#352 Email NotificaShawn

So as I mentioned the other day, I've taken on some new responsibilities at work. Specifically, Collections and Accounts Receivable.

We receive notifications from our clients that do electronic funds transfer via email.  Now, the greater number of these notifications are sent to a group email address that I was already on. But quite a few of these are sent to the person that has just retired. And in this company, the day you leave they shut down all your access and kill your email address. And to complicate things more, they do not sent bounce notifications. This is the first job I've had since 1994 that when an employee leaves that their email is not re-routed to some catchall address, or forwarded to a specific other address.

Well,  I spoke to our IT guy and asked that the email that belongs to the person that just retired would be forwarded to me, as it's very important that we are able to receive these notifications. And that I'd make it a priority to have the clients correct the address they use, with the intent that in a month or so we could then properly deactivate the old email address.

Well he said it was not going to happen. Not because he didn't agree with my request, but that the US office dept that maintains the email servers simply "don't do this".

I kinda laughed and said, "because this would require them to do about 90 seconds work?!" 

He laughed and said,  "Pretty much"

I said do you mind if I cause a stink about this, involve the CFO and the Canadian VP pointing out at just how ridiculous their policy of just killing email addresses is? Not to mention how many lost notifications there would be, I'd be unable to complete some daily reports and that electronic transfers would go un-applied to clients accounts and that I'd end up making the company look incompetent because I'd have to contact clients and ask why invoices were not paid, when they *were* but we just didn't know because our company just kills email addresses.

He gave me his blessing, and I sent the email out at 9:30 this morning.  And guess what?  By noon, the mail forward was set up and it's now policy that when an employee departs there's a process to determine if their email should be re-routed for a period of time, or if indeed there is no issue in the email being closed. AND that there is an auto-responder goes out in either case indicating the address should no longer be used and direct them to the appropriate address.

I mean this is such a basic thing. And any company in 2014 that values their clients as well as their reputation is going to take a minute to do such a basic thing. 

And as of end of day today, this simple email forward has ensured that over $15,000.00 was properly applied to clients accounts, because they were using the old email address.

So score one for me!  I'm no rocket scientist, but I'm no noob either!

#303 Managerial RepatriaShawn

The Eagle has landed.

And by 'Eagle', I mean my 'Boss'.

And by 'landed', I mean 'he came into the office, for the first time in 2 weeks. After all the mess ups, bumbles and fuck ups. And after the letter I  sent last Friday."

Surprisingly it went well...  

But like the past few weeks, Fridays are the most unpredictable and incendiary...  AND it's all Hallow's Eve...  so... yea... I will be wearing a ward of protection.

#302 Tunnel ViShawn

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Or at the very least the current tunnel.

Thankfully the mistakes seem to have come to an end, as the one good employee we have at of shipping dock is back from vacation.

Of course he’s SWAMPED!   Not only trying to clean up the near endless mess-ups from the past few weeks, but also stay afloat with the daily tasks, and training his new manager, and the Boss….

His Boss is my Boss….who it should be noted was already trained once already from the two people that he fired for making a mistake. Back in August.  One. ONE mistake, you know… compared to the countless mistakes HE made over the past two weeks…   And it’s not that  his original training was not good, it’s because he seldom if ever listens to anyone that points out anything. Offers input, direction or help. He’s got it all figured out. Everything is calm and good. No worries here.

…but back to the light….

It’s almost as if I can just do my regular job.

#301 Perfect ImperfecShawn

You have to wonder about the length of a noose one requires to hang themselves.

Of course there were more shipping issues over the weekend. The fall-out which is still in play.   Incorrect documents, poorly packaged boxes and missing tracking info.

All in all  a marked decrease in issues, but issues nonetheless.

Consistent inconsistencies. Seems to be the new normal.

If there is a method to this madness, it’s clear I am far too sane to decipher it. 

#300 ContinuaShawn

Well, so far so good.

The Boss is still working remotely (presumably still cleaning up the messes from the past two weeks), but any interaction, email / phone has been extremely cordial.   Not sure if that's because he's been addressed by HIS Boss, HR or both.  But I am still interested to see how it will be upon his return to the office proper.

In the mean-time we're all enjoying his absence. 

One day at a time.

#298 RedempShawn

So I have to do work on Sat and Sun, every weekend, unless I'm on vacation.  IT is only a few minutes here and there. A couple hours total over the weekend,, but I don't mind because I can bank that time, cash it in or use it as time off... 

