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modfish
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modfish

Anon

Tolerance for IT issues

I am currently a network manager at my corp. job, we just got a new CEO at the helm. In his first few days in the office he reported some technical issues, 1 – was audio quality on both phones in his office. 2 – his laptop wouldn't have a network connection when docked and it only worked on wifi.

One of my engineers went to investigate these issues and said the following

We checked both phones in the office for audio quality, at this time both phone lines sound clear. I also checked the connection to your desk phone with a laptop and it is working, I docked the test laptop and the network connection was in a working state. Some docks have been known to be troublesome so the dock was replaced with a new dock, otherwise it could be an issue with the laptop

The next time you are in the office try and dock your laptop to test the network connectivity, make sure your Wi-Fi is disabled upon docking. If you still are experiencing network issues, let us know.

The next email we get from the CEO is this:

someone, et al.,
 
Here’s what my testing of the laptop/docking station and visual inspection of the cable plant yielded:
 
1.The laptop still does not connect via physical cable plant.  Fortunately the wireless access is working again.  If there’s not a known straightforward fix, I’ll live with it given this is an extremely important week for me and the company.  If you’re confident it’s not a docking station or cable plant issue, it appears to be a laptop HW or SW issue.

2. No CAT5 cables at my desk or conference table were swapped out. 

3. The CAT5 cable under the conference table is badly elbowed due to excessive strain from the weight of the haphazard installation of the cables, power supplies, etc. under the conference table.  The CAT5 standard calls for no more than 25lbs of force to be applied before signal and thus bandwidth degradation.  Elbowed CAT5 is not good due to how the signal works and is associated with the twists per square inch.  I swapped out this cable and reworked the installation under the table to remove tension on the line. 

4.     Visual inspection of the RJ45 jack in the floor box under the conference table revealed the jack is not stable.  You can easily pull the jack straight out of the floor box.  Hence this is another point in the cable plant where noise and instability may be introduced.

Checking for only line noise is not a thorough way to test a cable plant.  Especially on network segments subject to movement like bumping from feet under the table and stress and strain from weight place on the line due to poor installation.  Simply put, I expect more attention to detail.  I’m not asking anyone here to do anything I haven’t done myself or still willing to do even as the CEO.  The salient point is as CEO should not have to work at this level or worry about matters like this.
 
Enough said.

This email was sent to me, my entire team and the Director. The first thing that I thought of was that we don't have cat5 anywhere we cat6 but besides that It actually caused a bit of a rub because every time someone would try to get in the office while he was there they would get denied “he is to busy right now” I feel like this is adding pressure to management which will translate into pressure being applied to the staff. My overall thought was that if is no patients for some mistakes when working on technical issues then why do anything at all? Please excuse that line because thats me venting. The concern I had was that if he is treating us that way in that sort of situation then how is going to treat others in management when advertise comes? It feels as though the environment is turning toxic.

Another thing I want to add is that in 2014 my group accomplished a lot, they completed 27 large scale projects. None of those accomplishments were recognized, out of the 27 projects we did have 3 project which did not have a positive outcome. The impact from the failure were minimal but for each one of those they became a hot topic. My Director want to move whatever we can to the cloud because in his mind someone can be responsible when issues occur, I now understand fully why he want to do this.

Thoughts...

Wily_One
Premium Member
join:2002-11-24
San Jose, CA

Wily_One

Premium Member

Ah yes, CEOs are a different breed, but you have to be prepared for that when you do C-level support. What's worse, this guy seems semi-knowledgable, and we all know that makes the worst kind of user to deal with.

You need access to his laptop to fully troubleshoot the issue, but you're not getting that access. I feel for you and your team. The ticketing system or whatever you use should emphasize the fact that you can't do proper troubleshooting without access to the device(s) in question.

However he does have some valid points, which you now know you have to address every time you deal with him. Run a cable tester on all cables, test all jacks, etc. Going forward you and your staff need to be extremely thorough, both procedurally and with how they document it.

