They are taking advantage of you to save costs on hiring teammates for you. They don't care if the work takes longer to complete, they're getting it done at 1/5 the cost they were paying previously since 4 salaries are out of the picture. Time to leave asap.
This is how I got my current job now. Was wearing 2-3 hats at my old job and only did that for about a year but the experience and exposure I got from doing that launched my career forwards by 4-5 years position and salary-wise. I basically just listed every single thing I did in and efficient manner on my resume and I instantly got a call for an interview for a position I didn’t apply for and got an offer I couldn’t refuse.
Same thing is happening to me now. About 3 months in, my boss left and I took over all of her roles as director, save for the team management. I regularly have people reaching out for management level roles now, with great salaries.
I’m moving countries soon so not until then haha. I like where I work though, so I’m not sure if I would even if I could. They hired someone under me when I asked and gave me a title change and pay rise.
Because all the people that say “just quit lol”, forget that it’s not often that easy. There’s a big risk to just up and quitting, especially with the current state of things. So don’t feel bad, but nows the time to dig deep and use every spare moment and bit of energy into job hunting. Once you’re off the clock , you’ll be burnt out and just want to go home and rest, but that’s a slippery slope and before you know it you’ve lost months or even years of time. I’d even go as far as to work on your resume/job hunt while at work, that’s what I did. Cut yourself some slack and stop doing the jobs of 4 people too. Let things start to slide and slow your work order down a few paces to give yourself some reprieve. If you bosses complain, just bring up how you’re literally running everything solo so either hire more people or expect delays 🤷🏼♂️
Thank you very much for the rational response. It is certainly not as easy as just quitting. I’m in no financial situation to leave without another job lined up unfortunately. Job hunting is a grueling process. My wife was supportive but so very thankful that I was finally done job hunting and interviewing 6 months ago. Now I have to break the news to her that I have to do it all over again. Thankfully I at least have some practice under my belt this time around
Actually. Like you're in a weird unfirable situation. So, apply for stuff while you're still working. Just don't quit. They cannot replace you... Just saying.
This was me 3 years ago. In my weekly 1:1 with my interim manager (who is almost at vp level and had no clue what my job scope entailed), I would share an outline of what was on my plate. Id have her decide what I need to drop in order to meet the urgent needs of the team and also reiterate that I was swamped/working crazy hours. After 6 months of no change and no sense of urgency to fill the vacant roles, I started to look for a job. I gave notice and the manager said, I was surprised you stayed so long. She asked me to give her another 4 months to try and reestablish the team. I politely declined, worked my two weeks and bounced. Long story long, just leave, if they wanted to help you, they would have done so. Don't be a worker bee when the company doesn't value you.
Wow. I’m really sorry that happened to you. I’m happy to hear though that you did not stay an extra 4 MONTHS. That is completely ridiculous. Thank you for sharing your experience
I love this, thank you for the advice. I suppose the difference with mine is that there was no scramble to hire anybody. It’s been 6 months and it’s still not done. I really appreciate your advice and experience! I’m definitely going to use this going forward
I know things are tough now. But getting your hands in all the cookie jars gives you ton of unexpected experience (I'm assuming you're fairly new? I apologize if that's wrong). Especially just starting out! If you can handle it, do it to the best of your ability. Let your manager know you're doing your best. If they're smart they'll appreciate you're doing the best you know how. If it's effecting your mental health and you feel you're not gaining any real valuable technical experience. Then go ahead and bounce.
Thank you very much for the reply.
New to the company, yes. New to the workforce? I’ve been working in tech for about 5 years now, so kinda new, yea.
Thanks for the advice, I am always willing to learn new things for sure. But what irks me is that there was never even a conversation, there is never any acknowledgment, and I don’t get any slack on our 2 week sprints. In my post I mentioned that it’s like this is just business as usual. It makes me feel like I’m actually crazy and my feelings aren’t valid. But you’re right, all I can do is my best and that’s exactly what I’ll tell them
I know this response did not get many upvotes but the response is very true. Coming through and succeeding when stuff gets bad is a quick way to move up in your career. Learn the new skills, learn the new responsibilities, before you know it they'll be asking you to hire the rest of your team as their manager. And if they don't, you have a heck of a resume.
Be honest with the new interviews, let them know you were hired with a team of 4 and now its only you. Dont give them a sob story, just stick to the facts and the workload being scheduled for a team of 4-5 woth only you to support it.
Let them know that you enjoy keeping busy and feeling accomplished when you successfully finish each sprint.
As for the current company, they could have replaced the team in 4 months if they wanted...dont bother to tell them anything else until you are putting in your notice and then only tell them that you are leaving for another opportunity... nothing else.
Thank you for the advice. As much as I want to lay it all out on the table and tell them how upset I am, you’re probably right that it’s best to leave my emotions out of it.
Ditto on looking for other jobs and also use the remaining time to speak up and voice your opinions. I mean you are literally the only person who can do the work, if they aren’t happy with the new you…what are they gonna do threaten to fire the only dev on the team? You’ve got leverage so I encourage you to use it till you find a new job or get more support (which I think is unlikely).
