Inigo makes the Sound of Ultimate Suffering

The BBQ Pit
1

If you had been outside on October 26, 2004 at 3:24 Mountain Time, you may have heard a sound. The sound made by the Man in Black as he was subjected to The Machine. The sound made by Inigo Montoya’s heart when the 6-Fingered Man slaughtered his father. The sound…of Ultimate Suffering. Today, my career made this sound.

I am a claim representative. I settle total losses. I buy cars all day long. Have done so for the last 3 years. I figure I’ve bought between 4,000 and 6,000 cars and motorcycles, and 3 commercial dump trucks—most of which at prices agreeable with my customers. I can count on one hand the number of complaints that passed though me and on up to management. I’m good. Damned good, if I do say so myself. I’m empathetic, reasonable and able to communicate effectively with Hicks & CEOs and anyone in between. I’m also bored stiff with my job. Don’t get me wrong, I love being there for the customer and helping them through the ordeal of losing their car—which sometimes includes an eye, limb or family member. But JAY-ZOOS! I’m not learning anything new! I’ve already fine tuned our work flow for Colorado. I’ve evaluated and made recommendations to streamline our sister departments in Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah (this requires a working understanding of property damage and vehicle title & salvage disposal laws, as well as the state-specific policy language in each of these states). Their operations are running smoothly now. So I spend more time Doping than working (and still out-performing my coworkers with a little help from the bag with the mermaid logo—hey, hey, CinnamonGirl!). And I feel guilty about that. Some.

I need to grow professionally. I need to handle Bodily Injury claims. Especially if I want to get into the management levels and have an impact on this company. And…: gasp : What’s this? An opening for a BI Rep? In this office no less! Yahoo! This is my break! We’ve been under a hiring freeze for over a year, which also meant no laterals, and it’s finally over! I’m so outta here! I’ll just take a minute and complete this posting form & away it goes to the Bossman! To Infinity and Beyond! I’m happy.

Within minutes I have an e-mail response from The Bossman (he’s always been a punctual dude—gonna miss him, really). “Sorry, Brad, I can’t give you a recommendation, and neither can my boss. The Total Loss Unit is short 3 people already and we just can’t let anyone else out right now. We need you to stay with us for a while longer. Understand, this is not a performance issue, we truly appreciate all … blah … blah …blah … and look forward to … blah … blah … blah … so, we’re ok, right? We’ve got your back, Brad. Hang in there a little longer.”

My life is becoming a Kinks song.

At this point, you would have heard the sound of ultimate suffering.

2

Inigo, I feel for you. It’s always frustrating to be told you’re too good to promote. One feels like asking: “If I screwed up more would you be willing to give me a recommendation?”
Can’t offer you any advice, just sympathy.

btw, am I going to burn in Hell for thinking, when I saw the post title, and the poster: “He’s doing it again?”

3

You know what, he doesn’t have your fucking back, he has his OWN fucking back. I’ve seen it at my company, guys in crap-ass positions (lousy hours and high stress) offered promotions, management level jobs, held back by their own management, because it would be “too hard” to replace them. :mad:

If you have skills that are transferable to another company in your industry, shop yourself around. When you get that job you want, the one that expands your career and improves your skills, then you can tell your boss to stuff it, and try to find someone in 2 weeks to fill your shoes. If he had approved your transfer, you can say, at least he would have had you to help train the next guy.

Good managers look out for their staff, and help them improve their careers.

4

What Cheesesteak said. You just sit there and take this, you’re letting this guy take advantage of you.

5

Or, he has a good working relationship with his management. His mangement values him immensely and appreciates his contributions, but unfortunately the interests of the company and Inigo’s appear to be at odds. Perhaps he could bring this up with the management and come up with a solution that would be palatable to both sides.

Honestly, the fucking chorus of people that love to jump in these job threads and yell, “Quit, quit right now and burn down the office on the way out!” is pretty amazing.

6

Inigo, would you be so good as to drop me an email? It’s a long shot, but I’ve heard that when two people with different need meet, deals can be made.

