WTF manager: Bob



  • My name is Anna Shore, and I work as an engineer with the Small IT Group (SITG) at the Big Private University (BPU). We have a manager - Bob. Bob is incompetent, overweight, unattractive, uncouth, socially awkward, and generally, not a very nice person at all. Very soon after Bob became our manager, he began insisting that we (all eight of us) address him as Executive Director. When we realized that he wasn’t joking, we got together and did a lot of soul searching, trying to determine what evil deed in our past could have caused the unfair sequence of events that brought him into our professional lives. But, finally, after a great deal of introspection, we decided that no amount of collective evil was sufficient to justify such a brutal cosmic injustice.

    For a while, we were convinced that Bob had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. But then, something happened - Bob stopped showing up for work on a regular basis. Several times a week Bob would take a vacation day, a personal day, a sick day. Sometimes he wouldn’t even bother explaining his absence, acting as if spontaneous five-day weekends were simply the norm. And that is how everyone came to wonder - where is Bob? The question became perpetual in the office and among the other people at BPU with whom we work. And that is when I took up my current hobby - keeping chronicles of Bob’s strangeness at the office, and away from it. What is lacking in facts has been more than made up for with an overactive imagination.

    In an attempt to share our little inside joke with a wider audience, I started a blog about our small IT shop, the epitome of WTF management that is Bob, and the bizarre things that Bob does instead of coming to work.

    http://whereisbob.wordpress.com

    Putting it all in writing sort of helps us stay sane.  Even though we are convinced that our predicament is unique, we acknowledge that other happy, pleasant, productive IT folk out there are sometimes confronted with a Bob-like managerial aberration, and because we subscribe to the "misery loves company" theory, would love to hear other Where's Bob rants.



  •  welcome - get ready to be flamed for linking to your blog

    get ready to be hit on by desperate nerds for being female

     

    PS: link is broken.. it inserted a space at the end before the /



  •  Nevermind the problematic use of the Sidebar form to promote your blog -- the real WTF is that you haven't gotten this schmuck fired yet.



  • There are two things that make me think this is fake.  First, it's a woman in IT.  Second, it's well written, and the number of IT people who can actually write, seem to be statistically insignificant.

     All joking aside, looks interesting, and I'll check it out.



  • @taylonr said:

    First, it's a woman in IT.  Second, it's well written, and the number of IT people who can actually write, seem to be statistically insignificant.
     

    Actually I see some correlation here.



  • @taylonr said:

    There are two things that make me think this is fake.  First, it's a woman in IT.  Second, it's well written, and the number of IT people who can actually write, seem to be statistically insignificant.

     All joking aside, looks interesting, and I'll check it out.

     

     

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work



  • @aips said:

    Bob is incompetent, overweight, unattractive, uncouth, socially awkward, and generally, not a very nice person at all.

     

    Okay, these attributes discribe almost 87% of TDWTF-users, so why do you think hat Bob won't read this?;)

     *edit* Okay, I'm sorry. All of the attributes except the first one..



  • @Kazan said:

    @taylonr said:

    There are two things that make me think this is fake.  First, it's a woman in IT.  Second, it's well written, and the number of IT people who can actually write, seem to be statistically insignificant.

     All joking aside, looks interesting, and I'll check it out.

     

     

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work

     

     

    "all joking aside" means, the previous comments were said in jest, and not to be taken seriously.  <sarcasm>Sorry it wasn't surrounded by <sarcasm> or <joke> tags.</sarcasm>

     



  • @Kazan said:

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work
     

    Keep telling yourself that.

     



  • @MasterPlanSoftware said:

    @Kazan said:

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work
     

    Keep telling yourself that.

     

    Ironically, after reading the blog, and your comment, I could picture Kazan's comment as something Bob would say...



  • @Kazan said:

    I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders
    Because being hot means you're better at your job, amirite?



  •  GREETINGS FEMALE BEING! WILL YOU ENGAGE IN A PASSIONATE SENSUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH ME?



  • @Kazan said:

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female tranny coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work

    FTFY.



  •  Quite entertaining. A little bit like the TV show The Office, but in blog form.



  • @Dalden said:

    Quite entertaining. A little bit like the TV show The Office, but in blog form.

    The good Office or the crappy British knock-off?



  • It almost sounds like you're saying that having your boss gone all the time is a bad thing.  At any rate: very entertaining so far, keep up the good work.

    By the way, I didn't know they made cartoon Tina-Fey-with-a-dye-job forum avatars.  Much style.



  • @morbiuswilters said:

    The good Office or the crappy British knock-off?

     

    After watching the British one, I hated the first few episodes of the US version, but the US version kinda grew on me, and now I prefer that version.



