I work for a Big Six consulting/accounting firm. For years I've been doing work I love; IT strategy assignments and custom development project management. I have been promoted ahead of my colleagues for my performance and have been loyal to the firm. I believe I am a loyal employee and try not to "jump ship" when work I don't want to do comes up.

However, recently I was told to attend four weeks of training for a specific package implementation. I attended the training and am convinced my initial feelings were right on: I have absolutely no interest in the functional area in question, HR and payroll. Further, it appears as though the caliber of the people I will be working with is far below that of the strategy and custom project managers. Finally, I f eel unmotivated and somewhat negative toward the whole idea.

Please provide any thoughts you may have on the matter. Thank you for your time.

Robert L. Blackburn

Dear Robert,

You've written a cogent explanation of your situation. My sense is you probably are a very good consultant. It seems that you have a clear understanding of why you do not like your present assignment. Now, you need to determine whether you may change your mind and whether the length of the assignment is tolerable. After you do that, and if you are still distressed, it seems that the best course of action is to discuss the situation with the partner-in-charge of the engagement. See what assurances you will get as to the next assignment. If you are not comfortable with the answers you get, explain why you are leaving the firm.

Bingo. You hit the na il on the head with the one statement in " Won't Train, Don't Complain ": The less people understand about what's involved in doing something, the easier they think it is to accomplish. I've been trying to figure out why my boss expects us to constantly take on new projects--networking, Web pages, sales rep automation, etc., with a staff of three.

It's a family joke. I once told someone that it was easy to put in a furnace--after all, I knew my husband did it once. He cackled and now all the kids say, if you need a furnace put in, just call Mom. So I see my problem now is to educate my boss about the complexities of putting in a furnace. You summed up my problem in a nutshell!

Julie

Dear Julie,

Great story. I once told Cindy that I didn't think painting the living room would be that difficult when she asked whether I thought we should do it ourselves. I then said that if that was what she wanted done, I would do my fair share: I would clean the brushes for her or write a check.

I suspect the real problem with convincing your boss of the complexities of your office version of putting in the furnace is that you may get as much sympathy from your boss as I gave Cindy.

After reading your article "So Much For Helping Morale," you offer that some companies have policies that create an exit nothing short of humiliating. I would agree to a degree, but I'd also ask you if you have a potentially better solution for us to ponder. I felt as though we were left open to debate, but only one candidate showed up.

How does a company protect its assets, be they human, physical, or data; and still offer a process in which one can leave with some ounce of respect? Unless someone can demonstrate that you would NEVER have any problems without an immediate escort from the facility, I can't help but choose the escort at this point and time.

Thanks,

SORRY HAL

Dear SORRY HAL,

Of course, your premise for what constitutes an acceptable solution is the killer--how can anyone demonstrate that you would NEVER have any problems? Imagine what life would be like if we used that same logic in licensing people to drive cars or to buy sharp knives. The answer is, of course, that we can't. It's a question of balance. Heaven help us if we use the lowest common denominator approach on all of our personnel decisions.

I read your recent column "So Much for Helping Morale," and, although it's been nearly two years since I was "outsized" (or whatever the buzzword du jour is), I, too, am bitter about the way we were treated.

My story, briefly: After 5+ years as IR (a.k.a MIS) Director, my "manager" (I cannot ascribe that title witho ut some considerable disclaimer) slithered into my office, and told me "We're laying off some people, and you're one of them." Nice, huh? But wait, there's more.

I went to see the new IS Director (my counterpart there got the ax minutes after I did, and his successor was with whom I was speaking), and got his permission to retain the use of my notebook computer for a few days to remove and back up some personal files, prepare resumes, etc. I told him that I would be back in a couple of days to pack my office and return with the laptop. I did so, and was virtually accosted by the IS staff, demanding my laptop, which I had left at home while the backup was running (I lived 15 minutes from the office). I was essentially ordered to return with it because the "manager" (the aforementioned slithered) was about to call the police because he believed I had stolen the computer! Can you believe it? So much for morale! So much for loyalty and human understanding from someone for whom I had worked for nearly all of m y five years there.

My bitterness is tempered a bit because I have an excellent position with a well-respected firm which [gasp] treats me like a professional and a human being...what a concept. Also mitigating the bitterness is the fact that the Slithering Axer (who actually--and, as Dave Barry says, I am not making this up--enjoyed terminating people, referring to them as "dead meat") was himself summarily dismissed by the recently hired president. Whew! Thanks for letting me vent...I feel better.

GBB

Dear GBB,

I wish I had the space to print all of the letters like yours that I have received. I know that we are not supposed to be vindictive, but I have a feeling it made your day when your former boss got his own walking papers.

I read your article "So Much for Helping Morale." It was very good, but a little around the ed ges of reality. The idea of a great job continues in the American mindset, even though the facts confirm a different view. When companies like IBM and Kodak tell their employees to develop skills that will help them acquire part-time jobs in their senior years to supplement their retirement, employees all over America should WAKE UP! Realize that you get paid what it costs to replace you.

Rodger Rossman

Dear Rodger,

I hear you, but the point of the article was about human decency; not competitive economics. A company can be lean without being mean.

I appreciated your InformationWeek article about your friend Hal's misfortune with a new company. Your comments are right on target; it is tough to accept the glib advice on improving morale when we see companies and departments regularly employ such tactics.

The style used by Hal 's employer was not only unnecessarily demeaning, it was dangerous. Last year, a former employee of a large company in our state successfully sued his former employer for using the same technique; the "escort out of the building on short notice." The court found that although he was terminated for cause (and found no reason the company could not legitimately release him), they caused him "unnecessary embarrassment and humiliation" by having him pack his belongings and endure a public escort to the door. The damages were several hundred thousand dollars.

While legal risk is a concern, your observations about how this affects the entire company are the real measure of damage. They underline one of the basic tenets of properly encouraging good morale: that no person, no matter what level or position, deserves to be treated with anything less than respect and courtesy at all times. Damaging Hal's feelings and hurting his dignity were unnecessarily brutal and reflect a poor understanding of the value of our as sociates.

David B. Rutland

Dear David,

As much as I dislike resorting to litigation to solve problems, reading your letter put a smile on my face.

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