In an unexpected turn of events at the end of last month, my manager announced that she was retiring.
It was not a completely unexpected outcome: I had no idea how old she is (and it is never polite to ask a lady) but it turns out that this was the year that it could all work for her. Also, for the past 5 years she has been commuting from her home in the next state over and staying in New Home 2.0 four days a week before heading back for three days a week. She will be retiring to her family farm, where she will be working on her art and her rather large (and expanding garden).
As you can imagine, this has upset the apple cart a bit.
One of the immediate questions that came up from my coworkers and even my direct reports was "Will you apply for the job?" I thought about it for something like five minutes; knowing what I know about the position and the state of the work world, I do not have the particular elements of the industry experience nor the long experience at working at a large company that those who make such decisions put into the job description.
Besides, not one person in the hiring chain suggested I throw my hat into the ring, which tells me volumes. That, and the fact that having done that role once before (which ended in Hammerfall 2.0), I was not terribly eager to throw myself into that fire again. I have no need to build a career or empire at this point: I am just trying to make it to retirement.
What it does mean, though, is for interim - and who knows how long that will last - I will be acting in her stead.
That is not as daunting as a task at it may seem at first blush: internally I know everyone in the department and the transfer of responsibilities in terms of reporting will be minimal. Yes, my schedule in terms of one on one meetings is about to double (I will likely be spending 8 hours a week talking to people), but most everyone is pretty self-sufficient at this point. They do not need me to tell them what to do (in general); often they just want an ear to listen to them with challenges.
The daunting part will be that - at least for the intervening period of time - I will be the one everyone wants a decision from.
I have been in this position before and know exactly what it is like: e-mails and chats throughout the day, people grabbing you in hallways, and of course the ever present growth of meetings. It becomes almost impossible to do your actual "work".
The other side of this, of course, is what happens when that person is hired.
I have already had some such discussion with my team. I have reminded them that, given everything that we are doing, no-one has any interest in disrupting ongoing operations; if anything, we have become more valuable than before because leadership (that amorphous term that refers to a series of groups of people above our heads) wants things to continue to move forward. But I also know, from painful experience, that it is always uncomfortable and always engenders change.
And then, of course, there is my own adjustment.
There will be that initial stage where the incoming person knows nothing and is just meeting people and going to meetings to gain context, followed by the gradual assumption of responsibilities and then the setting of a course, perhaps a different course, than what we have been on. And then the inevitable reorganization that happens and what will become the "New Normal".
My estimate? This will take the rest of the year to settle out, assuming that person arrives within one or two months.
I am super happy for my manager. She deserves this retirement and I hope it is a good one for her. But I am really sad for the rest of us.
Maybe even sadder for me. Because she had a wealth of experience and was a great manager. No matter who comes in, it will be a very different feel. I worry a bit for my own future - not so much in another Hammerfall scenario, but rather in the scenario of either being pigeonholed or having nowhere to go.
I just have to keep reminding myself head down like a bison in a snowstorm. This, too, shall pass.
Always an interesting period when a new boss alights...what type of mark do they want to make and the personalities......Good luck there TB, remember that snowstorm always lets up, don't forget to look around every once in awhile, keep your wits about you......:)
ReplyDeleteNylon12, that is honestly part of the issue. Younger bosses (I was young once too) really want to make their mark and put their stamp on things, especially if they have an eye on the levels above them.
DeleteThe reminder about remembering to be in life is well placed. It was actually what I journaled about prior to reading this.
Losing a key team member is always discombobulating, I'm guessing because it upsets the social balance of the team as well as the work balance. I hope you all get a good fit for a replacement. At least for yourself, knowing it's temporary, should take some of pressure off.
ReplyDeleteLeigh, it is very discombobulating this time as she built the department up from herself, so her "presence" is all over it. The work balance will not be so much for us as it will be for the inevitable office politics as people joust for position on things that she enforced that they disagreed with.
DeleteIf nothing else, it will be experience and exposure for me in a very large multinational company. That might not be a bad thing.
