Ask a Manager

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Do I need to help my coworker improve the quality of her work?

At my job, we work in pairs. I’m considered a top performer, and I’ve recently been assigned to work with someone who’s not very motivated. She’s one of the least productive employees in the department, and hasn’t made much of an effort to learn our more difficult tasks. We usually get to divide the work amongst ourselves, and she asks to do the easier work while I do the more difficult work. Even when management assigns her to do the difficult work, she often asks me for help or just blows it off until I do it for her. She tends to make mistakes on the difficult work that I end up having to fix.

I don’t mind doing the more difficult work because I like a challenge, and I’ve become good at it through experience. I honestly think my coworker and I would both be happiest, and probably get the best collective results, if we continue this way — she does the easier things she’s comfortable doing, while I do the more challenging work. I’m not sure, however, what management expects from this pairing. She was previously paired with another unmotivated employee who probably set a bad example for her, and I don’t know if management made the switch because they want me to help her improve or just so I can pick up her slack. We have the same title and I have no authority over her.

I thought about asking management directly, but I don’t know if that would help. They consider performance management to be private and would never discuss an employee’s performance with a peer. I’m not sure if they even know the extent of her performance problems, since she’s good at schmoozing and management is fond of her, and our department is very successful overall. How much responsibility should I take for her performance? Should I try to make her better, or should I just try to get the best results by continuing to do the more difficult work myself?

I don’t think you have any responsibility to try to improve her work, since you’re not her manager or responsible for her performance. And if you’re happy with the way the two of you are dividing work, I think that’s fine. My only caution would be to make your manager aware of how you’re arranging things, so that you’re getting appropriate credit for the (presumably greater) contribution you’re making.

I would say something like this to your manager: “I want to let you know that Jane and I have decided that I’m going to do A, B, and C and she’ll do Y and Z. We’re both happy with this arrangement and think it plays to our strengths, and I just wanted to let you know who’s handling what.” If your manager points out that it seems like you’re carrying the brunt of the load, I think it’s fine to be relatively candid and explain why this arrangement seems the most likely to get the right results.

2. Talking to an employee about a promotion that might not come through

How open should a manager be with her employees when it comes to the internal workings of the team? My particular question is regarding potential promotions: should I tell an employee that if she reaches certain goals, she *might* be promoted? The thing is, her promotion is not really up to me (there are 4-5 layers between me and the CEO, and promotions are ultimately approved at one of those levels). If she delivers on her goals, I have better arguments for my manager as to why she should be promoted… but there is a not-insignificant chances that budgets, etc. would prevent that. If I mention a promotion that doesn’t come through, would that be like dangling a carrot in front of her? Or would it be a good thing, as she would be able to focus on her goals? (For the record, from my point of view she is already eligible for that promotion, but my own manager thinks it’s too soon; promotions are usually announced at the end of the calendar year, so she has about 5 months in which to deliver some tangible results.)

My questions stems from the fact that my manager does not share much about such things: he has never specifically said that if I did so-and-so I could get a promotion, he sometimes does not loop us into the big-picture plans for the teams, and he does not share anything when it comes to addressing performance issues. I understand that some things should be confidential, but I think his lack of openness has caused some confusion and insecurity in the team.

Err on the side of transparency. In this case, I’d say to your employee: “I think you’re doing great work and I’d like to see you promoted. I want to be candid with you that there’s no set formula to make that happen, and I can’t promise you that if you do X, you’ll be promoted. But what I can tell you is that the best way to position yourself for promotion is to do X. That will give us the best shot at making the case for it.” Ideally, you’d also add, “If you succeed at X and we can’t get a promotion through, I will go to bat to get you ___ instead (a raise, a bonus, extra time off, whatever it is that you might be able to offer).”

In general, aim to be as transparent about the inner workings of the organization as you can, without badmouthing anyone. Matter-of-fact explanations about how things work that aren’t accompanied by a tone of frustration — even when it might be warranted — are a huge gift you can offer employees; you’re helping them understand how the company works and what they can and can’t expect, while modeling calm and professionalism for them, even in the face of things that might be legitimately frustrating.

3. Should I let applicants know how they’re messing up?

I’m a young person (23) who is managing a small team of 3 people. In addition to this, I am hiring and doing all the HR for applications, interviews, etc.