I don't typically check my Work Email however, because if any issues might arise, I'd receive a phone call. But given the last week I thought it prudent.

Well, I could not have been less surprised, and giddier than a school girl at a One Direction Concert...  We received an email from our Primary Transport with a scathing review of the last 3 weeks, how health regulations, and required documentation has been abysmal and unacceptable. It also included CAP LOCKED segments.

But yea...  what I reported yesterday was over exaggerated and there's no problem, and all the issues were ironed out before yesterday.

Ha and Double HA!

I will sleep very well tonight, and look forward to any back-lash that might be headed my way.

Bring. It. On!

#297 DocumentaShawn

Okay... so I just can't keep on saying "See Yesterday". Well, I could, but things gotta change.

After more than a week of absolute bullshit, I and my co-worker composed an email to our Boss, and cc'ed 2 Directors and the VP. (With the VP being our Boss' Boss.)

This 6 page email documented - in point form, mind you - the myriad of errors created by our Boss and or his employees from our Distribution depart, including, but not limited to lost sales, delayed shipments of goods to Hospitals across the country, spoiled product and need of replacing goods, routing and packaging errors, lost stock and costly shipping mistakes.

Clearly my Boss was none to impressed, but then I have no doubt that otherwise the vast majority of these errors would have gone unreported. 

What was a little disappointing (but not entirely unexpected was that his Boss does not seem to care). Fortunately, the others included in the email do. 

Ultimately we cared about the company, our reputation and image, and not losing sales and having to write of  thousands of dollars in wasted stock. 

At the end of the day, I'm glad that it's out there now. Because if the mistakes continue, (And for the record 3 have since reporting) the only people that can be help responsible are our Boss and his.

#296 ONE MORE TIME!

See: Yesterday.

#295 Unwanted RepetiShawn ContinuaShawn

See: Yesterday.

#294 Unwanted RepetiShawn

See: Yesterday.

#293 Weekend Crapfest ContinuaShawn

I don't even want to talk about today.

Fall out from the weekend continued throughout the day, and seemingly will continue tomorrow.

MEH!

#292 The "This is how my Company Works" EquaShawn

Incompetence begets uber-incompetence. 

If Middle and Upper Management were at all practical, there should be a departure or two this week... but knowing how they do things, all will be okie-dokie.

If you're a Manager and know that someone you put in a very high stress and point critical position was unable to get through the week, one might suppose that you'd be on site for the weekend when the busiest most important part of our business is dependent...  and not just phone in every couple of hours. I mean it's not like hospitals all across the country are depending on our products to diagnose and treat their patients.... oh wait, yeah they do.

Tomorrow is NOT going to be a good day.

#260 Bliss DepleShawn

I swear I am committed to making it through this week with some semblance of my Vacation Bliss, but the stupid, it is trying me.

To be honest, it's been a challenge (yesterday and today). I'm pleased as punch that Typhoid Mary will be retiring next Spring.  It is the one bit of news that may help me make it through to 5 PM on Friday.

The only thing stupider than 90% of our Management and their decisions are the few new employees they have hired, and the ones they've laid off in lieu of those that remain.  As the number of employees decreases in our office, the stupid factor increases.

It burns.

#252 Office DeleShawns

In never fails. When I am away from the office for a week or more, you can be sure there will be capital "D" Drama.

Once I arrive, I booted my computer and then grabbed a coffee, then walked back into the Dept and said, "Okay, what's new, who's gone, what's the damage?"

The girls just laughed...

... and then they started:

-There were two lay-offs in our Distribution Center.

-There was another Resignation (after the one announced just a few days before I left for vacation). 

-There is a "leave of absence" that was initially going to be 2 weeks, then a month and now 'indefinite'. And this for a person that was only showing up to work  3-4 days a week and when she WAS in the office, did no describable work. She from the Finance Dept, one of the old dumb-ass General Manager's hires.

-Our fearless leader (aka the Dumbass Boss) will now be working split shifts, temporarily, as he helps out at the Distribution Center to make up for his two layoffs...not that we think this is necessarily a bad thing. :-) 

A rather fruitful Return to Work Drama re-cap, don't you think?

I only wish I could take another 2 weeks off, just to see what would happen. 

#231 Office Drama ExploShawn

Well some serious poop hit the fan today in the office, and it was spectacular. 

