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honeymoon's over before it started
8

honeymoon's over before it started

honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
When last we met, Dear Reader, I'd accepted a new job involving a significant relocation to West Bumblemuck, not my favorite place.  This was a job I was recruited to, and their big sell was OMGWTFBBQ PART OF OUR EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT TEAM!!!!!111!1!eleventy!!  The kind of thing I'd be professionally foolish to turn down, etc.

The relocation is in progress (I have arrived; most of my worldly possessions are in transit).  I start tomorrow.

And it appears that they have introduced another level of management above me.  In one way, this doesn't matter because my job responsibilities remain the same, the same people report to me, etc.  But it certainly weakens the OMG EXEC bit that they used to talk me into coming to West Bumblemuck.  There's a difference between being *on* the exec team and reporting to one of them.

Would this have made a difference in whether I took the job?  I don't know.  Probably not.  I did want out of my old job pretty badly and I didn't have any other offers right at that time.

Then there's the way they handled notifying me of this change--or, rather, didn't.  I visited the company twice--once for an interview, and once for them to talk me into coming to West Bumblemuck over my reservations.  During those visits, they mentioned that they were hiring someone for that new position, but never mentioned that I would be reporting to that position.  Sometime after that last visit (and after I'd accepted the job), my main liaison to the company (who is NOT in my line of command; he's the guy I'll be replacing) mentioned just as an aside that they hired the new person and that eventually most of us would be reporting to him.  This is the same guy who, when I asked earlier about the new position because whoever it was would be someone I'd need to work with closely, told me not to worry about it because that function had nothing to do with mine.  So not only was this notification rather casual and asidey, it came from a non-official channel and contradicted earlier information.  A far cry from someone in my line of command (who in this case would have to the be CEO) making a point of calling me and saying, "Look, Ollie, I know we told you ZYX but we've decided to make a change in our management structure like so."

The other bit of "notification" I've had is being CCed recently on a company-wide memo announcing the new guy, stating that he would start out being responsible for functions X1, X2, and Y.  Y is, as far as I know, what I was hired to be in charge of (as reflected in my job title).

So...

(1) Is it unreasonable of me to think I should have been officially notified by someone in my chain of command that I will be reporting to a different boss and will be one level down in the hierarchy from what I'd been told at the time I accepted the job?

(1A) If the answer to (1) is no, is it a pretty safe assumption that there is nothing to be gained by expressing some disappointment in the nature of the communication?

(2) Is it unreasonable for me to see this as a bait-and-switch?

If the answer to (1) and (2) is yes, and this is perfectly normal and proper corporate behaviour, then I will simmer down.

Otherwise, I have to wonder--if something as fundamental as my very relationship with the company is something they didn't think they needed to tell me, what else are they not going to tell me?  What else am I not going to know about until after it hits me?  What else will I not be given a chance to prepare for?  It seems to me that as of now I cannot trust "my team", cannot trust what I see and hear around me, but must always be on my guard against what lurks beneath, what someone has decided I don't need to know...YET.  Not the sort of working relationship I signed up for.

An added complication--the way the new guy's responsibilities are defined, if you take out my part of it, what's left is a function that, according to one of my company's certifications, my function cannot report to.  The certification states that Y cannot report to X.  New Guy's position is an upgrade of a previous position, explicitly identified as X, that my predecessor did *not* report to.  However, they could argue that since New Guy is higher up, he's not really X, he's exec-level, beyond that function, and I can report to him.  As far as I am concerned, that might be the case once they add other responsibilities to his job, but as of right now, his responsibilities center around X and I can't; it's too close to the old position that I couldn't have reported to.  This interpretation of the certification requirements is clear to me, and I'd like to think that my interpretation is pretty authoritative since I happen to be one of the people who write that certification, but if my management (whoever the hell they are) choose to disagree with my interpretation, I don't see that there's much I can do about it.  It's not a real safety concern that I would need to whistle-blow about; it's just something that I feel is in violation of their contracts, that I would know is wrong, and that I wouldn't have tolerated when I was on the customer side of things if I knew about such a situation.

