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Owners

Here are the questions filed under this category. To read Ken's advice on any item, click on the link "Read Ken's Answer."


I work in a very disorganized shop in the entertainment industry. Everything is a last minute emergency. On every project, the owner assigns the wrong person to the wrong task, and he says to just get used to it. He ignores the shop manager, but listens to people with less knowledge. The owner means well, but does not see the light. I have been here for two-and-a-half years, and the only reason I hang on is that the work is fun. What is your opinion?
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I work in a small business directly with the owner on a daily basis. He has a terrible time managing paper. He leaves letters, messages, and documents everywhere. Even visitors comment on the mess, and my papers easily get lost in his. I am not his secretary, but I would like to clean some of it up, although I don't want to ask him about each thing. How do I get things in order without confusing him or causing him to protest?
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An employee who throws a temper tantrum, screams, shoves boxes out of the door, swears, and then walks over to a table and punches a box would probably be immediately escorted out the door. But what do you do when the owner of the company does that?
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I have worked in a family-owned business for several years. Last year, the firms' president took ill and his son, the vice president, took over. Recently, he began a sexual relationship with one of his direct reports, a woman who separated from her husband because of this affair. She oversees an important department. Because of the lack of professionalism and judgment of these two individuals, productivity has slipped, clients are being lost, and many good employees are thinking about quitting. Should I talk to the president who is healthy today but not involved in the day-to-day business?
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This used to be a wonderful company until the new owners took over. Their management style is harsh, controlling, and cheap. Many of my co-workers have bailed out, and I am thinking of leaving too. But, I have invested many years here and it is hard for me to think about going to a new company. Is there a way to demonstrate to the new owners that they are destroying the business?
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My girlfriend has been working at a family-owned company for over fifteen years, and one of the younger family members cusses and yells, and his verbal abuse has brought my girlfriend to tears countless times. She is scared of him, but management does little but talk. Her retirement is around the corner, but I think she should report this to a labor relations official. What can you tell us?
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I had a healthy disagreement with the owner's son. He is a difficult person who comes in whenever he wants and then issues orders. I told him why something could not be done his way, and he barked at me and I barked back. I'm sure he told his father. Should I say something or let it go? This kid has troubles with just about everyone here.
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I work in accounting and I report to the controller who reports to the owner. The controller gives me my assignments, but then the owner gives me other projects. My manager insists that I am only to do what he says and ignore the owner's requests. He says he'll deal with the owner. Whose orders should I follow?
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I am cannot stand my manager who happens to be an owner of the company. He can be friendly, but he can instantly become mean and insulting especially in front of others. Whenever I see his name on an email to me, or whenever he wants to see me, I feel nauseous. I have tried to talk to him, but I’m never comfortable. How do you deal with someone like this?
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I work in a relatively small business that is now very, very successful. I’ve worked my way from $8.00/hr + Commission (@28,000/yr) to $20.00/hr + Commission & bonuses(@65,000/yr) in 6 years. I know that I’m the highest paid employee, and that I’m satisfied with my pay. I also know I’m an over achiever and I’ve brought the company from 130th in our industry to the top-dealer in 6 years total. I know for a fact I’ve made huge improvements to this business and I have a great relationship with the majority of the other employees. Although, I am not the “general manager” and have yet to receive an actual title - I’m definitely the coordinator and actually manage the dealership. Now the owner’s daughter has decided to come in more often and try to take on the role as general manager. She has no management experience (other then hiring & firing 10 or so employees within this company). She causes extreme amounts of drama with and extremely flirty attitude with employees, customers, and even local delivery men causing more issues than you could ever imagine. She does not come in at normal hours, maybe 3 to 4 days a week and if she’s there maybe 4 hours she’s paid bills and sent me off to run her personal errands. (Today I picked her up a fountain poured coke, and picked up two rings from the local jeweler) She does not have a real business plan, nor a true job description, or standard order of operations for the employees and their job duties. The rules change on a daily basis. She is extremely demanding and does not like to be shown how to do something, even if it is imperative to the business or a prospective new customer. For instance, this week I was delivering a purchased unit to a new customer out of state when she called and informed me that the salesman were all away and that she needed to know how much the two units we just finished up cost were... I told her the retail figures and she wanted to know actual cost so she could intelligently talk to a potential customer about pricing. I informed her that I knew one unit was completely entered in our dealer management system, but the other was not. I also informed her that I did not know the actual dealer cost of this unit, nor the other unit off the top of my head. I informed her that she could easily look at the cost in our system for the one unit that was entered. She said “ I’m not going through that, that takes entirely too long, this is absolutely ridiculous that we do not have the actual dealer cost written down in the units files!” ((Yelling)) I had the phone away from my ear and even the owner could hear every word she was yelling. (He looked confused during this) She kept yelling at me, and I expressed that if she wanted to know the actual dealer cost that there was a very easy 30second procedure she would need to do... she just kept yelling... I told her that we could go over everything tomorrow morning, and she kept yelling, I said we can discuss this tomorrow... she paused for a moment and I heard nothing so I hung up the phone. She immediately called the owner (right next to me) and started yelling at him about the situation and he said “we can deal with this tomorrow, no big deal”. Just from his looks I only assumed that he understood that she only wanted it her way and that she was not going to it the way everyone else does it. That wasn’t the case the next morning... The next morning I was called into her office with her and the owner. I was written up for insubordination because I hung up on her. I spoke my peace that I was not to be yelled at like a dog, and that I was not a child and should not be spoken to in any other fashion. She said that she never raised her voice and that I refused to do what she said. I kept my mouth shut... I never refused anything... I looked at the owner hoping he would be a more logical person because he witnessed the confrontation, but he agreed with her and even to the point saying that I was in the wrong and that was uncalled for. I did sign the paper with a very shaky hand.... I have addressed a multitude of other issues that she has caused to the owner, but it's been no help... it is only getting worse now that she is coming around more often. I also keep a very close eye on the bookkeeping and the profits and loss reports. She has started two new credit cards under the business’ name and she and her husband uses them for personal usage. (Vacations, fuel, hotels, food, clothing, home furnishings) I’m taking thousands and thousands of dollars! This has now put a financial burden on the company and it makes it very hard to buy product to resale if the money is gone. I rely on this for a huge part of my income. I’ve put in for other jobs, and I’ve received a few offers, but nothing close to what I’m making now. I would accept a pay cut for happiness, but I can’t accept a 50% cut. Recently, we’ve had quite a bit of employee turnover at the dealership and we’ve lost a bunch of good people. A retired industrial plant operations director decided to try selling for us, and he said it best on his personal goodbye letter left for myself... “Get out of here, you’ll do great, open your own shop! I can’t take the drama and abuse, I don’t have to work, but I thought I would enjoy this... boy I was wrong - You can’t work under someone who operates their business by the “seagull management methods” “Comes in every now-and-then, squaks a lot, shits on everything, and then just leaves!” I need some advice... I have the knowledge, I have the customer base that I know would follow, my other half is very supporting and is always after me to open my own business.... but I don’t have the finances... HELP KEN! P.S. please excuse any and all dramatically errors, run-ons, and incomplete sentences... it’s nearly 11pm after a 13hr day that has dragged me down...
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