Bad Day At The Office

We have all had those days when nothing appears to be going right. I mean, pick up a £7.24, 500 ream of A4 80gsm office paper instead of your £499 Apple iPad 2.

[Courtesy of Simon Ricktets via Twitter]

All Good Things Come To An End

I am feeling very much mixed emotions as I leave Microsoft today. I was sad to be saying goodbye to some good friends but first and foremost, good people. These are the people that have been with me on the journey over the past two years. The highs and the lows. However, in December last year we were informed that our jobs were effectively being outsourced to India. The only saving grace was the fact that we had two years to find alternative employment elsewhere. The next stop was Chennai, and I had no desire to be on that plane or train (even if relocation had been an option, which of course it was not). As you can imagine, some members of the team took this better than others. Some of the older members of the team with family and long-term financial commitments were worried. I was looking on the positive side. After all, in many similar situations, you do not get the generous notice period of twenty-four months to find a new permanent position. However in the short term, there were going to be changes and while my wife would say, "the only constant in life is change", this change was a leap into the unknown.

We all knew that our jobs would not last forever. This is the whole idea behind contracting, the ability to switch people to different roles or disband them all together and relocate your entire function offshore. Perhaps we all got too comfortable and were just rather shocked by the news, thirteen calendar days before Christmas. Stability is important for everybody, no matter their station in life. The Operations Team had been relatively stable over the past eighteen months with only one departure in that period. That changed almost overnight with ten leavers in just over a month. We were saying goodbye to an experienced member of the team every week. By mid-May the makeup of the team had completely changed with many new starters and only a handful of the original team remaining - many of whom had started a long time before me.

Many years ago when I took the first steps in my humble career I had one goal. To work for not just the biggest companies in the world but leaders in their field, the innovators, the trendsetters. I have achieved this goal in recent years, working for the leading technology companies of our age. With Intel and now Microsoft on my CV, many doors will open. People did ask me why I decided to leave a permanent position at Intel, to take up a contract position at Microsoft. One of my previous managers had said to me, that when considering any role, think long-term. Will your next job you have an offer for, help you secure the job after that. I knew with a tech giant, household brand on my CV, securing the next position, even in this rather difficult climate would be ever so slightly easier. While the story ends here rather abruptly and the dream of a blue badge role never materialised, I feel I made a difference and had a positive affect on both the people around me and the organisation as a whole. I feel I also tried hard to secure a role within the organisation long term, by applying for over forty roles within the UK and the US but to no avail. As my Dad would often say to me, when another rejection was received in the post (or via e-mail in recent times), "Their loss, son!"

Probably for the first time in half a decade, I will be keeping in touch with a small group of my work colleagues. Many live in (or just outside) Slough, so there will be no difficulty keeping in touch but ultimately we became good friends outside of work over the course of my time here. This was perhaps the reason to disband the team was so difficult to swallow. We had just reached the point where everybody was getting on extremely well and performing their duties with the utmost diligence. Nevertheless, I am sure I will see them on a regular basis, many have already left and two ex-colleagues even made a guest appearance for lunch today.

It was a great relief to leave the building, having signed off all of my outstanding CRM cases and re-conciliations to a colleague, hand my badge to my manager and walk out the revolving door for the last time! I took a long deep sigh, one adventure had come to a close and a new adventure would begin in earnest on Monday morning. Nothing lasts forever but it was great while it lasted. I will take away some great memories with some great people at this place. Did I live the dream? No, not quite but I grew to understand the dream was possible, just not here and most importantly not here right now.

Time To Move On

There comes a moment in every job when you know it is the right time to move on to a fresh new challenge. In my case, the penny dropped on Wednesday 12th December 2012 at precisely 14:23 (GMT). Our team received a notification from the senior global director (based over in Redmond, Seattle) on the next step of the Incentive Compensation journey. Unfortunately for some twenty of us, we were being told our destination was only eighteen months away. All our roles and those of sister teams in Asia and America were all being relocated to Chennai (formerly known under the colonial name of Madras) in the outsourcing capital of the planet, India. The clock was well and truly ticking. Short term meanwhile, we would have a new boss and be working in a slightly different way for a different company, effectively keep an old bespoke system running until the new system was put in place for FY15 (Fiscal Year 2015 - July 2014 to June 2015).

It took me over six months to finally find a path out but ultimately I am thankful I was able to secure a permanent full-time position. I handed in my notice on Friday 14th June but gave the exceptional five weeks' notice. There were a few reasons for me to give the extra five days grace to my employer. Firstly I was leaving at the crucial end-of-year payout period, the busiest period in the year with a strict deadline to meet. Secondly, I did not want to leave with work unfinished and in an ideal world actually hand over some knowledge to other members of the Operations Team. We have to remain professional throughout our careers, even if in reality you want to book all remaining eight days of holiday and effectively give just two weeks' notice.

