Dysfunctional Workplace

I found this post on The Top 25 Signs of a Dysfunctional Workplace via Tim Berry and would normally just have added to my del.icio.us feed. Until I read the comments from T R. :

Thanks, sometimes it is difficult to understand if it’s you or your work place that is dysfunctional. I work for an Engineering Consultancy firm; a new London branch of an American company. I’ve been there over two years as CAD Coordinator and are still waiting for help from both sides of the Atlantic for setting up what I would of thought was one of the most important setions of a company that sends drawings out as the main ‘face’ of the company. I won’t go into detail, but i am basically locked out a system controlled by the States, who don’t understand that things are done differently in the UK and still have yet to send someone here to help set up the system that is at least – metric! There are other added issues with the symbols still not completed due to a requirement of an UK Engineer to actually give the nod that these are the standards we are actally going to use? Finace and marketing have liberally been going back and forward across the Atlantic, but no help for a section which is where all the design work ends up and is displayed. I just don’t get the lack of interest in setting up standards for this section? I also have from your list 1, 2 – the main MD is not allowed to make decisions on the floor of the office as he doesn’t understand how his own company is run or how to do things procedural, 3. The MD isn’t actually the real boss, the project coordinator is. 4. Consultants are not being paid for at least one month pass handing in of bills – run stateside, 6. meetings just aren’t being held, 10. 12, 17. being bullied and yelled at by certain members of staff is the norm…and yes it was over someone using ‘their’ milk. 19..that’s me and 3 other senior Engineers and just as fed up, 22. what’s a holiday again, what’s a 7.5 hr day feel like, what’s it like to be home before 8pm, 25. – this one really pisses me off as it’s common here. You forgot one :). 26. High turn over rate of senior members of staff who can already see the writing on the wall. Well thanks for that; though I would like to piont out that I am planning to leave in April if nothing improves by then and coming back to Oz next year where at least the Australians know what the word hard work means.

Thanks

T R, Feb 11, 2008