The reality is the CEO doesn't have to be nice to the staff, but you have to be nice to him. That's just a fact. Luckily not all CEOs act that way, but it's the hand you've been dealt.
applerule
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join:2012-12-23
Northeast TN
(Software) pfSense
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applerule to modfish

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I have no response other than I'm sorry and hope it works out.

At my previous job I was basically an SCCM admin, and when we got a new director he was very similar. I had to have meetings with him individually over the absolute most ridiculous stuff. No praise, no reasoning or advise for improvement, just BS. I had meetings over things like why the default search engine is set to bing in IE. He wanted me to do crap like pin the entire office enterprise suite to the taskbar by default.

My solution was to get the hell out. Unfortunately that isn't always an option.

Just make sure you and your team CYA and hopefully he will move on to other areas. I'm sorry I don't have much to add.
Moffetts
join:2005-05-09
San Mateo, CA

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Moffetts to modfish

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Sounds like a douchebag. I always love when people complain about not having time to deal with the situation, but they still have plenty of time to write long-winded emails about it on how it should be handled.
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
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join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp to modfish

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said by modfish :

"he is to busy right now"
My overall thought was that if is no patients for some mistakes

As technology gods we can sometimes develop an insensitivity to the needs of our customer. We should be ready to admit that there might be some room for improving our response and follow up process. This is one of those cases where "the customer is always right", because when the customer is wrong you might find yourself with no customer. You need to fix his issues even if it means that you did not actually fix anything. Follow up. Investigate. Return a professionally worded e-mail expressing concern and display an eagerness to get to the bottom of the problem. Sounds to me like he pointed out some specific stuff that warrants a second look. Check that shit very thoroughly. Document your testing and findings. Present the new boss with another opportunity to find a problem. Show him that you are not an incompetent dumbass like his last technician. That is the assurance he is asking for.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

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Nightfall to Moffetts

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I have worked in IT almost 20 years. In that time, I have always believed that IT is a customer service oriented department. Gone are the days when IT gets put in a broom closet or IT professionals get to avoid interacting with other employees.

That being said, there are many ways you can approach this. The obvious choice is to have a meeting with the CEO and have a heart to heart HONEST talk with him. You will gain much more respect for each other, and respect is the key. Admit your mistakes, but also stress to give your team the opportunity to fix these issues without involving everyone in the senior leadership. It really is counter intuitive and doesn't make anyone look good.

If you are genuine, most people are going to be willing to work with you. There is a chance that this guy won't work with you, but you may as well level with him and see what happens.

Aside from that, many others here have great suggestions.

Your team should be documenting any work done on his helpdesk tickets.

Your team can't cut corners on the work in his department.

Always look for ways to improve your processes.
mikefxu
join:2004-10-05
Titusville, FL

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mikefxu to modfish

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Update you resume.
JoelC707
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join:2002-07-09
Lanett, AL

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While he may sound knowledgeable he clearly has only gleaned partial or incorrect knowledge. Case in point:
said by modfish :

Visual inspection of the RJ45 jack in the floor box under the conference table revealed the jack is not stable. You can easily pull the jack straight out of the floor box. Hence this is another point in the cable plant where noise and instability may be introduced.

Unless he is referring to being able to remove the patch cable from the keystone jack (which means the patch cable has likely lost it's retaining clip and just needs to be replaced), the keystone jack not being properly installed in the plate has NOTHING to do with noise or instability.

I would ignore the reference to "cat 5" cables, saying "we don't use cat 5, we only use cat 6" is basically splitting hairs. Think of "cat 5" as a generic term for any twisted pair Ethernet cable.

As for this:
said by modfish :

...every time someone would try to get in the office while he was there they would get denied "he is to busy right now"...

The dick in me wants to tell you to reply with "well I guess his urgent issue has magically resolved itself, I'll just go close his helpdesk ticket as resolved" but that won't help matters.