Our main financial analyst gave her notice today, to her boss (the CFO) who was in to sign some docs (he's currently on vacation). Oh, to have been a fly on that wall!

It's a bitter sweet moment...

Bitter because she was one of my fav co-workers. A real sweetheart of a gal. Amazing at her job and a real asset to the company.

Sweet because her boss, like mine, is an A-list ass hat. And he deserves what he's getting.  The beauty to this is that he's only been here for about a year and a half, originally contacted as an assistant or some such to the General Manager (remember her...?  She's gone now) He's been the CFO for about 8 months, and he hasn't a clue what this company is about, far less any actual acumen for Finance. (It really amazes me how these people get upper management positions) Basically she's been carrying his sorry ass to get things done in the Finance dept. And all during that time he's treated her like crap. He really is a dick. Personally, my interactions are few but even I know more than he does about how this company runs.  He asked her to stay til the end of the first week of Sept to help him with the Month and Quarter End.  She flatly told him no. (GOD why couldn't I have been there for that?!?!)

Then for the next 45 minutes he was out pacing in the parking lot on his phone, constantly either rubbing his temples with his free hand, or flailing it about.

It was most entertaining to watch.

We'll survive this loss of a great employee, provided they are able to find a qualified replacement. I just hope it does not start an exodus. If  it does, I hope those in a position to nail it down and chuck the deadwood...

In the meantime seeing a useless cog in the wheel bouncing about is some entertaining consolation. 

#210 Bullshit ConnipShawn

I need to either get to an Anger Management Class, or win the Lotto because my Bullshit threshold at the office is at an all-time low.

My co-worker, a.k.a. Coughasaurus has made it her mission to annoy the bejezus out of me.  

So far I've lost it 3 times with her this week. All three times she's run off to one boss or another, always to return with the the instructions of "deal with it and move on"

I fear however that me friends in high places may soon be telling me to 'deal with it, or else'.

If I can just make it to Friday, then she's gone for two weeks.  Then when she's back, it's only for one week and then I'm gone for 2 weeks.

I just need to focus! (and take a big cork to the office to cram in my mouth when she opens hers...

#190 Unwanted Bullshit RedempShawn

Today was Monday and Tuesday combined.  I don;t know what I did to who, or what or when, but clearly I was a rat bastard. It's the only explanation I can come to given the steaming, heaping pile of never ending crap that passed my desk today.

Clearly I've done someone wrong and Karma thought that today was a good day to cash in.

Also clearly; my boss is a total idiot.

As is my co-worked the coughing old bird.

Honestly, if both of them went away I'd clearly have a lot less stress and after a month or so of tidying up all the loose ends and fixing their mistakes, all would be well with the world.

Alas for now... I can only dream... of that day or winning the lotto... whichever comes first.

#189 Unwanted Job RenditShawn

I think my boss want's to make me into his Mini Me. And by that, I think he thinks that if he teaches me all his responsibilities (as his "back-up", yea right) that he can just have me do his work.  

Well, all I have to say to that is "Wake up, Sleeping Stupid! As it is I'm already doing two people's jobs AND you want me to document the entire department.  So no, I ain't got time for the pain. Do yo own damn job!"

Ain't gonna happen!

#188 Co-worker Correction RepetitShawn

So if this is Monday and the old Coughing Bird is off for the week that must mean, yup, you guessed it... time to clean up her errors...  

Nothing like sending the wrong product (and the wrong quantity) to the wrong client.

It's gonna be one of those weeks... both relaxing (because she's not there) and stressful (because she makes amazing mistakes that I'll have to clean up)

Let the good times roll!

#174 Co-Worker CorrecShawns

Day one of four without the Coughing Queen.

Guess how many mistakes I caught of hers today?

One? Nope.

Two? Nope.

Three? Nope.

Four? Nope.

Five?  YUP!  Johnny, tell the reader what they've won...

I don't wish her any ill will, but I have a sneaking suspicion they will not let her extend her retirement date any longer. Since I started with the company in Aug of 2006, she's been saying "Next Year". Well she's has given them a specific date of next Spring (April 30 2015) and honestly I don't think they will let her continue after that, if they don't get rid of her sooner.  She's costing the company a lot of money, and this is a company that is buying no-name coffee.  The pennies have been pinched and she's been shown wanting.

Can't wait to see what I uncover tomorrow.