Some of the applications/interviews have been so painfully bad that I feel it’s my duty as a fellow young person to let the applicant know. For example, one girl was dead silent and only answered “Yes” or “No” to almost every single question we asked her. We asked her, “What about this position made you decide to apply?” and she responded, “Just everything about it.”

Then another girl was loud and brassy. She came into the office and didn’t say hi to anyone, and treated my colleague like a secretary. But worst of all, she brought her mom in! So her mom was sitting on the sofa, completely still and quiet.

Then today I see a CV and cover letter. The entire cover letter is a fill-in-the-blanks, ad-lib style thing. The guy forgot to fill in the blanks. So it goes: “Dear [name], As a hardworking and dynamic professional with extensive experience in team building, sales, and customer service, it is with great excitement that I submit my resume for consideration for [Company’s] [Position] position.” … “[Company] needs a [Position] who is able to reliably perform many tasks in a fast paced environment. I have a proven history of doing just this in my previous positions.”

It’s just embarrassing. These are fresh graduates, maximum 1-2 years out of school and sometimes just graduated last month. I’m definitely not going to hire them, but is it wrong or unprofessional for me to reach out and tell them why? These mistakes are so egregious that I feel they deserve to be aware. What do you think?

It’s not wrong or unprofessional, but it’s also not your job. That doesn’t mean that you can’t do it at all — we’ve all felt that impulse to help applicants who are clearly really getting it wrong, and it can be kind to do it — but I’m getting the sense that you want to do it a lot, and that’s not a great use of your time (and your company may not be on board with you offering a bunch of unsolicited feedback anyway).

The reality is that when you hire, you see a ton of awful applicant behavior. It’s just part of the process. You can’t correct all of it. And really, this is the process working the way it’s supposed to — you’re getting information about these applicants that’s letting you see they’re not people you want to hire. That’s a good thing for you as an employer.

But giving out occasional feedback here and there is totally fine (although make sure you’re not saying anything legally problematic, such as inadvertently implying you rejected someone for illegally discriminatory reasons) … as long as you brace yourself to have some people respond in fairly ungrateful and even hostile ways, because that is a thing that sometimes happens.

One last thing: Unless you are interviewing teenagers, these are women, not girls. If you’re expecting these applicants to take themselves seriously as professionals, you’ve got to do them the courtesy of referring to them as adults!

4. How much time off can I take for a cross-country move?

I’m moving across the country (Colorado to Pennsylvania) for my husband to attend an MBA program. I told my manager about our move and have been approved to work remotely! (Yay!) Because we’re moving across the country, my husband and I want to make a road trip out of it, stopping at interesting camping spots along the way and enjoying a less rushed drive (and some much needed quality time) before he starts an intense MBA program.

What is a “standard” moving allowance in terms of time? I know it likely varies from company to company, but I don’t want to stray too far from a norm in my time off (either too short or too long).

It really does vary. In your case, are they really giving you a moving allowance or just letting you take time off for the move? Since you’re not moving for work, I’d assume it’s the latter. If that’s the case, I’d say to handle it like you would any other vacation request, which for most U.S. workers generally means no more than two weeks at a time — and possibly less, depending on the norms in your company.

Why not ask your manager and find out directly what her opinion is, rather than me guessing for you? I’d just say this: “We’re hoping to make the move a road trip and do some camping and tourism along the way. If I took two weeks to do that in August, would that work on your end?”

5. Including a fitness certification on a resume

Should I list a fitness certification on my professional resume? I am currently undergoing a rigorous training program to become certified in a fitness sector. I am seeking a position that is not in the fitness industry (for now).

It might help you with a handful of people who will find it interesting, but in general it’s going to be neutral. Assuming you have more relevant things to do with that space, I’d leave it off and focus on content that’s more relevant to your candidacy.

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Managing someone who doesn’t aspire to move up

I’m a fairly new department head with two direct reports. This is my first experience managing full-time staff (I’ve previously managed numerous short-term interns), and I’m curious if you have any advice for how to lead these two employees with very different career goals. One very much reminds me of myself and is very ambitious and interested in advancing in her career. Because she wants to take a similar path to mine, I find it easy to mentor her and teach her how to be a leader in our field.

