Bleak Future

Been wanting to update my blog, but have been very busy.
However, I should add in this entry due to it's "earthshaking" nature. It is also making me (and also a few other of my colleagues too) very unhappy (I'm usually a very "cool" person, hardly complain). Need to let it out!

You might recall my earlier entry back in Oct 2005 "Restless at work". (http://tromperie.blogspot.com/2005/12/restless-at-work.html) I'm referring to the same person. Well, my unit is gonna split into 2 sections where 1 section will be headed by my "previous" boss (well, not yet officially announced, but the structure sort of in place already) and the other (which I'll be under) is "overseen" by this person. This person is the "tai-chi" sort and very senior (old) in the organisation already. And this has manifested in a recent event that we organised where she was supposed to be the project manager (PM) but who eventually, didn't really "manage" it properly. If some might know, there is this project sponsor role & the project sponsor (my "previous" boss) ended up doing the all the managing/co-ordination part. The sponsor is usually the one who only gives some moral support.

Anyway, she has bad management skills & style, which many people dislike (believe me, I've asked around...other depts, those who have worked some time in the organisation or with her & know about her, even staff at operational level). Let's take the event for example. Come on, you're the manager you need to co-ordinate things. Don't be haphazard & in the last few minutes come and throw us some tasks which could have been addressed earlier. Should check back on our decisions made earlier & not be swayed by things. If it's valid, rationalise. Keep up to date. Hello, you are PM & should take the responsibility to keep up on matters. You know, she wasn't in the office most of the time & so our communication was mainly through email. You jolly well know that this major event is coming & you don't keep up to date on matters. She keeps asking us questions (when she does come in) which were addressed in the emails. Fine, for minor details we can tell her straight off. But not for everything single thing?! She doesn't even follow up on meetings. Did you know for the 1st meeting, the project sponsor had to prepare the minutes becoz she didn't bother. My colleague prepared a jobsheet on who's doing what. It's very detailed and she doesn't even bother to read it, some more come to ask us who's doing what. Well, it was discussed at the meeting too! So she conveniently ignored her duties. I had to do the things for her coz:
1) she was not in the office;
2) becoz of her incompetence, pple depended on me to do those things as I could efficiently do it (haha...sorry, like boasting)
3) if we wait for her, the event would have been over.

And no "thank you"s for covering her duties! ( i refer to other people on the organising committee too)

If you're the manager, if you do delegate things to staff to do (ok, mgrs need to know how to delegate & not micromanage), you have to keep track & have a grasp of things. You should do a check & also be accountable as you're the manager even if something goes wrong. Delegating is not passing the baton (tai-chi) and don't do anything, then claim the credit.

Did you know that during the event, she was called to do some last minute thing as directed by our DCE for the event. Fine, she's doing work. But she has to tell my dept head we would think she was doing nothing (ok, we did think that, but how come we'll think that huh?) coz she was upstairs (got this info when me & my colleague went to feedback to the dept head on the new structure). Hello, you want us to know you're doing something you can tell us in the face. But you keep us in the dark while making us look petty in front of management.

She also doesn't know how to think ahead & react to situations. She needs prompting constantly. Mu colleague uses this situation which occured during the seminar...the 'refreshments incident'. We were having 2 tea breaks during the event, the 1st one was with food, the 2nd, just drinks. The caterer was not coming to clear the food so 1 of the helpers suggested that we bring a table out (the earlier tea reception was in a separate room) with the drinks to just outside the event venue (it's actually a talk). Fine, she went out & told my colleague about this suggestion. At first my colleague thought wow, suddenly this person got initiative but later when I told her that the suggestion actually came from someone else, minus point again. Anyway, after shifting the drinks location, what do you do next? I've asked this question to a few people & they all gave me the answer straightaway. Yes! It is to inform the participants of the change! Guess what, she didn't even think of it. She just left it at that point when the decision was made to shift the refreshment area, only informing my colleague. My colleague took her own initiative to look for the emcee of the event to announce this. She didn't manage to get the attention of the emcee & mentioned to my "previous" boss (the proj sponsor) and he immediately wrote a note and passed it to the emcee personally. You can see the difference.
Has she never attended a event before? Being so long in the organisation she should have some experience & common sense in these things. Probably she never got involved in the actual thing & tai-chi again lah.
If we (who are going to work under her) were to prompt her on things all the time, who's the manager here? Yah, she's new to the dept, but she came from other depts where work has to be done. Some more she's been in the organisation for so long, so senior already, surely she should have some common sense. I'm fairly new to working life & I can think of it the response to situation.

Did you know, we were waiting to see when she would ask for a de-brief. Guess what, she had to be prompted by our dept head (we know this coz during our feedback session the dept mentioned that she would ask this person to arrange for the de-brief). Duh! even in school camps last time we call for a de-brief straight after the camp.

Worst things worst, she claims the credit of things done by staff (well, it seems so since mgt seem to think highly of her...becoz of her acting? asking staff to deliver for her her deliverables? badmouthing staff?). She doesn't show accountability or competency to support us. How can she be dependable?

Phew! said so much. better take a break here. Think the more I say, the more angry I get.

Ok, we don't want to chip her rice bowl, so during our feedback we just mention that it's her mgt style & skills we were concerned about, not meaning to make personal attack. She's about to retire soon in maybe about 3-4 years. Well, if she's gonna to continue to be like that, 3-4 years is very long for us man.