Today is the first day of my new ultimate boss at work.
This thought makes me strangely nervous, nervous in ways that I cannot completely define. I find myself in the uncomfortable position of having to introduce someone to our company and how things are done with the apparent knowledge at some level this knowledge is going to be used (if not by this person, by the person whom they have determined to hire) to replace parts of my own functionality.
It is not a happy place to be.
,
Do I have any reason to be worried about what I have put together? Certainly as with everything there will be small areas of disagreement as to interpretation (I suppose). Still, I am confident that I have not left anything untouched or undone and I have not hidden any bodies which, when discovered, will give people significant pause.
That said, it is not very reassuring.
Change in the workplace is never very easy and never very comforting. It holds an element which many other sorts of change do not: if the change does not go well, one's livelihood is in danger. The stress level rises when it involves significant change in management such as is happening today: Priorities are moved, lines of communication are altered, plans change. All of this is negotiated under the aegis of continuing to make a company function and ship product out the door.
What is the plan? I do not really have one other than show up to work today and see where things go. New managers can be quite quirky, especially when they just show up: they have been brought in for a particular purpose and are trying to orienting themselves for that purpose and until one knows what that purpose is, one can either get in the way too much or even create a bad impression through the obsequiousness hanging around all the time. Better to let them start their orienting and then find out what it is they are asking for.
But it concerns me in a general way that this is the second time in a year that a major shake-up has occurred: the first was last March, when my previous manager of five years was let go. Now after wading through two (apparently) temporary bosses, a brand new one appears.
It does little to manage my longer term concerns.
Difficult times indeed TB, tis hard but try not to worry about what you can have no effect upon, it's like chewing water...pointless. As you know I am in a similar position and have resigned myself to the fact that what will be, will be. This does not mean that I will work less hard nor does it mean that I will suck up to the new management team hoping to make my position stronger..neither are in my nature and if the company does not wish to employ my talents then so be it. Yes there always the issues that come with the situation money, mortgage payments, food on the table but one thing I have learnt in fighting the Dog is that worrying about everything only adds to the problem..now I just try to tackle one task at a time as they come along and not think about what is next in line. Hope this helps TB.
ReplyDeleteJohn
John, I am so glad you made your way here. You are wonderful calming pool of advice. I am going to completely borrow the chewing water saying - it is a fine one.
DeleteI will try tomorrow to focus only on that which I can control. One day at a time.
Lhiats, TB
You are right to be worried. If the new boss makes less than you I would be very worried.
ReplyDeleteI don't know that I can get that kind of insight but I will keep it in mind, Preppy. We traditionally seem to pay low for the industry anyway.
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