My other employee is very competent but is not interested in advancing outside of her current position. I have no issues with that because she’s an asset to our department, but I’m struggling with how to provide her with a similar level of mentorship/direction that I give to my other staffer. She’s good at her job and doesn’t ever want to leave, so I don’t know what I should be pushing her towards. Perhaps I’m overthinking this, but as a new manager with aspirations of managing far larger departments, I want to develop myself into an effective leader for all personality types–not just those who remind me of myself. Any suggestions?

It’s really good that you’re thinking about how to adapt your approach for each of these staff members, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all solution. In this case, though, it sounds like you need to go even further with that — rather than trying to figure out what to push your “happy where I am” staffer toward, perhaps you shouldn’t push her toward anything at all. Is she great at what she does? Is she happy to stay where she is for the foreseeable future? Is your company okay with that? If all the answers to those questions are yes, just let her do what she’s doing. You don’t need to push everyone toward something.

On the other hand, if she’s good but not great at what she does, you could help steer her toward great. Or if your company has more of an “up or out” culture, you’d want to be candid with her about that.

Either way, you might be explicit with her about your thinking so that she understands why you’re taking the approach that you are, and also let her know that if her aspirations change in the future, she should talk with you so that you can jointly formulate a different approach.

2. I’m getting conflicting instructions from my boss and my boss’s boss

Recently I’ve been assigned a very high priority project, which is fantastic! My problem is that both my immediate supervisor and her supervisor – the director of the organization – are both giving me directions on how to proceed. Generally that wouldn’t be a problem, but since their directions are conflicting, it puts me in a position where which one to follow which is sometimes paralyzing. Generally I have been following the directions of the director and wondered if that is the smartest move because it does not please my immediate supervisor at all.

You need to bring the issue to the surface and ask how to handle it. For example, say this to your manager: “Jane asked me to do X, and I know you had told me to do Y earlier. I’m not sure how to proceed.” If she insists that you should do it her way and that you should ignore her boss, say this: “I’m uneasy ignoring direct instructions from Jane. If you’re sure I should, I’d at least like to send her a quick email and explain that we talked about this so that she doesn’t think I’m just ignoring her.”

Or, you could also raise it in the moment to your manager’s boss when she tells you something that conflicts with instructions from your manager: “Cressida told me to do X earlier. Would it make sense for me to grab her for this conversation so we can figure out what to do?”

You could also raise the larger pattern: “I’ve noticed that I’ll often get different input from you and Jane, and it’s leaving me unsure how to proceed. What’s the best way to handle that so that we’re all aligned on how I’m moving forward?”

3. Giving candidates a writing assignment before an in-person interview

How do you feel about giving candidates a writing assignment after a phone screen and prior to a face-to-face interview? I’m the hiring manager for a newly created nonprofit PR/communications position, and I’m looking for candidates with a specific style of writing. The position is an entry-level one, so the candidates may not necessarily have the kinds of samples I need in their portfolio yet. I also want to make sure they can follow instructions, pay attention to details, and succinctly convey our mission and the need for our programs (which is much easier said than done). If giving a writing assignment is the way to go, how much time should I give them to complete it? And what is an appropriate/reasonable amount of time to expect a candidate to spend on the assignment at this stage?

Yes, yes, yes. Don’t waste your time or theirs by bringing them in for an in-person interview (and all the prep time that involves on their end, including possibly taking time off work) without first seeing if they actually have the skills you need. Doing an exercise after the phone screen and before an in-person interview is the perfect place to do it — you’ve invested some time in them and made an initial assessment of fit, and they’ve had a chance to learn more about the position, but neither of you have invested tons of time yet.

However, it’s not reasonable to ask people to spend more than an hour on an exercise at this stage. That means that of all the things you want to test — writing ability, following instructions, attention to detail, and ability to succinctly convey your mission and the need for your programs — you probably can test the first three at this stage but not the last one. In order to really test their ability to convey the need for your programs, they probably need a lot more information and coaching than you can reasonably give at this point. Come up with a writing test that tests the rest of it and don’t put quite as much emphasis on the piece that’s so customized to your organization.

I’d give them a few days to send it back to you, since your candidates have other commitments in their lives.