Seriously though, you need a way to close or mark tickets in your helpdesk as "denied access". That way when it's STILL not fixed and he wants to know why you can show him proof where you've attempted to fix it and were not allowed to. If he doesn't accept that, next time you or something goes by and is denied access (presumably by his assistant?) get it in writing from them that THEY are denying you access and/or have them call him and get it straight from HIM that he doesn't want you there right now. He can't deny his own words (well he can but that's the point you find another job...).
said by modfish :

None of those accomplishments were recognized, out of the 27 projects we did have 3 project which did not have a positive outcome. The impact from the failure were minimal but for each one of those they became a hot topic.

Typical.... You know the old saying, "a happy customer tells no one, an unhappy customer tells everyone". That's what's happening here, when things go right it's business as usual but when something goes wrong, no matter how small, its the end of the world. If your director thinks moving to the cloud will fix that because someone else is responsible he's sadly delusional. They will still find a way to complain and maybe even blame you guys for it, even if its nothing more than "why did we do that in the first place, couldn't we have done a better job?"
ke4pym
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join:2004-07-24
Charlotte, NC

ke4pym to modfish

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said by modfish :

My Director want to move whatever we can to the cloud because in his mind someone can be responsible when issues occur, I now understand fully why he want to do this.

This seems to be a common excuse for moving things to the cloud.
HarryH3
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join:2005-02-21

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HarryH3 to modfish

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There is a very simple solution to "he's too busy". Just ask his assistant to schedule a time when he and his laptop will be available. DOCUMENT this request, with her name, in the ticket. Then make CERTAIN that someone is available and waiting outside his door at the agreed upon time. C-level people have a LOT on their plate and are often making more per hour than you make per day or even week. They didn't get where they are by being nice. It's the nature of the job. Yes, you have to bend over backwards for them, but that's just the way it is.

DarkLogix
Texan and Proud
Premium Member
join:2008-10-23
Baytown, TX

DarkLogix

Premium Member

said by HarryH3:

There is a very simple solution to "he's too busy". Just ask his assistant to schedule a time when he and his laptop will be available. DOCUMENT this request, with her name, in the ticket. Then make CERTAIN that someone is available and waiting outside his door at the agreed upon time. C-level people have a LOT on their plate and are often making more per hour than you make per day or even week. They didn't get where they are by being nice. It's the nature of the job. Yes, you have to bend over backwards for them, but that's just the way it is.

That, or post someone from IT to stand there till he has time.
Equip them with a fluke cable quality tester and any other bits of gear to ensure the cable is 150% perfect and to test and fix all of his issues.
tomdlgns
Premium Member
join:2003-03-21

tomdlgns

Premium Member

said by DarkLogix:

Equip them with a fluke cable quality tester and any other bits of gear to ensure the cable is 150% perfect and to test and fix all of his issues.

i can see this scenario happening...CEO wants the drops working, IT department gets a bid to have drops fixed/certified/etc...bid comes back, way too much money and the CEO doesn't know why. stuff like that happens all the time. of course, when the drops were installed, making sure they are certified (more than just pin to pin) should be part of the quote/job. to many electricians that don't know about low voltage end up doing the work, because they are cheaper, and they end up not having the correct tools to terminate/test and certify.

if the cables are as bad as the CEO says, then he has a valid point, but if the drops were manipulated by a user and nobody reported that, you can't really blame IT. to many unknowns to say anything more.

as far as fixing his computer, everyone has made great points. it sounds like the first tech did everything they could do w/o having the CEOs laptop. i concur with what everyone else said, document that he wasn't available to have his laptop looked at. CYA.