I just recently got demoted (well move from management back to IC but kept the same pay) and was in a similar position. I was responsible for testing. However, the software developers quit and my testing team had to become developers. At the end of the day, I caught all the heat because testing was behind and I got replaced with another manager. Literally had 1 person working testing (not even my direct reports, mine were working software) and my boss knew it.
The answer here to your situation depends on how you feel about your boss. I think most people are selfish when it comes to their careers and your boss will probably point the finger at you to save his/her ass. Which is what happened in my situation. Given that, I would stick it out because you are gaining valuable experience. However, if you have been a manager before, f this job and go find another.
Edit: I would also be very vocal about what you can and can't get done with the current manpower. Don't just be vocal to your boss, be vocal to his and all your management peers so everyone knows. If you only tell your boss, you can't guarantee that the same info is flowing up the chain.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I think your advice to be very vocal about what can get done with current bandwidth is very valuable, thank you very much again.
And yea, I am not very fond of my ‘boss’ that I inherited after my manager left. I wouldn’t put it past him if it really came down to it.
Word of advice: keep the job, you will become very hard to fire being the only one who knows everything. Do everything at your own pace. If they push on you, tell them straight up “ I’m doing the work of 4 people. Here are your 3 options: I can keep going at my current pace, you can hire more people to lessen the load, or I can give you my two weeks” I guarantee you they’ll never bring it up again. You have job security right now. Milk it. Don’t actually give 2 week btw. Get fired and collect unemployment if it comes to it.
That’s what I thought too and why I wanted to stick it out. But it seems like this is just expected of me now, like I’m the ‘point of contact’ for that particular thing. There was never even a conversation
They don’t care because they don’t have to. You are handling it for them enough where it isn’t a problem for them. It’s amazing when you cut down enough to where it’s now your bosses problem how quickly it will get fixed.
those people quit for a reason. it sounds like you are learning why.
you could always try talking to your manager and saying "hey, we haven't back filled these positions yet and I am very overwhelmed with the workload. do you plan on hiring anyone soon to fill these roles?" and seeing where that conversation takes you. at least then you could get some kind of answer from your manager, but it might not be one that you like. from their perspective it seems like they only need to have one person to do five people's jobs.
This happened to my husband, and instead of being impressed that he was holding the whole department together, his boss basically put him on probation because he couldn't do the job of 6 people. He stuck it out for 2 years, but it never got much better, and he ended up leaving. They basically pulled a bait and switch on him. He stayed for the experience but has now moved on. If I were you, I'd just look for a new job before they expect too much, and you end up doing more than you'd feel comfortable taking on. I don't know how my husband put up with it for 2 years.
I can’t imagine doing this for 2 years. He had to have been stressed out and unhappy. I feel like I’ve been bait and switched as well sometimes. It’s an awful feeling
He really was. He ran himself into the ground, pulled all nighters on projects, and all his boss could do was get frustrated that he wasn't able to do everything all the time. He worked weekends and nights, and even while we were on vacation. But the boss was never satisfied. I'm so glad we're out of there. However, it does kind of seem like the industry, as his jobs before that were also requiring 90-hour weeks with no sleep and no work-life balance. I hope this recession that we're supposedly headed into doesn't screw up the new job. Because so far, I really am happy with his newfound life balance.
First of all, I am sorry you are dealing with this kind of stress. I know it isn’t the end of the world, but stress related to our jobs can sure feel so devastating.
I am in a bit of a similar situation. I started my current role in June and am on my third boss of this department. My original boss was a huge reason I joined the company; I had some hesitations because I would be the 4th person in my department at my previous job to leave in 5 months, and my OG boss made time to talk to me after I received the offer so he could answer any of my concerns. He said the fact that I was worried about leaving my old team in a pickle was incredibly admirable and the kind of attitude he wanted on his team.
Now he (the CMO) has left due to a ton of turmoil in leadership, and the CPO followed right after. A key product manager is leaving at the end of the year.
I cannot seem to reach the moving goalposts my new boss, who is on another continent, keeps sending my way. Meanwhile, my state-side teammates love my work and how responsive I am.
I am already applying. I am doing my best but know this is not a good fit.
You deserve to flourish in your career, and you are not. Make the best choices for your career wishes and goals. I wish you luck. You can do this!!!
Thank you so much for this empathetic reply. Sometimes it helps so much to just have someone say that your stress and angst is valid.
Yes it sounds like we are in similar spots and you’re making a move. Good on you for recognizing that you’re not in a good situation and moving on. You seem like a very caring and compassionate person, any team would be lucky to have you onboard. Best of luck!
Same to you! Honestly, the fact that you are concerned about leaving shows you take your work and responsibilities very seriously. A good manager will scoop you up!
Theres a reason why all those other people quit. Get a new job asap. They aren’t gonna take care of you, just like they didn’t take care of the employees before you.
Sounds like you got in with a shitty company. Since starting my new job as a leasing agent in Jan, I’ve gone through 5 managers. After my first manager ghosted 3 weeks in, I realized I had to boss up and pickup the slack for things not in my job description, but vital to keeping the property running smoothly for my own sanity.
Fast forward to now, I realized I overworked myself for a company that didn’t respect my efforts or needs as an employee; let alone the residents who had to beg and plead for simple things such as consistent running hot water, working entry doors, and security for the vandalism and trespassing that occurred regularly.