4. Do I need to cover up stitches at work?

I recently had a biopsy come back positive for skin cancer on my neck. The subsequent procedure to remove more tissue (which came back all clear, for which I am blessed) left an incision 3 inches long with stitches. Surgeon is happy to have dressing off after 48 hours, but stitches stay in for 12 days after that. Is it expected to have the stitches covered up at work?

I feel more comfortable without it covered up now that the 48 hours are up. Am I being too (having trouble finding the right word) pushy…rude…inconsiderate…going back to work with the stitches uncovered? The site is dry but swollen. I feel fortunate to be in no pain.

I don’t think you need to cover up stitches, and if I’m recollecting correctly, it’s actually better for them to be left uncovered after the first few days, in which case you definitely shouldn’t cover them up just for other people’s comfort.

5. Putting degrees on your resume that are still in progress

Should you put degrees in progress on a resume? Or only a degree that you have already completed?

Yep, degrees in progress are good to include. (Although if they’re in a totally different field than the one you’re applying in, you should realize that the employer may assume you’re not likely to stay once you graduate.)

List it this way:

Teapot University, M.A. in Cat Politics (expected May 2016)

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. Should I tell my coworker that her shirt is too sheer?

One of my coworkers has a white shirt that is sheer enough that her bra can clearly be seen through it. I’m not sure if I should say something to her – she’s worn the shirt often enough now that I’m not sure how she can be oblivious to this (wouldn’t she notice when looking in the mirror?). I’m not offended or anything, but it seems like an odd clothing choice to make, so I’m worried that this is somehow unintentional. I’m not sure how I would even bring it up. What do you think? (If you think it makes a difference, I am also female.)

Don’t bring it up. It’s one thing to discreetly point out to someone something that they’d obviously want to fix — an unzipped fly, a skirt tucked into their tights, etc. — but this is a shirt that she’s worn repeatedly and it’s reasonable to conclude that she must be fine with the transparency of it. It’s possible that the light in her house is different from the light in your office and so she’s never noticed that it’s see-through in certain lights, but there’s enough of a chance that she just has a different take on appropriateness than you do that I wouldn’t wade into it.

If you were her manager, that would be different — you’d have standing to tell her if it were inappropriate for work. But as a peer, I’d let it go.

2. Should I pay for a travel charge stemming from my mistake so that my boss doesn’t know about it?

In the recent months, I’ve had four business trips scheduled. The last three were cancelled at the last minute (but with enough time for cancelling reservations). I’m usually right on top of things, but I forgot to cancel the most recent trip because that cancellation came a day after the previous trip’s cancellation. I was able to transfer the Amtrak e-voucher to my next scheduled trip, and you’re not charged for the rental car if you don’t show up. But I was charged for one night at the hotel because I didn’t cancel the reservation. With tax, the charge is $196. The travel department at my company called the hotel to see if they would refund the charge (even though they had every right to charge me), but they would not waive it, and I was told to just expense it.

But… I don’t want my manager to know about my mistake and I’m considering submitting the AmEx charge as personal and paying it myself. I know this is normally not the way to go, but here’s some background: My company recently changed their travel policies in order to save money. Previously, my business travel was very infrequent, and I just needed to ask the client manager (I’m an on-site consultant) to let my manager know that travel had been requested by them. Now I need to supply more information much sooner, and it’s been difficult for me to remember to add these extra steps to all of my other getting-ready-for-business- travel tasks. Going forward, I will add this as an appointment in my calendar so it happens on time. My boss has been mildly (I think) annoyed by my getting the information to him late. Normally my work is very good, and my manager told me last week that he was recommending me for a “service excellence award.” This was right after his email to me saying that I needed to get the travel process right (this is why I thought his annoyance must have been mild). Because this is one more travel-related mistake on my part, I really don’t want him to know about it.

Yeah, I can see why you’re considering eating the expense — you’re basically concluding that it’s worth $196 to you to keep your manager from being further dismayed by your mistakes around travel.

Generally I’d say that you shouldn’t bear the cost of business expenses — even mistakes, which are to some extent a normal part of business costs — and that therefore you should simply expense this as instructed by your travel department, and come clean to your boss while stressing that you’ve taken to heart his feedback about needing to get this stuff right going forward.

