Work rant...

Former Member

Ok, I've ranted to my family about this but they don't seem to be very sympathetic and I know if don't write it down I'll take it with me to work tomorrow and that's the last thing I want. So I'm using this board for a little rant, I apologise for my historonics.

I've just started a new job. I went through 4 gruelling interviews which lasted 2 months, was in training for two full weeks, travelling 100 miles each day to so. Then started fully on Monday and thrown in at the deep end.

I work in the advertising department of a large local newspaper and have been put on the services page. We were each given certain "sections" (so I have like building services, gas services, driving tuition etc etc) and started making renewals. I have a target of £4,200 this month. Reasonably low but as I said, I've just started.

This first week I've worked my arse off and by Tuesday afternoon had managed to pull in in renewals, cold calling and lapsed customers £2k.

I was well chuffed and then all of a sudden they started "reassigning" us. So all my work I had done on certain sections was given to someone else who had earnt £500. I watched my total go from £2k down to £500 and hers rise from £497 to £2,100. I was slightly annoyed but decided since I had already done so well, it'd be fine.

Then there were several moments where I managed to make a big sale to someone and then they wanted to go in a catergory I didn't deal with... even if their company was one of my sections. I kissed goodbye to around another ...£1k in sales.

So on Friday after clawing my way back up to £2,500 and the other girl teetering on £3k I was feeling quite chuffed. First week and I'm already half way to target (and not even including all the other sales I made for the other person).

Was told to get my weekly percentage where I use the amount of inserts that week against my target to see what percentage I've met from just this week. I got 38% and my new manager was like.."Oh... you should be at 50%... well you'll just have to work harder next week... like "so and so" (girl who has taken most of my cash off me).

I am feeling absolutley FUMING. I'm just like... did I actually not just work my arse off? And I'm supposed to have raised half my target in the first week of four.

I'm sure I'll be fine but I tend to respond to praise better than criticism and she was the person who took half my bloody intake away and gave it to someone else.

My dad said that they are doing it because they think I'm really good and are trying to make it fair.... and also to make sure I don't make too much bonus straight away. I however just think my manager is slightly dozy and meant I should be at 25% for the first week but for some reason thinks it's week 2.

</rant>

Anyway... tomorrow is a new week (and a four day one at that). It's early days and I'm sure I will continue to flourish.

Former Member

When they said this to you, did you not explain that you had already got alot on the section that was taken off of you?

Former Member

Personally I wouldn't have accepted just being moved off without credit for the sales you'd already made, especially if it counts towards your bonus.

JsT

Damn right. I would have mentioned the sales you've made on the other section!

Former Member

yeah me too - although surely they'll know that?
i'd have thought every sale that goes through should have details about the person who sold the ad in case there's any problems or queries?
at the newspaper i work at the advertising team have had a new system put in where you can click on each persons name and it lists their sales. same as in editorial we can click on anyone's name and see what they've written.

Former Member

Yeah we use Futureproof. But the manager's argument was "It doesn't matter who has sold it, just what section it's under... if you go on holiday and someone else does your renewals that still goes towards you."

Her argument was that although I had already done these sales they were trying to "balance it out".....still dead pissed off though.

I'm trying to find the fine line between being nice/getting on with my new workmates and being the cut throat sales person I once was.

Former Member

This is exactly why i hated working in telesales! Worked for a while at a cold calling company, any sales you got generally needed follow up calls and who took all of those to make for themselves??? The managers sister who also worked there and she somehow managed to be the only person out of around 30 to get a bonus every week. Coincidence i think not.

Former Member

I'm not too bothered about the passing over of sales thing as such, because I know I can do it. I'm not fretting about that...

it's just my manager saying that I should have done x amount and next week I should "work harder" when I've been working my arse off. Has she not been paying ANY attention whatsoever. I'm terrified I'll work my arse off and then get sacked because she's not paying attention and thinks I'm buggering about.

One fine example is this, I will go out for a cigarette with one of my colleagues who is on the same section as me (the one who's got my sales....). She will stay outside and have about 2/3 cigarettes whereas I'll have one and come straight back in. She'll be out for another 10 odd minutes and then my boss said I need to "take a little less time outside smoking"... whereas she other girl gets praised.


To be quite honest, this is the story of my life. I got a 2:2 for my degree instead of a 1st/2:1 because my tutor when we were running the paper was never paying attention and gave someone who was off for two months skiving the same grade as me because he never paid attention. Then the term after gave someone who was utterly useless a bloody 1st even though we received a million complaints about mistakes and I never received one.

Former Member

StarCrossed wrote: »

I'm not too bothered about the passing over of sales thing as such, because I know I can do it. I'm not fretting about that...

it's just my manager saying that I should have done x amount and next week I should "work harder" when I've been working my arse off. Has she not been paying ANY attention whatsoever.

No but these things are linked together. Your manager is probably looking at your figures which don't show all the work you had done. That's why you need to get that recognised properly.

Of course next month you if you do the same then it will look like you have made amazing progress, but that's not really the point. By this record, they could just transfer you on day 30 out of 31 and say you've not made any sales. Don't let them take the piss because you are new.

Former Member

Well, things seemed to have settled down now. I'm about 60% to target and catching up (ish) with the girl who got given my sales. Jokes on her now though as she's been given several features to sell before thursday and they've raised her target now hahaha.

Feeling a lot better now as my managers not being patronising to just me now, but to everybody. She even praised me today... so I guess things are looking up a bit.

It's just a bit pants being in a new job and feeling like I have to work my arse off to prove myself all over again. But at least I've got a job now.

Former Member

Just thought you guys might like to know, I hit all my targets and was of only 2 people in the ENTIRE office to do so.

They've given us our targets for this month and just on a day of rebooks and already booked clients I've hit one target (so am in comission already!) and am 3/4 of the way to my other one! Granted that my targets are still pretty low as I've just started but I got a special certificate and everything for selling the most features in a month this year. Woo yay go me!

(and for those who know me as a budding journalist, in those features I did every single scrap of editorial sneakily haha! Not giving up on the dream! )