But when this chain-of-custody system was explained to Ilene by her new boss, he told her that, in reality, it often didn't work that way. He had hired Ilene to sell directly to the law firms and companies-thereby cutting out the dealers, architects and designers. By eliminating the dealers, architects and designers in the process, Ilene's firm could make a bigger profit margin. In many large deals, Ilene was bidding against dealers, architects and designers she often worked closely with-dealers she was supposed to be using at the time. The entire process made Ilene feel very uncomfortable-she felt like she was cheating the system. It was apparent that her company was using a less accepted strategy.