That said, it was your mistake, and if your boss already seems frustrated and you’re more comfortable paying the charge yourself and not having to deal with it with him, and if you have the money to spare without it being a hardship, I totally get the temptation to just handle it yourself to make it go away (and vow to ensure it doesn’t happen again). It’s not what I’d advise, but it’s not outrageous to do that. (I feel like commenters are going to disagree, but honestly, if a friend came to me with this dilemma, this is what I’d tell them.)

3. Am I going to get laid off?

The company I work at seems to be having some cash flow issues, which the CEO assures us was due to a mistake on senior management’s part and that this happens to companies all the time. We were also assured that a solution is in the works. So far, though, I don’t see any signs of progress. What is actually happening is that the company is no longer paying overtime or paying vendors. Also, they recently assigned a new role to one person in our department whose job it is to make sure we follow all the paperwork and department rules (they used to be lax on this before). Also, I have on reflection noticed the following:

1) Although I perform several functions in my department, I was recently asked to train two other people on one of my functions.
2) On one particular week, I had no work to do and so my manager said I could take the day off (I interpret this as being asked to stay home).
3) I seem to be always assigned smaller projects to do while a lot of my other colleagues are involved in larger projects. My manager promised me this would change and that I would start being involved in larger projects, but so far I don’t see any change.

In light of what is happening in the company and in light of the points above, am I being viewed as a candidate for layoffs? Maybe I am being a bit paranoid, but from the points above, it seems as though they are telling me I am not really essential to the department. I was wondering if you see the same and if you could provide any insight into this. I have been laid off twice before and I don’t want to be caught off guard this time.

Whenever a company is struggling financially, it’s smart to consider that layoffs might be coming. I wouldn’t interpret the stuff you list as definitive proof that they’re thinking of laying you off, but they do seem to point to you potentially being more expendable than colleagues. Combined with the financial troubles, it would be shortsighted not to start looking around so that you’re prepared if it does happen. (Even without your points 1-3, though, I’d say that was that case; when your company is displaying obvious signs of financial problems, you should be looking out for yourself.)

4. Shouldn’t this recruiter be … recruiting me?

I had an odd experience today and wanted feedback on if I’m right to think it’s strange. A recruiter recently reached out to me via Linked In for a senior level position that sounds pretty interesting. There were a number of email back and forths to arrange an initial meeting, and I was given a job description and the name of the company who was hiring, but that’s about it.

When I got on the phone with the recruiter, his first question was, “Why are you interested in this position?” and continued with a few more questions along those lines. I had done a little internet homework, so I was able to answer why I was considering, but that was not what I was expecting. I was looking for him to tell me more about the position and, you know, try to recruit me. Instead, he acted like I had searched him out. Is this how it works nowadays?

Well, sometimes. Sometimes these calls are true “recruiting” calls — as in, the recruiter is pitching you the position and trying to get you interested in it. But much of the time, they’ll operate as if you already established interest when you expressed willingness to talk after seeing the job posting. Sometimes that makes sense, depending on exactly what was said in the earlier exchange. (And keep in mind that recruiters don’t necessarily do heavy recruiting in the job-pitching sense of the word — often the title means more “person who identifies candidates, screens them, and shepherds them through the hiring process” than “person who will actively recruit you to be interested in the job”.) But other times that approach feels off, as it did in your conversation.

If it happens again, it’s reasonable for you to say, “Well, to be candid, I’m not sure if I am interested. I was curious to talk with you more after you reached out to me, and I’d like to learn more about the role.”

5. Saying “WTF” at work

This might be a really silly question. It seems like swearing is out in most workplaces I’ve been in, but is it acceptable to say things like “WTF” (the abbreviation, not the words themselves)?

It depends entirely on the organization’s culture. I’ve never worked anywhere where swearing wasn’t fine (up to a point), but I imagine if you’re in an office where it’s not okay, “WTF” probably isn’t okay either, given that no one is in denial about what the “F” stands for.

(That said, I’m assuming you’re talking about writing it in an email, not actually saying the letters W-T-F out loud, right? I’d argue it’s not an “out loud” expression at all, not because of the profanity but just because it’s not.)