I used to think that liking your job was a normal expectation, something that most people could reasonably hope for. After spending so much time in this place, I am genuinely not sure anymore. Is there an assumption that we are all just supposed to tolerate our work and find our fulfillment elsewhere, or am I actually supposed to enjoy what I do for eight hours a day?
11 replies (most recent on top)
@12a I sorta wish the company would be a bit more ruthless in certain areas. It doesn’t fee fair when some functions have been decimated and live in fear whilst others look like they’re having a g-y old time.
@12z yes but they’ve been cracking down across the board on being leaner, coming in more, etc. I don’t think many teams are immune anymore?
@OP many teams in my office see to be still in cruise mode. Me thinks a lot of your satisfaction is up to which team you’re in.
@12a I blame the politicians past and present
The culture here has turned into a real-life Squid Game. You can feel it in the air.
@vn your first part sounds similar to what I’ve seen locally. Except that they didn’t want the high life but the easy life. It was laughable if it wasn’t so sad.
I feel that the politicians running this place just want to live the high life and cash out of this place. They are all probably "networking" and lining up their next jobs at Camden Yards and at golf courses around Baltimore. I say "cash out" because the Helpdesk is still terrible and I heard all infrastructure will be managed by people outside of the country by year's end. How can this meet all of the strict regulations we are bound under? It makes me feel like they are not as cautious anymore, they just want to cut expenses to the bone. I don't get it.
People who spend all their time on internal politics and never produce a good idea follow a clear pattern. You could easily group them and let them go—but there's zero appetite for that. Firing entire departments instead? That's not what a serious company does. Keep the good people, cut the bad ones. Skills and competencies can be developed; character is what matters. A sloppy, unscientific, surface-level HR system has nothing but room for improvement.
There used to be more thoughtful people, but now it feels like more and more politicians just blurt out whatever comes to mind. At first glance, they look impressive — the kind of people who excel in interviews and presentations — but their heads are filled with shallow nonsense. Once you actually put them to work, they accomplish nothing and only get in the way of the people who can.
And when those kinds of people gain power, their subordinates get crushed.
What ruined this company was a structure incapable of recognizing this problem. There were plenty of warning signs. The executives who remained, along with the painfully incompetent HR department with no strategy whatsoever, should take responsibility. Take responsibility for failing to protect the company’s culture.
I liked my job until the politicians came in and made it a self centred game for themselves. I just wanted to deliver good outcomes for clients and work with smart, talented people. Like the plethora of posts already mentioning similar comments, the vibe has changed and the politicians have been reigning.
This is not a hobby. This is supposed to be a miserable battle between the working conditions and an employee's will to persevere.