Politics is the cancer circulating thru Cummins. I witnessed someone bounce every 2 years onto a different role for over 15 years. He always left a trail of destruction: several people lost their jobs in his path, cause of his incompetence and miss-management. Yet, instead of Leadership terminating him, he was allowed to bounce onto another team and deliver the same results. Good Ol’ Boy network. I saw others get fired for so much less. Yet, he’s still at Cummins. SMH.
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Not surprising. There are recruiting quotas for 50% women now and quotas have always had unintended consequences. The real problem is that HR people are stupid by design.
I worked with a team for several years; over time, learned their behaviors, attitudes, and daily patterns.
A pretty woman was hired, and immediately everything changed from management. The manager and his team lead both created a culture of dependency for her; not a culture of empowerment. They both tag teamed her with excessive meetings that she didn’t need to attend, the manager routinely held 1 on 1 meetings twice a week, for an hour exclusively with her. The rest of his team he met outside on smoke breaks only for a few minutes. She was held captive in their control. They suffocated her all day, every day, in every way. Always in her cubicle, multiple times throughout the day, but never seen at anyone else’s cubicle on the team. In time, she grew frustrated with their countless intrusions. She wanted an opportunity to grow, achieve and own her role. They both kept her in possession with their obsession: stifled her development, achievement, and success – her independence. The manager had always left work at 4:pm, his team lead had routinely left much earlier. Once she was onboard, they both remained in the office until she left many times after 5:pm. They both worked later than I had ever known before. Likewise, their online pattern also changed. Her manager would routinely logon on his days off, and vacation time to contact her but nobody else on his team. He and his team lead both always invented an excuse to contact her online. She finally got fed up and moved onto a different team. Found freedom away from oppression. Once she left, both her manager and his partner in control over her, both went back to their original daily patterns, the excessive number of meetings dropped in half, their online patterns resumed back to normal, and they both found themselves back home early with their wives. Shortly afterwards, a new unsuspecting young pretty woman came into the office and they both sunk their hooks into her and the entire process unfolded again. She didn’t care that she was being exploited and taken advantage, she was just looking for any upward mobility, and the manager and his team lead are still feasting on it all! Cummins culture is male managers exploiting and oppressing pretty women!
I was one of those women. I was looking for a career change. I applied for a role on the Cummins external website. I landed an interview. My background wasn’t a total fit, but thought I’d give it a chance. Received a call from a Cummins recruiter, secured an interview. Drove to Columbus, excited for an opportunity to prove myself, and make a change in my life for both myself and my kids. I worked hard all my life to get to this point. Just needed a chance. I promptly arrived for my interview, and it was with 3 male managers. I didn’t think much of it at the time, I was just happy for their time and consideration. A few weeks went by before I had heard anything back from HR. I was told that many qualified candidates had applied. I was worried that I wouldn’t get the role. My background wasn’t strong for this opportunity. I just wanted to compete for an opportunity, and knew that I could get up to speed if given a chance. To my surprise, I got the role!! I was so excited to turn a page and write the next chapters for both myself and my kids. A new beginning for us. The office in Columbus was about 100 people. The Data Center. I was anxious to get started and make a difference. I immediately noticed that less than 10 women were in management positions. I reported to all men. I had a few female team members. Maybe 25 people out of the 100 in the office were women. Over time, it became clear to me that the men were in charge. They came to my cubicle several times a day, every day, uninvited and not needed. My manager bogged me down with unnecessary meetings every week. He was in my face every chance he could get. Wanted my personal phone number, stated he had it for everyone on the team. He would text my phone afterhours using work as a topic. Other women in the office gave me dirty looks because of the daily attention in my cubicle. They made me feel as an outcast. I finally got fed up with the distractions, men in my face making work excuses to be there. I didn’t ask for their help or need their assistance. I gladly left Cummins and found a company that supports, encourages, and builds bridges for women to succeed without any male dominance!
Solution: JUST DO YOUR JOB; stop bringing in your personal insecurities, jealousy, pettiness, bitter home issues! Do your job and keep your personal problems outside of workplace!
I hear all of that! I was out in the parking lot one day, overheard a conversation between 2 managers. The one manager just hired a pretty woman on his team (she wasn’t qualified for the role, I sat in on the interview, he hired her based solely on her looks) and was later trying to hook up the other manager with her. They shook hands, skinin and grinin as I heard the hiring manager tell the other manager “I’m trying to hook you up!” Yeah, male managers exploiting pretty women at Cummins happened my entire time. I saw it left and right, lost count how many times it happened. Over time, it became nothing new to me: male managers exploiting women, women who got fed up, or women who welcomed any advantage for advancement; irony, is that I only saw a handful of women in management – makes me wonder their journey.
so true, good post