Not learning my new job

sellasheep

I started a new job three weeks ago, it's part time (min wage) at the moment so 25 hours a week. It's an administrator in a golf club. I know nothing about golf but I said I would give it a go.

So the thing is; I hate anything to do with numbers and accounts, in fact I think I'm quite slow when it comes to numbers etc. However this job is full of accounts, balancing spreadsheets, invoices, doing vat calculations, wage sheets etc. It's a nightmare! I was slow adding up the hours worked for employees and deducting breaks this week (first time doing it) and the boss became angry and told me I'm going to have to speed up as we will be getting busy soon etc. I was abit annoyed at myself.

There are also many various new software packages that are golf orientated which I'm trying to become use to, that bit isn't so bad expect for the big red cloud accounts package.

I just feel I'm not progressing as I should be. I seemed to have learnt faster in other jobs. It doesn't help that the boss is poor at explaining things and sometimes ignores my requests for assistance. I feel like an inconvenience and an annoyance when asking questions and just feel stupid to be honest. I dread going in some days.

Anybody any experience with this?

domrush

Keep at it, everything comes with time.

Learn the basic excel commands (assuming its excel you're using). Learning how to use macros may also drastically speed things up if they're repetitive tasks you're doing. Youtube tutorials will show you how to do this.

Keep a scientific calculator nearby as they can help you check figures very quickly (the navy Casio one is probably the most user friendly) , a notepad for jotting things down shorthand may also be of help.

Anyone else bar the boss you can ask for a hand?

5rtytry56

domrush wrote: »

Keep at it, everything comes with time..............................
Keep a scientific calculator nearby as they can help you check figures very quickly (the navy Casio one is probably the most user friendly) , a notepad for jotting things down shorthand may also be of help.

A calculator like this can be bought in Eurogiant / Tesco / Dunnes and does'nt cost the earth.

road_high

sellasheep wrote: »

I started a new job three weeks ago, it's part time (min wage) at the moment so 25 hours a week. It's an administrator in a golf club. I know nothing about golf but I said I would give it a go.

So the thing is; I hate anything to do with numbers and accounts, in fact I think I'm quite slow when it comes to numbers etc. However this job is full of accounts, balancing spreadsheets, invoices, doing vat calculations, wage sheets etc. It's a nightmare! I was slow adding up the hours worked for employees and deducting breaks this week (first time doing it) and the boss became angry and told me I'm going to have to speed up as we will be getting busy soon etc. I was abit annoyed at myself.

There are also many various new software packages that are golf orientated which I'm trying to become use to, that bit isn't so bad expect for the big red cloud accounts package.

I just feel I'm not progressing as I should be. I seemed to have learnt faster in other jobs. It doesn't help that the boss is poor at explaining things and sometimes ignores my requests for assistance. I feel like an inconvenience and an annoyance when asking questions and just feel stupid to be honest. I dread going in some days.

Anybody any experience with this?

Sounds to me like they're looking for an Accounts Assistant, which are the skilled roles and responsibilities you outline, yet want to pay min wage and not train you either :eek:
The boss sounds clueless also, that's why he doesn't want or can't explain things.

Mrs OBumble

This type of job would usually be filled by a golf enthusiast, who's using it to supplement their other income. The fact that they've taken you who knows nothing about golf and isn't an administration expert either means that they must be desperate - probably because the boss isn't the greatest to work for, or the location is difficult or something.

I'd say either hang in there and learn but be patient with yourself - or leave ASAP.

Try and find friends doing similar admin jobs elsehwere, and ask them for tips too.

road_high

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

This type of job would usually be filled by a golf enthusiast, who's using it to supplement their other income. The fact that they've taken you who knows nothing about golf and isn't an administration expert either means that they must be desperate - probably because the boss isn't the greatest to work for, or the location is difficult or something.

I'd say either hang in there and learn but be patient with yourself - or leave ASAP.

Try and find friends doing similar admin jobs elsehwere, and ask them for tips too.

I'd say the pay is not realistic in terms of what they want in skills...not heard of anyone doing VAT returns etc on min wage before but maybe I'm a bit naive?!
Sounds like this lady just thought it was going to be simple office duties rather than more complex technical accounts stuff- which they don't sound willing to train her in.
OP you mention you hate numbers etc but this job sounds purely numbers so not sure if it's right for you?

doolox

Will there be anyone checking your accounts and calculations???

At least for a start.

Minimum wage implies minimal skills, expectations or responsibilities.

Who will be responsible and have to pay if you make a mistake and overpay someone or put the club in a difficult or illegal position with a badly miscalculated VAT or PAYE returns.

The boss does not seem very clever if he is not willing to pay more than minimum wage and hire at least someone with a head for numbers.

