Job role changed drastically - what do I do?

[4teensandababy]

This is my first post so please bear with me!

I’ve been with my current employer for 1.5 years. It’s a lovely (small company) and the people I work with are great.

We’ve recently had a new shareholder join who is a large corporate company owner. What was a lovely working environment, has now been turned into a report writing, graph making, pressurised environment.

My role before they joined was a bit of everything. I did Business Development, Admin, Account Management and Sales. I loved the variety of my job and the clients I speak to on a daily basis. I am also very good at my job, and since I’ve been here I’ve done really well.

I’ve now been told that my role is to change. I am now to do 100% sales. This will involve telesales calls (targeted on doing 100 a day), client meetings weekly (Before I only did them when necessary as it’s not necessary for what we do. Plus I have children so can’t be out of the office outside of office hours and don’t have a company car but I am expected to use my own car), new weekly targets set which would earn me commission (I’ve already told them that I can’t earn commission as it will affect my tax credits and I’ve not had commission before), no more admin work, no more speaking to my current clients and literally doing Sales all day every day.

I’ve tried explaining that I’m not a ‘Sales’ type person. I’ve only ever done consultative sales which is about relationship building, not hardcore pressurised sales. When I tried to explain this I was basically told it’s tough and if I don’t like it I can leave.

This wasn’t the job I signed up for when I first joined, and it’s making me anxious now when I’m at work as I don’t like this kind of pressure.

I guess I’m asking for your help – what would you do?

I'd hand in my notice. The job you were doing doesn't exist any more. Unless someone else is doing it?

I think you're right. I'm loathed to hand my notice in until I find another job however - just in case!
Not sure who is doing the other bits I was doing before, or who is expected to do it. I'm not even allowed to answer the phone anymore as it's a waste of my time and I should be doing more pro-active things. I wouldn't mind, but there are 3 of us in this office. We all did our fair share, and now all being told different things.

Someone else better informed than I will be along shortly, but I don't think they can just change the terms of your employment contract in this way.

I’ve tried explaining that I’m not a ‘Sales’ type person. I’ve only ever done consultative sales which is about relationship building, not hardcore pressurised sales. When I tried to explain this I was basically told it’s tough and if I don’t like it I can leave

This is the sort of unilateral change that could constitute Constructive Dismissal - the fly in the ointment is that you can't take it forward to Tribunal as you don't have 2 years' continuous employment.

You could play a waiting game, see how quickly they implement the change and continue to express concerns that it isn't why you were recruited.

What will happen to all the work you currently do? Who will take those duties away from you?

daisychain01 The work I currently do is being given to the other two people in the office (neither of whom have the time to do it, and it's not their job description either)
My current manager (who has managed the company for 15 years) is no longer my line manager, and I now have to report to a Sales Manager from the corporate company. I'm not allowed to do work for her when she asks (as was the norm before), and should I ever need to call in sick, I now have to call this other person who isn't based in our office and not her.
I loved my job - I believe wholeheartedly in what we do and the service we offer. I loved the variety, I loved the learning (it's all based around compliance and the legal ramifications) and I love the people here (the new people aside).
I'm not sure how much longer I can 'stick it out' as I'm miserable when I get home, I'm stressing about these unrealistic targets and it's now affecting the DC.
I know I need to get out, it's just frustrating as I absolutely loved it before the new people stuck their oar in.

If you feel it's worth investing any further energy in improving the current situation, it may be worth getting the other two office based people together and the manager who's supposedly setting your role specs and get things more clearly defined as to who is doing what, and what training is available to fill the gaps.

The situation sounds very suspicious to me, like they are setting you up to fail, so you'll resign - why put you into a sales role, which is surely all about bringing revenue into the company when you aren't motivated or experienced.

Otherwise just toe the line and move to a new job when you find something more suitable. Shame but sometimes the staff never get to know the reason why changes happen so it can all seem illogical.

Are you part time? Could they be trying to manage you out?

It's annoying but practically I don't think there is an awful lot you can do about it apart from making your feelings known that you are not happy with your new role. Start looking for a new job as it doesn't look promising that things may improve. Try not to hand in your notice till you find another job.

I definitely agree with daisy, I do think they're setting me up to fail. I've been given completely unrealistic targets & KPI's.
I'm full time, Mon - Fri 9-5pm, I did once ask for flexible working hours but they made it so difficult and kept asking me for the same things over and again that I gave up.
I do need to find another job and get out of here asap. But not going to leave for the sake of it.

I'm not sure I agree about setting you up to fail. Why would they do that? What's in it for them? If their goal is to get rid of you they could terminate your employment today by just giving you notice.

Focus your efforts on two things. Finding a new job, and getting whatever you can out of this one. Might be new skills, a decent reference, or even just a pay cheque until you have something new.

I was offering a possible reason, That's all.

Has your old position been made redundant? Is someone else expected to now do all your old tasks? The answers to these would help clarify your position.

Are you talking to me there Daisy? Of course you were just offering a possible reason, nothing wrong with that. And of course that exact thing happens all the time. But usually when the employer will need lots of evidence of poor performance in order to dismiss someone, because there is no other way of getting rid of them more easily.

The employer here doesn't need to push the OP to resign or generate evidence of poor performance in order to be able to dismiss her, so why bother going through it?

I wouldn't have posted disagreeing with that suggestion, if it had just been a suggestion you made. I was posting disagreeing because the OP leapt on it and feels that is definitely what's happening. Therefore I felt it worth pointing out that the employer has nothing to gain by doing that.

I'm sorry this is happening to you, having experienced the same thing myself.

I approached it with the mindset that Flowery is coming from; new skills to add to my CV. I gave it a year but it turned into a job I hated so after 11 years with the company, I handed my notice in. It wasn't a decision I took lightly and I did exhaust all other avenues first.

It's one of those vexing problems, flowery, no rhyme or reason why they would need to set 4teens up to fail (and I was minded to clarify upthread about no ability to take it forward to ET with only 1.5 years' service), but then why give a sales role to someone who doesn't want it and hasn't the specific skill set. It defies. And if I was in 4teens*' shoes I would feel like I was being set up to fail - that was my only point. We could speculate that the manager may not have the guts to cut the ties, there are many people who can't face doing that.

That's the challenge of some of these scenarios, there's a hard-facts legal aspect, but there's also a humancentric piece that is nuanced and hard to figure out when we aren't in that setting. So making suggestions or possibilities can be fraught with risk and supposition

Sorry -" it defies logic " is what I meant to type, long day on the 'hamster wheel' I'm afraid.

"We could speculate that the manager may not have the guts to cut the ties, there are many people who can't face doing that."

That is very very true!