Lanik
Lab-nik

join:2001-06-25
San Francisco, CA

Lanik to modfish

to modfish
This has been said before but you need to start to CYA double time. Doesn't matter if he calls or emails or however he gets a hold of you and your staff you need to create a paper trail. Even if its opening a ticket that says "CEO called and asked for a keyboard". I know your time and your teams time is limited but you need to schedule an appointment with him to fix this problem. And document anything that happens during the scheduling process. Does he ask you to set a different time etc the key is CYA. If all else fails show up at his office and let his assistant know you're here to fix his problem and if he/she says he's too busy tell them you'll wait. I know this is painful but you need to show that you're making an effort to fix his problem. If he doesn't make time for you then you need to document that and repeat the process again until he makes time for you.

As for advice on how to deal with him I say kill him with kindness. I'm sure you know what that means. Be as nice as humanly possible even though he's being a jerk and document everything. Best case scenario he might gain more respect for you worse case people will see him for the jerk that he is. Either way don't expect him to change his attitude.
JoelC707
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join:2002-07-09
Lanett, AL

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I'm curious, is the assistant the one telling you he is too busy? If so, is he/she actually contacting the CEO to let them know you are there or are they just giving out a "go away" blanket statement? Also, how much time is passing between his request and someone showing up to work on it? If it's a quick turn around, and especially if the assistant is not even contacting the CEO, inform the assistant that "you were just contacted by the CEO about an issue and you are here to fix it" and see if that gets their attention.

It really depends on whether the assistant is actually contacting the CEO to let them know you are there. If they are and the CEO still says no, that's when you need to document your ass off. On the other hand, if the assistant isn't doing this, the assistant is your problem (and while still needs to be handled with care, doesn't need to be handled the same way as the CEO IMO) and you need to find some way to get the assistant to step out of the way and let it be the CEO's decision if they are "too busy" or not (which is where my suggestion in the above paragraph comes in).
HarryH3
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join:2005-02-21

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One other thought... Whatever you do, do NOT close any of his tickets until HE says that the problem is resolved. Yeah, I know it will hit your time-to-close metric, but that is easier to explain than being unemployed because he decides that IT needs some changes.

maartena
Elmo
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join:2002-05-10
Orange, CA

maartena to modfish

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said by modfish :

Thoughts...

Dear CEO,

Our entire 2015 budget has been spoken for by (x large scale projects) and because this years budget has gone down from 2014, we have had to put some things on hold until financial situations improve such as replacing the cable plant with CAT7, and high-quality cable jacks in every office.

I can send you some quotes of what it would cost for a company to come in and replace all of our wiring for CAT7, and replace all outlets for the highest quality in one weekend. I can have included in the quote that all CAT7 is to be deployed in flexible tubing to prevent any unwanted bends.

I can also send you a quote to upgrade our entire wireless system to 802.11n so that the quality of wireless connections improve, and we can setup a separate SSID and frequency for management.

I must stress however, that although you might be able to free up budget to address the cable issue, our planning for 2015 is pretty much planned out. However, we could do it in 3 months from now when we hire one more engineer. Just a thought.

Thank you.

IT Manager.

P.S. I thank you for realizing that upgrading our cable plant should be a higher priority then it currently is. We didn't get financial resources to do this from our previous CEO, and as such we still have the CAT5e that was deployed in the building in 1995, and is as such the oldest component in the IT infrastructure.

Wily_One
Premium Member
join:2002-11-24
San Jose, CA

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said by JoelC707:

On the other hand, if the assistant isn't doing this, the assistant is your problem (and while still needs to be handled with care, doesn't need to be handled the same way as the CEO IMO)

I must disagree with you there. Executive Assistants have all the power, in a way even more than the exec they support. They are the gatekeeper, not only to the office but the exec's daily schedule, and they can often intercept and filter phone calls and even emails, etc.

I did some C-level support once where the CFO had an issue and was calm, respectful, and polite, but the EA was going absolutely apeshit there was a problem with anything. She made it very clear it must be fixed NOW (as if I didn't already know that), yadda, yadda.