7

Yeah…all two of them…

8

Both of which say to find a new job before quiting the existing job. Such foolish advise giving is so nausiating :wink:

9

Yeah, and they didn’t even SAY “quit right now!” They said “Shop yourself around” and “Don’t let them take advantage of you.”

What’s wrong with suggesting Inigo look around and see if he can find a better opportunity? It sounds like he might be starting - starting, mind you - to burn out where his is. What if management takes a while to decide that “ok, now we’ve got the leeway to promote you”? How long is he supposed to stick around out of courtesy to a management he may get on well with, but won’t let him advance his career? 2 years? 5 years? 10? There’s a difference between being willing to wait a while for something you know is coming down the chute, and being a doormat for your company. Only Inigo here knows which situation is more likely with his particular employer, and how much delay he’s willing to accept.

10

I say go completely postal, but give us a nice send off post, just before you do. That way we can all appreciate the “there but for the grace of God” schadenfreude of it all.

11

Inigo, check your inbox.

12

It’s a signal. If he indicates that he must have you because the department is short of personnel, then that is a signal for you to respond with:

I understand. I had hoped to continue my career with the company I like best, but I can see your dilemma. Regrettably, I must move on. Understand, this is not an issue I have with the company. And I wish you all the best as you search for my replacement in total loss. It was my hope to be with you and assist you when you do, but if you prefer that I work elsewhere to make your task easier, I hold no grudge. Thanks for many great years, and perhaps one day we’ll run into each other socially. All the best…

Inigo

13

Yeah, I’d like to bail but what I want to do instead is buy homes in preforeclosure, pretty them up over the course of a month and then sell 'em. I’m very skilled at remodelling/construction, but because I’m not licensed as an electrician, plumber or carpenter It’s really not practical for me to market myself as a pro. Yet. And the housing market here is still in a major slump–totally great for buyers, or anyone with $1million or so to invest in real estate that they can sit on for a few years–that’s not me.

And the 12% pay raises I’ve received each of the last two Mays( :smiley: :smiley: ) make sticking around in my current position *juuuuuuust *palateable. Sure, I hear the clink of golden manacles, but for now it’s a good enough option.

All I REALLY want is a bowl of bubblegum at the end of my aisle that the company provided until they went tightwad to try & manage some costs. I guess someone who knows more about such things than I concluded that a $50 annual investment in morale was less important than replacing everyone’s perfectly good 2 year-old 19 inch monitors with shiny new 17 inch monitors (and they’re black, so I can barely see my pencilled in passwords & codes & stuff). :smack:

14

You misunderstand me. You have no intention of bailing. You need to look at this from your boss’s frame of reference. He has already informed you that total loss is too short-handed to lose even a single person. What he doesn’t know is whether he would lose you no matter what. If you are of any value to him at all, he would prefer to promote or move you and fill the slot than lose you and fill the slot. The only way he won’t have to fill the slot is if you do nothing. The response I gave informs him that he will have to move you and fill the slot. (From his frame of reference, that is preferable to losing you AND filling the slot.)

15

Check yours. We leave for Planet 10 real soon.

16

Nothing says “promotion” like an offer from a competitor.

I was in a very similar situation to yours, and was passed over for a promotion because the only other candidate passed the aptitude test by one point (I scored 98%), and, by virtue of seniority, got the position because he was “qualified.”

Next day, I was on the phone with the headhunter- three weeks later I had an offer. I brought that offer into HR and announced my intention to take the new job, at which point they pretty much refused to let me go, offering me a better position than either the promotion or the offer.

Honestly, it never hurts to show your bosses that others think you can get promoted, even if they do not.

17

However, Liberal, the problem with your approach is that MANY companies that “just can’t do without you” suddenly discover exactly how disposable you are when you send a letter / email like that.

18

Heh, I’ve canned people for that one myself when I was an (insurance) agent. Never let the employees hold you hostage.

19

Inigo Do you have to go through your supervisor on this? If you apply to the person in charge of BI, and provide a copy of your supervisor’s e-mail saying you are qualified in every respect but for your current department’s manning, that’s a recommendation.

That might be burning a bridge, but it’s worth considering, I think.

20

Inigo, what does HR have to say about this? I think it’s worth asking about policy, and whether what your supervisor is doing is “legal” according to company rules.