On work trip abroad. Colleague gone crazy

[Eastie77]

Just that really. I'm abroad for work, 2 days in a major European city with a client meeting tomorrow morning. I've travelled with a female colleague who, like me, has 2 young DC. When we found out about this trip she messaged me to say she was desperately looking forward to it as she needs a break from the DC and is run ragged juggling everything. I said I totally sympathised and she replied that we should use this trip as an opportunity to get rat arsed on the company's money. I just laughed.

Arrived at the airport this morning for our early flight to find she had already had downed 2 pints but was at least sober. She kicked up a fuss on the plane as there was no alcohol on sale - not massively but enough to embarrass me. Landed and she bought more alcohol and has generally been increasingly drunk, hyper and shrill since saying this is 'her time'. We arrived at the hotel at 3pm and were meant to go over our presentation for tomorrow but I've had zero input from her. I need her to contribute a bunch of slides and practice a demo of the technical solution we are meant to be presenting to the client but she is not playing ball and has just been propping up the bar. I'm stressed. It looks as if I will have to do her slides and I don't have enough knowledge so emailing colleagues back home. I don't want to speak to my manager about this. She is normally quite conscientious

I don't mind people (hot) messing up their own presentations, trips and lives.

I just don't want them to mess up mine too!

I guess the people who expect the boss to have checked the presentation with a red pen also think any minor dispute with colleagues should be sorted by reporting them to the hr lady.
This is work. Not school.

I'd consider filming this idiot OP, purely for your own protection, if she starts calling you a Liar etc
That’s outrageously bad advice and intrusive and veering into swivel eyed territory
if colleague isn’t collaborating you escalate it,you don’t film it to use just in case

Oh my! How the fuck do you know whether the colleague has post natal depression?
You think it’s perfectly acceptable to get pissed on company money, screw up the presentation to the point where the people you are meant to be selling to have to help you out? And the OP is a bitch for rightfully being both pissed off and feeling let down by the sheer unprofessionalism?

You are football pisshead aren’t you?

Fuck the fuck off bythebaytoday yes you can swear on MN. Troll somewhere else.

@bythebaytoday
I’ve reported your post. You got another thing wrong today. Your post does transcend Mumsnet rules.

@bythebaytoday might I suggest putting down the alcohol, and picking up a dictionary? There’s a dear.

Are you hungover bythebay by any chance?

You seem to know a lot about the OP's collègues situation?

Regardless, depression isn't justification for landing a collègue in the shit and acting totally unprofessionally.

That’s outrageously bad advice and intrusive and veering into swivel eyed territory if colleague isn’t collaborating you escalate it,you don’t film it to use just in case

She's likely on CCTV anyway

🙄🙄

It's a sad time for academia when this is what a representing it

Just off topic how are those posts being deleted so quickly? Did I trigger that because I reported with comment “calling op a b*”?

Presumably the colleague needs the job too. And unless she pulls her weight there may be no job to be had. The employer isn't a rich, benign uncle.

CCTV is entirely different to filming a colleague as an insurance policy.just in case
Even if the colleague is on cctv it won’t just routinely saved and handed over

MNHQ will just be keeping an eye is all.

Munmy

OP you are not a bitch.

I'm glad the presentation has gone well despite your colleague letting you down. In your shoes I'd probably wait to be asked for more details rather than volunteer them to management, but I wouldn't protect her. Your colleague might have underlying mental health issues or alcohol issues which she isn't addressing, this might be the wake up call she needs. Or she might just be a tit with no idea how to behave in a professional way.

Many years ago when I was starting my career, a woman the same age as me and same rank got horribly drunk at the evening social event of a conference. An entire science related professional body is now barred from this venue as a result of her vomiting and aggression. I'd rather be stuffy and upright than remembered as that girl.

mummy I reported too but the post were already marked deleted. Very speedy!

Id either do the work and take credit for it or leave her hanging at the presentation and let her tank it and be sure to let your manager know you did your bit.

CCTV is entirely different to filming a colleague as an insurance policy.just in case Even if the colleague is on cctv it won’t just routinely saved and handed over

still on film and proves the point.

Stuff all this creative „hot mess“ rubbish.

Genuinely creative artists, musicians, writers etc. are incredibly disciplined. They might get up to all sorts later but they take their craft seriously.

As OP takes her work seriously. I hope it went well today.

Stuff all this creative „hot mess“ rubbish

Yup, she’s not a hot mess she’s just a mess.

It only proves the point if you can get hold of the footage, which there would be essentially zero chance of.

Easily and others have it. Well done pulling it all off, OP. Hope the/any fallout at the office is ok on you.

Embarrassingly enough the client had to correct and assist her on a couple of occasions when she got stuck navigating through the platform

This is a terrible outcome, quite frankly.

I think the manager is going to want to know why you didn't communicate the issues and what you personally were doing to work around them. It's a huge pity he heard from the colleague at home first.