So last week I mentioned the gawd-awful general manager at the place I’m guarding at the moment. Well, today he showed himself even less worthy of … Respect? Let me tell you a story.

The GM made a call over the PA system asking for “all available male staff” to go to the front area of the store just next to the entrance. However, when one particular gentleman turns up to the call, this manager just turns to him and says “Oh, not your ” and dismisses him as if he weren’t worth the effort. Of course, this guy gets pretty upset, its not very nice to answer a call and then have the General Manager just dismiss you as if you’re not even worth the time of day, without an explanation or anything.

So this guy makes a comment about the way the GM has spoken to him and starts to walk off. The GM doesn’t like being spoken back to, and even though the guy is at least in his late 50s, the GM (in his early 30s) starts tearing in to him. Right there at the front of the store, right by the entrance where the customers walk in.

Height of professionalism wouldn’t you say?

So of course the guy decides thats enough, lets the GM finish his rant and then walks away without saying anything. But you could see he’s fuming pretty severely. Pour water on him and it’d evaporate before it even touches him.

At little while later I go up and just pat him on the shoulder to give him my support, let him know that I thought he was in the right. He appreciated that and let me know so later when I was talking to him about it. Of course, he was also throwing in comments like “F***ING POMMY COMMONER!” and the like. :-) Yes, this GM only arrived in New Zealand from the UK back in November. So this GM missed most of the setup phase because they only finished building the store in October and the doors opened in December.

Actually, I think the biggest issue with the late arrival is that this GM has absolutely no idea of NZ culture. I think he assumes that you need to boss people around to achieve anything. In New Zealand, people will work hard if they like the person they’re working for and the job they’re doing is appreciated. This GM seems to think that you have to be a boss with an iron fist and come down hard on everyone. Hell, I’ve achieved more in a week in that store as far as getting things done and being taken into people confidence than he has in the nearly 6 months he’s been in the country. I’m sorry, but that just says a lot. Especially when you consider I’m very withdrawn and reclusive by nature, and this boss many is very much in your face.

Ooooh, but it doesn’t end there. At todays “team meeting” which they hold on the floor every day to go over the previous days figures and discuss any issues, this GM said he was sick of the staff being so down and gloomy and complaining. Said that from tomorrow (Tuesday) they would be the ones to lead the team meetings. Of course, that went down like a tonne of bricks. Feathers still weigh a tonne, but at least they’re soft. ;-)

Later in the day, a whole heap of girls from Allied Labour show up to help stock the shelves. As I mentioned, this store is severely understaffed, so they got in contract labourers to help them out. Unfortunately, it was all female staff, all late teens or early 20s. Not a problem for the most part, except these girls were waifs and struggled to carry a ladder, let alone get heavy boxes of product off the top storage areas above the display shelves and then put them on the shelves.

The other down side to having a whole team of young women? All the teen guys that work there during the day spent much of the day wandering around tripping over their tongues. You’d think they’d never seen cute girls before. But then again, I guess they are young so they can be forgiven.

The funniest part? The girls would talk to me when they saw me, or stop me to ask me stuff, even though there were store staff around them. Thats funny because these guys all kept asking why the girls were always talking to me or asking me questions even though I’m showing no interest in them. My answer? “Its because I’m not interested in them.” :-P Strange concept for teenagers to grasp I guess. :-)

Actually, I shouldn’t say that it was just the teenagers. Some of the older men there were very much enjoying the fresh faces and often made excuses to talk to the girls.

So later in the day they’re doing a lot of shifting stuff around. Apparently this weekend they have a big sale on and so they’re clearing whats currently near the door to put the product for the big sale there instead. Thats really interesting, and I’ll get to why in a little bit, but I need to put a bit of back story here first.

On Tuesday and Thursday, theres only one guard on in the store. That guard has to stand at the entrance door all day. Its supposed to be me on those two days, but last week and this week I’ve gotten out of the Thursday shift. Anyway…

The store is really anal about people sitting down. So working solo on Tuesday last week, I’d been standing by the door all morning with very little movement at all and so my feet were really aching from just standing in the same spot for so long. So I sat down on a box beside where I was standing. Just trying to take the pressure off for a few minutes to give my feet a chance to recover. Of course, one of the managers doesn’t like this and comes up and says,

“We don’t allow our staff to sit down during business hours, so please stand up.”