Sigh.  A disappointing start.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

I wouldn't be surprised if the only notice of a change in reporting structure occurred when you walked in for work the first day.  Reorgs big & small happen often, and I can see the powers that be either forgetting the incoming hires, or thinking it's not that relevant to tell them until they get on site.  For similar reasons I wouldn't see it as an intentional bait & switch.  Certainly the communication could be improved here, but from what I read of your description I'm not sold on intentional deception.

I would walk in tomorrow with an open mind.  Some questions regarding the situation certainly, but without too much prior bias.

There are far worse reporting structures than simply having one boss replaced with another - even if that means a step down the corporate pyramid.  I've had between 0-4 bosses at various times, including a period where nobody knew who my boss was (company laid my boss off as part of a large reorg, reassigned all his subordinate except me, and didn't figure out what to do with me until the next reorg after that).
 

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

<<< (1) Is it unreasonable of me to think I should have been officially notified by someone ...>>>
It's entirely reasonable, but unrealistic.


<<< (1A) If the answer to (1) is no, is it a pretty safe assumption that there is nothing to be gained by expressing some disappointment >>>
There is NOTHING to be gained by expressing disappointment at anything.  As a middle manager, you will suffer many disappointments.  That's why you got the big bucks.  You did get big bucks, didn't you?   No?  Another disappointment; suck it up.


<<< (2) Is it unreasonable for me to see this as a bait-and-switch?  If the answer to (1) and (2) is yes, and this is perfectly normal and proper corporate behaviour, then I will simmer down. >>>
It's not proper, but it's normal.

<tangent>

My friend XXX sold his house in a distant city at a loss and moved to be nearer to his new job, working with me.  Just after he closed on his new house, we were all told that, surprise!, the company was moving to another state, very soon.  He expressed disappointment that he wasn't told about the impending change, as it guaranteed that he would lose money on _two_ house sales.  Top Management uncharacteristically apologized to him, unofficially, but said that they couldn't have let the cat out of the bag in order to be considerate of him, for fear of having everyone else panic and leave while the getting out was good.  They also did not help offset the losses he suffered.  He stayed long enough to help with packing up for the move, but didn't show up for work in the other state.

I did show up for work in the other state, where they made me a 'manager'.  I use quotes because I got zero extra money.  I didn't mind executing through others and that kind of stuff, but I did mind having to conceal ugly truths from my friends.  I also minded declining to hire a guy and having him show up anyway.  I was wrong; he turned out to be a good worker, but I had to fire him a year later, for _no_ good reason at all.  

After which, I adopted enough Bad Attitude to get myself fired, and thereafter made a specific demand in interviews that I would not be a 'manager', even in name only.  It was certainly not fun doing it for free, and I couldn't foresee enough anesthetic effect even in 'manager money' to accept any part of it.

Before that, I had known on some level that middle managers act as bidirectional bullshit filters, but I hadn't realized how ill-suited I was for that work, and just how smelly some of the bullshit was.  I just don't lie well.  ... or at all.

</tangent>

 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

1) No, it's not unreasonable to think you should have been notified.

1a) I don't believe anything would be gained, but you could definitely lose out by being seen as a whiner. The change has not affected your responsibilities, the number or type of people reporting to you, your title, nor your remuneration.

2) Bait and switch ... I don't think so.

Go in with a smile and start searching for whatever good is to be found in West Bumblemuck. Make the most of what you have.

Good luck in the new venture.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

As a member of the West Bumblemuck Welcoming Committee, I'd like to offer you this gift basket full of local goodies...

