Working with Some Especially Dense Individuals
I'm really stunned by the things I see working in Corporate America day after day. Today I witnessed one of those events that you just have to stop and wonder when you see it happen - like a squirrel water skiing on America's Funniest Home Videos.
There's very little privacy at The Shop, we sit in long tables each getting less than five linear feet a piece. It's meant to foster teamwork, and I can certainly understand that, but it has the consequence that no one conversation is private from the people on either side of the person in the conversation.
So I'm sitting at my desk, and Ralph, who sits two seats away was talking to Fred who sits next to me, about the Java work Fred is doing on the Ticker Plant. He wants to learn Java, and this is a perfect way to do it because we have working C++ code, and all he has to do is port it. There's a lot to that, to be certain, but the basics of the code is already laid out. It just needs to be transformed into Java.
Ralph is the group leader, but I don't report into him - I'm just working with the group on this new Ticker Plant. Consequently, there have been several issues that Ralph didn't like the people I conferred with, and took direction from. It's a classic problem in business where the management isn't quite sure of the existing group can pull something off, so they bring in someone else and then don't have them report up the regular chain.
Feelings have been understandably hurt, and while I can sympathize with Ralph, I have been given instructions, and they are very clear. It's equally clear that Ralph loves the idea of being in charge, and this flies directly in the face of that. It's not a great situation for Ralph, but it's clear that this is what his position is now, and he can choose to make the best of it or leave.
So this morning Ralph was asking about when Fred got the client work done, he'd like to play with it and see how it works. Fair enough, but I'm sitting right there, and can hear every word. Why not ask me, Ralph? Well... the first reason is that Fred is doing the work on the Java client, and that's very reasonable. Also, Fred will do what Ralph asks as he's the manager.
What I fail to understand... or maybe I understand it all too well... is that Ralph should understand that I'm not the enemy here. I'm the guy that's building the next system. Period. I didn't ask for this, I was assigned it. It's not a personal attack on him by me. There's no way on earth I could have known Ralph before this. It's a job, and just like trades in the NFL, sometimes the coach looses confidence in your playing ability. That's it.
But to not just stand up and be professional about it is just beyond me. I've been let go. Complaining about it isn't going to help. I've been passed over for projects, there's no shame in it - it's a management decision. They listened, they decided. I didn't have to like it, but it was their decision.
So for Ralph to be so childish about asking about the project is just sad to me. I don't want to make enemies. I honestly don't know anyone that does. But clearly I'm just out of touch with real people. They go end-around people rather than be professional. They complain. They whine.
Sad but true.
The really sad thing is that it's showing Ralph to not be a team player. This is going to make him less valuable to the management, and so he's really slitting his own throat. Maybe he wants to do this, but I'm guessing he thinks he's "winning" this "battle", when he probably isn't. At least not from the directions I'm getting.
So it's very sad.