|
Having some real trouble communicating with my manager. I'll start describing a problem (as clear as I can be) and he will always cut me off with an assumption as soon as he hears the buzzword he's looking for - I.E. If I mention a high-profile user can't get an iPhone ActiveSync connection he'll mention the password has expired and tells me to reset it. I try to mention that I can log in with the same user via OWA, and the password's not expired as I can set it up on my Android, but he'll rarely listen. Then once the problem morphs into a more serious one he'll call me and say "What are the facts" as if I haven't mentioned them already. So I repeat what I've already told him and he lectures me about "Why he needs me to understand Active Directory" or whatever (Making me feel a bit poo poo because I was pretty happy about passing 98-365, even if it's only an MTA) - which again misses the problem and eventual solution. Anyone have any tips for dealing with similar situations?
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 22:57
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 21, 2024 11:46 |
|
|
DrAlexanderTobacco posted:Having some real trouble communicating with my manager. I'll start describing a problem (as clear as I can be) and he will always cut me off with an assumption as soon as he hears the buzzword he's looking for - I.E. If I mention a high-profile user can't get an iPhone ActiveSync connection he'll mention the password has expired and tells me to reset it. I try to mention that I can log in with the same user via OWA, and the password's not expired as I can set it up on my Android, but he'll rarely listen.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:03
|
|
|
 Ticket priorities as they probably should be.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:09
|
|
|
n0tqu1tesane posted:
In my imagination, 5 and 6 are functionally the same except 5 uses better wording and is more polite. This is acceptable. and 7 will never, ever get touched. "Professional development" happens before "nothing to do."
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:10
|
|
|
The difference between 5 and 6 to me is that 5 is a potentially interesting problem to solve whereas 6 is some mundane poo poo. Or the request came with a bribe.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:14
|
|
|
DrAlexanderTobacco posted:Having some real trouble communicating with my manager. I'll start describing a problem (as clear as I can be) and he will always cut me off with an assumption as soon as he hears the buzzword he's looking for - I.E. If I mention a high-profile user can't get an iPhone ActiveSync connection he'll mention the password has expired and tells me to reset it. I try to mention that I can log in with the same user via OWA, and the password's not expired as I can set it up on my Android, but he'll rarely listen. Maybe initiate conversation as little as possible unless it's good news. My 30 second impression is that your manager either hates managing or he has a problem with you specifically Roargasm fucked around with this message at 23:23 on Feb 25, 2014 |
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:21
|
|
|
Roargasm posted:Maybe initiate conversation as little as possible unless it's good news. My 30 second impression is that your manager either hates managing or he has a problem with you specifically Yeah, for what reason are you telling him about issues? Do you actually need help, are you bragging, or just telling him what you are working on? To me it sounds like he is busy and feels like you are putting stuff on his plate. If you really need his help, listing the facts in an email might be better. Otherwise if you are just telling him about stuff, it might be better to find other topics. I say this because it is a problem I have had. I will assume the boss wants to know everything that is going on, so I will tell them. The first problem with this is that they don't necessarily have the time and want you to get to the point. The second problem is unless you can be brief, the do not know if you are telling them a problem you need help on or how you fix something until you get to the end, and they get more antsy the longer the story goes on. I did a couple of things to try to improve my communication. 1. Try to have the first contact of the day be a positive one, even if it is just to say good morning. You don't want to dump on them right when they come in. 2. If you do need something, get to the point quickly, but have your facts. "I need help escalating this issue because the network team is ignoring me" is way better than 'I have sent emails to the network team about the open ticket I have and tried to call them but they don't respond so now the customer is upset, what can we do?" 3. If you fix something, let them know but in 30 seconds or less. Even better, if you get praise in email form, send it to them. 4. Try to find non work things you can both talk about. Do not corner them and spend 15 minutes telling them about your WOW characters or whatever, but if you know they like old cars occasionally saying, 'hey I saw a need 57 Chevy on the way in' might give you a way to talk to them in a way that you two can relate together. The whole goal of this is to make their reaction to you coming up to them 'oh hey it's so and so,' not, 'oh no, not again.'
