The Unproductive
Life is great. Unless you don't include unproductive people, life is just peachy.
A few months ago, I was moved from training to operations. I welcomed the news with mixed emotions simple because I have been part of training for the longest time, and the last time I led a team for an extended period of time was several years ago.
I thought that with the change things would be better. I was going to be more productive and I would be able maximize and really make use of my time. Well. Two months later I think I am grossly underpaid.
First, let me talk about what training life was like in our company.
When I was in training. I was basically in charge of my schedule. Not even my boss could dictate what time I was supposed to do a specific task unless we had new hire or upskill/cross skill classes. As long as I got the job done, it didn't matter what time I did it and how I accomplished the task. I could come in late (but not too late) and adjust my schedule. As long as I was able to work nine hours a day, I was good.
On days when we had training, I had to be in the office before all of my trainees. I had to prepare all of the modules and make sure that all of the slides were up to date and working. New hire training days were the only busy days since I had to oversee the progress of an entire class. The classes ranged anywhere from four to more than 20 trainees, and I had to be very conscious of the fact that I was dealing with different personalities. More often than not the people who got hired were working for the first time in their entire lives. All of them have at least a Bachelor's degree and most of them are not used to working in an environment where results matter and your feelings are secondary to your performance.
After trainees were endorsed to operations, I was free to do whatever I wanted to do. I could sleep for most of my shift and people wouldn't care. I could go out for 2 hour lunches and people would be okay with that. I could be on my phone playing online games and people wouldn't care. The only times when I would be busy (if you could call it that) was when I was rolling out updates and teaching upskill or cross skill classes. The maximum time I spent in training outside of a new hire class was a day and a half.
Yes, I was that unproductive outside of the classroom.
So when I received the news that I was being moved to operations, I was both elated and angry. I was elated because I would finally be free of the stifling and stunting environment of training, but I was also angry that I would no longer have the freedom to do whatever I wanted to do inside the office.
Now let's go back to the present. Today, I feel grossly underpaid as a supervisor.
Most of tasks I do now I learned on the fly. Or I learned on my own by observing people and asking questions, or by listening. One would think that I would slowly be eased into the role by another supervisor but that was not what happened. One day I was in training, the next day I was handling a team. The only endorsement I received was via email. Nobody actually sat me down and showed me how things were done. I had to learn on my own. Having agents on your team who knew more than you did and sometimes asking them for answers was a very humbling experience.
I have also been given the unofficial task of closing up shop. That means spending time after my shift making sure that all requests have either been approved or disapproved, and that all escalations have been addressed. I am, unofficially. in charge of checking for the total number of transactions for the entire work day. These are my tasks aside from the usual supervisor tasks of coaching, motivating, mediating, creating, checking, and making sure that the team is happy and people get along.
So why unproductive? I wasn't talking about me. I was referring to somebody I work with.
You see, I have always tried to look for the best in people. I grew up believing that people are inherently good and that a team should work together towards a common goal. Imagine my surprise when I realized a few days after I was endorsed to operations that there are people who just pretend to be one with the team's mission. In reality tho they are only watching out for themselves and they don't care whether they hurt people on their mission to gain pleasure.
I am appalled that someone could be callous and selfish that they seem unperturbed when they leave the office for their breaks when everyone is busy and their assistance is required. I am appalled that someone could be so nonchalant about not doing their job and not caring delegating their tasks to people who aren't supposed to be undertaking extra work. I am appalled that while I am sitting in my pod and working my butt off and trying to address all the questions that come my way, there is this person who just casually strolls out of the office to take her Nth cigarette break.
And I don't think this person realizes that I can see that I can see whenever she's window shopping online courtesy of the glass wall behind her. Oh, to be unproductive and still get paid! What luxury that person is experiencing on a daily basis.
One of my agents told me today that work has been peaceful since she who shall not be named is out on vacation. That observation made me realize that other people have noticed her actions too. I am not alone in my observation that out of the three of us, she is the most unproductive.
So yes, life is great except when there are unproductive people around you. I don't mind feeling grossly underpaid. I can live with that since I love my job. I'm just going to pretend she doesn't exist.
