Thread: I snapped at my line manager today...

I applied for a job on another team, which he knew about. Today I found out that another person on my team has been offered the job, OK, fair enough. She didn't tell him she had applied, he only found out when HIS line manager asked him why half his team are trying to leave! So his nose is a bit out of joint. But the first thing he said to me today was "Have you heard from personnel" and when I said yes I have and no I did n't get the job he said "can you ask for feedback on that, please."

Not "don't forget you can ask for feedback" or "let me know if you want to discuss the feedback" or even "sorry to hear that, why don't you ask for feedback" but like he was TELLING me to get feedback. So I'm afraid I said "if you're so anxious to know why I didn't get the job, YOU ask for feedback" and more or less stomped off. I mean, why is he telling me to? Is he going to tell me to read it too? I can only think that he wants me to share it with him, and I don't see that it's any of his business, particularly. The other girl says he has put getting feedback into her Q4 performance agreement.

He is just sooo controlling sometimes. I think there is going to be a summons for a "chat" tomorrow

Sorry you didn't get the job.

Tell him exactly how you feel & don't worry about snapping, he can't do anything about that.

Absolutely. If he needs it for his performance targets, he should ask in a far better manner - it would have been best if it were at one of your PDR meetings as something for you to do, for your development, and then he would need to ask if you share it with him. You're under no obligation to give it to him at all - unless you mutually agree it's beneficial for you both and how that would work (eg. you get some training out of it)! I don't blame you for snapping, I would have done the same.

Well we spoke on the phone today and he apologised for pouncing on me. I think he takes it very seriously that progression within the organisation is as much part of performance as the actual job I'm doing for him... it just feels really weird talking about my interview technique or how he thinks I could improve my application form. Neither he nor the girl who got the job were in the office which took a lot of the tension out of today.

so many managers can't manage
sigh

So after a week and half of listening to her going "ooh, should I take this job or not" she finally decided not to. and then I hear the job is to be readvertised externally. so basically I am so much not as good as her that they wouldn't have offered me the job if I was the only applicant. Now to my mind (and in the opinion of others) I am every bit as good as her at the job we both do, and every bit as good as the two other people who were transferred to this other project last April and who have settled in fine, and the other job is quite similar, so bascially in my current state of mind this means I am not good enough to even do the job I am doing now.
Anyway have spoken to the bloke who interviewed me - a WEEK after I asked him for feedback - my nerves are shredded by this point. he said I was very personable, obviously very competent, he liked me and would have been happy to have me on his team, but under the system I did not use my examples stonrgly enough. He was sure I had better examples/could have explained my examples better. So basically I have to apply again externally and do better at the interview. Groundhog Day! How silly.

Oh ffs!! We find it difficult to get people to apply for our jobs with the right qualifications & experience. If we then based our selection criteria on anal shite like that, we'd never employ anyone!

Situation, Task, Action (YOUR action, not the team's), Result. Think of good examples of work you have done and make sure you don't miss out any of those elements out, and at the same time make sure you are demonstrating the competence in question AT THE LEVEL of the job you are applying for. he said people who have only just joined the organisation tend to do very well, because they have already got the hang of the system quite recently.

Yes, that technique helped me get the job I'm starting on Monday I think. 10% S&T, 85% A and 5% R or something. And explain every little detail, even if it's like "I picked up the phone" (so naff). And have your examples worked out at the beginning and mould them to fit the question - you can guess pretty much what they will ask based on the job spec.

I can never remember how to update thread titles...

Anyway, after I found out they were readvertising the job, they then annnounced a reassignment exercise as they needed to move some folks around. On the list was the job I had applied for, amongst others, so I have set off all over again to try and get a change... but, this afternoon I was finishing off the reassignment form which is quite vague, and someone emailed me because he had just seen a suggestion of mine on a staff suggestions spreadsheet which tied in with a project he was working on, and there was a job on the vacancies list in the team he is heading, which I was including on my wish list of jobs I want! And he told me some more about the project and it was very exciting (even allowing for it being a Friday afternoon when anything to relieve the monotony is great) and I tweaked my application and he said it would be great if I was working for him and good luck! Wow! And he plays the bagpipes! Randomly getting noticed by someone who is based in Cumbria may have finally paid off!