Management Isn't An Easy Job

My first job in management provided me with experiences that I would use over the years in both my personal and professional life.

I had hired many new employees and I had to let some go.  I learned that a interview does not allow you to see just who the person really is that you are hiring.  Anyone can talk a good story, but listen to your gut.

We had a position open for another claims adjuster, shortly before the staff reductions had taken place.  I started with five women, I was building my own hand picked staff now.  I had hired Collingwood, the man from my days at Maryland Casualty. I had hired  Cheryl who would be my right hand in the years to come.  Both were excellent choices.

The third adjuster interviewed, I was not impressed with.  David and I stayed late one night.  This man was not able to interview during the day as he had a job.  I understood that it was difficult to interview when you were working without your current employer suspecting some thing.

He was in his early thirties.  He had had a stroke when he was a child and favored his right side. Some thing was off, but I couldn't put my finger on it.  David asked him inappropriate questions as usual, but I asked him questions about his resume. He'd been a job hopper.  Short term employment.  Some times that reflected someone who was jumping to get large pay increases, it was common in the industry.  He had a degree in criminal justice.  Why did he want to be a claims adjuster?  David was able to get all the taboo information from him. He was married. He had a baby on the way and his wife didn't work.  So much for not breaking laws on what you can legally ask a potential employee.

I had asked him about some training that he was currently involved in.  He was working toward his AIC (Associates in Claims) certification.  I asked him if he was going to continue pursuing this if hired and he said, "No."

Some thing inside clicked.  This is a difficult and time consuming course for a single line adjuster to take and pass.  It generally is self study with a national exam given.  I wanted to know why he wasn't going to pursue it and he said he "didn't have the time."  I suspected he was taking this course work as a condition of employment.  He had provided us with references, but I always like to talk to people in the industry to get the skinny on a person.  Any one can provide you with three people who will rave about you.  You'd be stupid to give the name of a reference who was going to sell your soul.

It was a Monday night.  I spoke with Chappy.  He knew a lot of people in his travels.  He visited insurance companies and he knew the scuttle butt on those that struggled.  He told me to not consider this person and the reasons why, one he was on probation for performance at his current employer.

I came in to the office the next morning to inform David, but he had already offered the position to him.  Larry had called his references and had nothing but rave reviews. I was stuck with a ticking time bomb.

I sat him right outside of my office.  I could see him and when I had to leave my office, I walked by his cubicle, so I could watch him.  He positioned his chair so that it was more difficult for me to watch him from my desk.  Over time, his files reflected poor work and I started the disciplinary action.  

I would tip toe up onto his office, his back to the entrance of his cubicle and nine times out of ten, he'd be doing some thing unrelated to what he was being paid for.  He placed a mirror on his wall, so he could see if I approached the cubicle from behind him.  You have to get up pretty early to out fox me.  The staff knew he wasn't pulling his weight and morale started to suffer.  Toward the end, I was determined to either pull him up from hanging himself, or help him hang himself.

One day, he had rearranged his work area so that I could not see what was in front of him on his desk.  The normal eye would suspect he was reading a file.  I did not have a normal eye.  I walked around to the cubicle on the other side of his and got up on the desk, peering over the wall, lo and behold, he was reading, but not a claim file, a book. I cleared my throat to let him know, I was there and he was shocked!

I ended up writing him up, putting him on probation and he was headed for the door when he resigned.  He gave his two week notice.  Employees who give notice, generally do not put forth much effort in their last two weeks, so I gave him a list of what I expected done to his current case load and I followed  up twenty four hours later.  He had not done one thing.

I contacted personnel and asked if I could let him go.  Pay him his salary for two weeks, but just let him sit at home. He was not working and two weeks from  now, those files would be two more weeks behind.  Personnel gave me their blessing and I called him in my office and informed him that today was his last day.  He could pack up his desk and leave.  He'd be paid the two weeks, but he was free to roam the universe.

Can you believe this man? He walked down to David's office, in tears, and told him I had "fired" him and said he had to go home. He returned to his desk and David came to get me.  I had no idea he had been in David's office.  David slammed the door and was not lost for words.  Who did I think I was telling him he could leave today?  I explained what had happened. I had called personnel and had their blessing and who wouldn't want to sit home for two weeks with full pay?

David was livid.  He allowed him to sit there for two weeks if he wanted to, but the staff made it so miserable for him, he chose not to return the next day.  People are funny, but I never understood why he didn't want to go sit at home.  Perhaps his spouse didn't know he'd been fired from yet another job.

I was hiring an assistant for me.  The young girl in the mail room applied for the job.  She was dating the son of David's secretary.  The whole department was some how related one way or another.  She was nineteen and worked in the mail room.  She wore jeans and hoodies every day.  But the day that she had an interview with me, she arrived at work in a dress, hair done and make up.  She wanted to promote herself outside of the mail room.  She interviewed well and I remarked about her attire.  I told her I was impressed that she made an effort to look her very best that day.  I saw her everyday in jeans.  This was not a first impression for me,  I knew her and her work ethic. She was good in the mail room, but to dress up to interview, impressed me for some one so young.  She was embarrassed a little because she had to borrow the dress from a friend.  Impressed me even more.

She worked out very well and I gave her additional responsibilities to handle medical only claims. I was grooming her to become an adjuster.  She suffered from depression and I sensed it having been there myself.  I called her in the office and walked lightly as this was not a subject a manager should have with an employee.  She admitted she was depressed and she struggled with it. It was that time of year that her "son's" birthday was near.  I had no idea she had a son, but she shared that she had gotten pregnant and gave the baby up for adoption and it was very difficult on her.  I certainly could understand. She wanted to get married and have babies, but her boyfriend was not ready for that.

I worked with her as she struggled through this period of time. I held off on giving her more than she could handle. I allowed her to take time for herself. I had compassion for another human.  And she took advantage of me.  

Nicest person in the world, but don't screw me.  I tell every person who works for me this on day one.  She started screwing with me and I had to nip it in the bud.  I took her into a conference room where no other employees could see my door shut and wonder what was going on.  I was on the edge, I was so angry with  her and I laid down the law, from this day forward, this was what I expected.  We left the room and she went out to have a smoke and never came back.

She called David's secretary, the mother of her boyfriend to tell her she was going home.  Protocol required she inform me and so I contacted personnel about this situation. They viewed it as abandoning her job and the next day, we met, along with Ray, the new department head.  I was firm and to the point.  If body language gives away your hand in a game of poker, my body language that morning was telling her she'd better run as I had the last nail in my hand to seal her coffin shut.

She knew she had crossed the line with me.  There was no saving herself, so a couple of weeks later, she resigned.  A lesson learned, your star employees can turn on you in the blink of an eye.  You have to know when to coddle and when to throttle them.  It is a tough call if you have to let them go.