I was all surprised and pretty much was all…

“You’re kidding right? You want me to stand here in the same spot for the whole 11 hour shift?”

Of course, he then went on to inform me that the door must be constantly manned throughout the day and at no time should the door be unmanned. When I questioned him about my breaks, he said that because there are two of us on that should be an issue. When I pointed out that 2 days a week theres only one of us, he basically didn’t care and suggested I take my breaks and lunch at the door.

You can imagine how pissed off that’d make me. I mean… Hell, I’ve been sitting in front of a computer all day every day for the past 10 years. I figure I’m doing pretty well to survive standing for 11 hours a day with a total of 1 hour across the whole day to rest. That includes a 30min lunch, 1 morning 10min break and 2 afternoon 10min breaks.

Well, we got that sorted out. I don’t have to take my lunch and breaks by the door if I can get someone from the customer service desk to cover me. However, I still can’t sit down and have to spend the whole day at the door. Yes, I’m working on getting that changed, but these things are like cheese. They take time. :-P

Anyway, with that in mind, cut back to late today when they’re shifting all the stuff around to make space for the sale on this weekend.

There are lots of heavy things to lift, but also lots of light things. The GM helps out by shifting all the light things, 2 at a time. One in each hand. He’s a lot taller than me, at least 6’6″, yet I know I could shift at least 4 at once of the things he’s shifting. Its not that hard to put 2 in each hand.

Then he gets distracted and starts talking on the phone. He’s the GM so I figure he’s allowed to talk on the phone. Gotta run a business and all that (although I’d love to know how/when the paperwork ever gets done.) Next thing I know, I come back from doing a round in the shop and he’s sitting down on a bench just watching the other guys struggle to shift the heavy stuff. Theres two guys to each item and these are not small items, and he’s just sitting there watching them do it.

Now I’m thinking… Thats pretty hypocritical of him. Wouldn’t you agree? The rules of his store are that staff are not allowed to sit down during work hours. He’s not in his office, he’s not on the phone anymore, he’s just out on the shop floor watching his staff shift heavy items while he’s sitting there comfortable as anything on a bench.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

So tomorrow, I’m working on my own again. This is not a problem. I don’t mind working solo. But when the feet start aching and I need to relieve them some, there is no way I’m going to let them stop me from taking the weight off my feet a while.

And believe me; it is considerable weight. :-P

Here are my main issues from today.

1) Never ever be dismissive of your staff.

The most important

I don’t care if you didn’t mean to be insulting. The fact that you were insulting anyway shows that you have no regard for your staff members when you are so dismissive of them. It also concerns me that you do not consider your own words before you speak them. As a manager, or anyone of rank in an organisation, thinking before speaking is absolutely crucial and so extremely important. You have no idea who might be listening to the things you say.

Admittedly an apology was later offered for the insult and subsequent bad behaviour. However it was only given after someone else had pointed out his behaviour and that the guy was right to respond and react the way he did.

2) If you have an issue with someone, discuss it with them privately

If someone says or does something that bothers you or annoys you, take them aside to discuss it. Do NOT discuss it on the shop floor in front of customers and other staff members. Especially when you haven’t even thought about why you got the reaction you did in the first place.

3) Lead by example

Very major one.

If you hold your staff to a certain standard, then you must also keep to that standard as well. You cannot expect your staff to not do the things you yourself do. Just because you are a manager or someone of rank does not mean that gives you the right to set rules and not follow them.

This is one that really pisses me off. Especially because I am currently in a position of rank myself at this job. I have to give the guards under my authority the same set of rules I have to follow. I cannot tell them “Do not be late from your break,” and then go and be late back from my own break.

This is important for so many reasons. And given I’m not here to give free management lessons, I won’t cover it beyond what I have already. But take it as a given that if you don’t follow your own rules, your staff wont either. If you then come down on them for it, they’re definitely not going to be happy staff.

I’m going to leave it there. Its bed time for me now. I’ll talk to you all later.