Situations like this certainly can irritate, but the best way to deal with them is to look ahead, not behind.  Give the job a try, and don't get stuck on how you thought it would be.  See how you feel about the way it is.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Bruno,
I have a strong appreciation for your many works with Francesca Fiore and hope to see you work together again soon.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

4

I have a problem jumping on the 'suck it up' bandwagon.  If you say nothing, it will be a niggling little bother in the back of your head and the very least. I would want to know.  I'd find a good opportunity to find out.  Why not the first day during some of the orientation/paperwork stuff.  Have a chat with the people who interviewed you.  Don't be accusatory.  Say that it was your understanding that you were to be part of the executive management team, but with the addition of an apparent new, and higher level of executive, that you are actually in middle management.  Then ask if you have misunderstood something and ask them to explain where you didn't get it right.  I'm not saying that you misunderstood, or in fact didn't get it right.  I just wouldn't put it in that frame.  If you do, you will likely make those who hired you defensive and therefor motivated to lie even more.

Be cheerful and try to appear unconcerned, just curious about getting something THAT WRONG.  If they are smart, they will know that you know that they deceived you, but you are not allowing them the opportunity to label you as a trouble maker right off the bat.

Perhaps you may even discover that there was some small detail that you overlooked that may have been a hint.  IDK.  Just keep an open mind, stay cheerful and detached and watch their body language like a hawk.  Notice if the person cannot hold your gaze and looks down or out the window a lot, a sure sign of deception.

Like I said, be gracious, cheerful and act as if everything is peachy.  Then call a couple of contacts and see if you have options.  You may not.  But don't show your hand until you absolutely know you will win it.

"Gorgeous hair is the best revenge."  Ivana Trump

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

>>>....they will know that you know that they deceived you, but you are not allowing them the opportunity to label you as a trouble maker right off the bat.<<<

Yes, you are allowing the opportunity, and yes, they will label you.  They just won't come out and _say_ it, not right away.

I'm always fascinated by the way women communicate by such subterfuge, saying one thing while meaning something else entirely.  I get lost at the third level of indirection.

 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Chauklate,

I'm glad someone finally recognized it!

RE: honeymoon's over before it started


It's the kind of deceptive game-playing found in any company of any size and in politics at every level, and there aren't many women in those places.  To blame it on the female mind is the equivalent of stomping your feet, picking up your Tonka truck and running off to mommy.  Don't they make big boy panties?  

"Gorgeous hair is the best revenge."  Ivana Trump

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

I don't really know the answer to this except that to get worked up about it will probably do no good at all.

I worked for a process instrument company that also brought into its product range the high-tech niche market products from a subsidiary.
The subsidiary bought itself out and asked me if I'd like to come and work for them as Product Manager to be responsible for sorting out one of their new products.
They had two key new products. Product A had great potential, as I'd already discovered working for the original company and which was the reason why they approached me, and they didn't say so up front but they were happy that this was the product I thought I'd be dealing with.
Product B was seen as a lemon. In two identical installations in parallel flow streams one would work and the other not. Swap them over and sometimes the one that worked in one stream would work in the other and sometimes not.
On my first day there they announced that Product A was history and they wanted me to make product B a "fit and forget" "straight from the box" "first time every time success" (this form of management speak ought to send warning signals.).
What should I do?
I did what they wanted me to do and turned product B into a world beater. Of course, just about the time it really started to hit the big OEM contracts and when I should then have been in line for some nice bonuses, they made me redundant.

So should I have done what I did? Should I have left in a huff?

I don't know.
IF I did this instead of that would I be better or worse off today?
You can never know.
One thing you can know is that bad management is the one universality. You can either let it drive you nuts or you can live with the reality.

PS I should say that the real problem is where you have bad managers and an unduly active brown nosing back-stabbing colleague...... that's a combination to look out for.




 

JMW
www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Of course you bring it up!

However don't be unprofessional about it.  Ask for a meeting of the concerned parties, explain the assumptions you had and request explicit clarification of the actual working relationship.  One thing you need to learn as middle management or upper management is unvoiced concerns fester into unhealthy working relationships that end up causing more tension and strife in the end.  