As you can imagine, turnover has been extremely high since January 14th (the effective first day of our new contract with a new employer). While it has been hard to say goodbye to some good friends, I have been pleased that they have been able to find new opportunities elsewhere. The prevailing thought in the back of my mind, as we said farewell to yet another long-serving experienced worker, was when will it be my turn? With such a high turnover of staff, new starters have been joining on a regular basis. Some good, some not so much.

The recruitment process for any firm has to be rigorous, more so for a team in global transition as we have tight deadlines and no space for water carriers. When I joined the firm, I had to undertake a timed Excel test under exam conditions on a laptop with no internet access. Had I failed the test, I would have been politely told to go home and failed to have the opportunity to perform in a face-to-face interview with the hiring manager.

Unsure of the reasons but the Excel Test was now sent to candidates to their personal e-mail address at home for them to complete in their own time. While still required to be completed in thirty minutes, being completely unsupervised, it is impossible to confirm with any degree of certainty if the potential employee has completed the test without any outside guidance. If they passed the test, how could we be sure they would cope in the pressurized office environment with weekly if not daily deadlines.

I strongly believe that no matter how long (or little) you spend in a job, you should aim to have made a difference. To have changed processes, to have improved performance, to provide a better service to the end customer. I feel in my rather short career history, I have fulfilled this aim. However, with my role here at the biggest software manufacturer in the world, I feel I am leaving a little earlier than perhaps I should. Yes, I have achieved a great deal but I felt I could have achieved so much more. Such a shame that my career ambitions have taken me elsewhere. The reality is though I have achieved a lifelong ambition. To work for a company that everybody knows. To work for a company that advertises on not just television, but the cinema, on billboards, and in the press.

Butter Fingers

On Thursdays I receive my weekly job alert from Monster. Probably one of the better job boards on the internet today (particularly in the UK) and the main reason I find myself working for my current employer. However, sometimes when you skim through the list of vacancies, you realise that there are some links you will just not bother clicking on. How can a professional person make such an elementary mistake?

Job Mis-Description

Having moved jobs multiple times in my career, I have tended to see several job descriptions of positions I have held. It is always interesting to look back and see your previous position seeking applicants. It was an ex-colleague, whom highlighted to me the job specification for the job we both used to do several years ago. When I read the professional document, I just had to chuckle to myself. It was not just the fact that minimum requirements had been dropped but proof that I was well over qualified for the position, even back then. Further more, the story on the page was much a world away from life in the office in the actual day-to-day role.

you won’t just have all the resources you need at your fingertips, but the team environment to motivate you to take charge of and develop your own progression.

The Team Ethic

As we enter what is described as a quiet period after the quarterly payout, members of my team like to express their creative energies. The result was the following on a spare whiteboard lying around the office.

One of the artists, uploaded the image onto Facebook and tried to find me to tag me in the image. "Andrew, I cannot find you?". My response was, "Fantastic, that means my privacy and security settings are working perfectly!"

Occupational Hazard

I am sure in millions of offices around the globe, this error appears and it is frustrating for the end user. However, when you work at the software manufacturer and are just accessing one of the many internal sites, you really do want throw your desktop machine out the window and into the little crater of snow outside.

The Trials Of Two Blogs

My original intention with this professional blog, was to have somewhere to post my geeky work based musings. My personal blog, Human Nature would at times get bogged down in technical related postings and my mainstream audience began to turn off. This separation worked well back in 2008 and 2009 when I had both the time and inclination to update a secondary blog. Even though entries were scarce and I had very little commentary to give on my very average work place. Now in present day 2012, I find it difficult to have time to update just my personal blog on a regular basis. It is impossible to manage another.

I am making a major effort with my personal blog. I know, as I start my thirties life will be changing dramatically over the next few years and I have an overwhelming desire to record as much as I can. While work is of course important, I find there is little commentary I can add that is not already being discussed elsewhere. (I should clarify that with some excellent work related blogs but all I could find was this - Letters Of Note and even this is not exactly fully work related).

Hopefully I will make time for a few posts from time to time, there are a few I have in my head, which I really need to get down onto paper and then onto the world wide web. For now at least, goodbye to the few people that actually read this blog!

Living The Dream

If you had told me in June 1992, when I the proud owner of a Packard Bell Legend 386 SX 33Mhz desktop computer, that eighteen years later I would have the chance to share the air with the boffins that developed, not just the processor, but the board, the graphics, the sound card. What dreams may become!

