- Dec 18, 2001
- 24,037
- 21
- 81
My scenario:
I work for a large accounting firm, my title is Network Engineer. I work with 7 other technicians in the IS Department. I do a lot of traveling between several offices I manage and get overly-reimbursed for it, I love my locations, I love the people I work for, I love the benefits, and the salary is decent. But I hate my department.
I started here about 10 months ago. It was pretty shaky in the beginning because my predecessor left everything in a mess, and people didn't trust the IS department or the technician that was assigned to them. It took me awhile but I've reached a point where I have fixed just about every problem, and everyone here loves me. But over the course of time my own department has outcasted me and my manager increasingly makes it difficult for me to maintain my sanity.
The reason this is occuring is because everyone else that is in the department orginated from the city where the headquarters is located - they have spent a lot of time with each other, all have similarly unusual personalities. It is more a "click" than anything. My background is different, I don't spend much time with these people other than over the phone or by email, and I don't see them often because I manage the western tier of offices in a more remote location. The department is split in half basically into two teams - we've got the Driver Expressive type who stay together, and the Driver Analytical who stay together. I am an analytical. My manager is part of the driver epxressive group, the group is usually quite unprofessional in their manner or humor. My manager however is professional and diplomatic, but he has this selective attitude that prevents the other group from bonding as a complete group effort. In other words, he plays favorites. It doesn't help that the majority of technicians aren't even 21 yet.
My dilemma:
Recently I was repremended for "lying", when I didn't lie, in fact I'm about the most honest person in this department. There was evidence that pointed to me tampering with an ASP file on our helpdesk server which is under construction. Somehow I managed to lockout the file, with no ill-will on my part or intrusion. But the only conclusion my manager could come up with considering that he was in a very bad mood at the time, was that I was getting into files I shouldn't have, and denying it when asked. The past 5 months have been torture, he's contanstly getting on my back about something, very hypocritically in most cases, and my dignity is getting shredded. But this most recent event he actually reported in my official file. After we had a private meeting, he decided that I didn't do any harm or was breaking into anything, and explained it was just a communication error on his part. But he's not going to retract the writeup.
What do I do?
1. I may have a very good job opportunity working at a utilities company, doing basically what I'm doing now, only the hours will be better, the pay will be better, the locations of offices are about the same, and I'll have the opportunity to do more programming which I can't do now at my current company. But I will have limited resources in receiving company paid training in MCSE, CCNA, etc.
2. Stick it out, and prove that I can succeed in a corporate environment regardless of personality clashes, earn everyone's respect and show that I really do know what I'm talking about - in hopes that I will get fair annual raises and bonues.
I really am fed up right now and deserve to work for a better boss, but I don't want to be a "quitter". I realize that much of this problem is due to my ego and pride. So I don't know where I should be drawing the line. My offices would hate to lose me, they won't benefit from me leaving. But I also don't want to stick around the next couple of years with no breathing room, just to be fired because my boss doesn't like me.
Anybody else in this situation? How did it work out?
I work for a large accounting firm, my title is Network Engineer. I work with 7 other technicians in the IS Department. I do a lot of traveling between several offices I manage and get overly-reimbursed for it, I love my locations, I love the people I work for, I love the benefits, and the salary is decent. But I hate my department.
I started here about 10 months ago. It was pretty shaky in the beginning because my predecessor left everything in a mess, and people didn't trust the IS department or the technician that was assigned to them. It took me awhile but I've reached a point where I have fixed just about every problem, and everyone here loves me. But over the course of time my own department has outcasted me and my manager increasingly makes it difficult for me to maintain my sanity.
The reason this is occuring is because everyone else that is in the department orginated from the city where the headquarters is located - they have spent a lot of time with each other, all have similarly unusual personalities. It is more a "click" than anything. My background is different, I don't spend much time with these people other than over the phone or by email, and I don't see them often because I manage the western tier of offices in a more remote location. The department is split in half basically into two teams - we've got the Driver Expressive type who stay together, and the Driver Analytical who stay together. I am an analytical. My manager is part of the driver epxressive group, the group is usually quite unprofessional in their manner or humor. My manager however is professional and diplomatic, but he has this selective attitude that prevents the other group from bonding as a complete group effort. In other words, he plays favorites. It doesn't help that the majority of technicians aren't even 21 yet.
My dilemma:
Recently I was repremended for "lying", when I didn't lie, in fact I'm about the most honest person in this department. There was evidence that pointed to me tampering with an ASP file on our helpdesk server which is under construction. Somehow I managed to lockout the file, with no ill-will on my part or intrusion. But the only conclusion my manager could come up with considering that he was in a very bad mood at the time, was that I was getting into files I shouldn't have, and denying it when asked. The past 5 months have been torture, he's contanstly getting on my back about something, very hypocritically in most cases, and my dignity is getting shredded. But this most recent event he actually reported in my official file. After we had a private meeting, he decided that I didn't do any harm or was breaking into anything, and explained it was just a communication error on his part. But he's not going to retract the writeup.
What do I do?
1. I may have a very good job opportunity working at a utilities company, doing basically what I'm doing now, only the hours will be better, the pay will be better, the locations of offices are about the same, and I'll have the opportunity to do more programming which I can't do now at my current company. But I will have limited resources in receiving company paid training in MCSE, CCNA, etc.
2. Stick it out, and prove that I can succeed in a corporate environment regardless of personality clashes, earn everyone's respect and show that I really do know what I'm talking about - in hopes that I will get fair annual raises and bonues.
I really am fed up right now and deserve to work for a better boss, but I don't want to be a "quitter". I realize that much of this problem is due to my ego and pride. So I don't know where I should be drawing the line. My offices would hate to lose me, they won't benefit from me leaving. But I also don't want to stick around the next couple of years with no breathing room, just to be fired because my boss doesn't like me.
Anybody else in this situation? How did it work out?