Part of being a professional is placing your ego in check momentarily and establishing facts of the situation above all else.  Don't settle for back office communications channels and rumor.  Get the key people to sit down face to face.  Establish yourself as a "straight-shooter" from the get go, a person who can be counted on to deal with things head on.

Will it ruffle some feathers?  Sure it will.  Do you honestly think management teams don't ruffle each others feathers all the time?  Of course they do.  The mark of a professional manager though is how they handle defeat and victory after such "conflicts".  If they win do they gloat and lord it over others?  If they lose do they mope and scheme to get revenge?  

Be VERY cautious of treading lightly for the sole reason of not wanting to tick someone off.  If the misunderstanding was intentional and you stay quiet then you get labeled a pushover.  If it wasn't and was simply miscommunication then at worst you will get labeled as someone who isn't timid about getting to the bottom of things.  Just be mindful of how you act after the meeting is resolved.  Your label will be defined more on how you act afterwards than simply by the fact that you called a meeting in the first place.

So in short, get a meeting set, explain your assumptions and understanding, get the situation clarified and then get on with the job you have in front of you.

http://www.linkedin.com/in/gregtirevold

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

If you bring it up you're probably labeled a trouble maker.

If you say nothing then you're probably labeled a pushover.

There may be some way to finesse it but so that you let them know you noticed without sounding like you're complaining but a lot will depend on their personalities, and you probably don't know that yet.

Has it affected your pay or other compensation?  Has it negatively affected your immediate future prospects?

Some managers etc. claim to like people that stand up for them selves etc., for the most part I assume these to be the same managers that park in the 'unicorns only' section of the parking lot.
 

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RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
I think I'll end up ruffling enough feathers as time goes by, just by being me.  So I'm sucking it up.  Mr. New Guy (who I still haven't met; we haven't been in the same state at the same time) sent me an org chart that, while still including him above me, includes a lot more people under him that the memo did not address.  If the org chart is right and the memo is wrong (likely), then I can live with the situation.  I still feel slightly baited and switched, and disapprove of the lack of communication (which seems to be endemic here), but the restructuring seems to be not as flagrant a violation of the certification requirement as it initially appeared.

Sigh.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

In any given situation the hardest part is working out exactly what can be learnt from it, and how to use such a lesson for the next time.

In this case, its likely you can look back on the whole recruitment process and consider just how the company may be run on the basis of your recent experience. It doesn't provide much comfort now, but it'll certainly be helpful should you ever find yourself in this situation again.

After all, you're interviewing (recruiting, poaching, stalking etc) the company as much as they're interviewing you, and if it bothers you that much then its worth being able to look out for it next time.  

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

You aren't the only one affected by this. This guy was put in charge of other people than just you. You won't be the only one that might be unhappy about it.

You will have to ask them what the new responsibilities are. While doing that you can explain how you thought things were going to be different and ask if you made the wrong conclusions or things simply changed on you. If you had a plan and some goals you should find out what changes you need to make to still achieve them.

If you just had you feeling hurt I hope this post has made you feel better.

So what did you do and how did it go?

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Quitcherbitchin

Be thankful you have a job in this economy. Do the job and see what happens.

Charlie
www.facsco.com

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

2
Rules from my father in law (40+ years as a EE).
1. Due to the surplus of back stabbers, whiners, do-nothings and brown nosers: the profession sucks.
2. Be a professional, especially when every one around you is not.
3. Focus on your goals first. You will find that they generally tie into the company's goals, but not always.
4. Keep your options open.
5. And don't become part of rule #1.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

I'm drawn to Guy Caballero myself.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Deception or incompetence, what's the difference?  Still, an all new opportunity awaits.  

Consider enerything an asset to be exploited in some way and work it all to your best advantage.  What have you got to loose?

