Hoss 350
My GSP, Dutch
Hey guys, you all might remember back this summer when I was having some troubles with my boss. Never mentioned anything more about it since, mainly because I didn’t really want to put my dirty laundry out for all to see.
He’s done it again, and I really don’t know what to do about it now. Maybe some of you old-timers that spent your years in corporate (or not corporate, my guess is that this would fit nicely into a military setting, too) could give a youngster like me some advice.
In May of 2004, I was promoted from a position called “Project Engineer” (PE) to a position called “Project Manager Level 3” (PM3). Or, at least, I thought I was. I just found out last week that my boss had never bothered to finish the paperwork on my promotion, so I was never formally promoted. When he came down to do a performance review, he asked me what position I “thought” I was in the company, and I told him PM3. His response was that we would “have to see, that it may not have taken.” I didn’t really understand what he was saying, whether that meant that it hadn’t taken because someone higher up the chain had not approved the promotion, or what. His response was that it meant that no one had ever done the paperwork on the promotion, so that even though they told me that I had been promoted, that even though I had taken on (and done a very good job at, I might add) PM3 duties, and that even though I had business cards printed out that said PM3, and that even though I made the company a buttload of money as a PM3, and had actually completed projects that were on a PM2 level (one level higher than PM3), that I was actually a PE the whole time, and that everyone in the company that I had cooresponded with that didn’t know me personally had seen me as a PE, that my division CEO and company CEO both thought I was a PE for the last three years that I had been talking to them….
Well, you get the point. I talked to a lot of people over the last three years that saw me as their subordinate, and I didn’t even know it. I treated them as equals, and who knows how many feathers I ruffled and didn’t even know it???? I’m going back through the last three years right now and re-living every conversation I’ve had and realizing that if all of these people that I talked to thought I was a PE, that I may very well have many folks in the company that have developed negative opinions about me!
This has wider implications than just politics. I have been asking about my pay scale for some time, since I am at a salary level much lower than PM3. The first year, I was so happy to have the promotion, that I just figured I’d say nothing, and that I would earn the promotion the next year. I got nothing other than a cost of living adjustment for the next two years. They were very small. Now that I think about it, I am at the high end of what a PE should be making. Corporate would not want to pay a PE much more than I am making now, and if you had a guy that spent SIX YEARS in his current position without his manager suggesting a promotion, why would you WANT to give him a raise? Corporate has no idea that I was promotoed 3 years ago. They think I’m THAT GUY!!! I am being shorted something on the scale of 7 to 10 thousand a year because my manager didn’t fill out the paperwork.
What’s more, my BONUSES have been very small. I complained at the time, but just figured that it would all work out in a few years, that I had to prove myself, blah blah more Horatio Alger BS and all that crap. Turns out, I’ve been getting PE bonuses! Over the last 3 years, I would estimate the value to be 10 to 16 thousand dollars!!!
I am a very motivated, hard working individual that works hard at what I do. I pride myself in the effort and result that I put into and get out of every day.
This has destroyed me. I am so demoralized and disillusioned that I am still sitting in my office at 7:35 PM typing this instead of going home to see my wife. I can hardly stand to face her right now. I don’t really even want to get up. I want to quit, but realize now that my resume won’t even show that I was a PM3 for three years. If I quit now, I am technically going out to shop for work as a PE!
My idea for resolution is this:
1.) Go to my manager and suggest that he make up for the salary impacts by giving me a raise that will make up for it now. Suggest that he make up for the bonus impact by cutting me a check now. And finally, suggest that he write a company wide e-mail that explains the situation and makes sure that everyone that I may have stepped on their toes realizes that wasn’t the case at all.
2.) If my suggestions fall on deaf ears, make them demands.
3.) Go to his boss with the same suggestions
4.) Go to the company CEO with the same suggestions
5.) If I get to 5 with no resolution, liquidate my stock, have them cut me a check on the spot, and go job hunting the next day.
If I can’t pick myself up from this, I may just have to quit anyway and go somewhere else. I am so low right now I can hardly even discuss it.
