Clash in working styles

[usedtobeaylis]

How do you handle this at work when the clash is with your new line manager? I've been in my job for about ten years and it's always been pretty predictable, which has suited me. My line manager has a more 'chaotic' style of working, for lack of a better word, but I've just got on with it as best I can. I just found out I'm going to be working more closely with him which will have a direct impact on my work and work practice and to be honest my stomach just sank. There's no right or wrong way to work but I absolutely know this is a recipe for disaster for me. He's quite forceful and has already had made 'suggestions' that are inefficient and put more workload on me for no overall gain. I just feel quite despondent about it as recent experience tells me he will just bulldoze.

Are there ways for you to manage up and instil more structure ? Put agendas into your 121s, put columns with deadlines in and what you’ll be working on before next weeks meeting. Put meetings in for projects (if you prefer that) if he’s a bit more “catch up when we can” and you prefer regular check ins?

It’s hard to know without context, but what works for him works for him, you don’t HAVE to follow. (Unless your job is right hand man type and you have to fall in, but it’s unclear!)

We had this situation at work and we just let him crack on. And things are starting to fail, his decisions not ours. When I have spoken to other senior staff they told me same thing, if thats how youre told to do it then its not on you if it fails. It's very frustrating but he doesnt listen.

I had spreadsheets of all the items we were rejecting with exact reasons. It all tallied up automatically and previously 2 mangers took this to meetings. New manager scrapped it, said it was all on computer... it is isnt. There is only limited number of options as well. Of course he started emailing asking why was this rejected.... dont know dont have anything to track it.
He merged my job with someone else's. It's one of those jobs where you dont have much to do (so would help someone else) or have too much. We now struggle but he isn't bothered.

Part of this sounds quite similar to our situation where he's been making fairly significant changes that have a direct impact on things like having up to date information to hand. We're chasing our tails and I know for a fact it will be presented as us/me being unable to manage our workloads rather than our workloads becoming unmanageable due to unnecessary changes.

How does it impact how you feel about doing the job? I struggle with not feeling I've got the same kind of in-depth grasp of everything that's going on so feel quite unmoored.

Honestly, I used to enjoy it. I had pride in my work now I dont. I go do my job and go home. I honestly just sit back and watch it fail. It does frustrate me at times then theres other days i just think not my problem.

He has put us down to 1 machine from 2, again this is a more than one but not enough for two job but they arent bothered. So we all just sit back, dont have doors not our problem.

There have been other issues with him that have really made me give up. Hes stopped my progress but won't admit it.

That's really sad to hear. I also enjoy my job overall but this is really impacting that - I don't want to not care but being stonewalled when trying to address it is only going one way.

do you have processes outlined (even if you made them yourself)? then you can try your way, then try his way and show that the new way you are working (don't say it's his way) impacts productivity or quality of work?

I realised that when I kept addressing it and trying to keep on top of things I ended up pissed off all the time and low. Dont let it get to the point where its getting you down. Is there anyone higher up you trust that you can speak with? I actually pulled a director up about an issue with a printer that no one else was bothered about fixing. Surprisingly, its now been looked at.

We have found its his way or no way. It actually caused issues with another department that feeds our. We did it so it's easy for both of us but he just wanted what he does. We were behind (1 machine 😂) and he couldn't understand how this impacted getting new items we had rejected. Normally we are 2 days infront so would have replacements before they are needed. But because he has cut us down sometimes we are just infront and he cant understand how this effects us and just argued with me about it... so I gave up. Other department refused his way anyway 😂

Luckily I have applied for another department and a different one has asked me to think about going in theirs.