Having said that numbers are something that take a lot of practice and application to get good at. I can second the advice on getting and using calculators, how to guides and writing everything down until you get used to all the procedures etc.

Most number oriented jobs I have known do not rely on memory or old information in their work and constantly checking and getting workmates to recheck their work on an on going basis. An accounts office is no place for secrecy, arrogance or guesswork. People will, or should respect you more for being cautious and methodical as this will save from making mistakes and costing money in the long run.

If this is the work you want to do in the medium to long term you will have to get used to dealing with numbers and let no one tell you that people are "bad" at numbers.........calculations take time and practice and being methodical and rechecking until you get good at it. Any worthwhile work skill is that way.

Mrs OBumble

road_high wrote: »

I'd say the pay is not realistic in terms of what they want in skills...not heard of anyone doing VAT returns etc on min wage before but maybe I'm a bit naive?!

Not at all naive in a business.

But in enthusiast-organisations (sports clubs, arts organisations, small-scale local charities) things can be a bit different. Many of the people who work for them do so because they have a passion for the cause and getting to do the admin gives them a chance to hang out in the clubrooms and meet visiting celebrities, do things at staff rates, seamlessly mix organisation work and private tuition, etc etc. And members often expect that the staff will work for love of the game (or whatever) rather than a living wage. (The same way that some people think that workers in charities should get lower wages than people doing the same job for the HSE etc)

That's why there's a skills vs pay mis-match.

What is odd is that the golf-club doesn't have a golfer (or at least a golfer's spouse) to do the job.

eeguy

Stick with it. Whenever someone explains how to do something, write it down step by step and refer back if needed.
Write down your own methods too and keep trying to improve them. Admin work is usually very routine, so it should become second nature once you settle in.

that sort of work is also great on a CV

sellasheep

I think it's because I qualify for wage subsidy, basically why I was taken. DSP will pay them €5. 30 an hour for me.

SCOOP 64

sellasheep wrote: »

I think it's because I qualify for wage subsidy, basically why I was taken. DSP will pay them €5. 30 an hour for me.

Dsp will pay the employer to employ you ,how does that work?

drunkmonkey

SCOOP 64 wrote: »

Dsp will pay the employer to employ you ,how does that work?

Yea they subsidise the employer if the employee can't work at full steam or has been unemployed for a while there's a few different schemes for employers.

OP get a note book and write down everything your shown, if you get good at it your useful in a lot of small businesses.

Del2005

5rtytry56 wrote: »

A calculator like this can be bought in Eurogiant / Tesco / Dunnes and does'nt cost the earth.

Every computer has a calculator it can be simple or scientific. But using a pen, paper and calculator will not help the OP. The only way to learn is repetition and time.

In my job I jump between roles and one requires a lot of data mining and calculations. When I first started it took me a long time to complete the report, after a few weeks I'd reduced the time taken considerably, after I spend a few weeks doing my other role it takes a few days to get back up to speed.

cloloco

sellasheep wrote: »

I started a new job three weeks ago, it's part time (min wage) at the moment so 25 hours a week. It's an administrator in a golf club. I know nothing about golf but I said I would give it a go.

So the thing is; I hate anything to do with numbers and accounts, in fact I think I'm quite slow when it comes to numbers etc. However this job is full of accounts, balancing spreadsheets, invoices, doing vat calculations, wage sheets etc. It's a nightmare! I was slow adding up the hours worked for employees and deducting breaks this week (first time doing it) and the boss became angry and told me I'm going to have to speed up as we will be getting busy soon etc. I was abit annoyed at myself.

There are also many various new software packages that are golf orientated which I'm trying to become use to, that bit isn't so bad expect for the big red cloud accounts package.

I just feel I'm not progressing as I should be. I seemed to have learnt faster in other jobs. It doesn't help that the boss is poor at explaining things and sometimes ignores my requests for assistance. I feel like an inconvenience and an annoyance when asking questions and just feel stupid to be honest. I dread going in some days.

Anybody any experience with this?

Hopefully with a bit of time you will settle in and it will become easier for you.

Try not to stress about it and as others have said here, go over everything and take as much time as needed to get it right. You'll soon find a method that you're comfortable with.

This happened to me a few years back when I took an 'adminstrator' job, it turned into being a PA for two directors as well as doing accounts (very large sums of money involved, quite daunting when your not qualified for it). I was soooo glad when I finished in that role.

Good luck, either way it will be good to have on the CV.

sellasheep

road_high wrote: »

Sounds to me like they're looking for an Accounts Assistant, which are the skilled roles and responsibilities you outline, yet want to pay min wage and not train you either :eek:
The boss sounds clueless also, that's why he doesn't want or can't explain things.