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:47
|
|
|
Caged posted:The difference between 5 and 6 to me is that 5 is a potentially interesting problem to solve whereas 6 is some mundane poo poo. Or the request came with a bribe. Looks to me like 5-7 are equivalent; all of them describe unimportant issues that should only be taken care of if time allows, it's just which of those get priority and why. The "nice request" on level 5 says to me that the person who put in the ticket was polite and described the problem coherently. 7 would be for the shitheels who you want to actively punish for not only wasting your time but being rude to boot.
|
|
#
?
Feb 25, 2014 23:52
|
|
|
I found at my old job that the best way to convey information to that boss was to write all the facts in an email, send it, give him a few minutes to digest it and then go discuss it with him. I did have to give him a few minutes because if I went immediately he'd just want me to verbally repeat what I just sent him. I'd rather he read the whole drat thing first where he can't interrupt it. Plus, the facts and communications are documented that way.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 04:48
|
|
|
Left after being notified of an illness in the family that led to a funeral and a much longer stay than planned...Aerohive AP's died - nobody said a word to me because they knew the seriousness of the situation. Still got to find out why they suddenly and randomly shat themselves. Shouldn't have checked up on the site at all. :-/
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 06:12
|
|
|
We have a VOIP Shoretel system that sucks because our integrator is terrible. The phones drop calls randomly. I've traced it down and it's an issue at their colo; the calls go through our MPLS network into the drop (3xT1) into their colo. I was told today by this VOIP integrator that the reason calls drop is because of the firewall in our local corporate office. I said "uh no it's not, it's an any/any policy." So then she proceeds to tell me that my "any/any" policy in the firewall wouldn't work. She "frequently ran into situations where any-any policies wouldn't allow the right ports through, and I would need to add additional ports". I explained to her that adding more ports beyond infinite would break the space-time continuum. Gonna try it tomorrow apparently.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 07:11
|
|
|
Nait Sirhc posted:So then she proceeds to tell me that my "any/any" policy in the firewall wouldn't work. She "frequently ran into situations where any-any policies wouldn't allow the right ports through, and I would need to add additional ports".
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 12:08
|
|
|
DrAlexanderTobacco posted:Having some real trouble communicating with my manager. I'll start describing a problem (as clear as I can be) and he will always cut me off with an assumption as soon as he hears the buzzword he's looking for - I.E. If I mention a high-profile user can't get an iPhone ActiveSync connection he'll mention the password has expired and tells me to reset it. I try to mention that I can log in with the same user via OWA, and the password's not expired as I can set it up on my Android, but he'll rarely listen. Couple questions and comments: 1) do you have to communicate with this guy before problems are solved? Best bet if possible is to just tell him what WAS broken once you fix it. 2) If you have to communicate with him before problems are solved, make it clear you have the situation under control, that you're just talking to him to give him information, that you don't need any help. 3) Don't be afraid to ask him what's up if none of these work.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 13:48
|
|
|
DrAlexanderTobacco posted:Having some real trouble communicating with my manager. I'll start describing a problem (as clear as I can be) and he will always cut me off with an assumption as soon as he hears the buzzword he's looking for - I.E. If I mention a high-profile user can't get an iPhone ActiveSync connection he'll mention the password has expired and tells me to reset it. I try to mention that I can log in with the same user via OWA, and the password's not expired as I can set it up on my Android, but he'll rarely listen. Yes, find another job. If your boss doesn't consider what you state as fact to be fact, he's second-guessing everything you say and barring drastic action on his part, that won't change. If he gives you "I need you to understand Active Directory," ask him "I definitely get that, but if I'm coming across that I don't understand AD, I'd really like your help in identifying what you see as my faults. We could have some kind of disconnect here." But yeah, start looking elsewhere. Side note: my boss is looking at Dell servers, but I've seen a bunch of their recent procurement horror stories here and there. Has anyone in this thread gotten any positive experiences with buying new Dell servers these days, or have they universally gone down the shitter?
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 17:38
|
|
|
MJP posted:Yes, find another job. Haha, I love it when people give this advice like it ain't no thang. It's really hard to change jobs and bad managers are everywhere!
