Work mishigas...*reading optional*
Sep. 12th, 2009 08:32 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
phynckeSo I have had one of the best work weeks ever and I am at the peak of my performance there. I am doing incredibly well. I am finding that this means that people are taking pot shots at me in strange ways. There is a strange competitive climate there at the University and outside of the small Development co-hort that I work for, I get this feeling that the group is not so supportive and the little hairs at the back of my neck say "watch your back, girl. Just watch it." So I am. My radar is reading and I am on the look out. I will give examples of why my hackles are up here. This is also helping me because it helps to clarify this in my mind in this more private corner of my journal space.
On my biggest day ever. A day that our San Francisco alumni event was going up, my supervisor decided to send me a view emails that I consider less than motivating. None of these emails were of vital importance and the issues could have waited until a day when I had time to here such things and it would have been a better "moment" to discuss such things. I also think that these things are better talked about in person and not put to email. Just a quick verbal heads up.
I have to provide a little background. Part of my position is to scan and read deans emails. There are times when I am on 3 email accounts at once (including my own very busy one) and I have to analyze and act on my email and two executive email accounts. This is time consuming and stressful. I was sent a 4 paragraph critique about how I handled one email as I CCd it incorrectly. This is one out of many many emails on my busiest day. Someone reported this to my supervisor and then I got a 4 paragraph critique about this. I found a few things annoying about this. I will list:
1. She had time to do that.
2. It was one email.
3. She did not come to me and just let me know.
4. Her timing sucked.
So I replied and thanked her for the heads up on that and then I reminded her of my proposal for consolidating the email accounts that I handle to make it easier to analyze and disseminate the messages. She has not acted on that and it would be easier to handle the email flow if this plan were implemented. I did not critique her for letting that slide. I asked her if we could revisit that plan as I thought it would help me handle the flow of information. Done on that one.
The other issue had to do with our workstudy student, whom I manage. I did so last year and will so again this year. This entails a lot of training and supervision. None of them do this and I enjoy it. They do however complain when the student does not "look" busy enough. Sooo...I get an email from my supervisor. She would like daily updates and reports on the status of the workstudy. This is problematic for a number of reasons. It reeks of micromanagement in the worst way and is terribly onerous. She also copied the senior staff level so she was bumping it up a notch right from the get go. She did not check with me first to see how we would work with soooo...
Again, with a copy to all the people she copied, I reply, thanks and I understand your concern but "I don't think we need to create that layer of supervision on the work study...etc." I explained to her our weekly system of project management and that we have a work study project binder that they and I work with. She and any of the management staff are welcome to consult that binder at any time they wish. If they would like a project added to the list, they just have to email me about that. Simple work can be given directly to the student. So hell no, I am not going to do that as I do not have time to. I have been in that reporting position before and you wind up spending so much time doing that, that you get no actual work done. The report becomes all that you get to do. So no thank you.
So the last bugaboo I am peeved about is that she has forgotten my annual review. I would like her to do that so I will email a reminder next week. She will do this as I want that on the books for my reclass that I am working on. So...I tell you. It is always something.
I am looking around at job listings and my resume is ready. I don't know what is out there but I think I can make more. I would love to make more.
I feel better.
Out.
On my biggest day ever. A day that our San Francisco alumni event was going up, my supervisor decided to send me a view emails that I consider less than motivating. None of these emails were of vital importance and the issues could have waited until a day when I had time to here such things and it would have been a better "moment" to discuss such things. I also think that these things are better talked about in person and not put to email. Just a quick verbal heads up.
I have to provide a little background. Part of my position is to scan and read deans emails. There are times when I am on 3 email accounts at once (including my own very busy one) and I have to analyze and act on my email and two executive email accounts. This is time consuming and stressful. I was sent a 4 paragraph critique about how I handled one email as I CCd it incorrectly. This is one out of many many emails on my busiest day. Someone reported this to my supervisor and then I got a 4 paragraph critique about this. I found a few things annoying about this. I will list:
1. She had time to do that.
2. It was one email.
3. She did not come to me and just let me know.
4. Her timing sucked.
So I replied and thanked her for the heads up on that and then I reminded her of my proposal for consolidating the email accounts that I handle to make it easier to analyze and disseminate the messages. She has not acted on that and it would be easier to handle the email flow if this plan were implemented. I did not critique her for letting that slide. I asked her if we could revisit that plan as I thought it would help me handle the flow of information. Done on that one.
The other issue had to do with our workstudy student, whom I manage. I did so last year and will so again this year. This entails a lot of training and supervision. None of them do this and I enjoy it. They do however complain when the student does not "look" busy enough. Sooo...I get an email from my supervisor. She would like daily updates and reports on the status of the workstudy. This is problematic for a number of reasons. It reeks of micromanagement in the worst way and is terribly onerous. She also copied the senior staff level so she was bumping it up a notch right from the get go. She did not check with me first to see how we would work with soooo...
Again, with a copy to all the people she copied, I reply, thanks and I understand your concern but "I don't think we need to create that layer of supervision on the work study...etc." I explained to her our weekly system of project management and that we have a work study project binder that they and I work with. She and any of the management staff are welcome to consult that binder at any time they wish. If they would like a project added to the list, they just have to email me about that. Simple work can be given directly to the student. So hell no, I am not going to do that as I do not have time to. I have been in that reporting position before and you wind up spending so much time doing that, that you get no actual work done. The report becomes all that you get to do. So no thank you.
So the last bugaboo I am peeved about is that she has forgotten my annual review. I would like her to do that so I will email a reminder next week. She will do this as I want that on the books for my reclass that I am working on. So...I tell you. It is always something.
I am looking around at job listings and my resume is ready. I don't know what is out there but I think I can make more. I would love to make more.
I feel better.
Out.
