As I mentioned in a previous post, my boss/friend has hired a whole new team of salespeople. Because everyone is new and still require a lot of training, my boss/friend uses me as his go-to guy. Whenever he needs an immediate answer on the status of almost anything, he’ll ask me and I can answer it (usually right away). When he needs something done quickly and accurately, he’ll ask me to do it. He never has to check my work (I’m more detail oriented than he is), and he always knows that he doesn’t need to worry about anything after he tells me to do it. He trusts me.
The problem is that he (and the rest of the sales department) is (are) relying on me too much. Maybe it’s my personality or my work ethic, but I’m too reliable. I’ve spoiled my boss/friend by making sure he never has to worry about the little details. There are a lot of things that he can’t trust other people to do yet, so he continues to ask me. How is he ever going to let me move to the accounting department if he always has to ask me for help?
Another problem is that my replacement is not learning fast enough. It took me many months of struggling, stressing out, and getting yelled at by my boss/friend to get to where I am now, but my replacement doesn’t have the luxury of time. The original goal was for me to transfer in about a week and a half, but that might not be enough time. Maybe I’ll never leave sales!
February 6, 2009 at 7:36 am
Teach each of the new salespeople how to do one of the things that your boss asks you about. Then you can delegate the task to them.
February 6, 2009 at 7:42 am
My boss/friend and I have been training the new people. Three different people take pieces of what I normally do, but there are a lot of (not routine) things that I think is just easier and faster for my boss/friend to ask me for. Because I already know what I’m doing, I can get it done more quickly (which is important when something needs to get done right away).
Anyway. He has to let me go someday. It’s all a matter of when and how difficult it will be.
February 6, 2009 at 8:02 am
Why does he have to let you go, if you’ll willingly continue to do your old job? If you get to the point where it feels like this has gone on too long, get your new boss involved. Make sure she knows what’s going on and how long it’s been going on. She may take it upon herself to intervene on your behalf.
February 6, 2009 at 9:31 am
If I were you, I’d pick a strict start date for the new job, with your old and new bosses. Say, 2 weeks from now. Without a deadline, your new trainees will never learn. Or, Ask to move part time to accounting… spend half the day over there, and transition into the new job. But you need to learn the new job, and it won’t happen if you don’t speak up!
February 6, 2009 at 7:42 pm
There already was a deadline in mind. My boss/friend decided early last week that the day that I move will be Feburary 17th.
My boss/friend and I both know that this can’t go on forever. It just feels that way. My new boss understands the situation; I already help her with what I can while I still sit at my current desk.
I talked to my boss/friend after work today. We decided that I will still move to accounting as scheduled; he’s just going to have to hold his new hires’ hands a little longer than he was initially expecting.
Of course, he’ll still probably ask me for help even after I’ve moved anyway. My new boss is okay with sharing me though, so that’s no big deal.