When I started my career in my chosen profession, leaders always came from within which though uncomfortable at times, was fairly predictable. By the end of my career, that changed to new leaders coming from outside which always led to reorganizations and hammerfalls. I’m so glad I’m beyond all that now. Wish you luck my internet friend.
ReplyDeleteEd, that is very much my experience as well. I will say that my current employer also apparently has held to that overall, which means that people are relatively predictable but you lose the input of outside industry experience and trends.
DeleteThat said, I was an outside hire as well.
There may be an interesting knock-on effect of you handling the reins, if only for a(n extended) moment; it leaves you in potential position of an adviser to her replacement. Having the Old Boss around to show one the ropes is the best case scenario, but The One Filling In before one arrived can still provide some valuable insight if one chooses to listen.
ReplyDeleteWhether the weight of the epithet of Kingmaker (or perhaps merely Baronmaker, in this less-than earthmoving circumstance) is worth the bent brow it imposes is a question far beyond me. I've always equated being in a leadership position akin to being a member of a bomb disposal team: "Better that other guy than me!"
P_P, this is actually how I am approaching it. I am building a file of things the new person will need to know and will probably have enough information on ongoing things to be useful. Or at least, that is what I am planning.
DeleteIt is not so much the weight of the title (Baronmaker - Ha!) as it is that I have people that report to me (more now) and I want to make sure their lives are as trouble-free as possible in this regard. To that extent, this is a role I can fill for them.
Sorry for your shakeup at work. This is never easy, especially as we become the older, and as some view, the easiest to let go, employees. It is a terrible feeling to be so vulnerable. We all know that the more we can set us up for not being at the whim of an employer, the better. Of course there’s been tons written about surviving or even thriving on a tight budget, whether it is due to needing to ride out a lay off, or being able to retire early. Several years ago (after my husband and I had already retired…early) I came across the very enjoyable book, How To Retire The Cheapskate Way, by Jeff Yeager. Got it (the cheapskate way, through the library). I always love reading about people’s tips on living on a shoestring. As you know, Patrice at Rural Revolution has written extensively about her experience with this. Yeager’s “Cheapskate” retirement book offers some very good ideas I hadn’t seen in other sources. He interviews various people who are either setting up themselves to retire early, or already have. Funny, one of the things I remember most about the book is coming across the saying, “go on about one’s rat killing”, as a reason to retire.
ReplyDeleteAnon - I would be lying if I said that longer term, I do have some concerns. The industry that I am in is prone to "managing budgets" at times, and people are the most expensive part about any company.
DeleteI appreciate the reference as I have never heard of it (apparently I missed Patrice's reviews). I will definitely look for it.
I’m afraid my comment may have been confusing. While Patrice has excellent posts on living a thrifty lifestyle, I heard about Yeager’s book elsewhere. I don’t know if Patrice is aware of Yeager’s book. She’s already a skilled practitioner in that area😁.
DeleteAh, no worries Anon. I am all the smarter for your post though, Thank you!
DeleteTwo thoughts, are you getting supervisors pay for doing the work.
ReplyDeleteDon't really want the answer, friend. Just for you to think about as my second thought comes in:
And how do you show the new supervisor you're not any sort of a threat to HIS existence. After all he's far more expensive to the organization that you were and only doing the same job.
Middle Managers have to be a bit paranoid because the bean counters and upper leadership do thin like that.
I've heard such skullduggery was fairly common in Feudal Japan.
Michael - The answer there is likely "doubtful", although likely there is some kind of mention/reward at the end of the process if I do it well.
DeleteMy "anti-threat" device, so much as it exists, is knowledge of particular things and systems, which I working hard to add as quickly as I can to my repertoire. There are now certain aspects of things about which I am really the only person in my department that has the breadth of vision on; I am working to make it more.
I was wondering similar things as Michael. I'm relieved that you have an anti-threat device. ;^) I hope the transition goes well for all of you, TB. You seem to have a pretty good attitude about it all.
ReplyDeleteBecki, like all "anti-threat" devices, it likely has a limited lifespan and can be overcome by an expert or by time. The key in my mind is continuing to provide value and make myself as irreplaceable as I can.
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