Community Chat

[Drythe]

@Sweetbay magnolia

I’m sorry this is happening to you, know it is a PITA.

My guess is 1). hubris. 2 ). Management thinks things need shaking up.

Have a great day W/O you ‘friend’!

[Sweetbay magnolia]

I think I may have part of it figured out - I appreciate the insights that help open my eyes to new ways of thinking about it.

He's a white collar guy, and my section of our company is blue collar (most of the company is, though of course we have "office" people, many who come from blue collar backgrounds).  He's used to dealing with virtual reality, concepts, theories, and we do things.  Not that we don't have to think about it, not that we don't have scientific theory behind many of our skills - it's just that we don't sit around and strategize all day.  His past life was as a public affairs consultant.

A lot of what has been said here is probably true:  maybe he's insecure, trying to impress, filling a void now that he's not running his own company, etc., but the fact remains he needs to be a team player because that's how we get things done.  He's causing strife and pitting people against one another (sounds familiar).  He wasn't asked for his "two cents", he was asked to do the job at hand.

Several of us have already spoken with this guy in disagreement.  In fact, one of my co-workers who is in high esteem by our manager discussed the situation with the manager, who basically overrode what the "new guy" is trying to implement.  He made it clear which employees he values and which he considers replaceable.

I don't think this is the end, but it is a good beginning to it, I hope!  Either he follows the program, or he gets frustrated and leaves (best option), or he simply isn't retained when the season of need ends.

I'll keep you posted on any interesting new twists.  Have a good one.

[151949]

Sometimes people run along on the "that's the way we always did it " mode and someone new can shake things up in a good way.

[Montana]

When one person is disrupting a group, I think taking your concerns to management as a group might be helpful.  First, management might see the seriousness of the problem.  And second, no individual is seen as the lone whiner or complainer.

This worked for me personally. In my situation a few of us got together and spoke to the supervisor about a problem co-worker. Just the fact that we were together made a big difference.

[Sweetbay magnolia]

@151949, I wouldn't say that is the case here.

Our business is seasonal, perishable, subject to weather, dependent on trucking lines and remote locations for live products, and retail.  It would be like saying you could formulate a triage unit.

Of course there are basic things.  But the day-to-day?  Never know what could walk through the door.

[Spurt]

@Sweetbay magnolia

Some people just have to feed their narcisstic egos and feel their own importance.....Sometimes Mangers dont want to deal with any thing that causes them extra work such as  playing referee and settling differences of opinons among their employees ....so people that speak up are viewed in the negative and not "team players" even if your and your co-workers complaints are justified....go with the flow....

Sadly in the company I work for they got promoted to management positions, but what was funny they sure didn't last long either....because they didnt actually understand the business nor the goals of the company....so HANG IN THERE, he wont be with you long.........