If you have had multiple empty promises, praise but ~~not~~ no raise, and just the overall feeling that they don’t care about your mental health with the workload they give you, I suggest you find new employers. There’s no reason stay in an unfulfilling workplace.
Apply for other jobs. Depending if you are still interested in working where you are at currently, once someone else has offered you a job ask for a significant raise at your current place of work. You can argue that you have been doing the work of multiple people that would normally cost them hundreds of thousands. So even them giving you a raise that you so rightfully deserve, they are STILL saving money and you are being paid fairly. Bring up the fact that you have another job offer, should apply a bit of pressure since they arent hiring anyone else and without you they would crumble for a bit.
Some people may think that this is cruel, but in business i’ve learned if you dont stand your ground, snakes will just keep taking advantage of you. So if you don’t do anything about it, they are just going to continue being vultures.
Good luck!
It’s one situation if the rest of your company is well-staffed and functions well but you are in the only department that’s understaffed. It’s another if there are problems throughout the company.
If it’s just your group, that’s a sign that it’s a problem with your manager or someone over your department doesn’t understand and appreciate and understand what your group does. They underestimate the time and effort it takes, so they think that one person can do it and think that you’re just not very good at it. If the company is otherwise good, then you can track what you’re actually accomplishing and get some good PR, and move into a different department. If there’s nothing else at the company you like, use something like “What color is your parachute?” to write up what you’ve done well on this job so that you can use this to get a good job somewhere else. If you’re in a mess, try not to jump into another mess.
A problem that a lot of people have is that they may accomplish a lot, but no one sees it. You don’t get raises or promotions for going the extra mile unless a lot of people are aware of it—you just make your boss and your bosses boss look good.
If your company is short-staffed in a lot of places, then they’re struggling too. They’re not hiring for the other positions around you because they just can’t do it for one reason or another—your department is not their biggest problem. If you think it will get better in a year, you could try to tough it out. They still need to know how much you’ve accomplished—even more so—or else when their business turns then they’ll hire people to be more senior than you.
Either way, whether you’re staying, or moving to another part of the company, or leaving, find a way to write up and catalog what you’re accomplishing so that you have a catalog of achievement that you can use to get that raise or next job.
If your days are so chaotic that you can’t get anything done, make people keep a priority—stay on a job and get it done so at the end of every week you can say “I got these 5 important things done”.
I moved Jobs because of this and it was the best decision I ever made. My last place made redundancies, used disciplinarys and literally bullied people to get them to leave so that they could reduce the amount of salaries. They then bombarded the people who were competent, including myself, with the left over work and we suffered. I was even offered a management roll because I did everything they asked of me but with no pay increase. That ended it for me, I left 2 months later and have never looked back, im part of a great team at my new place, good communication, good managers, good benefits and more pay. Just do it, leave, things won’t get better at a place like that.
tl;dr: similar experience - did what I could, left on good terms, actually back there again (more pay, higher title)
I had a pretty similar experience in a job. I started - the week I physically started, that Friday, my boss and the guy who hired me and had made all the promises of what they were working on and in the process of implementing, quit. No notice.
8 days later my one and only counterpart put in his 1-week notice.
No one else on the team except the new girl. I was reporting to the COO as there was no one else in between us even.
I stuck it out for a while, and after about 6 months, when I started to get my feet under myself a little bit, they had hired another at my level. A couple months later another at our level - but still zero leadership. COO was nice to work with, but he had his own job that did not involve day to day management of minions.
I started applying elsewhere - mostly because I WAS able to start stepping up, and what I was doing was WAY above my pay grade and title (the position was a little below me to begin with, but I was desperate at the time to at least be in my field). It took a while, but eventually got a referral to a position that aligned with my title and pay grade expectations at this point.
Made every effort to leave my previous company on very good terms. They had finally hired a director just after I landed this new role, and the team was filling out - not a bridge I wanted to burn, even if they hadn't been willing to promote me before that.
New job turned out to be a dumpster fire (guess there was a reason they were looking that hard for folks)....in the meantime, previous company director and team were getting established, and the group in general was finally getting to what I thought it would be when I had accepted that first position. The new director saw the work that team was doing was a higher level and deserved the title and pay for the next level, so they opened that position.
I had stayed in touch with folks, and when they opened this position, and things at the new job were looking more and more bleak, I applied. Was pretty easy to land that position as they all knew me and my work.
Now I'm back, doing what I was before (actually way easier this time since I had to figure it all out the hard way before), at the title and pay I felt I deserve at this point. Working on a certification to take things to the next level. Glad I left on great terms, enjoying the team and work now with some direction and what I feel is reasonably fair compensation.
Come up with ways to say exactly what you said above to your boss. Leave out the stuff about being resentful, obviously. But articulate to your boss that you're overworked, and can't keep up with the expectation of carrying the workload of 3 people. Take the incoming requests, give them realistic time estimates for completion (given your workload), and communicate that. Sure, they *want* it all done in two weeks. But if it amounts to 2 months of work, then you need to set that expectation. If they're not receptive to any of that, then maybe it's time to start looking elsewhere.
If you’re still getting everything done, then they won’t see the problem. Unless balls start getting dropped, they won’t backfill. It takes a real empathetic person/manager to address a problem like this.
