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Work to Rule (or the Toolset)

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  1. OzBob

    Work to Rule (or the Toolset)

    I have approached my boss suggesting improvements to perform regular maintenance and reporting tasks and have been rebuffed at every turn. There are also quite a few shortcomings in the toolsets we use, again the case for improvements has been made and rejected (I am in the Run Team; we are not required to genuflect when the Architects walk past but it’s not far off). My boss manages both Run and Architecture Teams.

    So, using the development tools available to me already and the knowledge I have gained from previous roles, I have created a small set of bespoke tools that make completing my daily task set a lot easier and faster.

    Now, the question to be posed; since I have done this off my own initiative and time, and after having my proposed solutions rejected by the hierarchy, do the time gains I have made become mine to re-allocate, rather than my employers?

    My position is “f**k ‘em”; I offered my expertise, they rejected it, I will deliver to the standard they have provided me the ability to do. And I will ration my performance improvements to meet the annual objectives over quite a few years.

    Of course, any spare time can’t spend sitting on a couch with a beer and an Al-Bundy pose, so I will probably occupy myself with more interesting work (artificial intelligence, pattern matching and sharemarket trading). And vague chats to my co-workers indicates they are all up for adopting this approach too.

    So, what does the illuminati here think?

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    1. existentialist
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      Re: Work to Rule (or the Toolset)

      I think you've just about nailed it.

      The irony is that you'd actually found a way of doing your job more efficiently, thereby (presumably) leaving yourself time to do other things. You very kindly offered, by way of your improvements, to donate that time back to the company, and they have refused your offer. So they're basically saying "carry on taking as long to do the job as it does without your improvements". And the idea of using the time you save to better yourself, and presumably improve your employability elsewhere, where your skills might be better appreciated, seems a perfect one to me!

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  2. jcitron

    User your tool set to your advantage.

    Now that you've created a tool-set that no one wants or cares about, I say use them to your advantage and use the free time to pursue some more skills in other areas. You can easily take online classes to improve your skills and then pursue an employer who see your value as an employee and as a person too.

    I've actually seen this in the past and had my own manager tell me to "not look so good" because it made the rest of the team look bad in a less than subtle manner. You are doing the same job that everyone else is doing only more efficiently and this makes everyone else look bad. :-)

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