Author Topic: Managers  (Read 21269 times)

Offline Raisa

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Managers
« on: Sunday, September 10, 2006, 11:45:58 PM »
So.. I've had to deal with managers a lot.  Some who are hands on, and some who aren't.  The ones who aren't are so out of touch with the realities of the work place tend to be those who are most demanding and unreasonable. 

In one place, there are two, one who is around quite a bit, and one who sits in the office working on the plans and the paperwork.  The one who is around quite a bit sees the same things as i do.  We agree.  The one who just does all the paperwork well...  let's just say, yeah, the manager has wonderful plans but there's never any action taken.  It;s really frustrating.

We could call to arms and create a revolution.  But one big problem is, i'm related to this person.  And it's going to set off a whole huge thing with my family, extended family (aunts, uncles, etc.)  I could just leave this and move on.. not say anything. 

But then I'd have to live with the thought that I didn't say anything and it makes it seem like i just quit. You know what i mean?

I guess discord within myself is better than discord with myself and within the family?

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Offline Quemaqua

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Re: Managers
« Reply #1 on: Monday, September 11, 2006, 12:42:14 AM »
That's always hard.  I don't think there's any easy answer for it.  You really just have to use your judgment and think about what the end result might be.  If there's really going to be *that much* family chaos, then abstaining might be the best thing.

天才的な閃きと平均以下のテクニックやな。 課長有野

Offline Xessive

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Re: Managers
« Reply #2 on: Monday, September 11, 2006, 05:57:57 AM »
I agree with Que on this. You have to gauge the consequences and decide what is worth it. Keep in mind though that regret is not a feeling you wanna live with.

If it were me, I'd probably try to speak privately with my relative and see if we can reach a solution discreetly. I don't know if that's an option for you, but I hope you'll find an amicable solution :)

Offline Raisa

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Re: Managers
« Reply #3 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 02:22:20 AM »
well.. the plot thickens.  how about a family member forging your signature because they want to keep something from you?  Legal matters?
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Offline Quemaqua

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Re: Managers
« Reply #4 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 06:45:19 AM »
Then I'd say it's time to break out the big guns and cease caring about said family member.  That's crossing a line.

天才的な閃きと平均以下のテクニックやな。 課長有野

Offline Xessive

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Re: Managers
« Reply #5 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 09:27:18 AM »
What Que said!

Offline scottws

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Re: Managers
« Reply #6 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 06:18:45 PM »
Man that's bull.

I've had good managers and bad ones as well.  At the ice company, my boss and I were actually pretty good friends and had immense respect and trust in one another.  It was good to know that you didn't have someone contstantly breathing down your back to make sure you're doing what your supposed to be doing because they just knew you were doing a fine job.  I also had the freedom to kind of do things my way.  It wasn't like, "I want this to happen, and this is how I want you to get there."  It was just like, "I want this to happen, what do you need to get there?"

I truly loved that job.  Too bad the company itself was a piece of shit.  After nine fucking years of working there I left the position of Assistant Plant Manger, making a whopping $10.75 per hour.  It was ridiculous.  I started my next job at that amount.

Speaking of my next job, what a mistake.  I was sort of like a collection agent, except for people that didn't have auto insurance on the cars we had loans out for.  I can barely count the ways in which I got fucked over there, not to mention pretty much everyone else that works there.  First of all, I only took the job because there was very little on-the-phone action.  My job was to go down a list of customers that didn't have auto insurance, and send out nasty letters to them or their supervisors (they were all military).  It was just me and this other lady doing this, for about 5,000 customers.

Well, it didn't work really well, and that list of customers with no insurance just kept growing.  So they decided to purchase a dialer and slap us on the phone.  Nevermind the fact that we had no training whatsoever in customer service or in assertive, collection-type interaction.  So we started doing that and stopped sending letters.  Well, this worked a little, but it was stupid.  Some of our customers were in the middle of an ocean.  Some of them were in Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, Japan, Guam, Korea, etc.  Some of them were in basic training and weren't allowed to take calls.  So, while we worked more customers, many more went completely untouched, when previously they'd at least be getting letters.  And what a mess the list of dialer calls was.  We'd be calling customers that had their loans paid off for years, customers who declared bankruptcy, customers who were 60 days delinquent, customers who had their car repossessed, customers who had their car in storage, etc.  It was so fucking stupid.

