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"Sorry you're not the right fit" - After "all is fine" for 4 weeks
Subject:"Sorry you're not the right fit" - After "all is fine" for 4 weeks From:Yannia Vodrovich <coralfire -at- rocketmail -dot- com> To:techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com Date:Sat, 22 Nov 2008 14:37:33 -0800 (PST)
Well I just had the strangest experience I have ever had in the over 12 years I have been doing tech writing. I was hired about one month ago at a wireless software firm. I was told all along everything was great. I was only there 4 weeks. The few things I turned in I was told "This is good - this is good" by everyone who saw my work. The only thing I was ever told was that, I was coming in at 8:30 since everyone else was, and the established time was 8:00 so I had to come in at 8:00, not 8:30. The time was not flex. Apparently you "pay your dues" and come at 8:00 till you've made it through the 60 day probationary period, and then you can come in at 8:30 to 9:00.. I was not clear on that. All else I was told was good. Not one word about anything being bad. Plus I am a seasoned tech writer, and, not to brag but I was on last job 6 years - promoted to lead after 1 year. The one before that promoted to Mgr after 1 year. I've been a Technical Editor for a
WebSite run by a major pPublishing house, as an expert in T.W., done textbook review, published articles, etc. I am 46 years old - I know my work is good, and know when I am doing a good job and when I am not. I know I did things fine. I smiled all the time, made pleasant conversation - did all the political stuff - played the game. I know how to do all that.
I noticed a strange tenor there though from day one. I was telling my friend, it seemed like the Stepford company. All there seemed like robots - overly guarded - always saying how great the company was all the time - almost too much. Like they were trying to prove it to themselves.
At any rate, after 4 weeks, my boss and his boss call me in and tell me "Based on some reports I got, we don't think this is a good fit. As I told you we'd be trying this out in a 60 day probationary period and so we are going to let you go. In my 24 years of working I have NEVER been fired. I've been in 3 careers - acctg/finance, education, and tech writing.
I was never given reviews to have an opportunity to give my side of these 'reports,' no chance to improve whatever was wrong, nothing. The first I hear of this is in this "good-bye" interview. Point blank. And my boss is all smiles and matter-of-fact while he is telling me this, with the VP looking on, in that company's typical "Stepford" fashion.
I have gone over in my head dozens of times what the heck it could have been. For the life of me I cannot think of what I did. Not personality wise, not saying something to offend someone, and not work-wise. I can think of little things, but nothing rises to the level of letting someone go after 30 days. And I saying to myself, if it WAS one of the little things, then this co is NOT a good fit for me.
The only thing I can guess is that, when I was hired, they indicated that they had really wanted someone with industry background - (wireless) but could not find it, and my boss said he had not managed tech writers much before, and did not realize that usually you don't get the "bonus" of having a person who can do the tech writing AND who knows the technology. If you do, great, but usually you are not so lucky. I was like training him on the phone during my interview process, letting him know that the tech writer generally has to learn the technology. A tech writer is someone who can and does pick up the technology. He didn't know that - and he admitted it. He then hired me telling me that he hired me becauseI was the most technical they got, and I have been 'doing this a long time," but that they had looked high and low to see if they could find someone who also knew wireless because that would have been even better. So my guess is that, perhaps
after I got hired, someone phoned who DID have wireless? And they decided to go with them? The other thing could be - it is a family business. Maybe the family found someone who did have wireless?
Well, anyway, if the problem were me, this would have happened at least once if not many times before, and it has never happened before. And beyond that, I can't imagine what a seasoned TW could do that was so egregious that it warranted being let go in 30 of the 60 days of a probationary period.
I have been a manager and a director, and have fired others. No, you do not have to have a reason to fire someone, especially during the probationary period.. But I always worked with people I hired, counseling them to let them know the concerns, if any, to give them a fighting chance to improve the problem - even employees still in the probationary period. That is called progressive discipline, and that is management 101. You try to solve the problem at the lowest level first, before 'major surgery.' And when I let people go, I always let them know specifically what the concerns were, and, since I HAD attempted to work with them I had covered my bases, so I could indicate to them "We attempted to work with you this way, giving you this and that and blah blah but unfortunately the problem has persisted " etc etc. so I could show that the company had made every effort to remedy the problem. I never handled anyone like this. The only exception is if
the person did something truly outlandish (one employee was caught with drugs - that was grounds for immediate dismissal, of course).
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