 

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
I had already decided not to bring it up, but it's looking to be a very good thing even if they handled it badly.  Being lower down on the one hand means less responsibility, but on the other hand it also means less responsibility.

The new boss has more time to spend with me and help me figure out the management side of things (I was the best technical candidate they had but very weak in management experience) than the CEO would have.  So I'm not in the kind of sink-or-swim environment that I was originally headed for.  Also the new boss seems much more sane than the CEO.  But maybe that's because both of us are able to look at this company from the outside and see it for what it is, as opposed to being part of the corporate culture.  We think a lot alike.  So there's someone to share the frustration with, that we were both told were were hired to change the corporate culture, but the corporate culture that hired us to change it refuses to change.  He is more patient than I am.  He may yet keep me from getting myself fired.

Once I figured out that we were getting along, I brought up the legality of my reporting to him, and how it depended on who else reported to him, and he did say that they had kept that in mind when drawing up the org chart.

I still haven't told him about how pissed off I was about how they handled informing me about him, but I'm sure I will eventually.  He's as painfully aware as I am that communication is not this company's strong suit.

So I have supportive management and an insulating layer from the insanity of the very upper echelons.  Not too bad.  Mind you, the benefits that I've gotten from this situation were not intentional on the part of the company, but as long as they're benefits, that works for me.

Meanwhile...the job is good but the job is killing me.  Everything I've done I've liked doing, but nobody said anything about spending 2/3 of my time on the road.  And in a couple of weeks the sums will have come to more like 3/4 of my time on the road.  I moved during the last week of September and I haven't unpacked yet and I won't get a chance to until the second week of November, or even later.  I am in a laundromat right this minute because I haven't had the time to take delivery of my shiny new appliances.  The bright side of this is that I haven't had the chance to mope about, hating being stuck in West Bumblemuck, but physically I can't take this much longer.  Part of what I'm doing will, in the long run, reduce the need for some of this travel, but I don't know if I can last till then.  I'm not very old, but I'm too old for this.  

Sure beats being bored, though.  No regrets yet, even though I terribly miss certain aspects of my old life.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

"we were both told were were hired to change the corporate culture, but the corporate culture that hired us to change it refuses to change"

Oh dear, you may be doomed.  Both companies I've worked at had directors of engineering brought in to do this kind of thing, and both times left within a couple of years, in at least one case shortly before probably being laid off (and this guy repeated the pattern at his next job).

First time I managed to down play my association with the guy and earned my way based on my abilities, him leaving actually worked out for me with a 20% pay raise to make sure I didn't leave with him!  

Second employer the guy actually asked me to follow him to the new company, I played it cool, just as well since he got let go and everyone he had managed to hire!

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RE: honeymoon's over before it started

"...he got let go and everyone he had managed to hire!"

Familiar story. My colleague went to take up a senior position with a global company. Did all that was asked of him and some (he was always a great asset to any company), but when his boss fell from grace, the new boss conducted a purge of all who had been associated with the old boss.

When I look at who they now have in some quite senior positions (at local company level) and who has crept up the greasy pole by brown nosing etc. I wonder how they don't crash and burn.

But, when a company gets bigger I guess they have to find ways to operate that recognise that they may have a ratio of one half way decent employee to about 100 deadbeats and no decent managers.

There must be a cut off level beyond which the management handbook transforms from a being used as guide for the wise to a bible for the observance of fools; the point at which intelligence and imagination are replaced by the monkey see, monkey do system where no one is required to have independent thought; where there are more and more computer based sizing and selection programs, and they try to keep everyone occupied usefully filling in meaningless forms.  

JMW
www.ViscoAnalyser.com

 

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Did you ask that their was going to be someone above you?  I don't see that at all in your explanation.  

Being an engineer, asking the right question, will get you the answer that your looking for from a person.  I think your not playing the game better then them to realize what they are doing.  I would work on my office politics more, since you seem to think your collegues were being deceitful, but really they just left out some information.