What do you all think about my plan? Any advice you can add?
He’s done it again, and I really don’t know what to do about it now. Maybe some of you old-timers that spent your years in corporate (or not corporate, my guess is that this would fit nicely into a military setting, too) could give a youngster like me some advice.
In May of 2004, I was promoted from a position called “Project Engineer” (PE) to a position called “Project Manager Level 3” (PM3). Or, at least, I thought I was. I just found out last week that my boss had never bothered to finish the paperwork on my promotion, so I was never formally promoted. When he came down to do a performance review, he asked me what position I “thought” I was in the company, and I told him PM3. His response was that we would “have to see, that it may not have taken.” I didn’t really understand what he was saying, whether that meant that it hadn’t taken because someone higher up the chain had not approved the promotion, or what. His response was that it meant that no one had ever done the paperwork on the promotion, so that even though they told me that I had been promoted, that even though I had taken on (and done a very good job at, I might add) PM3 duties, and that even though I had business cards printed out that said PM3, and that even though I made the company a buttload of money as a PM3, and had actually completed projects that were on a PM2 level (one level higher than PM3), that I was actually a PE the whole time, and that everyone in the company that I had cooresponded with that didn’t know me personally had seen me as a PE, that my division CEO and company CEO both thought I was a PE for the last three years that I had been talking to them….
Well, you get the point. I talked to a lot of people over the last three years that saw me as their subordinate, and I didn’t even know it. I treated them as equals, and who knows how many feathers I ruffled and didn’t even know it???? I’m going back through the last three years right now and re-living every conversation I’ve had and realizing that if all of these people that I talked to thought I was a PE, that I may very well have many folks in the company that have developed negative opinions about me!
This has wider implications than just politics. I have been asking about my pay scale for some time, since I am at a salary level much lower than PM3. The first year, I was so happy to have the promotion, that I just figured I’d say nothing, and that I would earn the promotion the next year. I got nothing other than a cost of living adjustment for the next two years. They were very small. Now that I think about it, I am at the high end of what a PE should be making. Corporate would not want to pay a PE much more than I am making now, and if you had a guy that spent SIX YEARS in his current position without his manager suggesting a promotion, why would you WANT to give him a raise? Corporate has no idea that I was promotoed 3 years ago. They think I’m THAT GUY!!! I am being shorted something on the scale of 7 to 10 thousand a year because my manager didn’t fill out the paperwork.
What’s more, my BONUSES have been very small. I complained at the time, but just figured that it would all work out in a few years, that I had to prove myself, blah blah more Horatio Alger BS and all that crap. Turns out, I’ve been getting PE bonuses! Over the last 3 years, I would estimate the value to be 10 to 16 thousand dollars!!!
I am a very motivated, hard working individual that works hard at what I do. I pride myself in the effort and result that I put into and get out of every day.
This has destroyed me. I am so demoralized and disillusioned that I am still sitting in my office at 7:35 PM typing this instead of going home to see my wife. I can hardly stand to face her right now. I don’t really even want to get up. I want to quit, but realize now that my resume won’t even show that I was a PM3 for three years. If I quit now, I am technically going out to shop for work as a PE!
My idea for resolution is this:
1.) Go to my manager and suggest that he make up for the salary impacts by giving me a raise that will make up for it now. Suggest that he make up for the bonus impact by cutting me a check now. And finally, suggest that he write a company wide e-mail that explains the situation and makes sure that everyone that I may have stepped on their toes realizes that wasn’t the case at all.
2.) If my suggestions fall on deaf ears, make them demands.
3.) Go to his boss with the same suggestions
4.) Go to the company CEO with the same suggestions
5.) If I get to 5 with no resolution, liquidate my stock, have them cut me a check on the spot, and go job hunting the next day.
If I can’t pick myself up from this, I may just have to quit anyway and go somewhere else. I am so low right now I can hardly even discuss it.
What do you all think about my plan? Any advice you can add?
