After an acquisition, embrace change
Q: After our small company was acquired by a large corporation, everything seemed to change. As the office manager, I have always taken care of administrative duties such as payroll, personnel, meeting planning and so forth. But ever since the acquisition, things that should be handled by me are now being sent to my new manager.
My boss doesn’t want me to bother him with “secretarial” questions, and I have no communication with the corporate office, so I never know what’s going on. When employees come to me for answers, I have no idea what to tell them. I feel as though I’m letting them down. How am I supposed to handle this?
A: Unfortunately, your dilemma is not unusual. Confusion often reigns after an acquisition, especially one that is not well-planned. Preparing for chaos is probably better than anticipating a smooth transition as unrealistic expectations will only increase your frustration.
You must also be realistic about the issues going to your boss that you feel “should be handled by you.” There are no “shoulds” in this new landscape. Despite being in the same job, you have actually joined a new company, so your role may very well be revised.
To begin reducing the uncertainty, create a detailed list of your previous duties, then ask your manager which will continue and which are likely to change. To avoid peppering him with unwelcome questions, request a regular meeting time to discuss work issues. Finally, try to identify some helpful corporate contacts.
During this post-acquisition phase, you should focus your attention on defining responsibilities, clarifying expectations and developing relationships. If you are patient and persistent, the chaos should eventually subside, allowing you to adjust to the new normal.
Q: The supervisor of our medical office is a horrible bully. If “Anna” is upset with someone, she will make threats, withhold information, stop speaking to them and refuse to let them leave their desk. The last employee to get this treatment supposedly resigned due to health issues, but the real reason was Anna. The owner seems to be completely unaware of this problem. What should we do?
A: You appear to have three choices in this situation — live with it, leave it or try to fix it. No one should be forced to tolerate this kind of abuse, so the first option seems untenable. Only a masochist would voluntarily put up with such malicious treatment.
Giving Anna feedback would be both pointless and problematic. Bully bosses seldom change voluntarily, and an angry Anna could just find new ways to torture people. Telling the owner might be helpful as long as everyone goes together. Group action will increase the validity of your comments and make it harder to ignore the problem.
But if the owner tends to be a wimpy boss, or if he and Anna have a close relationship, then finding a better workplace may be the wisest choice. Because health care is a growing field, medical jobs tend to be easier to find. And almost any other office would be preferable to this one.
Marie G. McIntyre can be reached at www.yourofficecoach.com.