NationStates Jolt Archive

Introduction for Customers and Employees

Opening Statement

Thank you for choosing the Terratha Corporation. We hope that this document will provide you with everything you need to know and help you decide how best you wish to interact with our corporation.

The Terratha Corporation is a multi-national corporation that currently has nine million employees world-wide. To maintain a safe work environment and better enable us to sell to some nations, the corporation is in voluntary compliance with all World Assembly laws related to employment and does a yearly audit to prevent abuses. The results of these audits are available for download and perusal by any nation which requests a copy, with the understanding that some information related to corporate secrets has been editted out.

The corporation is currently headquartered in the Terratha Corporate Space Colony, which currently sits in geosynchronous orbit over open waters in the Atlantic Ocean. Visits to the corporation's headquarters may be approved by the Board of Directors, with the understanding that much of what goes on inside this facility is classified and any visitor must sign a nondisclosure agreement. External audits of this facility are not accepted due to security and safety concerns.

The primary business of the Terratha Corporation is the sale of raw materials, farm equipment, and farm products. We have had seventeen recalls in our history, with nine of them being preventative recalls over internal concerns about possible problems. Our employees take pride in the quality of our products and, as such, we welcome all concerns about quality and hold open investigations into any question, of which a report on is available by request. Our corporation works to be ahead of the curve on quality control regulations, a full list of which is available by request.

If you have any questions about this, please feel free to contact your nearest Terratha Corporation office.

History

The Terratha Corporation was originally started as the Terra Total Humans Alliance, or TerraTHA, group, which was a group of anti-alien human extremists, believing that any creatures not native to Earth should be destroyed. They primarily attempted to target space programs, hoping that they could hijack them and use them to fight against the incoming alien invasion that the group believed was going to happen.

Needless to say, the early members of TerraTHA had issues with sanity and competence. In 1970, after ten years of failure, the group began to see that it needed to actually have money and supplies. Using then-leader Elija Cornhole's farm as a base of operations, the group began to try to recruit investors, claiming it was founding a business related to farm goods. They were a constant failure until millionaire Edward Gollinger, who believed himself to be a victim of alien abductions, got involved, heavily investing his entire fortune into the group, believing it to be his last chance at vengeance.

From 1970 to 1985, TerraTHA engaged in a series of terrorist activities, targetting space programs around the world in attempts to capture or destroy them. And, due to the nature of the people the organization attracted, their most successful act of terrorism was shooting an elderly security guard to death as they attempted to rob the wrong warehouse. The terrorist activities ended with the death of Edward Gollinger, for which group leader Elija Cornhole was convicted. Gollinger's wife, upon seeing how heavily invested in TerraTHA her husband was, then took command over the group, purging the lunatics and transforming the group from a terrorist organization into a corporation that actually specialized in farm equipment.

By 1990, TerraTHA had been transformed. Going from a joke of a terrorist group to a rising star, the young corporation quickly shed its past, even going as far as to change its name to the Terratha Corporation. The corporation quickly jumped in size in 1995 with the help of several investors, managing to complete a hostile takeover of nine different small mining, logging, and farming companies in a flurry of stock trading. The next five years showed the company boasting a massive profit, which it then invested into technologies to begin construction of an orbital space station in order to attempt to find ways to grow plants in orbit for sale to a variety of space programs, in hopes of eventually finding ways to help create colonies in outer space. In 2010, the space station was complete enough that the corporation moved its headquarters into orbit, with the ashes of Edward Gollinger interred on the station as a final insult to him from his wife.

Today, the corporation continues to expand, always seeking new ways to expand its business on Earth and advance its reach into the stars.

OOC note: After the history section is added, I'll start on the posts that are not public information. Let's just say that, yes, questions about how a company that has farming as two-thirds of its business could afford to own a space station are far from groundless ;)

Note: Everything from this point on in this thread is classified unless I say otherwise.

Real History

The Terratha Corporation was originally started as the Terra Total Humans Alliance, or TerraTHA, group, which was a group of anti-alien human extremists, believing that any creatures not native to Earth should be destroyed. They primarily attempted to target space programs, hoping that they could hijack them and use them to fight against the incoming alien invasion that the group believed was going to happen.

Needless to say, the early members of TerraTHA had issues with sanity and competence. In 1970, after ten years of failure, the group began to see that it needed to actually have money and supplies. Using then-leader Elija Cornhole's farm as a base of operations, the group began to try to recruit investors, claiming it was founding a business related to farm goods. They were a constant failure until millionaire Edward Gollinger, who believed himself to be a victim of alien abductions, got involved, heavily investing his entire fortune into the group, believing it to be his last chance at vengeance.

From 1970 to 1985, TerraTHA engaged in a series of terrorist activities, targetting space programs around the world in attempts to capture or destroy them. And, due to the nature of the people the organization attracted, their most successful act of terrorism was shooting an elderly security guard to death as they attempted to rob the wrong warehouse. The terrorist activities ended with the death of Edward Gollinger, for which group leader Elija Cornhole was convicted. Gollinger's wife, upon seeing how heavily invested in TerraTHA her husband was, then took command over the group, purging the lunatics and transforming the group from a terrorist organization into a corporation that actually specialized in farm equipment.

