When Good Jobs Go Bad

 When Good Jobs Go Bad. 

Or when a bad supervisor takes over the whole of the dept and pushes their Bad Ideas that no one likes onto everyone and then they can't figure out why everyone is leave the dept like a sinking ship.

This is not the first time, and sadly this will not be the last time.

I fully admit to having hoped that the supervisor that is literally driving all the good people away from my department was going to jump ship. I had been hoping. I knew it was almost impossible because they have such a death grip in our department.

This person is a micromanager and is very good and not having anything they say written down so you can not use it to defend yourself. The only thing good about them is that when they really want to have your back, they do in fact have your back. They also support the work from home for now.

But they also pick favorites and when they set their sights on you you are pretty much done for.

I am fairly cirtian that they have been trying to get me into their department for a little while. 

They are also fully aware that I refuse to be in their department.

Right now myself and another are being used as tests for learning the stuff in the other department because the plan is to merge them. This is extremely stressful because I hate and refused to be apart of this particular department.

I have a feeling that they are trying this so that when this idea doesn't work, and it's won't, that oh look! the two of you are already trained so you have new jobs now!

I will go to HR if they try that because I did not and will not ever apply for that job and they technically can not force me to move to it because they couldn't keep my department fully staffed before the pandemic and they have shown that they still can't do it now.

I also think that they are setting the new supervisor up as a fall guy. They did it to all the others with varying degrees of success.

I, perhaps, should have tried for the harder butt kissing department were the supervisor that I like moved to. 

There is another department I wouldn't mind looking into but the hours are horrendous. The person I knew that did work there got out as fast as possible but they had no life at all until they did.

I currently have a very good plan because I am not faking how long this new crap takes me to do. It's overly confusing and doing extra work for another department. If I mess up I mess up because that was the only other reason I wanted nothing to do with it. Outside of the supervisor.

If this person wasn't known for being underhanded and back stabbing I wouldn't worry. As it is I will be pitching a fit about this and all the stupid stuff until it's fixed or I find a new job. 

Uhg.

An Interview and A Red Flag

So I had an... Interesting interview with a company.

They were a bit odd.

I had instructions to ask the reception worker to call them to let them know I was there and... they kinda gestured to a phone across the way and said to call. No instructions on how to use the phone system. I called the wrong extension twice but fortunately hung up before I reached anyone there. After an explanation the other reception worker called for me.

The agency I work with didn't mention that there would be three people doing the interview, but that happens.

The start was very basic with introductions and such. The odd feeling would come and go depending on questions. They asked in round robin style.

After the first question I knew that I didn't have the knowledge that they were looking for.

Near the middle of their question-asking I realized they hadn't asked me anything about my resume. I only realized because I have a time gap on it that has never been missed or skipped over. Ever.

When it cam time for me to ask them about the job, most of the position questions had been answered. So I asked my little short list of questions to see if I would be able to fit in with them.

They all but refused to answer three of my questions.

I asked about the culture there, how they will measure success in the position and the difference between a good & great employee in the position.

I have never had that type of reaction before. I can't fully explain it, it was just out there.

The culture one is usually answered with a customers first type of response that quickly launches into how they treat their employees. Or company holiday parties or something. I was met by silence then one said that customer centered environment. Another that it was a very racily diverse employment. The last they enjoyed their coworkers.

When I asked how they measure success in the position there was another pause before one gave the response that was simply 'with yearly preformace evaluations'. Which ended that.

Last I asked the difference between a good & great employee in the position. This is usually greeted with comments of the question itself before a response. This was again met with silence and nothing was actually said. More importantly, one of the interviewers was leafing the position and they didn't say any good things about them.

Fortunately the interview ended shortly after that.

The last question summed up things they didn't say to me that I am taking as this is a bad corporate environment. For each of the questions I got odd, almost angry looks. And who wouldn't take an opportunity to remind a soon to be former employee that you value all their work?

I think I will be very happy if I don't fit their bill. Should I be asked for a second interview I would agree, but I can tell I am not what they are looking for.

Should you get a P.O. Box in another city for a New Job

During my search to try and find a new job in another city I thought about getting a P.O. Box.

The main reason I did Not get one was that seeing P.O. Box on your resume, to me, seems like a red flag. It makes it seem like you do not live in that city or that you move frequently. Or the company might not give it a second thought.

If you do get asked as to why you have a P.O. Box make sure you have an answer ready. If they ask you about the P.O. Box address they might ask where you are currently living. Do not make up an outrageous lie, they will be able to tell. If anything tell them that it is a temporary thing. They might not press beyond that but be prepared if they do.

Personally, if you are not living with in 2hrs of the city you are trying to get a job in or unless you were going to be living there in 1-2 months, I wouldn't bother. Most companies want to know what your plans are and when you will be in the city. They will not pay for your travel costs to interview with them and plane tickets add up fast. a P.O. Box would just be adding to the cost of your search

If you will be in your new city in 1-2 months put that on your cover letter. If you are planing to go there prior to look at apartments or houses add that you would be available on such and such days. It is much easier to re-schedule with your Realtor agent then a potential job.


Again, mention these  things in your cover letter. Have questions & answers ready for any and all phone interviews. It's the little things that can make your search just that much less stressful.

Giving a Hiring Agency a Try

In my job hunt I have been attempting to avoid a hiring agency, but as of late it seems every opening for my area of choice is going through an agency of some kind.

So upon finding out that a position I applied for was using one I decided to meet the agent. I could only meet her on my lunch which she said was fine. Then that day I had to call and push it back, I was so worried, but she said it was fine as well.

I have never met someone so helpful before. She was very adamant about helping me out and finding me something. She e-mailed me the tests to take on the weekend. When we talked about them, she was completely understanding at how I am used to a newer version then the one she sent for the test she said my results were good but she wanted me to take it again with a newer version.

She also had a lot to say about my resume. She wanted to make a lot of changes to it and she went over why she wanted to in great detail. I agreed totally with her changes and she said she would be sending me a revised copy. Which is good because it has not been revised for some years.

Prior to leaving she told me to check her companies website and to e-mail her any positions i might be interested in. I just can not explain how helpful she has been.

So I am changing my stance on hiring agencies, people should give them a chance. But ask questions! The woman I met with gave me a great deal of information and was extremely understanding of my situation. Most of the questions I could not remember she volunteered information on. This is the type of person you will want to work with. I would only say that if they are not actively trying to help you out they might not be the company for you.

Updateing Your Resume

This isn't as easy as it sounds unless you are getting out side help. Or at least an opinion from someone who hasn't been starring at your resume for more then 10 minuets. (Hint: you)

Back when I was attempting a second job I was asked about my past job experiences. When I explained I was a temp back then, the wonderful woman interviewing me asked why I didn't bold the words 'temporary position'. She explained that it looked like I had jumped jobs when I hadn't.

Having since altered my resume as such I have gotten one call back and a few non-ding letters.

This might not seem like a big improvement, but to me it's amazing. Just by bolding a few spots I have gone from no answers & dings to a few positive responses. It makes me wonder what kind of responses I could have had if I had done this years ago.

Oh well, better now then never.