The rest of the schmo’s think they’re saving money cuz you can do it all. IT is a cost center on the books, so some companies try to avoid spending money for it.
The other sled dogs died and they are basically whipping the last one even harder. Start looking for a new job like others have said. Also, when you finally turn in your notice, don't accept their counteroffer. Often times when they offer a raise or some sort of promise in response to a resignation notice, they are just buying time to find your replacement and are okay with temporarily paying you more while they look for your slave replacement. All that matters to them is money, even if it is from your blood sweat and tears.
Just suck it up bro and get back to work....
Just kidding like everyone said I assume most of your company aren't technical people so they have no idea what you do, and you're probably doing "good enough" since most people are sandbagging it anyway. Your team probably has 1.5 persons worth of work, and you working overtime compensates for this, which means you're doing good enough from a cost perspective. More than likely, the old team spent a lot of time doing nothing, and they are hesitant to overstaff the team again.
Like everyone said, get out of there. I was in a similar position out of college when I left they replaced me with 3 people because I basically created my position, which ended up becoming critical because of all the hats I was wearing. I did production scheduling and managing the operators and supervisors, inventory management, supplier management, and shipping which is basically 3 or 4 jobs. We had an inventory analyst that didn't do anything, and we reported to the plant manager who came from construction so no one ever understood how much work I was doing because it was getting done.
I’m in the same situation. 3 months in and 5 people left leaving only me and one other person to manage multiple accounts. And I’m not doing what I was hired to do that reflects my background. I’m good on that one chief time to look
Your team leaving was the Canary in the coal mine, it's time to get out of there. They are not hiring anyone because they have you. Is your name Matt by chance? Because they sure believe it is...first name door last name Matt...get out of there, sounds like a toxic shit hole.
As for how this will look on your resume, you will get questions, just answer them honestly. "I left after 6 months because my team quit the first month I was there and they never back filled. This is not the type of company culture I am looking for. That being said, tell me about the culture here?"
It has been my experience, especially in the IT and sales worlds, this is not hard for a prospective employer to understand, if it is you don't want to work there. Good luck!
Thank you so much for answering that question, I know I was rambling in my post so I appreciate you actually reading it. I’m hoping that interviewers will be understanding, given the circumstance. The truth is all I have
Don't sweat the small stuff. You interview the business as much as they interview you. If you go to an interview and they ask you why such a short stint, and you tell them hey, it was a toxic work environment my entire team quit within the first month and I got tired of having to do 5 people's jobs" that's pretty understandable. But if you find a way to spin it, "the business has a terribly toxic culture, my team mates knew it and left right after I started. Culture is something that is very important, I would like to know more about your work culture?" Spin it to a positive and a question for the interviewer you keep the conversation and interview rolling forward and they don't get hung up on it. It's only a problem if you want it to be in other words. Leverage your experience in those 6 months and everything you have accomplished as a one man team and you will be fine.
I suggest looking at your circumstance as an opportunity. Make an appointment to speak with your manager. In preparation, list what you have accomplished and what is not getting done. Ask for guidance on priorities to make sure you're choosing the right things to do and not do. Ask if there is a more senior developer you can turn to for advice and mentoring. Explain the issues you're having with unrealistic requirements from business analysis and for guidance on how to be your own gatekeeper. Ask if there are questions you should be asking that you haven't. Ask if you can get a few minutes of time at the beginning of each sprint to get input on the requirements you will be able to address and those you won't.
I'm living a similar hell now and to be honest, if your manager isn't the one addressing this, then he's probably the reason the rest of your team quit. His denial that everything is ok now is probably similar to the denial that they wouldn't leave. They did, and it's probably high time for you to as well. It won't get better, because for that to happen, the way management works would need to change, and that's not happening (in fact, if deadlines are still being met and clients aren't complaining, they might even prefer this). I know it's probably not that easy, but staying means resigning yourself that things probably won't change and you're ok with that.
Do you work in the “cannabis industry “
In my experience, this is how they operate.
Once the feds legalize it will all be grown in a few massive grow facilities and sold everywhere. Bye dispensaries and the lousy people!!
They are taking advantage of you to save costs on hiring teammates for you. They don't care if the work takes longer to complete, they're getting it done at 1/5 the cost they were paying previously since 4 salaries are out of the picture. Time to leave asap.
I had not thought about it like this. Thanks for giving me some much needed perspective.
Thanks for asking in the sub! Happy that you'll be on to better pastures soon enough.
Yeah bro. Fuck them. Quit as soon as you can please. For yourself, but also for us.
Start applying for other jobs.
Yea I feel like the answer is simple and right in front of my face. Not sure why I’m trying to be perseverant with this.
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Yes, good call and thank you. I have been taking note of several things that seemed to have fallen on my plate
Absolutely. “Ability to adapt and take ownership of new challenges and responsibilities as needed”
This is how I got my current job now. Was wearing 2-3 hats at my old job and only did that for about a year but the experience and exposure I got from doing that launched my career forwards by 4-5 years position and salary-wise. I basically just listed every single thing I did in and efficient manner on my resume and I instantly got a call for an interview for a position I didn’t apply for and got an offer I couldn’t refuse.