A few months ago, I was moved from training to operations. I welcomed the news with mixed emotions simple because I have been part of training for the longest time, and the last time I led a team for an extended period of time was several years ago.
I thought that with the change things would be better. I was going to be more productive and I would be able maximize and really make use of my time. Well. Two months later I think I am grossly underpaid.
First, let me talk about what training life was like in our company.
When I was in training. I was basically in charge of my schedule. Not even my boss could dictate what time I was supposed to do a specific task unless we had new hire or upskill/cross skill classes. As long as I got the job done, it didn't matter what time I did it and how I accomplished the task. I could come in late (but not too late) and adjust my schedule. As long as I was able to work nine hours a day, I was good.
On days when we had training, I had to be in the office before all of my trainees. I had to prepare all of the modules and make sure that all of the slides were up to date and working. New hire training days were the only busy days since I had to oversee the progress of an entire class. The classes ranged anywhere from four to more than 20 trainees, and I had to be very conscious of the fact that I was dealing with different personalities. More often than not the people who got hired were working for the first time in their entire lives. All of them have at least a Bachelor's degree and most of them are not used to working in an environment where results matter and your feelings are secondary to your performance.
After trainees were endorsed to operations, I was free to do whatever I wanted to do. I could sleep for most of my shift and people wouldn't care. I could go out for 2 hour lunches and people would be okay with that. I could be on my phone playing online games and people wouldn't care. The only times when I would be busy (if you could call it that) was when I was rolling out updates and teaching upskill or cross skill classes. The maximum time I spent in training outside of a new hire class was a day and a half.
Yes, I was that unproductive outside of the classroom.
So when I received the news that I was being moved to operations, I was both elated and angry. I was elated because I would finally be free of the stifling and stunting environment of training, but I was also angry that I would no longer have the freedom to do whatever I wanted to do inside the office.
Now let's go back to the present. Today, I feel grossly underpaid as a supervisor.
Most of tasks I do now I learned on the fly. Or I learned on my own by observing people and asking questions, or by listening. One would think that I would slowly be eased into the role by another supervisor but that was not what happened. One day I was in training, the next day I was handling a team. The only endorsement I received was via email. Nobody actually sat me down and showed me how things were done. I had to learn on my own. Having agents on your team who knew more than you did and sometimes asking them for answers was a very humbling experience.
I have also been given the unofficial task of closing up shop. That means spending time after my shift making sure that all requests have either been approved or disapproved, and that all escalations have been addressed. I am, unofficially. in charge of checking for the total number of transactions for the entire work day. These are my tasks aside from the usual supervisor tasks of coaching, motivating, mediating, creating, checking, and making sure that the team is happy and people get along.
So why unproductive? I wasn't talking about me. I was referring to somebody I work with.
You see, I have always tried to look for the best in people. I grew up believing that people are inherently good and that a team should work together towards a common goal. Imagine my surprise when I realized a few days after I was endorsed to operations that there are people who just pretend to be one with the team's mission. In reality tho they are only watching out for themselves and they don't care whether they hurt people on their mission to gain pleasure.
I am appalled that someone could be callous and selfish that they seem unperturbed when they leave the office for their breaks when everyone is busy and their assistance is required. I am appalled that someone could be so nonchalant about not doing their job and not caring delegating their tasks to people who aren't supposed to be undertaking extra work. I am appalled that while I am sitting in my pod and working my butt off and trying to address all the questions that come my way, there is this person who just casually strolls out of the office to take her Nth cigarette break.
And I don't think this person realizes that I can see that I can see whenever she's window shopping online courtesy of the glass wall behind her. Oh, to be unproductive and still get paid! What luxury that person is experiencing on a daily basis.
One of my agents told me today that work has been peaceful since she who shall not be named is out on vacation. That observation made me realize that other people have noticed her actions too. I am not alone in my observation that out of the three of us, she is the most unproductive.
So yes, life is great except when there are unproductive people around you. I don't mind feeling grossly underpaid. I can live with that since I love my job. I'm just going to pretend she doesn't exist.
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