Being pushed out of design job

[CreativeChris]

Hi

I've been a designer in a medium sized company for the past 8 years. I've had yearly appraisals and they have always been content with my work.

Recently though a new management team have been brought in, they brought in old contacts of theirs to work with them and brought in new ways of working - designs to be completed quicker and in consultation with different managers, etc.

They are taking me through a process dressed up as performance management but in reality they just want to get rid of me as they feel I don't fit in. They therefore reject designs that previous managers would have liked and tell me I'm not working quickly enough now.

Obviously design is a subjective skill and hard to analyse output although they thought it was okay for 8 years. Can an employer use this process to get rid of someone?

Thanks

Yes in theory - but they have to give you a 'fair chance' to improve as you have over 2 years service.

It can a horrible drawn out process over months and years. I recommend that you keep notes of all meetings regarding performance, copies of any praise that you get for use in your defence and also consider applying for new jobs outside of the company. Most people who I know who have gone through performance management (in a different field) went on to get new jobs elsewhere. A few people did manage to turn it around and hang on in there long enough for the manager to move on.

Yes, they can, it happened to me. I was a designer too, still am. I now work for myself and am busier and happier than ever. And you're right it is subjective and if someone is determined to dislike your work they will. Constructive criticism is fine but it sounds like they want their staff in and you out. Could you do like I did and go freelance?

Are they giving you adequate briefs for the jobs? If not, you could proactively introduce a new design brief template to help clients give you the info you need to match their vision.

I'd also say that design ages quickly and what was great 8 years ago would be looking dated now. Have a think about whether your aesthetic has kept up with design trends?

Do you know I did exactly that Ramona? Made all these tracking sheets etc, it made not one jot of difference. The turning point for me came when in a one to one my manager stated "You WILL fail" and I realised the decision had already been made. Nothing I could do would change it. I went off with stress and agreed on a settlement then moved on. Nothing on earth would induce me to go back to employed work now, I have far more control over what I do now and ironically I get to do far more creative and exciting projects now than when I was in that job. I also have two of their competitors as clients which gives me a bit of satisfaction!