Getting Back On Track

After several months away, I am back. I am putting a focus back on my career and trying to move things forward even if some would dare to say I have taken several steps (if not years) back.

Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.

I consider myself both lucky and blessed to have made it through some rather difficult times in recent months. As difficult as it can be, I am trying to stop looking back and analysing the past, I can do nothing to change, what has been, what was said, what was done. I need to refocus all my energies on my new job, my new responsibilities and my future. This of course is much easier said than done, but I have a few ideas and am in discussions with family, close friends and colleagues on the next steps. There is a great deal to be done and time is not on my side. This is the moment - Carpe Diem!

The Next Chapter

To say the last four months have been easy would be the understatement of the decade. In fact, since touching down from Valencia my life has been anything but a piece of cake. I thought the holiday would have given me the chance to recharge the batteries and come back with a clear perspective. Instead, I found myself soon deciding that it was time for a change.

Eleven days after making that decision, the result of a chain of events compelled me to make another more immediate decision. Back then, I was unsure if it was the right thing to do. Validation felt a long long way off. (If at all ever possible, would I come to regret this forever?)

I suppose my initial problem was I was naive to think I would be back in employment as quickly as before. Last time around, my spell of unemployment was a short lived two weeks. A holiday if you will. Even though there were so many more opportunities out there, it is just a shame that there were hundreds more applying for each position.

I got an interview, got complacent invested too much into this one opportunity and then had to go back and start all over again once the rejection came through.

I applied for a position back in mid November, one of several that day and it was quickly forgotten about. As I had not heard back from anyone, I assumed that it was just another case of a rejection. If you do not hear from us, you should consider your application unsuccessful. No news is bad news, so to speak. You can imagine my surprise to get a phone call around 10am on the first officially working day of 2010. I swiftly arranged an interview for the next day. When I only heard back to say that other candidates had been delayed due to the adverse weather conditions, I resigned myself to yet another rejection in waiting.

You can therefore imagine (or not) my surprise to finally be offered a position this afternoon. The fact it was via e-mail threw me a little but it was the news I had been waiting for and I walked straight into the lounge to share the news with my Mum and youngest sister.

A fresh start, a blank page, a new routine, new people and a new challenge. Yes you may have heard all this before, but maybe this time around, I will build a reputation for all the right reasons.

Feel Yourself Suffocating

Sometimes I need to write very little in a blog post. All I need to do is recite the lyrics from a recent song. Little did I know on Friday 19th June, when I first heard 21 Guns by Green Day during the summer blockbuster sequel that the same words would be so reminiscent of the predicament I found myself in, less than four months later.

Did you try to live on your own
When you burned down the house and home?
Did you stand too close to the fire?
Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone

After the twenty-one gun salute comes the deep reflection and analysis in the cold silence, but I shall save that for another day.

Geneva, Hong Kong and Newbury

It is funny where you can end up after University. Never did I think I would find myself in deepest West Berkshire in the historic market town of Newbury. I had only heard of it from The Third Battle over the proposed bypass in the mid 1990s.

One friend D, has done extremely well for himself, since graduating DMU with a 1st in July 2004. He currently works for a very famous fashion house and the last I had heard he was in the former crown colony.

My other friend from Uni, V is now in Geneva although he was quite close to my current location, working for the other big employer in the West Berkshire town. However, I can only feel myself being rather shortchanged in terms of location. Newbury is not in the same league as Hong Kong or the capital of Switzerland.

Who knows where this job or my career for that matter might take me. I have made it no secret that I have a desire to travel and would have no problem if it was my job rather than a two week holiday that took me to the far flung corners of the globe. I remember talking to one of my well traveled bosses about the glamour of travelling in your job. He had spent a great deal of time in Europe and in Australasia. His comment was that although it may sound quite glamorous the reality is you spend a great deal of time in hotels, unfamiliar offices and airport lounges. Many which are quite a long distance from a exotic capital city.

The Comeback

I have a great deal of respect for a number of people. Some immediately close to me, my family, friends and even some work colleagues. However, I perhaps have the greatest deal of respect for people out there in the media and living their lives under the microscopic gaze of the public eye.

If that alone is not easy, you can find yourself on the receiving end of some negative press and your career stall. What do you do? Do you lie down and take the public beating and just crawl away into a hole? Or do you go all out to prove your doubters wrong. I have always striven for the later, more so in recent years as I have both the desire and the pure motivation to come back all guns blazing. Even if that is perhaps not quite my personality and takes me way outside of my comfort zone.

