11-22-2007, 04:48 PM
What an exhausting week. Never thought I'd have to compose a letter like the following:
Hi <manager>.
I have worked closely with Deborah for the past two weeks. My observations over that period of time make me question her suitability for this project.
1. While she may be a skilled editor, her basic computer knowledge appears deficient. She is prone to putting all files that she receives on her desktop, not in folders. On one occasion, I strongly recommended that she put a number of image files in a folder (after she had cluttered up her desktop with them). She then put them in the root of her C: drive. Her argument throughout was that if she put them in a folder, she would lose track of them.
2. Her knowledge of Framemaker is not what we had hoped. While she can do basic formatting and editing, she has little understanding of how to convert Word or pdf files to Framemaker in an efficient manner. In particular, she would type in tables from scratch rather than copy/paste as plain text, then convert to table – a far more efficient approach. Likewise, she did not know how to import images by reference. The fact that she does not understand folders (see point 1) means that explaining the use of an Image subfolder (for imported images) will likely be time-consuming.
3. In terms of temperament, she has complained at length on a couple of occasions about unfair treatment – some related to the workplace, some more general, and some rather disturbing. I hesitate to use the term persecution complex, but that’s the sense I get. This has been a significant distraction to me.
All in all, I question her value to our team and fear that she may hinder more than help us in meeting some very aggressive deadlines.
Cranefly again. Ever have to teach a new hire, and soon into the proceedings you realize you have a nutcase? One hint: a 2-hour tirade (on company time) against past employers who had mistreated her. Another: a 1-hour tirade (company time) against Indians and all companies that hire them – in particular, our company. Others on the team were equally disturbed by her. She complained of unfairness at every turn, accused us all of not being writers (only she is qualified), and complained about us taking our lunch break without her. Things got so bad that our manager ordered us all to document our experiences. I did so as tactfully as I could.
I'm hoping she is soon gone. Working with her has been an ordeal, and we're further than ever from making our deadlines.
Hi <manager>.
I have worked closely with Deborah for the past two weeks. My observations over that period of time make me question her suitability for this project.
1. While she may be a skilled editor, her basic computer knowledge appears deficient. She is prone to putting all files that she receives on her desktop, not in folders. On one occasion, I strongly recommended that she put a number of image files in a folder (after she had cluttered up her desktop with them). She then put them in the root of her C: drive. Her argument throughout was that if she put them in a folder, she would lose track of them.
2. Her knowledge of Framemaker is not what we had hoped. While she can do basic formatting and editing, she has little understanding of how to convert Word or pdf files to Framemaker in an efficient manner. In particular, she would type in tables from scratch rather than copy/paste as plain text, then convert to table – a far more efficient approach. Likewise, she did not know how to import images by reference. The fact that she does not understand folders (see point 1) means that explaining the use of an Image subfolder (for imported images) will likely be time-consuming.
3. In terms of temperament, she has complained at length on a couple of occasions about unfair treatment – some related to the workplace, some more general, and some rather disturbing. I hesitate to use the term persecution complex, but that’s the sense I get. This has been a significant distraction to me.
All in all, I question her value to our team and fear that she may hinder more than help us in meeting some very aggressive deadlines.
Cranefly again. Ever have to teach a new hire, and soon into the proceedings you realize you have a nutcase? One hint: a 2-hour tirade (on company time) against past employers who had mistreated her. Another: a 1-hour tirade (company time) against Indians and all companies that hire them – in particular, our company. Others on the team were equally disturbed by her. She complained of unfairness at every turn, accused us all of not being writers (only she is qualified), and complained about us taking our lunch break without her. Things got so bad that our manager ordered us all to document our experiences. I did so as tactfully as I could.
I'm hoping she is soon gone. Working with her has been an ordeal, and we're further than ever from making our deadlines.