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 17:43
|
|
|
Theresa Frontpage posted:Haha, I love it when people give this advice like it ain't no thang. It's really hard to change jobs and bad managers are everywhere! Its easier to leave a bad situation that to try to change it into a good situation. If this kind of advice hits a sore spot, I have bad news for you.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 17:57
|
|
|
We hired a new developer, same level as me (Sr). Not a big deal, but this person gets to work remotely. I can't even get an extra hour at lunch to go to the gym. I am simultaneously trying to be a good sport about it and not bothered but also simmering with the feeling of being un-fairly treated. I just overheard a conversation where apparently this person relocates to a coffee shop for the last half of the day? What the hell, I'd like to relocate the last half of the day. Whats the deal? Please Advise.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:19
|
|
|
KoRMaK posted:We hired a new developer, same level as me (Sr). Not a big deal, but this person gets to work remotely. I can't even get an extra hour at lunch to go to the gym. I am simultaneously trying to be a good sport about it and not bothered but also simmering with the feeling of being un-fairly treated. Why not talk to your manager about it?
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:27
|
|
|
Agreed but chill for a day or two. Don't go in all super confrontational.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:28
|
|
|
KoRMaK posted:We hired a new developer, same level as me (Sr). Not a big deal, but this person gets to work remotely. I can't even get an extra hour at lunch to go to the gym. I am simultaneously trying to be a good sport about it and not bothered but also simmering with the feeling of being un-fairly treated. I'm in a similar situation, but I'm the guy working remote and the other, more senior administrator has no WFH privilege and is pissed about it. No doubt the new developer negotiated that during the interview process, and you're going to have to find leverage and do the same. You, much like my counterpart here, aren't going to get anywhere by saying "but the otherrrrr guy gets to do it!"
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:28
|
|
|
CatsOnTheInternet posted:I'm in a similar situation, but I'm the guy working remote and the other, more senior administrator is pissed about it. These types of deals get made often times because salary limits are reached and candidates are hard to find. If you are a proven asset, asking for perks that so and so got isn't a bad move in my opinion. Just as long as he stays civil and leverages his worth.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:32
|
|
|
Sickening posted:Why not talk to your manager about it? I go back and forth between: "I have a good job, shut up." And, "why the difference in treatment?" Oh, and the new dev is working out of an area of the country that has a higher average salary and higher cost of living than our location. So that means their salary is probably higher. It just... really makes me wonder. I mean, I'd love to move to California and keep this job and get paid a comparable wage according to the cost of living out there. KoRMaK fucked around with this message at 18:36 on Feb 26, 2014 |
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:32
|
|
|
KoRMaK posted:I already spoke with my manager about what this new person means, but I left out the remote work stuff because it hadn't really occurred to me at that point. I'm not sure if I want to bring it up again. Do you have a performance/salary review coming up anytime soon?
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:33
|
|
|
It's the same deal at the company I work for with perks - after 5 years you get a 3rd week of vacation, but they pay so lovely that some people are able to get the 3rd week immediately due to hiring negotiations. Not fair to everyone else, but that's what happens.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:34
|
|
|
KoRMaK posted:I already spoke with my manager about what this new person means, but I left out the remote work stuff because it hadn't really occurred to me at that point. I'm not sure if I want to bring it up again. Its always okay to talk about it. Be civil and talk about how these types of perks could help keep you happy and motivated. Never be afraid to ask for whats fair. You would be surprised the things you can get if you just ask for them the right way.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:37
|
|
|
A ticket just came in… and then a few more… and they promptly disappeared from the queue. Because they all got taken. My group is FINALLY staffed well enough not only to handle the daily user support load but actually start moving forward on long-delayed projects.  I've probably just jinxed us by being happy about it.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 18:46
|
|
|