By 1990, TerraTHA had been transformed. Going from a joke of a terrorist group to a rising star, the young corporation quickly shed its past, even going as far as to change its name to the Terratha Corporation. The corporation quickly jumped in size in 1995 with the help of several investors, managing to complete a hostile takeover of nine different small mining, logging, and farming companies in a flurry of stock trading.

It was also in 1995 that Rose Gollinger, the wife of the late Edward Gollinger, discovered her husband's secret study. Within it she discovered a series of pictures, taken from what could only be described as the inside of an alien ship. She also discovered a set of blueprints, which contained plans for what appeared to be some kind of faster-than-light drive. Realizing what she had, Rose approached the investors, laying out a plan of action in which they would establish a base in the stars and then begin to explore the galaxy. The investors, after seeing her evidence, agreed, causing the corporation to begin investing in technologies to construct a station in orbit. In 2010, the space station was complete enough that the corporation moved its headquarters into orbit, with the ashes of Edward Gollinger interred on the station as a final insult to him from his wife.

Today, the corporation continues to expand, always seeking new ways to expand its business on Earth and advance its reach into the stars.

Company Mission: Trusted Employee Briefing

The publically-stated goal of the corporation is to continue to expand the company's interest on Earth and into space in the areas which we currently are publically active.

It is a lie.

The real goal of our corporation is to seek out alien life, establish friendly contact, acquire alien technology, backwards engineer it, and then sell less-advanced versions on Earth in such a way that it appears we are innovating technological advancements. Our secondary goal is to establish off-world colonies, which we can use as bases for gathering raw materials and expanding our presense in the universe. In time, we hope to eventually begin introducing alien races to Earth.

As a trusted employee of the Terratha Corporation, you have already seen the evidence that aliens exist. Your mission, from this point on, will be to do everything in your power to advance the true interests of the company, whether it be through working in the sciences or merely making sure the lab is clean. Whatever job you have, it is vital to the success of our mission, no matter how insignificant it may seem. From this moment on, you are only under the jurisdiction of the corporation.

If you help the company succeed, you will be rewarded. You will advance in the company and may even some day come to be on the Board of Directors. But if you cause the company to falter, you will be punished for it as severely as you would have been rewarded. The risks of this mission are extreme, and as such we cannot afford failure.

Welcome to the truth of the corporation and to our true mission. May we all succeed, and may prosperity come to us all.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Terratha Corporate Space Colony

The colony itself currently sits in a geosynchronous orbit over open waters in the Atlantic Ocean. It keeps in position, and is able to move, though a series of high-powered maneuvering thrusters, which can combine to move the station out of the way of incoming large space objects. The station's primary source of power is a series of high-intensity solar arrays, with the power itself stored in special batteries for times when the station is not facing towards the Sun. Food is provided from an on-board hydroponics bay, while gravity is created using a modified form of the magnetic field that serves as the basis for the corporation's FTL engine.

It has been noted that the perpetual shadow of the colony has a limited environmental effect upon the ocean. Studies are currently under way to determine if the station has a significant effect or if it is caused by something else. Any information in regards to this is to be immediately forwarded to Station Commander Aya Forelli and is exempt from the normal chain of command.

The station itself is equiped with advanced science laboratories, as well as a full environmental system. The environmental system is maintained through a supply link with various corporate properties on Earth, while most spare parts are manufactured on-site using a modified magnetic beam to catch space debris (a successful application of a failed attempt to get the drive to work) and on-site automated factories. The station also includes a full set of medical facilities, with a number of new medicines that can only be used in Earth orbit due to unique chemical interactions with gravity that could not be observed planetside.

The station also features a number of probes, facilities for the construction of space shuttles, emergency escape pods in case of disaster, and a construction platform for experimental ships.

It should be noted that all of this is classified and employees caught breaking their confidentiality agreement will get an applied education in our detention facilities.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Security Forces

Because some within our corporation will not stop bothering Station Commander Aya Forelli about this, this special file has been presented to all trusted employees with the hopes that people will no longer feel the need to ask questions about it. Please do not bother her further about it.

At current, the corporation maintains a security force of 33,670 personel. Of those, 12,025 are trusted employees and 21,645 are regular employees. Regular employees are typically armed with a single USP and a Mossberg 550, due to the fact they often are not guarding anything important. The trusted employees, on the other hand, wear light body armor, like that of those assigned to ships, and are typically assigned USPs and P90s. Requests for different equipment are considered on a case-by-case basis.

Please note that our number of security forces is intentionally balanced as it is to maintain the appearance that we are a corporation with nothing of real importance to hide. So, please, do not suggest that we increase security forces.

And, a special request for all personel: Please stop telling the newcomers to the space station that our security forces punish people by throwing them out of airlocks. Our security forces are getting tired of newcomers yelling "Please don't space me!" every time they are approached by security personel.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Communication and Company Commerce

Due to a recent incident involving an accidental emailing of some very graphic personal information to half of the personel on the space station and the reasons behind that, this briefing has been prepared for all employees. You will be tested on knowing this information. We will not have a repeat of the Asuka Incident.

