I just finished my second week at my new job and man do I love it. I mean LOVE it. I'm still learning all the components we manufacture, but the great thing is that they are taking into account that my background isn't manufacturing and have structured my position in a way that I focus on overall plant operations, but have a guy that helps oversee the manufacturing stuff if you will.
They finally picked a title for me, I'm the PLANT ADMINISTRATOR. Yay. I got my business cards this week so I'm official AND my prescription safety glasses have been ordered. I met with several vendors and did various price comparisons, completed the office "clean up/reorganization" project I started at the end of my first week, and also went to lunch with my boss and the CEO.
It's awesome because here in a few weeks my boss won't be coming up weekly like he has had to do since September. He'll be able to work from Atlanta where he lives and then only come up like once a month to see how things are going, though I'll be in constant communication with him for various projects that will be going on.
The guys are a little confused as to my "role" at the plant. They know I'm the new chick (well only chick) and I seem to get along with everyone, (they are a good group of guys), but because of my title and the "pyramid" type diagram that shows the layout of the company as it relates to our site, there is confusion. The chain of command used to go, CEO-VP of Engineering (my boss)-Plant Manager- and then below Plant Manager fell, QA, Production, Shipping, and Administration (because back, in the day they had a office person that ran things on the inside...)
Well I'm the Plant Administrator and my job encompasses that of Administrator AND Plant Manager. Basically in short, I'm the manager, but I have more of a background in shipping, QA, personnel, general warehousing, safety, packaging (everything not manufacturing) than I do manufacturing. So this time (since I'm the third person they've tried in this role--they altered it a bit to see if I would be successful)... the 1st guy lasted a year and didn't know how to treat people so was fired, the 2nd guy lied to my boss and didn't listen so he got fired, and well now there's me who knows what they did wrong so I can easily avoid that, but have to worry about screwing up in some new fashion...
At Monday's start up meeting I'm going to tell the guys that I'm going to sit down with them one on one throughout the week and give them some feedback on their performance as far as what I've observed in my first couple of weeks and give them a chance to express their concerns, comments, questions, whatever...that way they will have a better understanding that I am indeed the boss and can make or break them, without seeming pompous and like a complete ass, because that isn't my goal.
Thursday we have a team outing and are going to see the Norfolk Tides play a game... pretty cool stuff... and what a way to end my third week. I love the whole Monday through Thursday schedule (even if I do work 11 to 12 hours on those days)... overtime is done on Friday if at all which still leaves me 2 days to relax before getting up at 4am again and doing it all over.
Yesterday I got home from work and took a hot bath. I got so relaxed that when I got dressed I laid down and decided I'd take a short nap...this was a 6:30 pm...I woke up this morning at 6:30 am because Jen in a panic thought I had overslept and I hadn't even moved.... I NEVER sleep on only one side all night, NEVER.
I still feel like I've found my calling. That in itself feels great.
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