I am basically a customer service rep, I have about 35 clients. On Monday direct client communication was taken away as part of my job. Everything I write needs to go to an intermediary, for their approval and forwarding. I still do the research, but somebody else’s name is on the ultimate response.
Apparently my communication style is not professional enough and some other offices have lost faith in the accuracy of my responses. I’ve been in this position at this company for more or less 7 years (under different job titles, but basically the same reponsibilities). All this time in and now (actually starting in February) the company decides that my communication skills are not as good as they should be. I’m still doing the same job I always have been, now all of a sudden they change the measuring stick.
I think that once they get a good grasp on what I do, they will show me the door. They tell me that I can work my way out of this double secret probation, but I figure they already have the end in mind. Last month they told me that the company had heard from a number of internal clients how much better my communication skills were getting, now they back track.
Needless to say, I’m actively looking for work, I hope I find something (anything) before the hammer drops. Is there any way to make this situation not so horrible? Is there any way I can believe what they tell me? Am I just being paranoid? I just don’t see anyway back from Siberia, but I really do like my job and I don’t want to leave. This sucks.
Do you grasp exactly what their issue is with your communication style? If you do and can make the change, make the change in the communications on your end before it gets to an intermediary. No idea if that will help them realize that you’ve learned, but it can’t hurt.
Diggerwam, sorry to hear about your job troubles, but I think you are on the right track looking for a new job.
Even if they gave your responsibilities back next week, I would be distrustful of a company that took away the majority of my responsibilities after 7 years so everything could be “reviewed” without a decent explanation other than they don’t like your communication style.
Good luck on finding a new job and hopefully it will be a better gig that what you’ve got now.
Things sometimes have a way of working themselves out.
Company told me that I turned co-workers off by my tone. Either unprofessional or short demanding sentences. I had never heard this about myself before and I made myself more aware of my audience. Like I said, it was actually mentioned how much progress I’d made in this area. I thought I was on the right track.
Now I find out that above and beyond unprofessionalism, other offices are questioning my compitence (sp??). Do I really know what I’m supposed to know and do I infer to my clients that I know more than I really do? I basically have a bad reputation in a couple offices and I don’t think there is much I can do about it. It’s time to cut my losses. It just bothers me that I survived 7 years, 4 administrations and numerous layoffs, but this is what is ultimately going to set me adrift.
I just think this administration is shocked to see how much $$ we’re losing and I’m the next weakest link. None of my clients have left do to poor service, nobody else in my position can say the same thing.
Frankly, were I in your position, I would do two things:
Ask for feedback politely, work on my performance and try to meet their expectations, unfair as it may be that this was suddenly thrust upon you after 7 years.
I read the OP earlier in the day, but didn’t have time to respond. fluiddruid hit the nail right on the head. Politely ask for feedback and work on what they tell you, but start seriously looking for other work. I’ll just add: Be very very careful about who you use from this place as a Reference.
I read the OP earlier in the day, but didn’t have time to respond. fluiddruid hit the nail right on the head. Politely ask for feedback and work on what they tell you, but start seriously looking for other work. I’ll just add: Be very very careful about who you use as a Reference.
Any time direct clients are taken out of your loop, that pretty much means that it is you they are trying to get out of the loop. That has been my experience anyway.
I was the top salesperson in the company, I had the biggest account by far. I got a huge check that was bigger than my bosses check. After that, he decided to call my client directly. Sure enough, not long after, he still had the client, and no longer had to pay me. The good news? He ended up having to sue that client and to this day, I am still (according to him) the best salesperson he EVER had. How do I know? My husband now works for the company and whenever I go in, people tell me that no one has broken my records yet and that the boss routinely yells about this chick Auntbeast, who had no sales experience, who set every record in the company. Ahhhh…
If you are commission I’d be very, very concerned. If you aren’t, I’d be very concerned. It’s easier to get a job when you have a job. Good luck to you.
Resigning would mean not getting any severance and disqualifying himself for unemployment benefits. Getting fired might allow him to receive some severance and unemployment benefits. Also, as noted, it is easier to get a job when you are still employed.
Also, be aware that the reason you are being set up here may have nothing to do with your performance on the job (or it may, I’m in no position to judge). But if your salary is much higher than others in your position, if you get better benefits, etc., the boss may just be looking to replace an expensive part of his money machine with a cheaper one. Frex, in some companies employees become “vested” (eligible for retirement benefits) after seven years’ time. If that’s so in your firm’s case, it’s quite a coincidence, is it not?
Generally, if someone is a fuckup on the scale you are described as being, they don’t last seven years with a company.
Have you gotten any feedback from clients that reinforces what your bosses are saying about you?
True enough. I’ve worked at a number of places where Ethically Challenged Folks have decided that they will not fire anyone (because then they have to pay Unemployment), but rather will treat people like shit in order to get them to quit.
Illegal, Immoral, Insane…doesn’t matter. It’s all good if it gets you out the door and saves them a buck.
It is unlikely they wil fire him, more likely the action will be “laid off”, which isn’t so bad. It is best for him to find a new better job before they do either.
Surely it does matter if it is illegal. The law here (and surely Illinois law must be similar?) has the concept of constructive dismissal. The employee could sue the employer for effectively breaching the contract of employment, and be reinstated or compensated.
The employer’s actions are consistent with plans to “fire” an employee. That is, they are consistent with an upcoming involuntary termination for performance reasons. There is no indication of an upcoming “layoff,” or involuntary termination due to lack of work or reorganization. Yes, poor performers are often the first to go in layoffs, but I can’t see where **DrDeth ** is getting any signs of layoff.
Absent additional information to the contrary, the employer seems to be taking the appropriate action when an employee has made some significant mistakes. They are documenting where the performance was unsatisfactory so the termination can be attributed to that, rather than something illegal, like race, sex or age.
Terminating someone to keep them from vesting in a pension plan is illegal. On the off chance this is happening right before you vest in a pension or 401(k) match, be aware of that as a negotiating point for your severance. Consult a lawyer to know all your pension rights. Terminating someone because they are making more than the employer would need to pay someone else to get the job done is not illegal, unless it is concurrent with illegal age discrimination, so making up the performance problems seems like unnecessary hassle if it’s really about the pay. They could freeze your pay or even cut it, so why go to the trouble of re-recruiting, training, etc.?
My pure speculation as to why this, why now? My guess is that one of the OP’s mistakes got on the bad side of an important/connected customer. I agree with the advice to do your best while also looking for another job.
Somebody up there hates you. There have obviously been discussions about you and they have been bad. When they start to remake your job and take away your responsibilities worse is ahead. Find a new job immediately. After 7 years it would be tough to fire you. A layoff is most likely. Or a demotion.
Second of all, even if you do, it can take years to get settled and large amounts of money that most people do not have. Even if you do win, it can be a somewhat hollow victory.
Third, I think people tend to underestimate how hard it’s going to be to prove something in court. My previous IT job never put anything in writing, or if they did, it was so vague as to be completely unintelligible or unprovable if you did get into court.
My last IT boss told me that I would not be allowed to go to the Doctor again after I had a back injury and only worked 35 hours one week because of an MRI and 4 Doctor and Chiropractor appointments. (Only 35 hours!) No way in hell they were going to put that in writing. You think I’d have any chance to PROVE IN COURT that he ever said such a thing in a private meeting with me?