I had to treat the EA with all the deference I would the CEO.

Kilroy
MVM
join:2002-11-21
Saint Paul, MN

Kilroy to modfish

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I'm with Nightfall See Profile this is a customer service issue. Right now the new CEO sounds like a putz. Right now he's under a lot of stress to get up to speed. What is needed from you is personal attention to this matter.

Let the new CEO that you understand that he is very busy, but you need his assistance to resolve his issues. Ask to schedule 30 minutes with him to have him show you the issues so that you can understand what is wrong. You don't necessarily have to go, send your best tech and/or the one that will normally be dealing with him. At the end of the meeting give him a realistic time frame for when the work will be done. Make sure you can meet this estimate, do the Scotty thing, multiply by four and when you get it done much earlier you're a miracle worker.

My experience has been that once you take care of people's immediate issues they become more reasonable. Even your most difficult customers will work with you once they respect you.
JoelC707
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Lanett, AL

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I can see that but what do you do when the CEO asks for something and the assistant won't even let you pass? Then the CEO is on your ass because you haven't fixed their problem. It's a catch 22 and sadly you're the one that's going to wind up with the short end of the stick.
HELLFIRE
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HELLFIRE to modfish

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said by modfish :

because every time someone would try to get in the office while he was there they would get denied "he is to busy right now" I feel like this is adding pressure to management which will translate into pressure being applied to the staff.

...welcome to Managerial Escalation Tactics 101 -- push every button you can find and make yourself out to be the victim of [insert here].

As others have commented, keep your cool, keep your head screwed on straight, and DOCUMENT what happens -- as I used to say in my last
role, "if it isn't in the ticket, Gene, it never happened."

I also agree that thoroughness in investigation should be SOP for all staff members, not just for xVPs and up. Which is basically how
I read his whine-with-cheese b*tchout email.

Also agree, you can't do worse than keep calling / emailing / showing up in person saying "I'm here to help you out, I know you're busy,
can I have a few minutes of your time, or what time would be good to catch you?" AND DOCUMENT THE RESULTS OF SAID CONVERSATION.

I'd also add keep consistency of who's going out to help him; think we can all agree we HATE being on that side of the call when we're
shuffled from Bob to Steve to Jim to Gary to someone's Mother, and NO ONE remembers what was done in the first place.

My 00000010bits

Regards

Wily_One
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San Jose, CA

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said by JoelC707:

It's a catch 22 and sadly you're the one that's going to wind up with the short end of the stick.

Yes indeed. Exec support is no picnic. As others have said, document outright refusals, but the key is to try to get on the EA's good side so she works with you instead of just shutting you down cold.
lorennerol
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Seattle, WA

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It seems to me that there is an opportunity here, or at least the appearance of one.

I think it's great to get all your cabling checked. So put a PO in front of him to get that done by a professional cable company with a real data cable tester (NOT a continuity tester). Maybe he's the kind of person who expects excellence and expects to pay for it. Or maybe he expects excellence for free. Figuring out which one is so is important, and I'd want to do that sooner rather than later.

If it's the former, you can leverage the hell out of that to get things done well, once, and right. Show him you can deliver excellence and you'll be on the in.

If it's the latter, then yeah, time to at least explore other options. People who want a different outcome with the same budget, staff, and behavior are very difficult to work with.

Wily_One
Premium Member
join:2002-11-24
San Jose, CA

Wily_One

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If he's pushing to outsource as much as possible to "the Cloud" when we know it's the latter.
ImpetusEra
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join:2004-05-19
00000

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YUK!
1.) Old dock was tested to work yet replaced anyway. Obviously not cable issue to the degree that it would prevent a connection.
2.) They worked so why would they be?
3.) Less than optimal cable installations in an office aren't uncommon, even so in some network closets. If it works it works. Wasted his "valuable" time changing cables and making it pretty.
4.) The keystone pulls out of the connecter because tab is missing/compressed? It wasn't pulled out originally so what does that have to do with the original problem?