First, the communication systems. All communications to external systems are done by email, which have to be manually routed to Earth by our communications technicians. This is entirely on purpose, as it allows us to screen for any information that is not allowed to be routed to the planet and to take necessary steps to prevent it from being transmitted. Please note that the peculiarty of the magnetic field that gives us gravity also blocks all radio transmissions to and from Earth except on frequencies that are only known to our communications department and upper chain of command. This is also on purpose and circumventing that is an offense which will have you fired.

For our internal communications system, you will need to dial the particular department directly and then, if you want to speak to a specific person, the specific extension of whom you are calling. The use of phones is for emergencies only, and as such using them for anything except an emergency or a drill is prohibited. If you wish to use personal communication, please utilize either in-person communication or our email system.

For email, please make note of the following addresses:

@terratha.com- This is the default for everyone.
@terrathasci.com- Science department
@terrathaenv.com- Environmental systems
@terrathaeng.com- Engineering department
@terrathajan.com- Janitorial department
@terrathacom.com- Command
@terrathasec.com- Security

Please note that not including anything before the "@" in the address will send it to everyone who is covered by that particular email category. I am sure everyone who was around remembers a certain demonstration of this fact.

Also, please note that we are still attempting to get an internal radio system set up for those who wish to listen to music stations. And for television, do note that, while we do have our own internal system, it is preferable if you rely upon your own entertainment in that area. Also, the command staff requests that people stop requesting 2001: A Space Oddyssey to be shown on the local station. The first 300 times seeing it were enough.

A special note for Asuka Miyamoto: John Tolstoy has been punished for abusing his position. You may come out of hiding now.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Corporation Command Structure

Due to some confusion about who to report to on certain matters by some of the newer employees, this comprehensive guide for the space station has been produced. Please read it and be familiar with who is your ultimate superior in certain matters.

Owner: Rose Gollinger
Board of Investors: Information classified

Rose Gollinger and the Board of Investors work together to have the ultimate say. Their power is absolute, unchallengeable, and something which must be obeyed. They only act when they feel the need.

Board of Directors
Board Chairman: Ivan Dragonov
Director of Marketing: Mark Funglasin
Director of Science: Sarah Conner
Director of Security: Gerald Forelli
Director of Engineering: Vernald Genjis
Environmental Director: Johanna Helmsburg
Director of Public Relations: Xerxes Gorbanov
Director of Human Resources: Verne Jules
Director of Acquisitions: Julia Gorbanov

The Board of Directors oversees the day-to-day operations of the corporation as a whole, making it a point to keep the company on-track and maintain the dual existence it has. For most employees, this is the absolute maximum upper level of the chain of command. For the most part, their combined word is law.

Station Commander Aya Forelli

Aya Forelli is the person who has been tasked with running the space station, keeping it active and making sure all operations run smoothly. She usually is given leeway to operate it as she feels, as long as things continue to go smoothly. She also appoints who runs each department of the space station, to further ensure that it is operating at optimal efficiency.

Department Heads
Science- Sunflower Jackson
Environmental- William Felton
Engineering- Gorga
Janitorial- Boris Karlov
Command- Cassandra Turner
Security- Gerald Melton

These are each responsible only for their deparment. Note that communications is part of Command, and thus under the command of Cassandra Turner.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Age Breakdown

This is an age breakdown of the current employee list, which will be updated as the breakdown changes over the years. Please note that this is a percentage breakdown by certain age ranges.

15-20: 3%
21-30: 32%
31-40: 32%
41-50: 21%
51-60: 9%
61-70: 3%
71+: 1 person

Based upon a number of internal studies, most people who quit the company do so at around age 40, usually being men who most likely are having a midlife crisis. At around age 50, the amount of employees drops rapidly due to a combination of retirement, death, disability, or simply getting a better offer elsewhere. Death, retirement, and disability continue to work to reduce the number of people working for the corporation until you get until around age 70. Our current person over that is Donald "The Grump" Bush, who is currently 84 years old and has the distinction of being the oldest member of security.

Management has a special request that people stop tellig newcomers that our low amount of employees on the upper end of the age scale is due to illegal medical experiments. Our secret is that we're hunting aliens, not that we're creating macroscopic bioweapons.

Trusted Employee Briefing: Technology Breakdown

To save time, we have broken down our technology level into "generations," reflecting our advancement as we continue to expand into the universe and advance our own technology. Each one reflects certain accomplishments, as well as areas we feel we need to advance in.

Please note that, unless we have released this to the public, talking about it with people who are not trusted employees is strictly forbidden. And, no, we will not have you flogged for it, despite the continued requests of certain members of security.

Generation 1

Weapons
HK USP
Mossberg 550
P90
Korelleforf ceiling-mounted minigun

Body Armor
Terratha Corporate Armor- Designed primarily to be effective against pistols and the occasional shotgun blast, this lightweight chest armor is made of plastic composites.

Ships
Heimlin- Experimental FTL ship using the magnetic drive.
Space shuttle