Good managers can filter the bs for their workers, and bs the other way also to make yourself look better.  

You need to work on these skills more, I really think you can learn something here, because they snowed you and you did not realize it when you accepted the offer.  I say suck it up but learn from these somewhat deceitful political hacks.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

" I would work on my office politics more"

Alternatively, just rise above it.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
Ducking and covering under the office politics.  Holy crap.  Not sure how much I can avoid without alienating anyone.  I may not be at the level where the games are played, but I am sure enough adjacent to it.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Yup, another reason not to go into management.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

I know of two ways to stay out of office politics.

1.  Be a contractor, which makes you a neutral/ disinterested/ remote third party.   This option is not officially available to you.

1b.  However, sometimes, in some outfits, it's possible to just _act_like_ a contractor without actually being one.  Mostly that means coming and leaving on time, working your butt off when you're there, not working when you're not there or not being paid to work, and, most important,  religiously speaking ill of no one.

2.  Be perceived as a heavily armed noncombatant, like Switzerland, so that nobody wants to start a war with you.  You must appear to be prepared to fight to the death.  This position is best established by grossly over-reacting to the very first probe; converting infrastructure to rubble, burning crops, salting the earth, stuff like that.  You got off to kind of a soft start, so this option is not available to you.  It also works best with friends in high places, i.e., support from someone in the highest reaches of top management.  That's yet another reason it's not available to you.

Which leaves option 1b.
 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
Too much interaction required for option 1b to be an option.

For example, with regard to something I'm trying to make happen at the moment, I have to negotiate around four different peripheral agendas, and that's just the ones I can spot.  And each time the agendas come into contact with each other, they morph.

Amazing.  It's almost funny.

Some of this is situational and will settle out.  And the travel is not so crazy any more.  Though I still haven't unpacked my apartment.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

On one side, I would say you have no idea of the evolution in the mid term, what will happen, how things will change in the organisation. So when you give to much importance to such a bad start, it is like you are assuming having quasi-full control of the surrounding events in the near future, that is not correct in my opinion; many things taken for granted changes where not expected at all. So you can temporize and just start to demonstrate your competence day after day. On the long run you could see such bad start you refer to as an energizing opportunity: Sometimes peoples who are unfair with you serve you and empower you to be better and grow.
- With time, the artificials things tends to disappear and true things (Common sense, Expertise, competency, leadership acumen) will impose themselves sooner or later in a more or less 'smart' organisation.
From another stand point, it is right that rules and internal policies must be respected (here absence of notification, poor communication), so I see a debate here, especially myself being not from US I am also listening to others and to a different culture with deep sense of ethics and policies to build here my own opinion.

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Your situation sounds vaguely like the one I just lived through. The difference being that I did report directly to the CEO so there was no layer of management added above me. I was in charge of my own department and was told during the interview process that I would be allowed to hire a staff to fill the gaps in the department's capabilities (i.e. raise their level of competency to keep customers from leaving the company). I took this to mean that it would be up to me to decide how to re-organize the department and fix the problems they were having. After a month on the job I provided my boss with the plan that I had developed to do just that, and told him that I needed to hire 3 additional staff members. He said no. I stared at him blankly. He said that everybody else at my level was complaining that they were short handed, and he couldn't justify bringing that number of people on board.

That was not the first disappointment on this job, but it was an eye-opening one. I had been lied to. And on a critical aspect of the position. Without a sufficient number of people in the right positions, I couldn't accomplish what needed to be done. The work load was getting deeper as each day passed, and many other disappointments soon followed as I discovered that certain ugly truths had not been disclosed to me. This was soon followed by my resignation. And I am _very_ glad that I don't work there any more.

When interviewing, it's what they don't tell you that should concern you the most.

Maui  

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

>>>When interviewing, it's what they don't tell you that should concern you the most.<<<

Amen.

Unfortunately, it's all but impossible to see that stuff from outside.

