The Games We Play

Q: Hypothetical situation: imagine Project Manager A lies about you b/c he hates you; Manager B who supposedly is your direct boss believes what Project Manager A has to say. Result: you don't get interesting projects, bonuses, raises, etc. What do you do? Who would you talk to?

A: There are some assumptions built into your Results. How do you know that is why you have not gotten interesting projects, bonuses, raises, etc. At any rate, I would talk directly with B and let him know there is obviously a personal conflict between you and A and you do not want to be judged based on A's accusations.

Q: I don't know that, you are right. i tried to talk to B to find out the details; however, my attempts were not successful.

A: Let B know the seriousness of this and you would like to talk to someone else if he doesn't have time

Q: Email?

A: Sure. It will allow him to think about it and respond at his convenience. Managers don't like to be blindsided.

Q: I was also thinking to talk to VP C since I used to report to her directly to find out whats going on. I am not sure whether it's a right approach.

A: It seems like C doesn't have much power to get anything done these days.

Q: All of this is affecting my relationship with others. For example, Manager G thought i was lying to him about my roll off date b/c A told B something that was not true at all.

Q: It seems that all decisions are done without any consideration whatsoever and are communicated in such an interesting way that if you are not a "chosen" person, you don't really know whats going on.

A: I agree. Our Firm is having growing pains and I'm not sure if they know how to handle them.
When you say interesting projects, do you have any specific ones in mind? I can't think of a single interesting project throughout the entire company. Then again, I don't know what all is going on throughout.

On Evaluations

Not long ago, I had to write an evaluation that was not exactly screaming - Overachiever and Super Star. A person I was evaluating was a horrible experience for the entire project team I was leading and constantly caused some sort of a conflict. I waited till the last day debating which approach to pursue. Should I be direct and blunt, or diplomatic and sweet - the question was constantly lingering in my mind.

On my lunch break, I was still facing my dilemma when a sandwich advertisement caught my attention. Juicy meat followed by a slice of tomato, lettuce, and onions (I hate onions) on a bun made me realize how to write a perfect review - positive statement followed by bad news, then a few kind words mixed with a negative example.

I decided not to send my evaluation but rather create a surprise effect by presenting the review in person and not allowing to prepare for an immediate attack.

A few points to keep in mind:

- be direct and to the point

- ensure you can back your allegations up with the factual statements and examples based on the situations you had to dealt with

- provide only constructive criticism that the person can improve upon

- careful with the choice of words, ensuring that your review does not sound like a personal attack

- be prepared to have a discussion with the HR personnel as the person you are evaluating might not want to sign the evaluation form or could complain to the HR

- do a little side research and learn whether you are the only one on this battle field or other managers had similar experiences with your resource. As hard as it is, try to find out the attitude of the project team towards the person you are evaluating.

The more information you have, the better your review will sound. The more prepared you are, the easier it is to deliver.