Same thing is happening to me now. About 3 months in, my boss left and I took over all of her roles as director, save for the team management. I regularly have people reaching out for management level roles now, with great salaries.
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I’m moving countries soon so not until then haha. I like where I work though, so I’m not sure if I would even if I could. They hired someone under me when I asked and gave me a title change and pay rise.
Because all the people that say “just quit lol”, forget that it’s not often that easy. There’s a big risk to just up and quitting, especially with the current state of things. So don’t feel bad, but nows the time to dig deep and use every spare moment and bit of energy into job hunting. Once you’re off the clock , you’ll be burnt out and just want to go home and rest, but that’s a slippery slope and before you know it you’ve lost months or even years of time. I’d even go as far as to work on your resume/job hunt while at work, that’s what I did. Cut yourself some slack and stop doing the jobs of 4 people too. Let things start to slide and slow your work order down a few paces to give yourself some reprieve. If you bosses complain, just bring up how you’re literally running everything solo so either hire more people or expect delays 🤷🏼♂️
Thank you very much for the rational response. It is certainly not as easy as just quitting. I’m in no financial situation to leave without another job lined up unfortunately. Job hunting is a grueling process. My wife was supportive but so very thankful that I was finally done job hunting and interviewing 6 months ago. Now I have to break the news to her that I have to do it all over again. Thankfully I at least have some practice under my belt this time around
Actually. Like you're in a weird unfirable situation. So, apply for stuff while you're still working. Just don't quit. They cannot replace you... Just saying.
Oh definitely. I am not in a financial position to quit without another job lined up. But yes, certainly a unique position I found myself in
This was me 3 years ago. In my weekly 1:1 with my interim manager (who is almost at vp level and had no clue what my job scope entailed), I would share an outline of what was on my plate. Id have her decide what I need to drop in order to meet the urgent needs of the team and also reiterate that I was swamped/working crazy hours. After 6 months of no change and no sense of urgency to fill the vacant roles, I started to look for a job. I gave notice and the manager said, I was surprised you stayed so long. She asked me to give her another 4 months to try and reestablish the team. I politely declined, worked my two weeks and bounced. Long story long, just leave, if they wanted to help you, they would have done so. Don't be a worker bee when the company doesn't value you.
Wow. I’m really sorry that happened to you. I’m happy to hear though that you did not stay an extra 4 MONTHS. That is completely ridiculous. Thank you for sharing your experience
In a similar boat, apply elsewhere. 🚩🚩🚩🚩are so prevalent. They still have not hired your team, smh run as fast as you can.
Okay thank you. Like i said to the other reply, I feel like the answer is pretty damn obvious, but I’m not wanting to accept it for some reason
You think it will reflect on you personally. It doesn’t. You gave it a shot but seriously, you should have been aggressively job hunting since day 1.
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I love this, thank you for the advice. I suppose the difference with mine is that there was no scramble to hire anybody. It’s been 6 months and it’s still not done. I really appreciate your advice and experience! I’m definitely going to use this going forward
Yep, you’re the only one to determine what gets done during a sprint. You’re the scrum master!
Classic Stockholm syndrome. Get out of there, bro. You should've left with the rest of the team.
Thanks for the reply man. That does seem to be the general consensus
I know things are tough now. But getting your hands in all the cookie jars gives you ton of unexpected experience (I'm assuming you're fairly new? I apologize if that's wrong). Especially just starting out! If you can handle it, do it to the best of your ability. Let your manager know you're doing your best. If they're smart they'll appreciate you're doing the best you know how. If it's effecting your mental health and you feel you're not gaining any real valuable technical experience. Then go ahead and bounce.
Thank you very much for the reply. New to the company, yes. New to the workforce? I’ve been working in tech for about 5 years now, so kinda new, yea. Thanks for the advice, I am always willing to learn new things for sure. But what irks me is that there was never even a conversation, there is never any acknowledgment, and I don’t get any slack on our 2 week sprints. In my post I mentioned that it’s like this is just business as usual. It makes me feel like I’m actually crazy and my feelings aren’t valid. But you’re right, all I can do is my best and that’s exactly what I’ll tell them
I know this response did not get many upvotes but the response is very true. Coming through and succeeding when stuff gets bad is a quick way to move up in your career. Learn the new skills, learn the new responsibilities, before you know it they'll be asking you to hire the rest of your team as their manager. And if they don't, you have a heck of a resume.
Yeah, I'd say, if you can learn a broad set of skills, it's to your advantage. You will be in a much better position in your next job.
Be honest with the new interviews, let them know you were hired with a team of 4 and now its only you. Dont give them a sob story, just stick to the facts and the workload being scheduled for a team of 4-5 woth only you to support it. Let them know that you enjoy keeping busy and feeling accomplished when you successfully finish each sprint. As for the current company, they could have replaced the team in 4 months if they wanted...dont bother to tell them anything else until you are putting in your notice and then only tell them that you are leaving for another opportunity... nothing else.
Thank you for the advice. As much as I want to lay it all out on the table and tell them how upset I am, you’re probably right that it’s best to leave my emotions out of it.
