I have put up with being underpaid and overworked for years because I am used to it. But my new manager has crossed a line. I refuse to be yelled at and bullied every single day by someone who only got his job because he knows how to flatter the right people. I am too old for this nonsense. I don't have anything lined up, but I'm going to give my notice next time he gets into my face.
16 replies (most recent on top)
When you are underpaid then go work somewhere else for more money
@j0 sorry to hear you had to experience all this at SAP. This company truly has become a he-l to work in, the level of impunity is unprecedented, I really hope SAP pays for all their wrong doing.
- 3 people felt offended by telling the truth. I wonder… ^^
@OP I have been in your shoes. First manager was a psychopath who felt threatened by me so he used his “power” to yell and bully me. I moved to another org. In this one, I encountered more white-male managers part of a boy club, same behaviours. I reported a bullying case and this was the end for me. I received threats by HR partner about my accusations, I was made redundant in projects, cornered, and a case started to be built behind curtains as there was no trace of bad performance or anything to be used by the manager to fire me. I pushed back, I managed all the constraints and traps put for me, they were getting mad that couldn’t fire me right away. They tried all, but on the other side my health was being compromised, I ended up in hospital and was living dependent on pills to survive the day-by-day.
From my experience I can tell you, do not fight back in the way they want, they expect you to do something to be fired. If you have a way to move to another org/team, do it. If not, do not announce you are quitting, just disengage, or even better get into sick leave. Putting some time in between could help you clear your mind before moving with next steps. Easier to say than to be done but truly save your energy for job seeking and looking after you. They do not care if you suffer or die, or anything about you. Seems like your relationship with manager is broken, and if she or he has influence at SAP then you are done.
Life beyond SAP exists and you will realise... why I didn't leave earlier.
All the best,
Managers who almost solely manage other managers have been shown to be not only functionally useless, but add unnecessary bureaucracy. Not sure why we have so many useless managers at SAP. All my manager does is have 1:1s all day and then summarize emails that AI can summarize in seconds. While the rest of the world id getting rid of middle management, SAP is creating smaller and smaller teams.
@fh this is correct. Many colleagues in my area have actually silent quit because the culture is so horrible. But the market isn't that great either for job searching so we lay low and wait for an opportunity. HR loves this because it saves them ton of money when employees quit and don't need severance. The executive board want this too hence they keep badmouthing employees like they were dental plaque. Area executives love this because it allows them to feel powerful and save on area budgets. Remember that area executives get paid more if they save on their budget and their compensation is NOT tied to performance management like the rest of us plebs. They usually make 10% more money every year. The supervisory board would gladly sacrifice the company and shareholders to increase executive board bonuses. And the Betriebsrat is toothless and filled with career politicians.
Ask Chuck to have a work with your manager.
@f5 Strictly an American psycho. Your esteemed HR tried to blame the workers.
Just silently quit man. Take ur pay and just don’t do anything . In sap it is hard to be fired also . Unless u are part of the layoff where u will get a package . Individual PIP is a lot of work for the manager and HR also . Every manager is told to get people to leave so they don’t have to layoff and give severance.
@f1 Is that the spinoff of the American Psycho called German Psycho?
Our SAP manager sat across from us one day & said this:
"I have the urge to ki-l & can't get it out of my mind."
BTW, he was the improvement.
Everyone is right about managers. I’ve seen managers throw people in the redundancy pool even though they were overachieving by every measure just because they wanted to get rid of them - even though the team had posted positions and was hiring, or their position was later reposted and filled. I’ve witnessed managers say and do the most unethical things. I’ve seen managers take “business” trips for no reason. I’ve seen managers protect those who support them despite incompetence and eliminate far superior employees because they can. Nothing matters except flattering your manager. Do not give them negative reviews on the survey if you want to keep your job. It doesn’t matter how many awards you’ve received or had excellent 365 reviews- if your manager wants you gone, you are out.
@OP The other comments are correct. You need to find another company or at least another team within SAP. As a manager, I hate how much power managers have within SAP. We are asked by HR and executives to treat other roles like small children. With Performance Management, the Betriebsrat is allowing us to not only control salary appraisals but also bonuses. Any compensation you get beyond the base salary is controlled completely by us no matter what anyone tells you. And we managers get away with almost anything. There have been so many instances where someone se-----y abuses an employee from a position of power or has many behavioral complaints against them that even go up to the Betriebsrat. And what happens? Nothing, really. They get moved to manage another team or become an expert for a year or so before being moved to manage another team. I know a lady who told a black woman to "go back to Africa" and she got nothing more than a slap on the wrist. She now serves as a manager for an even larger team. And the victim left SAP due to frustration. SAP has a culture where bad behavior is rewarded so there is no hope really for you unless you are friends with some managers. Our executives are already pushing the workplace culture to living he-l so people leave without severance. I would leave as well as soon as I line up a better job. No one really wants to be in a culture where they are unwanted. Your manager may also be frustrated but that is no reason to be unprofessional and yell at anyone else.
Managers have godlike powers at SAP. Your only solution is to move to a different company. No career has survived at SAP if someone goes against their manager. If you have a friendly manager, you will be a preferred candidate for each promotion. If not, you will be yelled at. Nothing can stop this because this is the culture HR is creating with giving more and more power to managers.
@a5 this process is a joke. They let go of many of the investigators.They just reverse-engineer the opposite of your claim.
Use the anonymous misconduct reporting system and just generally report how he is. They'll at least do an investigation.
Cool story