Managing other little humans is like training kittens. Just when you think everything's under control, one of the kittens is out of the box and unfurling the toilet roll.
One of the junior members of our staff is a supremely talented art director who has some time management challenges.
In short, he never thinks it will take him as long to do something as it actually does.
In addition, he's from the generation that believes menial work is beneath him.
As someone who has proudly held the title of Minnow Girl at Land O'Lakes Lodge in Marten River, Ontario, I find this laughable.
So yesterday, junior AD was scheduled for an internal creative review at 1:30 p.m.
At 1, I see him donning his jacket and heading for the door.
"Where are you going?" says I, "Don't we have an internal at 1:30?"
"Out for lunch," says junior AD, "We're bumping it until tomorrow."
"When's the client presentation?" says I.
"Tomorrow," says he.
Not comfortable with that.
The project he's working on, while not overly large, has inherent complexities. It requires the eyes and attention of a lot of people before the client sees it. He was briefed on it a week ago.
So I push the issue, and schedule an internal for 4:30 yesterday afternoon.
The thing is, I KNOW he won't be ready. He says he will, but I KNOW he won't.
But I also know that part of my job is ensuring that he experience the consequences of his behaviour. His actions have a ripple effect on everyone at the agency.
So the meeting comes around. I've warned the account people that the work is still in progress.
Then I leave the junior AD to do the 'splainin'.
It's a good old-fashioned Salem public shaming. He certainly left the meeting with the knowledge that he's disappointed the account people in his deliverables.
But did he learn anything?
I'm not sure.
To be honest, I think he felt perfectly justified in acting purely out of self interest. I think he was mad at me and mad at the account people for forcing a previous agreement.
So this morning I've come in, and the completed job is in my mailbox.
I definitely plan to follow up with him.
But what to say...
6 comments:
Is the completed job good though? Sounds like it was rushed and maybe just completed to make a point? I feel your pain because one of my biggest pet peeves at work is bad time management. It's the nerd inside me maybe, but if I have a deadline to meet - I meet it. Just like you. Why can't more people be like us??
(Oh, and our internals here are always at least a day or 2 before the client presentation... crazy! But it works. So I understand your feeling of discomfort with pushing the internal.)
Good luck today!
PS: I find it interesting that you talk about "Generation Y" today when just yesterday I read an article in the Globe saying that research is showing that the typical "Gen Y" stereotypes are actually not true when it comes to the workforce. This doesn't quite seem to be the case with your experience, however.
i read the same article as Hez yesterday and have come up against the same issues with the Gen Y group as you have. It's unfair to stereotype an entire generation with poor work ethics, bad time management and an attitude of entitlement. However, when you see it in action, it's hard to dismiss it as well.
I see the stereotypical Gen Y peeps all around me, every day. Thinking that work is 'below' them and that their mere existence entitles them to a job title. I find that job titles mean very little, now - after that whole dot com thing where 20yr olds became CEOs.
There are a few exceptions - but the exceptions have usually paid for and earned everything they have in their life, themselves. They never got used to things being handed to them.
I also think that "Gen Y" people have existed all along - we've just got a nice label for them now.
to me this is simple - he had a job to do at a certain level of quality and before a specific deadline, and he didn't do it. end of story. he should be warned, and - unless he is some sort of creative prodigy that deserves some slack - be made aware of the consequences of not doing his job. guess who's the bad cop in this house?
ps - in keeping with occasional parallels in our lives, please note that i was ice cream scooper and seller of booze to fisherman at the lodge (aka trapper trading post).
Who cancelled the 1:30? I think you were perfectly legit in getting him to hang out there. I'd ask him to my office and say, something to the e/affect of "what the hell were you thinking?!?" But it would come out this way; "How can we make sure we get the work done when it was promised so we don't impact others who are dependent and the account people next time?"
Or - "What can we do the next time that this doesn't happen again?"
And let him "splain sum more." See where his head is at. If he has any great leadership potential, he'll say, "I screwed up. Next time, I'll . . . "
He'll probably say, "I am not sure whut up." Then you have to be prepared to draw him to the conclusion, about commitments, other people depending on him/you/us and the business of our business is to get the business. Nothing else matters - except integrity of course, and intergrity starts with keeping your promises.
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