I'd guess the laptop issue to be disabled wired connection or maybe static address set on it. Obviously to resolve that issue at this point access to the laptop is needed. Was there any specifics on the audio quality issue as to exactly what the issue is?

Sounds like a real prick with either an inflated ego or stressed because he's a mediocre CEO in a position maybe over his head. Send someone with a cable certifier to alleviate the "cable plant" concerns and ask for a scheduled time to have access to the laptop. I personally would make NO effort to accommodate him more than any other user. It's to be expected that any failure in IT is made obvious and a hot topic. Any accomplishments are unnoticed because that's what the outcome was supposed to be all along. The cloud has plusses but no guarantee it'd work flawless and when it doesn't you'll still be the one to hear about it but have no power to resolve it other than to call your cloud provider and grovel.
mj3431
join:2003-04-21
STL, MO

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If the EA won't allow access to the CEO, a direct e-mail to the CEO documenting the date/time you were there to fix the issue with a CC to the EA would fix this immediately and keep it from happening again.

It lets him know you were there, and not permitted to fix the problem, and it shows that you made a valid attempt to address the issue in a prompt fashion, and are letting him know why he's not getting the attention someone of his caliber deserves.

Kilroy
MVM
join:2002-11-21
Saint Paul, MN

Kilroy

MVM

said by mj3431:

If the EA won't allow access to the CEO, a direct e-mail to the CEO documenting the date/time you were there to fix the issue with a CC to the EA would fix this immediately and keep it from happening again.

You don't want to throw the EA under the bus either. As Wily_One See Profile said EAs should be your best friends. They are the ones that really run the company.

It isn't mentioned if the CEO brought his on EA. I've seen it go both ways in the past. If the EA was existing they are also learning to work with the new CEO.

You don't have to like everyone, but you do need to be able to work with them.

TheTechGuru
join:2004-03-25
TEXAS

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Click for full size
The job we all wish we could find.

b8zs
@buckeyecom.net

b8zs

Anon

I agree with above posters, time to update your resume. If I could have a guess, the CEO probably has an MBA. (no offense to other MBA holders). My a#!hole detector is going off, and you won't win. Hunker down, update your resume, pay off any major debt you can, get your emergency fund in order, and start looking for another job. It's not worth the stress IMHO.

While well meaning, all of the "work with him" "document" and etc won't help in the long run, as if the CEO has an agenda to get rid of you or "go cloud" no amount of documentation will save you. Perhaps you live in a state where you could sue and get a year or two's salary for settling, but probably not. The CEO is most likely a snake and knows the law well, and knows exactly what to do that goes right up to the lawful/unlawful line, but doesn't cross it.

On the bright side, those types of people eventually "get theirs". You can get your best revenge by living well and not letting the CEO get you down. It's tough, but can be done. Posting anonymously for obvious reasons.
scross
join:2002-09-13
USA

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said by ImpetusEra:

The cloud has plusses but no guarantee it'd work flawless and when it doesn't you'll still be the one to hear about it but have no power to resolve it other than to call your cloud provider and grovel.

Yes, unfortunately this is exactly what I'm seeing in many cloud projects. Folks have gone from "We'll get this taken care of just as soon as we can!" to "We're begging THEM to get this taken care of just as soon as THEY can!" And things have gone from getting done pretty quickly to not getting done quickly at all - IF at all.
lorennerol
Premium Member
join:2003-10-29
Seattle, WA

lorennerol

Premium Member

said by scross:

Yes, unfortunately this is exactly what I'm seeing in many cloud projects. Folks have gone from "We'll get this taken care of just as soon as we can!" to "We're begging THEM to get this taken care of just as soon as THEY can!" And things have gone from getting done pretty quickly to not getting done quickly at all - IF at all.

But what? I thought The Cloud was the nearly-free solution to every IT problem??!?