook during the massive growth of the company in the 2010s. I sum this book up in one word – horrifying. If only 10% of what is reported is fully true, and I believe the majority of it, then we should all stop using anything from the Meta/Facebook empire. Here are some examples:
Discussing a bad review because people could hear her new baby in the background during evening calls:
“The fact that people can hear her in the background on calls—mostly because West Coast time means I’m often taking the calls on the East Coast in the evening, at home, where my baby lives. Travel is more complicated. I’d relocated to New York, and that meant I now had to travel to Washington, DC, regularly. Where I’m from it’s more usual for a baby to be with its mother or family for the first six months of life if not longer. My family is trying to come up with creative ways to make that happen with my mother, grandmother, and sister all traveling to New York to help. A few weeks after the review, Marne and I are at Facebook’s headquarters when Sheryl pulls me aside. “Marne told me about your childcare situation,” she says breezily. I’m mortified this is something that has been discussed with the COO. But I understand this is her way of caring. She’s trying to be nice. She’s saying this because she likes me. “Hire a nanny,” she instructs. “Be smart and hire a Filipina nanny.” She mistakes my look of horror for skepticism. “Sarah, I’m telling you, they’re English speaking, sunny disposition, and service orientated.” Marne echoes this sentiment. Both have at least one Filipina nanny in their retinue of staff.”