But that didn't stop my bitch manager.  Every month, the number of uninstured customers would come out.  And every month it was the same, or got higher.  The answer according to her?  Less downtime, more call time.  It was decided that we had to make 140 calls in eight hours... a call every 3 minutes.  Keep in mind that these are customers that don't want to get insurance, or have trouble affording it.  It's not as simple as saying, "Hi Private Johnson, you need insurance.  You'll have it today?  Thanks."  You have to convince, argue, answer questions, persuade.  It takes longer than 3 minutes.  If we didn't make the 140 calls in a day, we got a counseling card.  2 in a month and you're gone.

I even got two e-mails in a row one morning.  One said basically, "What we are doing isn't working, do you have any other ideas?"  The other said, and you could just tell she Bcc'ed the VP, "It has been decided that in order to reverse the trend of the increasing number of uninsured customers, you will now be required to make 160 calls per day."  So, do more of what isn't working?  Fucking retarded.

She was a real bad micromanager.  Instead of being focused simply on the goal of the percent of customers that are uninsured being at a certain amount, she was intensely focused on the number of phone calls you made, the number of minutes you spent in break mode, the exact times you clocked in and out, bullshit like that.  I realize you don't let your employees do whatever they want, but when someone is consistently staying an extra 15 minutes every day - unpaid, mind you - you don't fucking bitch at them for being 1 minute late one day.

I tried transferring positions, but my boss was such a bitch that I had too many counselling cards to transfer within the company.  I finally found another job and got out of there after a year.  One of my co-workers gave her a going away card for me for her to sign, and she said, "Do I have to?"  Fuck you.

Personally, I don't like female management.  Sure, some are better than others.  The one I described above was Satan.  But I find that female managers are much more likely to be focused on stupid little bullshit and micromanage rather than looking at the big picture and letting people be creative in how they attempt to reach their goals.

Offline Quemaqua

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Re: Managers
« Reply #7 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 06:27:17 PM »
It's absolutely true.  I've had a *lot* of bosses in my time, and I only ever liked 2 of them.  They were both men.  I've had 5 managers at the place where I work now, and every last one of them has been a woman.  I've hated every single one to the point where if I could will their brains to explode inside their heads, I'd totally do it.  I honestly think its true that female managers like to really nitpick and get info specifics in areas that do nothing but hurt your overall job performance.  Don't know why, but I don't think it's stereotyping too broadly.  In all my jobs that's how it's been.  At EB my male managers were all great and the store ran smoothly.  When one quit and a female manager was brought in, things went to pot in about 5 days.

天才的な閃きと平均以下のテクニックやな。 課長有野

Offline Raisa

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Re: Managers
« Reply #8 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 10:55:35 PM »
Well, at this point, i'm keeping away.  Maybe i could work on this from a more indirect angle.  I don't know... we'll see how it goes.  But it's foul forging signatures.  One of these days they're going to get it bad. 

Female managers tend to be way more emotional and get their personal lives mixed in with their work which makes it totally hard to work with them.  In some ways it's easy to work with them because I know when to hide from them cause they're pmsing.  It's all about timing when you work with female managers.

Except if they're just evil all throughout and it seems like they're on PMS forever and ever amen.

I've liked most of my managers.. But there was one that i just couldn't handle.  She was one person i always ended up fighting with because it was always HER way even if it doesn't freaking work.  It's good to know that I wasn't the only one who would groan when we had to work closely with her. 

I think the worst managers are those who are out of touch and who don't even visit the work place. .they live in this bubble and imagine that all is going swell.. they forget time constraints, lunching, bathroom breaks.. they treat their people like robots.
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Offline Quemaqua

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Re: Managers
« Reply #9 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 11:00:46 PM »
That sums up all the people I work with pretty well.

天才的な閃きと平均以下のテクニックやな。 課長有野

Offline Pugnate

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Re: Managers
« Reply #10 on: Tuesday, September 12, 2006, 11:18:22 PM »
Quote
In some ways it's easy to work with them because I know when to hide from them cause they're pmsing.

haha

Female manager: Jhonson you insensitive fuck! How dare you make me ask you twice! Don't you know I am having my period!