There were two people that I wanted to mention in this blog post, mainly because both have been in the news in the past few weeks. Let me start with David Beckham, someone I am sure you will know, even if only by name.

Out of favour at his club Real Madrid (ironically by now England coach Capello) dropped symbolically by Steve McClaren in something of a gesture of grandeur. The ex-Manchester United player was for sure in a dark place. Particularly after confirming his move to the MLS, for his club manager to say publicly that he played his last game for the club. It was here that I gained the ultimate respect for the footballer. He continued to train alone at the Madrid training camp. His dedication to his sport can never be questioned. Indeed he turned it around, he was recalled to the squad, took the team kicking and screaming within grasp of the title. The fact that ex Arsenal forward Jose Antonio Reyes scored the winning goals in the final league match against Mallorca is not lost on me. However it was Beckham whom inspired the squad to get to that point.

It was for England, I feel that he made his greatest impact. McClaren had always said that the door was open on the midfielder but I thought he would never return to use him. I was wrong, he made the comeback in the friendly against Brazil (I was there!) and created the goal and continued to make a substantial contribution in the following qualifiers. Even the final match against Croatia, his appearance turned England's fortunes as he crossed the ball for Crouch to score and equalise. England were through to Austria & Switzerland for a few short minutes.

The feeling was that he would, re-create the magic from 2001, in the final qualifier against Greece at Old Trafford. It was not to be on this wet November evening in North London. However it was in Milan on loan from LA Galaxy that Beckham would prove that he still has something to offer England. The Italians, not an easy crowd to win over, fell in love with him. Just when you thought David was a washed up footballer, living the high life in a below par league in the California sunshine he comes back with a bang and some incredible performances and amazing goals and wins his spot back in the England squad as a starter (not just an impact sub from the bench).

The second person I would like to focus on is Jennifer Hudson. She came back from very difficult personal tragedy in her home life to take centre stage at the Super Bowl to perform the national anthem. A song, which I feel includes all the ingredients that should be in a patriotic song for a nation. Deep stirring lyrics, story telling at it's best and a melody that is instantly memorable regardless of the arrangement and playable on almost any instrument.

We all lose people close to use during the course of our lives, but the circumstances of Jennifer's loss is almost impossible to comprehend. To lose so many of your loved ones in such a single moment is difficult to even bear thinking about. What made it worse for Miss Hudson, was that it was her mentor, her rock, the person she looked up to the most and was the keystone inspiration to her career.

I wonder how she felt, talking to the pitch at the Super Bowl XLIII at The Raymond James Stadium. It does not really matter because she pulled it off, with an audience of hundred thousand plus in the ground and many millions if not billions around the globe. I have the utmost respect for her as a performer, but now even more so as a human being. You have to keep moving on but never forget the people that got you where you are today. The public might doubt you, but your true friends and family always remain positive, behind you, supportive and caring. Making sure that the next decision you make, the next step you take is for the better and good.

The Penny Drops...

For me, the penny did not drop until Tuesday 27th January. Sometime mid-morning I came under the realisation that I have so much to do but nothing immediate to look forward to. I then glanced at my countdown timer. Five hundred days to go. Could my dreams of South Africa be any further from me right now, on a gloomy, dull grey winter morning in West Berkshire?

The trigger for this was actually an e-mail I received from my line manager. The list of key priorities for the coming fortnight. I knew the majority on the list, that was not that shock. The surprise was I would have to also put on a new hat, while my colleague is off skiing. I thrive on pressure but sometimes there can be too much and yesterday I felt a sense of coming close to the edge, being shown the drop but still hanging on (or being held) for a short while before being thrown over the cliff!

The past few months has been extremely hectic and my feet have hardly touched the ground. I have had major milestones in my own calendar if you will, mainly personal outside of work. They were moving into my flat in mid October, my weekend in Wrexham in early November, my birthday in late November, Christmas and finally my ski holiday. It was only after my holiday could I truly focus on 2009 and the year ahead.

Looks like that moment has finally arrived. I know that the year ahead will be full of challenges but I am keen to meet them head on. I see no obsticles in my path, just opportunities. Plus, it is always great to have something to look forward to. Whatever happens, I will try my best to report it here, so you too can follow my truimphs and defeats.

They Wanted Callum Monks

They Got Bradley Branning

All copyrights of the BBC and their respective copyright holders

L-o-S

A colleague whom sits opposite me, received a long time service award today. Ten years, yes, a decade with the company. The date she started with the company, I had left school and was in my third month at college. In the decade that has followed, I completed my A Levels, went to University and also got the first two years of my career (somewhat questionable description) kick started.