The sad truth is that any job that's available, is probably available precisely because it's broken in some way.

We here are all, of course, highly skilled, adaptable and creative, but there are limits...
 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Any updates?

B+W Engineering and Design
Los Angeles Civil and Structural Engineering
http://bwengr.com

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
Updates?  From me?

Wow, it's almost like having a blog.

The saga continues to evolve.

Travel has calmed down.  In fact, now I'm being sort of restricted in the interest of getting my core function accomplished.

I still haven't unpacked my apartment.  Partly because I've fallen into the habit of having no life.  Partly out of insecurity.

Dysfunction at the top is still there.  I have come to the realization that most of my industry is is similar shape and going through similar transitions.  It will take a couple of years.  My direct boss is sane.  We don't 100% see eye to eye, but for the most part I have no complaints about him.

I have also come to the realization that in a way I am a symptom of the dysfunction.  As part of the same revised thinking that led to the hiring of my boss, they were looking to fill my position with someone who was an expert in systems for my function--but not necessarily my industry.  In fact, definitely not my industry, since there aren't many people who are systems experts in my function within my industry.  Systematic thinking about my function is a pretty new concept here.  So they had a plan in line with the New Way, and they were following it, and they had a systematic process for evaluating candidates in keeping with the systematic New Way, and then I came along, with not only the abovementioned managerial deficit but also, like everyone else in my industry, no particular systems expertise.  But by gum I am one hell of an industry subject matter expert.  And all of a sudden the Old Guard found themselves back in their comfort zone, threw out their systematic review process, and hired me.

So the Old Guard hired me as an industry subject matter expert, but the New Guard, who controls my destiny, wanted a function systems expert.  What helps is that they did agree to drink the Kool-Aid when I was hired, and agreed that I would be developed in this area.  But it means I am FIRMLY out of my comfort zone, and my primary function is not something I have a history of being good at, nor something I was particularly vetted for in my interview.  And so I can't really tell how I'm doing.  I can tell when I'm not doing what I'm supposed to, but I can't tell if that's the level of not-doing-what-I'm-supposed-to that they were expecting as part of the "development", or truly not living up to expectations.  (Evaluations are coming up soon, though, and I will find out.  I have been afraid to ask.)

Personnel management I'm picking up ok, like I thought, and like I was prepared to have to do.  Rigorous system management?  I just hope I'm picking it up fast enough.  What's more, and I hope this doesn't sound arrogant, I am not accustomed to not being good at what I do.  Being mediocre is killing me.  If I survive, though, I will be mighty.

I was prepared to change things here.  I wasn't prepared to the new pace of change being required.  I agree with the need for it; I just wasn't prepared for it.  And I wasn't told about it, because I was recruited by my predecessor, who is about as Old Guard as it gets.

I still get to do some of what I do know how to do, and I'm doing it well.  I've been thoroughly embraced as technical expert.  Considering how much of it I do, I have to wonder how their second-place systems expert candidate from another industry would have done.  I suppose in that case my predecessor would have stuck around in a role much closer to his old capacity.  

Speaking of my predecessor and his capacity, that's another area of dysfunction.  He is still around, in a completely undefined role (and has changed neither his business cards nor his email sig to remove the title that is now mine), and sometimes gets in my way.  He still reports to the CEO, who is my boss's boss, and so there's nothing I can do about him.  This too shall pass.

Thanks for asking.

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

Wow! All that dysFUNction and West Bumblemuck to boot. How can you stand the excitement?

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

How can you stand the weather?
 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

(OP)
I love the weather!  The weather is the one thing I like about West Bumblemuck.  (I have somewhat unusual taste in weather.)

OJD

RE: honeymoon's over before it started

"What's more, and I hope this doesn't sound arrogant, I am not accustomed to not being good at what I do.  Being mediocre is killing me."

I think this is an extremely normal and typical thing for an engineer to be thinking.

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