Job woes - I think i'm going to be sacked

LegacyUser

Why do i start but i'm sure really in the sh*t at the moment and sure i don't really have any one to turn to ! I manage a group of people and our PROFORMANCE has not been good at all for the last 8 months, We should be much better its just so frustrating! I feel i am the most hated person at the moment or it be some kind of Paranoia! I tend to play things safe and i don't really gamble.
I also signed a contract for another couple of years so i know i am kind of secure for the time being but at the same time the bosses could buy me out of the contract ! Any advice would be greatful !

smiles

Take a deep breath then sit down and analyse things.

If things went badly with the group, try to isolate why -- was it your leadership or items outside of your control (group politics, events outside of the group that made things difficult, etc).

Then make a list of things that you have achieved and done well since you started -- even the smaller part of a project (e.g. Documentation is going well).

Then look back at the original 'bad' list, figure out what skills you think you need to help 'fix' the problems you are having an make a genuine start at them -- if it's external things then be prepared to talk to your boss about reconciling them.

Hopefully this will help balance things out in your mind, and if (and it's still an IF from the sound of the post), you need to have some kind of conversation with your boss - you will at least have points you can make (without being completely paranoid). e.g. "I need to work on Time Management to help improve things, is there anything you would recommend?", "I know there's been some problems, but some areas are coming together well" and give an example from the list.

Best of luck, and try not to let the paranoia spoil things.

DetectivFoxtrot

I +1 everything Smiles says. not panicking is the most important thing. If you think you have leadership/communication/team motivation issues may I suggest the book "How to Win Friends & Influence People" by Dale Carnegie - sounds a bit naff but it's a great read.

Usually poor team performance is due to lack of direction. Are you giving enough direction as Team Lead? Do your people know what you expect of them? Do you set targets and manage individual performance? Do you set milestones so that the team can see results (or lack thereof)? Most improtanty, do you celebrate and share successes or just focus on failures - this can be a really demotivating factor in teams. Do you analyse failure (i.e. not meeting a target) and try and figure out how it happened - i.e. was it an unrealistic target t0 begin with or do you have the wrong people on your team?

Sorry for all the qestions - I don't expect you to answer them (!) but it may help in getting you thinking about what's going wrong.....

RuggieBear

I don't think there are any decent alternatives... I reckon you are safe for a while yet

Zico

I came across a similar tale a couple of months back. Steve from Drogheda was in a spot of bother. He got the sack, i'd be updating that CV of yours Ed you might be needing sooner than you think.

LegacyUser

Hey buddy i was in the same position about 10 years ago, I was in charge of a group of people who were not performing at the time. You need to take a step back and see what factors are motivating them.

Could it be that you lack leadership skill for a team of people to suceed?

Maybe you just need a fresh start in another area!

Maybe you need to ensure that some of the people you are in charge of get the recognition they deserve. Maybe try some new people in there and see how they get on!!!!!

In my case I am doing very well at the moment and should be getting a massive bonus next week hopefully so things can change!!!!

bugler

Out-smart your bosses, tell them you quit before they have a chance to sack you. You should do this before the weekend. PLEASE.

matt-dublin

bugler wrote: »

Out-smart your bosses, tell them you quit before they have a chance to sack you. You should do this before the weekend. PLEASE.

Thats just useless information and you should be banned for that.

OP as everyone else above stated above have a look at all the factors that are affecting your teams performance.

Look at each of your team members performance, if there is one holding your team back, look at why and how to combat the issue. IE look at reaplceing the team member or extra training.

It all depends on what industry you're in and how you can better you and your teams performance.

If you feel its your management style possibly have a look at requesting management training, request it from your managers and tell them you want it so that you may be able to improve your teams performance with the training etc etc.

But if its not you and it looks more like one of your team members its a case of telling them to pull their socks up or clean out their desk (if you're in a position to do so)

Stev_o

Us people up in the rugby forum are getting great laughs at this. We wish you all the worst Ed.

tbh

I think the problem is that people who have been fired from your position before are now doing better than you. it's showing you up.

Gordon

Stev_o wrote: »

Us people up in the rugby forum are getting great laughs at this. We wish you all the worst Ed.

Banned

Miss Fluff

Stev_o wrote: »

Us people up in the rugby forum are getting great laughs at this. We wish you all the worst Ed.

ROFL:D

Yeah OP, you should give serious consideration to resigning asap;)

deecom

Gordon wrote: »

Banned

Haha! Jesus lighten up! Best thing he could do at the min is get sacked, but i have a feeling he keeps saying there's nothing wrong, good luck with that cv, you'll really need it........

Gordon

:rolleyes: ok, piss taker he is then. "Ed from Cork".

You strange rugby fanatics, what can I say!