During the mini celebration at midday, the discussion soon moved to the other 'long termers' on our floor. GH confirmed he had been with the company twenty eight years. My colleague, J, came in with a quick insightful comment. "You do realise that you have been with this company longer than some people have been born?" There was laughter all around. I had realised that with my twenty seventh birthday literally around the corner, I was one of the handful to have been alive less time than GH had been an employee.

When I was younger, I dreamt of these moments. Well maybe dreamt is the wrong word, looked forward to. I remember my Dad's boss got a gold engraved cigarette lighter for five years service and then a gold pen for a few more, eight perhaps. I have always wanted to work for the same company for a considerable amount of time. However, the modern working life has little place for loyalty and we as people do tend to get restless. Who really wants to stay in the same company for a considerable amount of time, let alone the same actual job. The benefit of larger corporations is there are opportunities that present themselves on a regular basis. I suppose, it is also very important to be good at what you do. Large corporation do eventually get rid of the deadwood (even if it takes a little longer). What am I trying to say?

I would love to be able to blog here in ten years time (in some kind of description) and celebrate ten years with my employer but I am not naive. I am realistic and know that I may be lucky to last half that? Why? Well I think that the reality is I will want a new challenge and who knows my personal circumstances may have well changed. (I live in hope).

Final Day Frenzy

It was crazy as I expected, but I did eventually get out the door. As with all these things it is a rush to get everything done before the end of the day plus there is the extended lunch to say goodbye and wish me well in my new job. Although I was quite disappointed that by a twist of fate there were no members of the development team in (off sick or on holiday). Just the way it goes I suppose.

It was also all rather sudden when you consider I had two weeks off work before my final week and my colleagues were not informed until a few days into my holiday. Thankfully there was only a one month notice period in my contract, I am not sure how I would have filled out three months.

How do I feel after nearly four years service? Happy with the overall experience and how much I learned about a completely unknown industry. Thankful to the role lady luck played in dropping a fantastic manager and colleagues on the helpdesk which became the Dream Team. Not only this but the fact that I made some long term friendships, even with those on the "other side" of the sister company. However, I do feel a sense of emptiness. A sense of what could have been, what could have been achieved. If circumstances had been different, if the ship had sailed a different course. Never mind now, there is no point crying over spilt milk. I must concentrate on the future and my new role, new company, new colleagues and ultimately new lifestyle.

A close friend once remarked to me that the biggest regret of his career was staying in the same job (but more significantly same employer) for too long and the detrimental affect it had on his future aspirations. I did not want to make the same mistake, I had to move on, not just for career development but for my own personal development. It is time for the duckling to leave the nest.

On To The Next Rung

I knew the day would eventually come along; when I would leave my current job but I never thought it would be in such circumstances. I suppose these things never pan out as planned. The official communication was sent out today but things have been moving very fast since the verbal offer was made to me on Tuesday 5th August via the telephone.

At times I have woken up and had to pinch myself, am I really leaving and going to this new company. It will take some time to sink in but with a start date around the corner (8th September) and my new boss already sending me work during my week off to my personal e-mail address, I feel myself hitting the ground running.

How do I feel? Apprehensive but in equal measure very excited, a new challenge, a change of scenery and a fresh routine. But am I ready? No, of course not! What I'm looking forward to most is a clean state. Being able to start "all over" as the Americans would say is such a great feeling or rather release. Although on the other hand having to 'prove' myself once again is going to be interesting to say the least.

It is really difficult to describe but when you wait so long for something to happen and then finally when the wheels are in motion, you feel a little taken back. There are plenty of things I need to get around to sorting out, one of which is the future of this blog. I will no longer be able to write so candidly about life in the workplace as I have before. Perhaps this could become a weblog for up-and-coming analysts. Ultimately I want it to become a useful generic resource, rather than the pointless waffling it has tended to be in the past. Stay tuned.

The Measure Of A Man

What is the true measure of a man? Some say it is the level of shine in his shoes. Others say it is the quality of the suit he wears and I tended to agree until quite recently. Being out and about and meeting various customers and other business people in general I have discovered a new item. The watch.

Sure, it may just be another piece of jewellery with the main role of telling you the time of day but I feel it has ultimately a bigger purpose. It is there to make a statement.

It may be there to scream out, "I'm successful" or "I'm important" or even "I'm an extrovert!". There is a message there but it is not always easy to read. I wonder what my gold, rather simple Sekonda watch says about me? It was a gift from my friend Dave in November 2004. It is all about style rather than making a fashion statement.

The real question is though, which brand should I aspire to own? Omega, Swatch or the classic Rolex?