  • Sorry about the blog pimping, but this seemed like the ideal forum for our troubles.  Thanks for the feedback.  

    Initially we thought of putting everything in writing, and sending it off to the producers of The Office.  It was almost a joke.  But we realize now that they probably wouldn't believe it.



  • @adrianX said:

    ... so why do you think hat Bob won't read this?;)

     

    Oh, I forgot to mention - Bob doesn't know how to use a computer.  I guess I'll elaborate more on that in upcoming posts.   



  • @aips said:

    Sorry about the blog pimping, but this seemed like the ideal forum for our troubles. 
     

    Not a big deal, but the 'Funny Stuff' forum is definitely more appropriate.



  • @aips said:

    Sorry about the blog pimping, but this seemed like the ideal forum for our troubles.  Thanks for the feedback.  

    Initially we thought of putting everything in writing, and sending it off to the producers of The Office.  It was almost a joke.  But we realize now that they probably wouldn't believe it.



    Seriously, when I read Joon in July, all I could think of was the Christmas party where Michael picked up the Asian waitress and brought her back to the party.

    As I read this, I kept asking myself, "Is this real, or are they trying to make the Office into a blog?"  Which, to me, says it's pretty high quality.  Because I could see these as plots to office episodes, and yet they don't come off as you trying to write episodes for the office.

     

     



  • @taylonr said:

    As I read this, I kept asking myself, "Is this real, or are they trying to make the Office into a blog?"  Which, to me, says it's pretty high quality.  Because I could see these as plots to office episodes, and yet they don't come off as you trying to write episodes for the office.

     

     A popular theory is that Bob watches "The Office," but because the show doesn't have a laugh track, he perceives it as a serious documentary about office etiquette and effective management, and not a comedy program.



  • @Dalden said:

    @morbiuswilters said:

    The good Office or the crappy British knock-off?

     

    After watching the British one, I hated the first few episodes of the US version, but the US version kinda grew on me, and now I prefer that version.

    The difference is that for the British (original) version, the characters within the story took themselves seriously (in nearly believable situations), but the writers of the story never did, and kept winking to us that this is farce. For the American (dumbed-down) version, it's clear that it's the other way around. The characters seem to be in absurd situations with nearly calm reactions (and therefore obviously aren't taking themselves seriously), but the writers believe it works as straight comedy, and take themselves seriously, and expect us to agree.

    I don't.

    Yes, there are funny bits, and yes, I've worked in some pretty crazy office spaces, but it was always more like the british version of crazy, not the continually over-the-top ham-handed US version. So my "willing suspension of disbelief" keeps shutting down.



  • @Kazan said:

    stfu - I know several very hot, very intelligent and very adept female coders... couple from college and one from a place I used to work

    When I describe a coworker, "hot" is usually not the first word I use.



  • @Arctic_Panda said:

    When I describe a coworker, "hot" is usually not the first word I use.
     

    Is it because you work with all women and you aren't into that kind of thing?



  • @MasterPlanSoftware said:

    @Arctic_Panda said:

    When I describe a coworker, "hot" is usually not the first word I use.
     

    Is it because you work with all women and you aren't into that kind of thing?

     

    Arctic_Panda -- just some quick advice: don't worry about MPS, he is a known troller and is obviously just trying to start a flame war with you.  Respond to his insult if you like, but keep in mind he just desperately wants the attention.  Also, if you do respond and the thread completely de-rails, the thread will be moderated and posts may have to be deleted, and/or the thread locked, and no one of us want that.  As you know, the best way to handle trolls is to ignore them. 

     



  • @Jeff S said:

    As you know, the best way to handle trolls is to ignore them. 
     

    Good advice, that is why I started to ignore you.

    You do realize that is possible to make a joke on a forum right?



  • @Jeff S said:

    Arctic_Panda -- just some quick advice: don't worry about MPS, he is a known troller and is obviously just trying to start a flame war with you.

     

    WHAT?? It was a joke for the love of $DEITY...

    Honestly, is this a discussion group for the chronically hyper-sensitive now?



  • @adrianX said:

    @aips said:

    Bob is incompetent, overweight, unattractive, uncouth, socially
    awkward, and generally, not a very nice person at all.

     

    Okay, these attributes discribe almost 87% of TDWTF-users, so why do you think hat Bob won't read this?;)

     edit Okay, I'm sorry. All of the attributes except the first one..


    I am incompetent and you can't take that away from me... piss off turd!



  •  Hey MPS,

    what happened to you sweet "jesus flipping the bird" avatar?.  i reckon you should bring it back, i don't usually read your posts but that avatar always made me smile



  • I am locking this thread since the original discussion is a month old and the recent posts haven't done anything to warrant a resurrection of the topic.


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