How do you define "productivity"?

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Tough one, I'd watch my back ...

by TomSal · 15 years ago In reply to How do you define "produc ...

When I read the header for this post I thought you were just asking how you gauge productivity for employees under you.

I was going to say first you need to have a baseline to go by (else how do you judge what is productive or what is NOT productive). The baseline period alone could take a week or two just to get a good amount of data. When you baseline you collect information on ALL members of either a department or company -- depends on what your goals are (do you want productivity on select folks? certain departments? the whole company? -- they call this a "sample size").

Anyway, in YOUR case though -- based on the info you gave it does sound, unfortunately, that your boss is trying to make a decision on what to do with you. Now that might mean he/she is trying to figure out if a different position within your department is better suited for you, of course it could also mean he/she is collecting info to judge if you should be terminated or not.

Document the **** out of all you do.

You say you log your workorders and billable hours; have you been printing out reports to prove those claims? Show the reports to your boss.

Don't forget, which amazes me how many folks never think of this because I think its so simple, TALK with your boss.

Obviously you are concerned enough to post here, so it bothers you --- voice this concern to your boss. When you do this -- you must be mature, you must be calm, you must be professional.

Be polite when you request a time to talk to him/her about the situation. When the time is set -- come to that meeting with whatever documentation you can muster that proves you don't just slack all day (good start would be showing him/her the report on your closed workorders and billable hours).

Furthermore, perhaps if you know you have some idle time (some bosses are out of control -- if they see you idle for even 5 minutes they lose it like you were idle for a half hour) -- come up with a plan to keep you busy. Perhaps a PM plan for your servers/client PCs? Maybe interview employees on areas they find most troubling with regards to the software they use or their computers in general...then write documentation to address said problems.

The bottomline is if you prove you are a "team player" and you are interested in doing right by the boss and the company, unless the guy/gal is a complete jerk -- bosses respond to that stuff and you'll score points as a worthy employee.

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Header

by Mean_Machine · 15 years ago In reply to Tough one, I'd watch my b ...

I debated on how to title this discussion. I didn't want to sound whiney and say that I think my boss is out to get me. I just wanted to convey the fact that while records show that I have been the second most productive member of the department (out of 11) since January this year, I still hear that I'm not producing.

I also didn't want to mention this before, but it seems important now, but I have a reasonable suspicion that people in my department are "spying" on me. By spying I mean using our remote PC management software to watch what I'm doing and taking screenshots. That isn't right regardless of what the manual says. The problem is that I can't prove it's happening without snooping on the person's machine which is a clear cut case of two wrongs not making a right.

I know there are people out there who are paranoid and are easily drawn into trumped up conspiracies, but I'm not like that. Besides, I have had trusted sources inform me of said subversion. Also, unlike the aforementioned conspiracy victims, I want to believe that the members of my department are part of the same team I am part of and that they wouldn't purposefully try to get me canned because I use the "f" word too much.

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Jealousy and Sloth could both be culprits.

by mfrith1 · 15 years ago In reply to Header

Maybe that's not the reason, but having the most billable hours and being second in completed calls might be applying heat to some who is close to your mark. Take a look at who's FIRST in call turnover. Did they use to be first in billable hours? How far ahead of the rest of the "pack" are you? Maybe you are making everyone below you look bad. Start keeping duplicate records for your own protection. Check your system for a keyboard logger. Tracking use of the PC Management Software should not be that hard either, especialy if you have access to it. BE AWARE. Find out how your sources know what's going on, use casual conversation.
Lastly, take your records to your boss and find out what led them to believe you weren't being productive, it can't hurt you to have them know that you are concerned about their opinion.

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oh, by the way!

by mfrith1 · 15 years ago In reply to Header

Just an after-thought, clean up your language, stay professional even if others don't. You never know who else is listening.

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by The Admiral · 15 years ago In reply to Header

If I were the department manager and have not warned you that you are making people feel uncomfortable using the F word too much, then they ARE fishing to get you canned.

Probably a good time to start learning a new way to say it.

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Been there.

by ayg551 · 15 years ago In reply to Header

I am a one man IT department for 87 desktops at four locations. Eight months ago I was advised I was "kist sitting around" and told to keep a daily journal of what I did and when. Several months after beginning this daily acvtivity my Boss sent me an e-mail, cc'ing Management, that he had no idea I was doing so much and appreciated my efforts!

Perhaps your Supervisor is not aware of all the things you are doing. Keeping the journal may open some eyes.

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sounds like your co-workers also use tech republic

by MistressChaos · 15 years ago In reply to Been there.

and apparently you have said the "f" word too much!

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Me too

by yaa · 15 years ago In reply to Been there.

A year and a half ago I was advised to keep a log of everything I do, so I can make a case to the reviewers when they assess my job (it was then 50% system administration 50% webmastering). The reviewers have not been here since, but it helped me prove to my boss that the SA part of the job is a full time one, and from January next year someone else will do the webmastering, whilst I'll be a 100% SA. It also helped document any extrahours put in...

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windows options

by a1deydreams · 15 years ago In reply to Header

enable net watch in windows options... it will let you know if someone logs on to your computer while you are working.. although this may not work if they have keylogging s/w installed.. but it is a place to start..

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A Model Of Excellence

by kennethneilwilliamson · 15 years ago In reply to windows options

With your top numbers,

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