It's all about the power of negotiation, folks. There will always be "difference in treatment" because some are better negotiators than others. Two people in the exact same position rarely make the same amount. Why would the rest of their perks be the same? I've been the only one of a hundred people at my last job who was allowed to telecommute because when I was hired, they couldn't get to where I wanted to be, salary-wise, so I asked for other perks like starting the job with three weeks vacation banked on day one, telecommuting on Fridays, company reimbursement for my cell phone plan and gym membership. I knew and they knew that I would never get a raise at this company (if they're being tight on salary during the initial hire when your value to the company is at its highest ever, they are going to be tight on salary always), so I pushed hard for perks that ultimately had a lot of emotional value while minimizing actual cost to the company. Three weeks of banked vacation was a little tricky because I had to establish my hard-working nature and dependability during the interview process (let's hire a guy, and give him three weeks vacation so he can disappear for almost a month on our dime!), but a gym membership ($75) and a cell phone bill ($100) are pennies against salary expense. I was supposed to keep quiet about my perks and I did, but it's hard to keep the fact that I'm not in the office every Friday a secret. People were pissed at management and jealous of me for my telecommuting day but all I could tell them was that I negotiated for it.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 19:10
|
|
|
Ohh the gym membership reimbursement is a great one, good call. I negotiated a 20% raise at my first review here but I don't think I'm coming close to that again. Offering to foot your personal cell phone bill is obviously just a trick to get your phone number 
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 19:21
|
|
|
The Cubelodyte posted:A ticket just came in… and then a few more… and they promptly disappeared from the queue. Because they all got taken. My group is FINALLY staffed well enough not only to handle the daily user support load but actually start moving forward on long-delayed projects. I'm still waiting for the rest of my team to start showing more initiative with taking on tickets before the end of the day. I really shouldn't have to come in for the afternoon/night shift and work on 5-7 tickets that should have been handled five hours prior and 20+ tickets that just need to be moved to the proper team. 
Great Orb! fucked around with this message at 19:27 on Feb 26, 2014 |
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 19:23
|
|
|
The Cubelodyte posted:A ticket just came in… and then a few more… and they promptly disappeared from the queue. Because they all got taken. My group is FINALLY staffed well enough not only to handle the daily user support load but actually start moving forward on long-delayed projects. I'm at the opposite right now, my boss has fired people just before what is apparently the biggest time of the year. I think another guys going to go tomorrow (for taking sick days). Agrikk posted:It's all about the power of negotiation, folks. loving this, I wish I had negotiated better, because even with my coming raise i'm going to be paid lower than the people who are just starting out by a good £1000. Negotiate people, so you don't end up like me, making less than you're happy with and desperately job hunting. Now on the subject of todays ticket, I finally arranged alternate transport into work which is cheaper than the drat train. I had a colleague who was trying to charge me £40 a week to drive an extra 20 minutes per day (five minutes to get to mine from his, five minutes to drive back past his house to get to work) because he had a new car which "costs more to fill up" (which i'm taking it as him going "oh, if i can put more fuel in this, I can charge him more"). Before, he was just charging me how much the train cost, which was fine by me as it got me there faster and I got picked up, even though I knew I was paying for his entire weeks worth of fuel for him. When he tried to up it, I finally said gently caress it and now i'm paying a family member £20 a week instead (I didn't want to bother them with it at first), this also means that I actually spend less time with people I don't like. Win win!
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 19:27
|
|
|
Roargasm posted:Ohh the gym membership reimbursement is a great one, good call. I negotiated a 20% raise at my first review here but I don't think I'm coming close to that again. Offering to foot your personal cell phone bill is obviously just a trick to get your phone number Hah. They already got my cell phone number because I'm working remotely remember? But just like they get my cell phone number, I get to send their calls straight to voicemail like I would in the office.  Extra bonus is when, now a year later, I get calls from employees of the company that bought and dismantled us, looking for tech support and I tell them I'd be happy for them to fly me out first class while charging them my SHR* for business travel and consulting work. No joke, I actually had an accountant agree to it once and I was crazy stoked to maybe pull in $2400 + first class airfare to fix a laptop issue, but the CFO flipped a lid when he saw my bid for the proposed work (24 hours of travel and labor, first class plane ticket, car rental) and killed it. *Special Hourly Rate ($200/hour) Agrikk fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Feb 26, 2014 |
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 19:39
|
|
|
Salary Negotiations? Time to post this link which was very helpful for me at least: http://www.kalzumeus.com/2012/01/23/salary-negotiation/
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 20:21