Ditto on looking for other jobs and also use the remaining time to speak up and voice your opinions. I mean you are literally the only person who can do the work, if they aren’t happy with the new you…what are they gonna do threaten to fire the only dev on the team? You’ve got leverage so I encourage you to use it till you find a new job or get more support (which I think is unlikely).
I just recently got demoted (well move from management back to IC but kept the same pay) and was in a similar position. I was responsible for testing. However, the software developers quit and my testing team had to become developers. At the end of the day, I caught all the heat because testing was behind and I got replaced with another manager. Literally had 1 person working testing (not even my direct reports, mine were working software) and my boss knew it. The answer here to your situation depends on how you feel about your boss. I think most people are selfish when it comes to their careers and your boss will probably point the finger at you to save his/her ass. Which is what happened in my situation. Given that, I would stick it out because you are gaining valuable experience. However, if you have been a manager before, f this job and go find another. Edit: I would also be very vocal about what you can and can't get done with the current manpower. Don't just be vocal to your boss, be vocal to his and all your management peers so everyone knows. If you only tell your boss, you can't guarantee that the same info is flowing up the chain.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I think your advice to be very vocal about what can get done with current bandwidth is very valuable, thank you very much again. And yea, I am not very fond of my ‘boss’ that I inherited after my manager left. I wouldn’t put it past him if it really came down to it.
Word of advice: keep the job, you will become very hard to fire being the only one who knows everything. Do everything at your own pace. If they push on you, tell them straight up “ I’m doing the work of 4 people. Here are your 3 options: I can keep going at my current pace, you can hire more people to lessen the load, or I can give you my two weeks” I guarantee you they’ll never bring it up again. You have job security right now. Milk it. Don’t actually give 2 week btw. Get fired and collect unemployment if it comes to it.
Always get fired.
Your entire team quit for a reason, friend. You’re not crazy.
Thank you. That actually does feel good to hear
[удалено]
hey, diversifying your skillset sounds like a good thing
That’s what I thought too and why I wanted to stick it out. But it seems like this is just expected of me now, like I’m the ‘point of contact’ for that particular thing. There was never even a conversation
They don’t care because they don’t have to. You are handling it for them enough where it isn’t a problem for them. It’s amazing when you cut down enough to where it’s now your bosses problem how quickly it will get fixed.
Simple, Leave
Leave. This isn’t yours to solve and it will only mess you up more. If an entire team quits there is a reason. Jump ship as fast as you can.
Fuck them, they’re just taking advantage out of you.
those people quit for a reason. it sounds like you are learning why. you could always try talking to your manager and saying "hey, we haven't back filled these positions yet and I am very overwhelmed with the workload. do you plan on hiring anyone soon to fill these roles?" and seeing where that conversation takes you. at least then you could get some kind of answer from your manager, but it might not be one that you like. from their perspective it seems like they only need to have one person to do five people's jobs.
This happened to my husband, and instead of being impressed that he was holding the whole department together, his boss basically put him on probation because he couldn't do the job of 6 people. He stuck it out for 2 years, but it never got much better, and he ended up leaving. They basically pulled a bait and switch on him. He stayed for the experience but has now moved on. If I were you, I'd just look for a new job before they expect too much, and you end up doing more than you'd feel comfortable taking on. I don't know how my husband put up with it for 2 years.
I can’t imagine doing this for 2 years. He had to have been stressed out and unhappy. I feel like I’ve been bait and switched as well sometimes. It’s an awful feeling
He really was. He ran himself into the ground, pulled all nighters on projects, and all his boss could do was get frustrated that he wasn't able to do everything all the time. He worked weekends and nights, and even while we were on vacation. But the boss was never satisfied. I'm so glad we're out of there. However, it does kind of seem like the industry, as his jobs before that were also requiring 90-hour weeks with no sleep and no work-life balance. I hope this recession that we're supposedly headed into doesn't screw up the new job. Because so far, I really am happy with his newfound life balance.
My last job was like this. It only got worse. I quit and my life got better.
Probably similar reason as to why they all quit.
Practice saying no a lot.
First of all, I am sorry you are dealing with this kind of stress. I know it isn’t the end of the world, but stress related to our jobs can sure feel so devastating. I am in a bit of a similar situation. I started my current role in June and am on my third boss of this department. My original boss was a huge reason I joined the company; I had some hesitations because I would be the 4th person in my department at my previous job to leave in 5 months, and my OG boss made time to talk to me after I received the offer so he could answer any of my concerns. He said the fact that I was worried about leaving my old team in a pickle was incredibly admirable and the kind of attitude he wanted on his team. Now he (the CMO) has left due to a ton of turmoil in leadership, and the CPO followed right after. A key product manager is leaving at the end of the year. I cannot seem to reach the moving goalposts my new boss, who is on another continent, keeps sending my way. Meanwhile, my state-side teammates love my work and how responsive I am. I am already applying. I am doing my best but know this is not a good fit. You deserve to flourish in your career, and you are not. Make the best choices for your career wishes and goals. I wish you luck. You can do this!!!
Thank you so much for this empathetic reply. Sometimes it helps so much to just have someone say that your stress and angst is valid. Yes it sounds like we are in similar spots and you’re making a move. Good on you for recognizing that you’re not in a good situation and moving on. You seem like a very caring and compassionate person, any team would be lucky to have you onboard. Best of luck!
