To ask what I should do about this work situation?

[1980tastic]

I work in a large,complex team structure as a rare management level female. I am professionally qualified above my average male colleagues (think: PhD rather than masters). I say this because I have extensive work experience of making stuff, as well as academic credibly, and have never had any performance concerns raised during my career. I'm well regarded as someone who gets things done, but works under tight industry regulations and I never cut corners.

I recently joined a project team where my project manager has specifically requested that we build a (let's say) blue car. He stipulated it very bluntly as the key requirement.

To build the car, I have to work with a variety of craftsmen, and a powerful group at this place are the metal workers.

I recently did a massive, stressful presentation to various internal groups (think of it like a design proposal). In it, I outlined my proposal per the industry regs - I follow the standard procedure for building a blue car.

After the presentation, a colleague that I previously worked with (&whom I trust 100%) tipped me off that the metal work group had had their regular meeting and called my team out for not understanding car making, that the team leadership needs to change, we haven't used our assigned metal worker well, we don't understand car design, and (worst) that the car should be pink. They said in this fairly public group meeting that we're wasting time building blue, and all sorts of negative stuff like that. My colleague reported this to me as a personal friend and has nothing to gain by stirring crap.

I have to meet with the metal workers at a big meeting on Tuesday and I'm sitting here wondering how to play it . I'm so upset at being publicly talked about on a conference call of 100+ various workers. I've never had issues like this before.

I'm autistic so I find these sorts of clashes really difficult to navigate professionally on the rare occasions they pop up. I don't know if to seek the metal work leadership out 1-2-1 beforehand, or keep quiet, or address it in the meeting. This is an employer who has recently been pushing it's respect & diversity HR drives.

My manager won't get involved, he's laid back and I don't want him to see I'm struggling here. But at the same time 90% of the negative stuff is about the direction my project manager has directed us in, which I need to follow on.

P.s. my employer doesn't know I'm diagnosed (as an adult) autistic. I got a lot of coping mechanisms over time so manage to mask quite well day to day

I can't help - but wish you (sincerely) the best of luck.

I would try and speak to the metal workers leadership beforehand - you can set out expectations and why it needs to be blue and ask if there are any concerns. Pick them off 1 by one of needed to ensure buy in. Don't leave it until a potential humiliating meeting as you'll feel worse.

Sounds tricky. Maybe start by explaining the brief that it has to be a blue car. If the things the metal workers are complaining about are non negotiable parts of the instructions, they need to understand that and work within those boundaries. Do you agree with any of the issues they have raised or are they just being awkward/arrogant? And you are only aware of this because of your friend so is it really that important - surely they would say it to your face if the concerns were genuine? Or it could just be some egocentric showing off a bit

I don't have high level experience but I am currently doing a leadership course and currently doing a managing teams workbook.

I would not initiate a conversation based upon 'I heard 'x' from 'y''

They are allowed team meetings, they are allowed to have a view/ opinion and discuss it. Even if it is 100+ people.

When you meet the department I would listen to their concerns already have my reply to these prepared but communicate by expressing that

1. The project has been set by 'big boss'
2. The stipulation is that is it 'blue'
3. How do you think we can make this work? (draw on their expertise)
4. Even if you already have a problem and solution in your mind if you are working in a team allow them to come to their own solution and either utilise it or debate your solution (subtly) over theirs

1. Most importantly create a task force with people from each area assisting you. Choose the people not necessarily on seniority but on skills needed in the team dynamic (you may have to google as their are a few theories on how to build a team)

It is your project to manage and you have skills and expertise but you should utilise the team not dictate

Hope this helps

Wow, this is hard.
I would remain extremely professional as you have been, and use Monday to prepare pre empts for each of the issues that they have raised. EG the car needs to be blue because.
Start the meeting with a presentation, with the pre empts "hidden" in it (IE not just that list on its own) and ask them to wait for questions at the end.
During the presentation, mention that you have not received any feedback and want to encourage it but via a process so that everything can be weighed up.
Also, make sure you exclude one really obvious thing - they will then ask about it and you can include it as "their" idea even if it was yours lol.
If they interrupt say you are short on time and as the process is so complex you really need to stick to some sort of structure.
Hope this helps, i would find it hard too. Will add more things if I can think of them

Since you are management level, I would socialise your project details with the metal workers management to ensure a clear understanding of what the project entails and what your role is. You could do that on Monday, and explain in your Tuesday meeting that management have been briefed and are content to proceed.

I agree with shakeitoff, don't raise anything based on hearsay.

I take it the blue car requirement has come from the customer (be it internal or external) and the PM is also following those requirements? Or had the PM decided to go with it?

If it's the latter I would take onboard what the metal workers are saying and raise it back to PM.

If it's come from the customer then there's no explanation needed from your side - customer come first.

The stuff around not utilising the team well- again ask for feedback and see what you can do, if there's a way to improve the utilisation then that's great. That's actually a good achievement that you report back to your boss.

The other stuff sounds really bitchy and I don't think anyone would actually raise it next week, it would be really unprofessional and say a lot more about them. If they did, standard response 'let's take that offline'

Don't take any of it personally, i don't think anything they've said is a reflection on your ability.**

Thanks everyone.

To answer a few questions, the project manager directive to design the blue car was a non negotiable requirement stipulated by industry regs. It's not something that the project manager has determined, it's just that (say) some areas get away with building non-blue cars because they never get produced to the point where the colour is checked by regulator bodies. And they work just fine. Customers happy. But technically we should all be designing blue cars if we adhere to pure legislation interpretations (and I've only ever worked in projects where there would be hell to pay if we didn't stick to the blue requirement, it's literally not acceptable in case the compliance with colour codes is queried).

The other stuff is highly subjective i.e. if you know anything about building blue cars, the comments about the teams approach (my approach) showing a lack of knowledge isn't really valid.

I've read the suggestions here on how to tackle it next week, thank you. My immediate thought was to go in bluntly and explain what I'd heard and why the critical comments were literally incorrect (showing the relevant regulations on-screen) and not delivered in an acceptable channel. But I can see that those techniques may be interpreted as escalating the "fight" (which I don't want, but I do need to communicate that blue is the choice and to stop the bad mouthing).

I'll try some of the more subtle constructive suggestions here. Thank you.