- Joined
- Dec 28, 2003
- Messages
- 4,793
Well, another long one! My apologies for you long suffering readers, but a lot I wanted to say. I'm finally back in the saddle so to speak. 4 months. Many of you remember my writing repeatedly last year about the "Boss From Hell." We were peers. She had 4 years mid-management experience, and I had almost 15, more than half in senior management and then a stint as Director. She had her GED, I had gone back to school for my B.S. in '98. I managed 22 people and 20 projects and had 4 Employee's of the Month in '05, while she managed 6 people and 1 project and was loathed by her slaves, as we called them.
Yet she sucked up big time to the idiot CTO and was made "acting" Director when my great boss left for other opportunities. I was too busy doing my job to suck up. The job was to be posted, and I was supposed to get a shot at it. She and I were the only candidates, and she didn't stand a chance, on paper that is.
Suddenly I couldn't do anything right. After glowing reviews for 2.5 years suddenly I was a screw up. She reported (lied) that I showed up for work at Noon, did not complete assignments, mismanaged my team, did not close defects, was late on projects, insubordinate, etc., etc., etc. She micro-managed me 10 hours a day at work, then called me on the way home, at home nights, and all day weekends. She pushed my buttons and poked and prodded until hell wouldn't have it. She was the single most incompetent, venal, stupid, hateful, loathesome person I have worked for or with since I have been working a full time schedule, which is 33 years now.
Well, she won. After 10 months I couldn't handle it anymore. She lied her way into the position and eliminated the competition and got me fired. The job never has been posted to date. The irony? The CTO who supported the Witch was fired 2 months later, because her lone, single project missed all its deadlines, because she was so busy angling for my job. Of course she's still there.
I hired an attorney and put together a wrongful termination case. Took me a month to put together 50 pages of supporting documentation. I had all my emails backed up at home where they couldn't get them. The company had not followed existing documented HR procedures. The attorney told me we would win for sure, but that I would have to come up with 10-15K and it would take a year, and after everything was settled and he got his piece we would break even or come out a few grand ahead. He recommended we not proceed, then pocketed just about my last $500. I think he cruised it, but I also knew he was partly right and they would fight hard, and just had had enough. I needed to let go in order to get past it. This company has been sued two dozen times and knows all the tricks. Figures they would, being the single most dysfunctional organization outside of the DMV and the Federal Government.
The hardest thing I ever did was letting go of the desire for both justice and retribution. I still have a lot of anger. I worked an average of 50 hours a week for them for 3 and a half years, and shipped over 300 state test projects on time, helping to generate revenues somewhere in the neighborhood of a billion dollars for the company. Not a single penalty for late delivery, ever, during my tenure. (Penalties can average up to $50K per day..)
The ultimate insult was when one of my team, who I had supported with HR and pushed to have his H1 salary (a young 32 year-old engineer from India) adjusted and raised almost 20K per year, who I had helped move into his home and hung curtain rods for him and gave advice on which contractors to use, who I had violated company policy for and given two extra weeks off, paid, so he could fly home and attend a puja for his father, that I had OK'd budget funds for to pay for his MBA and gave him time to study, betrayed me to this woman and fed her information on my confidential directives to the team. He now has my position. They are quite happy together.
A forumite here did me a wonderful turn and put me in for an interview for a great position at his company. It all went well for 5 hours and 4 guys until the end, when the CTO asked me about my past job. I thought I had it in the bag and spoke to him honestly about the hell I had just gone through. Too honestly it turns out. _Really_ Stupid. I went from seeming to have a lock on it to never hearing from him again, even though he told me I would be coming back for a second round the next week. He said it and I think meant it, but then had second thoughts. Like most normal folks, he really wasn't interested in hearing all the gory details, but wanted a happy picture painted that I couldn't give. Because I had not let go of the injustice I was done, I undoubtedly scared him off. In his position I probably would have done the same. A hiring manager wants to know what you can do for _him_, not about the past. But, he asked, and unfortunately I suck at blowing happy smoke and telling people what they want to hear. Which is why I'm not a VP I guess...