|
|
|
Priss In Plate posted:I'm still waiting for the rest of my team to start showing more initiative with taking on tickets before the end of the day. I really shouldn't have to come in for the afternoon/night shift and work on 5-7 tickets that should have been handled five hours prior and 20+ tickets that just need to be moved to the proper team. I had that problem with a couple of guys that (thankfully) moved on. One of them (a temp) was just a lump; the dude had zero initiative. And then he got upset when he applied for a career opening and didn't get it. Huh, go figure. The other used to watch them pile up and then start complaining that nobody was taking them. Of course, he wasn't bothering to take any, either. gently caress that guy.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 20:22
|
|
|
Theresa Frontpage posted:Haha, I love it when people give this advice like it ain't no thang. It's really hard to change jobs and bad managers are everywhere! [Citation needed] This isn't going from IT to another career, it's going from helpdesk to helpdesk, desktop to desktop. Even blackswordca will make it out eventually, but sucking it up and dealing, even in hopes of getting your manager to change their ways, is a non-option. I am willing to bet money that managers willing to make real adjustments in their style are in the minority, but even if they are, they can still not question their employees' knowledge, they can still pay attention when their employee is giving them info, and they can sure as hell not take the goony goon coaching method of "you need to know X." Life is too short to work for a Peter Principle embodiment.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 21:03
|
|
|
The Cubelodyte posted:I had that problem with a couple of guys that (thankfully) moved on. One of them (a temp) was just a lump; the dude had zero initiative. And then he got upset when he applied for a career opening and didn't get it. Huh, go figure. The other used to watch them pile up and then start complaining that nobody was taking them. Of course, he wasn't bothering to take any, either. gently caress that guy.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 21:19
|
|
|
dogstile posted:Now on the subject of todays ticket, I finally arranged alternate transport into work which is cheaper than the drat train. I had a colleague who was trying to charge me £40 a week to drive an extra 20 minutes per day (five minutes to get to mine from his, five minutes to drive back past his house to get to work) because he had a new car which "costs more to fill up" (which i'm taking it as him going "oh, if i can put more fuel in this, I can charge him more"). Before, he was just charging me how much the train cost, which was fine by me as it got me there faster and I got picked up, even though I knew I was paying for his entire weeks worth of fuel for him. You seem to think his time is worthless. Perhaps he doesn't want to keep adding 20 minutes to his commute so he upped the cost to make it worthwhile.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 21:36
|
|
|
Phone posted:Amazon related: gently caress you Amazon (and Prime, and UPS, and USPS). On the flip side, dealing with suppliers is starting to be a pain. Two weeks ago I ordered a computer, monitor and encrytped flash drive; computer came the next day without any specific request and I didn't even need it for like three weeks. The flash drive however I'm STILL waiting for, the web marketing guy who needs it is justifiably pissed off since he's out and about and needs quick accessible file storage. We both agreed he'd be better off just walking into a shop and claiming the cost back on expenses.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 21:37
|
|
|
Erwin posted:You seem to think his time is worthless. Perhaps he doesn't want to keep adding 20 minutes to his commute so he upped the cost to make it worthwhile. Seriously, that is over an hour and a half a week he's putting in just so you can get to work more comfortably. 40 doesn't seem too bad. The alternative is you could get up and walk whatever the equivalent of a 5 minute drive is to his place and do the same walk home at night, but still kick in for gas because gas.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 21:56
|
|
|
Erwin posted:You seem to think his time is worthless. Perhaps he doesn't want to keep adding 20 minutes to his commute so he upped the cost to make it worthwhile. Yeah, what an entitled dick. Between insurance, gas, the actual purchase and maintenance, it costs something like 40-50c/mile to keep a car on the road. He's getting a goddamn bargain.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 23:04
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 21, 2024 11:46 |
|
|
So an email came in from the accountlead: "Hey Blackswordca, the Intranet provider finally set us up a new subnet, can you put a computer on it and make sure its pingable? Here is the network info. Thanks!" So I get the email, it has the subnet with the netmask and thats it. I call him back up.  Hey accountlead, do you have a vlan or something I can use as a gateways setup? Nope, you don't need that. uhh.. I don't? the intranet provider has the routes setup, thats all you need ...okThere wasn't any point to arguing so I just waited for him to call me back. Took about 5 minutes. Hes setting up a new Vlan now.
|
|
#
?
Feb 26, 2014 23:57
|
|