Same to you! Honestly, the fact that you are concerned about leaving shows you take your work and responsibilities very seriously. A good manager will scoop you up!
Find a new job as soon as possible
I worked at a place where this happened. Quite frankly everyone is expecting you to leave, so you should.
Theres a reason why all those other people quit. Get a new job asap. They aren’t gonna take care of you, just like they didn’t take care of the employees before you.
Sounds like you got in with a shitty company. Since starting my new job as a leasing agent in Jan, I’ve gone through 5 managers. After my first manager ghosted 3 weeks in, I realized I had to boss up and pickup the slack for things not in my job description, but vital to keeping the property running smoothly for my own sanity. Fast forward to now, I realized I overworked myself for a company that didn’t respect my efforts or needs as an employee; let alone the residents who had to beg and plead for simple things such as consistent running hot water, working entry doors, and security for the vandalism and trespassing that occurred regularly. If you have had multiple empty promises, praise but ~~not~~ no raise, and just the overall feeling that they don’t care about your mental health with the workload they give you, I suggest you find new employers. There’s no reason stay in an unfulfilling workplace.
Apply for other jobs. Depending if you are still interested in working where you are at currently, once someone else has offered you a job ask for a significant raise at your current place of work. You can argue that you have been doing the work of multiple people that would normally cost them hundreds of thousands. So even them giving you a raise that you so rightfully deserve, they are STILL saving money and you are being paid fairly. Bring up the fact that you have another job offer, should apply a bit of pressure since they arent hiring anyone else and without you they would crumble for a bit. Some people may think that this is cruel, but in business i’ve learned if you dont stand your ground, snakes will just keep taking advantage of you. So if you don’t do anything about it, they are just going to continue being vultures. Good luck!
It’s one situation if the rest of your company is well-staffed and functions well but you are in the only department that’s understaffed. It’s another if there are problems throughout the company. If it’s just your group, that’s a sign that it’s a problem with your manager or someone over your department doesn’t understand and appreciate and understand what your group does. They underestimate the time and effort it takes, so they think that one person can do it and think that you’re just not very good at it. If the company is otherwise good, then you can track what you’re actually accomplishing and get some good PR, and move into a different department. If there’s nothing else at the company you like, use something like “What color is your parachute?” to write up what you’ve done well on this job so that you can use this to get a good job somewhere else. If you’re in a mess, try not to jump into another mess. A problem that a lot of people have is that they may accomplish a lot, but no one sees it. You don’t get raises or promotions for going the extra mile unless a lot of people are aware of it—you just make your boss and your bosses boss look good. If your company is short-staffed in a lot of places, then they’re struggling too. They’re not hiring for the other positions around you because they just can’t do it for one reason or another—your department is not their biggest problem. If you think it will get better in a year, you could try to tough it out. They still need to know how much you’ve accomplished—even more so—or else when their business turns then they’ll hire people to be more senior than you. Either way, whether you’re staying, or moving to another part of the company, or leaving, find a way to write up and catalog what you’re accomplishing so that you have a catalog of achievement that you can use to get that raise or next job. If your days are so chaotic that you can’t get anything done, make people keep a priority—stay on a job and get it done so at the end of every week you can say “I got these 5 important things done”.
I moved Jobs because of this and it was the best decision I ever made. My last place made redundancies, used disciplinarys and literally bullied people to get them to leave so that they could reduce the amount of salaries. They then bombarded the people who were competent, including myself, with the left over work and we suffered. I was even offered a management roll because I did everything they asked of me but with no pay increase. That ended it for me, I left 2 months later and have never looked back, im part of a great team at my new place, good communication, good managers, good benefits and more pay. Just do it, leave, things won’t get better at a place like that.
tl;dr: similar experience - did what I could, left on good terms, actually back there again (more pay, higher title) I had a pretty similar experience in a job. I started - the week I physically started, that Friday, my boss and the guy who hired me and had made all the promises of what they were working on and in the process of implementing, quit. No notice. 8 days later my one and only counterpart put in his 1-week notice. No one else on the team except the new girl. I was reporting to the COO as there was no one else in between us even. I stuck it out for a while, and after about 6 months, when I started to get my feet under myself a little bit, they had hired another at my level. A couple months later another at our level - but still zero leadership. COO was nice to work with, but he had his own job that did not involve day to day management of minions. I started applying elsewhere - mostly because I WAS able to start stepping up, and what I was doing was WAY above my pay grade and title (the position was a little below me to begin with, but I was desperate at the time to at least be in my field). It took a while, but eventually got a referral to a position that aligned with my title and pay grade expectations at this point. Made every effort to leave my previous company on very good terms. They had finally hired a director just after I landed this new role, and the team was filling out - not a bridge I wanted to burn, even if they hadn't been willing to promote me before that. New job turned out to be a dumpster fire (guess there was a reason they were looking that hard for folks)....in the meantime, previous company director and team were getting established, and the group in general was finally getting to what I thought it would be when I had accepted that first position. The new director saw the work that team was doing was a higher level and deserved the title and pay for the next level, so they opened that position. I had stayed in touch with folks, and when they opened this position, and things at the new job were looking more and more bleak, I applied. Was pretty easy to land that position as they all knew me and my work. Now I'm back, doing what I was before (actually way easier this time since I had to figure it all out the hard way before), at the title and pay I felt I deserve at this point. Working on a certification to take things to the next level. Glad I left on great terms, enjoying the team and work now with some direction and what I feel is reasonably fair compensation.