Short story long I know. I didn't ask for smoke and prayers or make a big deal here, although I know I mentioned it a few times, usually on the DOTD, because I figured it was my thing to deal with. I wrote privately to a few friends here and let them know, and I'm glad I did. I should have shared it openly with you all, but thanks to all who supported me in typical Cantina fashion. I suffered _severe_ HIKV withdrawal I can tell you.
Kind of cold turkey. (I don't think HI's bank account has recovered yet. 
)
So. Last week I'm having lunch with an old friend who owns her own company. Right next to the airport where I can fly once a week at lunch. In a totally non-political laid back environment. With profit sharing and yearly bonuses, and 3 weeks vacation to start every year. And one of her key people is leaving and she asks me, am I interested? It's not a management position, so the salary is less. Works out to about $75 a day less. But you know, it sounds trite, but I don't care. The intangibles are totally worth it. By the time I offset for the taxes, and not having to buy a commute car and spend 3 hours per day in traffic, and actually having nights and weekends off, then it's totally a plus as far as I'm concerned. All it means is that I will have to contain myself and not go ape on the DOTD as much as I used to. No worries. The right knives will still come to me. As much as I love HI knives, peace of mind is more important.
I figure sometimes you have to take a step back to move ahead a little. I always thought before that you had to make more with each move, but the big jump I took last time was the worst one I ever did because of the nature of the job and the horrible atmosphere. No amount is worth that nightmare.
So, I started today. The first day I got good vibes and feel sure I can do well there. The company is a clearing house for scientific papers submitted by academicians and labs and scientific research bodies all over the world. These papers have to be vetted and peer reviewed, then converted to .pdf and put on CD's. There is some QA, some project management, a lot of debugging and problem solving. A challenge, but a fun challenge. I wore khakis and a polo shirt today and was kidded about being overdressed. The nicest, most welcoming and laid back people in the world. I'm feeling very fortunate. Good things do come from scary changes sometimes.
Final postscript: they have a big shelf in the office with compartments on the wall. Each person is asked to bring in something personal to put on permanent display while they work there. Chinese pottery, an African mask, a handmade stone and glass sculpture, a Buddha, all reside there. The compartment set aside for me is kind of tall and narrow, set off at the end. Now, what might I have, that's tall and narrow? And slightly curved? I think I have just the item in mind, and it's going to fit perfectly. :thumbup:
Norm
Yet she sucked up big time to the idiot CTO and was made "acting" Director when my great boss left for other opportunities. I was too busy doing my job to suck up. The job was to be posted, and I was supposed to get a shot at it. She and I were the only candidates, and she didn't stand a chance, on paper that is.
Suddenly I couldn't do anything right. After glowing reviews for 2.5 years suddenly I was a screw up. She reported (lied) that I showed up for work at Noon, did not complete assignments, mismanaged my team, did not close defects, was late on projects, insubordinate, etc., etc., etc. She micro-managed me 10 hours a day at work, then called me on the way home, at home nights, and all day weekends. She pushed my buttons and poked and prodded until hell wouldn't have it. She was the single most incompetent, venal, stupid, hateful, loathesome person I have worked for or with since I have been working a full time schedule, which is 33 years now.
Well, she won. After 10 months I couldn't handle it anymore. She lied her way into the position and eliminated the competition and got me fired. The job never has been posted to date. The irony? The CTO who supported the Witch was fired 2 months later, because her lone, single project missed all its deadlines, because she was so busy angling for my job. Of course she's still there.
I hired an attorney and put together a wrongful termination case. Took me a month to put together 50 pages of supporting documentation. I had all my emails backed up at home where they couldn't get them. The company had not followed existing documented HR procedures. The attorney told me we would win for sure, but that I would have to come up with 10-15K and it would take a year, and after everything was settled and he got his piece we would break even or come out a few grand ahead. He recommended we not proceed, then pocketed just about my last $500. I think he cruised it, but I also knew he was partly right and they would fight hard, and just had had enough. I needed to let go in order to get past it. This company has been sued two dozen times and knows all the tricks. Figures they would, being the single most dysfunctional organization outside of the DMV and the Federal Government.
