to feel I'm being a bit scapegoated?

[BusyCee]

I work at a small local attraction doing admin, inc marketing and social media. I do just two mornings a week. The last thing my boss said to me last week - when I was giving a summary of next weeks tasks - was 'yes but we need to promote Easter first'. So Friday I post about the good forecast and some pics of last years events.

Checked FB on Friday eve and we have x5 new reviews. All mention the long queues and poor service. Some are kinder than others. I email boss and ask if she'd like me to respond. No response. Sat morning I texted too. Sat eve I get a longish email, clearly peeved, outlining what she wants me to say on FB. Including the phrase 'with hindsight we realize posting about Friday being the only good weather day of the weekend wasn't our best idea'. An obvious dig at the post I made on Friday, and apparently suggesting I'm somehow responsible for the long queues on Friday.

AIBU unreasonable to think that pretty much everyone would know what the forecast is for the weekend? And also that if your last words are about promoting Easter, then it's not unreasonable for the person responsible for social to post about it. And to think that if you are concerned about visitor numbers over a BH weekend you'd let your marketing person know?

If the attraction can't handle queues and give good service, that's not your fault.

A dig at the post? Is it? They used we which is taking responsibility as an organisation and not laying the blame. But something more positive such as we were so pleased with the interest in the future we hope to do x y z to improve the queues etc and an apology (future discount voucher to those disappointed?)

Yep that's a dig at the post. I would say that you reflected the weather forecast and that you would suggest that posting something about an improved queuing/ticket system might be a more positive message.

Thanks. Not unreasonable for me to have posted on Friday though, right? I had no reason to worry about their capacity to manage crowds, and as I say her parting words were about promoting Easter weekend events.

I want to raise it with her when I'm next back in the office. I'm not an idiot. Had a v successful career prior to the children, and this job. I find I get a rushed brief from her, or only 50% of the info or not enough time and then her attitude Towards me suggests she thinks I don't know what I'm doing. It's undermining my confidence - which isn't great at the moment anyway.

You both knew Easter was coming - why wasn't this discussed in advance? I had oversight of social media in a previous role and would have weekly updates with my social media manager where we would run through the exact wording of any posts she planned to make. I'd say it's your boss' responsibility to put this sort of thing in place but no reason you can't.

Isitginoclock - she's not a fan of meetings. To be fair she's very very busy. I often come in to 'to-do' lists written on the back of envelopes.

I'll suggest it again though. I agree that poor communication is the culprit. Not sure she agrees though - I get the sense she just thinks everyone else is inept.

I'd have expected a professional outfit to have their Easter promotions in place or at least organised a couple of months before. Your boss sounds clueless.

Don't know really. Last week the discussion was on Friday or earlier? Leaving it til Friday is a bit odd as lots of people would be planning what to do. I guess if you put 'come on down, it's your only chance today as the forecast is crap' that was a bit silly?

Nope. Put 'a lovely day for a bunny hunt!'

OP - you only work two mornings a week. By checking the pages and contacting your boss on Friday night and again Saturday morning, you are making a rod for your own back. You are effectively 'taking ownership' of the problem, so naturally the boss will take every opportunity to blame you for everything.

People like to blame part-timers for things, even especially because you often aren't there when the you-know-what hits the fan. They have to make it your fault you see, as otherwise it would have to be theirs.

Certainly I think most people were well aware that Friday was going to be the best day of the weekend weatherwise, seeing that it was mentioned regularly on the radio and also on TV weather forecasts. Massive is right, she should focus on the fact that she was inadequately prepared for an increase in visitor numbers.

Her response is peculiar. She's basically asking you to put "encouraging you to come wasn't our best idea". Is she very young?! You definitely need to be addressing the queue problem not the popularity. You need a response that says "we were delighted that so many people came and next year propose xyz to combat the queue problems" (more attractions/staggered entry times etc etc)

I don't think you should put her response. She's trying to put you down but in the process is making herself (and the attraction) look foolish.

If it is any consolation to you, we went to a very big (& normally well-organise do) attraction on Friday which also struggled with the sheer number of visitors and horrendous queues in the cafe.

Everyone, like us, had seen the weather forecast and knew Friday would be the only fine day. Really nothing to do with your post.

Getting people to come on Friday = good, surely? Now the issue is to get people to come on Monday ... and improve the poor customer service.

You cannot be reprimanded for actually having incentivised people to come!! That would be madness!!

And, yes, you were not eactly letting the cat out of the bag revealing the weather forecast for the holiday!

If that was a dig, your boss sounds ... highly strung.

The reality is that relatively few people would have turned up on Saturday and Sunday anyway, because they'd have looked at the weather and/or listened to the day's forecast. So what you achieved was to bring in on Friday a few people who would otherwise have planned to go on Saturday and Sunday but who would probably have decided not to as soon as they looked out of their windows. You did your employer a favour.