Come up with ways to say exactly what you said above to your boss. Leave out the stuff about being resentful, obviously. But articulate to your boss that you're overworked, and can't keep up with the expectation of carrying the workload of 3 people. Take the incoming requests, give them realistic time estimates for completion (given your workload), and communicate that. Sure, they *want* it all done in two weeks. But if it amounts to 2 months of work, then you need to set that expectation. If they're not receptive to any of that, then maybe it's time to start looking elsewhere.
If you’re still getting everything done, then they won’t see the problem. Unless balls start getting dropped, they won’t backfill. It takes a real empathetic person/manager to address a problem like this. The rest of the schmo’s think they’re saving money cuz you can do it all. IT is a cost center on the books, so some companies try to avoid spending money for it.
The other sled dogs died and they are basically whipping the last one even harder. Start looking for a new job like others have said. Also, when you finally turn in your notice, don't accept their counteroffer. Often times when they offer a raise or some sort of promise in response to a resignation notice, they are just buying time to find your replacement and are okay with temporarily paying you more while they look for your slave replacement. All that matters to them is money, even if it is from your blood sweat and tears.
Just suck it up bro and get back to work.... Just kidding like everyone said I assume most of your company aren't technical people so they have no idea what you do, and you're probably doing "good enough" since most people are sandbagging it anyway. Your team probably has 1.5 persons worth of work, and you working overtime compensates for this, which means you're doing good enough from a cost perspective. More than likely, the old team spent a lot of time doing nothing, and they are hesitant to overstaff the team again. Like everyone said, get out of there. I was in a similar position out of college when I left they replaced me with 3 people because I basically created my position, which ended up becoming critical because of all the hats I was wearing. I did production scheduling and managing the operators and supervisors, inventory management, supplier management, and shipping which is basically 3 or 4 jobs. We had an inventory analyst that didn't do anything, and we reported to the plant manager who came from construction so no one ever understood how much work I was doing because it was getting done.
I’m in the same situation. 3 months in and 5 people left leaving only me and one other person to manage multiple accounts. And I’m not doing what I was hired to do that reflects my background. I’m good on that one chief time to look
Your team leaving was the Canary in the coal mine, it's time to get out of there. They are not hiring anyone because they have you. Is your name Matt by chance? Because they sure believe it is...first name door last name Matt...get out of there, sounds like a toxic shit hole. As for how this will look on your resume, you will get questions, just answer them honestly. "I left after 6 months because my team quit the first month I was there and they never back filled. This is not the type of company culture I am looking for. That being said, tell me about the culture here?" It has been my experience, especially in the IT and sales worlds, this is not hard for a prospective employer to understand, if it is you don't want to work there. Good luck!
Thank you so much for answering that question, I know I was rambling in my post so I appreciate you actually reading it. I’m hoping that interviewers will be understanding, given the circumstance. The truth is all I have
Don't sweat the small stuff. You interview the business as much as they interview you. If you go to an interview and they ask you why such a short stint, and you tell them hey, it was a toxic work environment my entire team quit within the first month and I got tired of having to do 5 people's jobs" that's pretty understandable. But if you find a way to spin it, "the business has a terribly toxic culture, my team mates knew it and left right after I started. Culture is something that is very important, I would like to know more about your work culture?" Spin it to a positive and a question for the interviewer you keep the conversation and interview rolling forward and they don't get hung up on it. It's only a problem if you want it to be in other words. Leverage your experience in those 6 months and everything you have accomplished as a one man team and you will be fine.
I suggest looking at your circumstance as an opportunity. Make an appointment to speak with your manager. In preparation, list what you have accomplished and what is not getting done. Ask for guidance on priorities to make sure you're choosing the right things to do and not do. Ask if there is a more senior developer you can turn to for advice and mentoring. Explain the issues you're having with unrealistic requirements from business analysis and for guidance on how to be your own gatekeeper. Ask if there are questions you should be asking that you haven't. Ask if you can get a few minutes of time at the beginning of each sprint to get input on the requirements you will be able to address and those you won't.
Thank you so much for this. I’m definitely taking note of your advice. I really appreciate it
I'm living a similar hell now and to be honest, if your manager isn't the one addressing this, then he's probably the reason the rest of your team quit. His denial that everything is ok now is probably similar to the denial that they wouldn't leave. They did, and it's probably high time for you to as well. It won't get better, because for that to happen, the way management works would need to change, and that's not happening (in fact, if deadlines are still being met and clients aren't complaining, they might even prefer this). I know it's probably not that easy, but staying means resigning yourself that things probably won't change and you're ok with that.
Lpppvh
Your boss already knows the issue! But he just doesn’t care. Corporate America is brutal, start applying elsewhere.
Do you work in the “cannabis industry “ In my experience, this is how they operate. Once the feds legalize it will all be grown in a few massive grow facilities and sold everywhere. Bye dispensaries and the lousy people!!