It appears that way too. I done foundation level maths in school so I don't think this will work out.

5rtytry56

sellasheep wrote: »

........... so I don't think this will work out.

Then follow Ms O Bumbles advice above - quit - seriously. And notify social welfare.

pilly

You don't have to be good at maths to do accounts nowadays though. It does help but with spreadsheets etc. there are easy ways to do things.

If you really want the job give it a good go. Check and double check your figures all the time and if they get on your case for being slow just patiently explain that you're just learning. Everything gets quicker with repetition.

For minimum wage they are expecting too much from you. As someone else mentioned maybe they expect people to do it for love of the game.

Best of luck OP, it's not easy but keep trying if you really want the job.

Mrs OBumble

sellasheep wrote: »

I think it's because I qualify for wage subsidy, basically why I was taken. DSP will pay them €5. 30 an hour for me.

This explains a lot.

You're dirt cheap to them, so they need to put up with you being slow. Don't feel bad about it. And they're very unlikely to fire you.

TBH given what you've said about only doing foundation maths, i dont think this is a great job for you.

Use the time to look for another job - its easier to get a job when you have a job.

Don't just quit, because you won't get the dole for 9 weeks if you do.

sellasheep

I really appreciate all the responses. They were very informative and assisted me alot. I will try it for another while. I do volunteer in the citizens information one day a week which I thought of packing in to focus on this new job but not sure if I should as it looks good on the CV.

I had an issue with management today. While in the office this morning, I decided to browse through 'bar files' on the PC I'm assigned to. There were some account folders there and bits of everything really. I just glanced over them hoping to learn something and know what to expect. I didn't realise I was doing wrong until the boss discovered I had done it from the 'most recent' in windows 7. They confronted me and asked why I was viewing those files and that they were very very surprised at me. I don't think they believed my explanation either as they more or less insinuated the trust was damaged.

I feel awful since but realise I need to make a decision. I don't have financial worries so that's not ah issue.

doolox

I used to be involved in a tech company and the ground rules were to stick with job related data while at work. Any sensitive or confidential information had to be password protected and encrypted with a password not only on the account but also a separate password on each file.

If you were able to read files without password access and without being told and notified ahead of time about what you can or cannot access then the management have not got a leg to stand on.

There is a common practice for companies to ban worktime access to leisure and personal apps and files or access to other peoples private stuff. HR people and payroll people would be well aware that it is a big no no to access other peoples private data for trivial reasons and all such accesses are logged and tracked to detect or avoid such abuses.

road_high

sellasheep wrote: »

I really appreciate all the responses. They were very informative and assisted me alot. I will try it for another while. I do volunteer in the citizens information one day a week which I thought of packing in to focus on this new job but not sure if I should as it looks good on the CV.

I had an issue with management today. While in the office this morning, I decided to browse through 'bar files' on the PC I'm assigned to. There were some account folders there and bits of everything really. I just glanced over them hoping to learn something and know what to expect. I didn't realise I was doing wrong until the boss discovered I had done it from the 'most recent' in windows 7. They confronted me and asked why I was viewing those files and that they were very very surprised at me. I don't think they believed my explanation either as they more or less insinuated the trust was damaged.

I feel awful since but realise I need to make a decision. I don't have financial worries so that's not ah issue.

Sounds like a total control freak to me, he must have p!ss all to be doing with his time- seriously, looking back at an employees work history and what they'd been looking at. Is he video recording you as well?
Trust actually runs two ways.

sellasheep

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

I was let go today. They told me it wasn't working out as they were looking for someone who had experience with IT and accounts. They suggested perhaps I should do some computer courses in accounts. They then wished me well and payed me what I was owed. Pity they were not clear about that from the start.

I since received another telling off about accessing files I should not of (they never made that clear at the beginning though). They also mentioned it today. Some of my friends think this was the real reason for my dismissal.

All in all, I'm delighted it's over. They made the last few days difficult for me and the relationship had broken down after the file drama. I think the trust was gone.

Onwards and upwards.

sellasheep

road_high wrote: »

Sounds to me like they're looking for an Accounts Assistant, which are the skilled roles and responsibilities you outline, yet want to pay min wage and not train you either :eek:
The boss sounds clueless also, that's why he doesn't want or can't explain things.

And that's exactly what it was!

tiredblondie

sounds like it worked out for the best in the end - they clearly took you on looking for someone to do work that needs experience but wanted to pay next to nothing for it.
had something similar happen many years back and they made me feel like crap - no job is worth that especially as you say you don't have financial worries!

best wishes for whatever you decide to do next

pilly

Such a shame OP. They expected far too much from someone on minimum wage and you suffered because of it.

Try to leave on good terms though. Will be better for you in the long run.