The hardest thing I ever did was letting go of the desire for both justice and retribution. I still have a lot of anger. I worked an average of 50 hours a week for them for 3 and a half years, and shipped over 300 state test projects on time, helping to generate revenues somewhere in the neighborhood of a billion dollars for the company. Not a single penalty for late delivery, ever, during my tenure. (Penalties can average up to $50K per day..)
The ultimate insult was when one of my team, who I had supported with HR and pushed to have his H1 salary (a young 32 year-old engineer from India) adjusted and raised almost 20K per year, who I had helped move into his home and hung curtain rods for him and gave advice on which contractors to use, who I had violated company policy for and given two extra weeks off, paid, so he could fly home and attend a puja for his father, that I had OK'd budget funds for to pay for his MBA and gave him time to study, betrayed me to this woman and fed her information on my confidential directives to the team. He now has my position. They are quite happy together.
A forumite here did me a wonderful turn and put me in for an interview for a great position at his company. It all went well for 5 hours and 4 guys until the end, when the CTO asked me about my past job. I thought I had it in the bag and spoke to him honestly about the hell I had just gone through. Too honestly it turns out. _Really_ Stupid. I went from seeming to have a lock on it to never hearing from him again, even though he told me I would be coming back for a second round the next week. He said it and I think meant it, but then had second thoughts. Like most normal folks, he really wasn't interested in hearing all the gory details, but wanted a happy picture painted that I couldn't give. Because I had not let go of the injustice I was done, I undoubtedly scared him off. In his position I probably would have done the same. A hiring manager wants to know what you can do for _him_, not about the past. But, he asked, and unfortunately I suck at blowing happy smoke and telling people what they want to hear. Which is why I'm not a VP I guess...
Short story long I know. I didn't ask for smoke and prayers or make a big deal here, although I know I mentioned it a few times, usually on the DOTD, because I figured it was my thing to deal with. I wrote privately to a few friends here and let them know, and I'm glad I did. I should have shared it openly with you all, but thanks to all who supported me in typical Cantina fashion. I suffered _severe_ HIKV withdrawal I can tell you.
Kind of cold turkey. (I don't think HI's bank account has recovered yet. )So. Last week I'm having lunch with an old friend who owns her own company. Right next to the airport where I can fly once a week at lunch. In a totally non-political laid back environment. With profit sharing and yearly bonuses, and 3 weeks vacation to start every year. And one of her key people is leaving and she asks me, am I interested? It's not a management position, so the salary is less. Works out to about $75 a day less. But you know, it sounds trite, but I don't care. The intangibles are totally worth it. By the time I offset for the taxes, and not having to buy a commute car and spend 3 hours per day in traffic, and actually having nights and weekends off, then it's totally a plus as far as I'm concerned. All it means is that I will have to contain myself and not go ape on the DOTD as much as I used to. No worries. The right knives will still come to me. As much as I love HI knives, peace of mind is more important.
I figure sometimes you have to take a step back to move ahead a little. I always thought before that you had to make more with each move, but the big jump I took last time was the worst one I ever did because of the nature of the job and the horrible atmosphere. No amount is worth that nightmare.
So, I started today. The first day I got good vibes and feel sure I can do well there. The company is a clearing house for scientific papers submitted by academicians and labs and scientific research bodies all over the world. These papers have to be vetted and peer reviewed, then converted to .pdf and put on CD's. There is some QA, some project management, a lot of debugging and problem solving. A challenge, but a fun challenge. I wore khakis and a polo shirt today and was kidded about being overdressed. The nicest, most welcoming and laid back people in the world. I'm feeling very fortunate. Good things do come from scary changes sometimes.
Final postscript: they have a big shelf in the office with compartments on the wall. Each person is asked to bring in something personal to put on permanent display while they work there. Chinese pottery, an African mask, a handmade stone and glass sculpture, a Buddha, all reside there. The compartment set aside for me is kind of tall and narrow, set off at the end. Now, what might I have, that's tall and narrow? And slightly curved? I think I have just the item in mind, and it's going to fit perfectly. :thumbup:
Norm
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