Over the past week, I’ve been thinking long and hard about staying at Unisys on a part-time basis. I had it in my mind this morning that I would not stay. I decided that I don’t want to have to get up way early anymore. I also did a 14 hour day yesterday with school and work. The idea of adding a few more hours to that or getting up very early the next morning doesn’t appeal to me.
On my way to work this morning, I decided to stop at Unisys, turn in my badge, and let my supervisor know that I wouldn’t be back. After I entered the building, I knew that I didn’t want to work there anymore. I learned a lot and enjoyed my time there. It was a good job that treated me well but I know that my time is done.
The hard part about quitting isn’t that I’ll miss what I did, I won’t. Sure, I like fixing computers but I got tired of all of the other garbage that I was forced to deal with daily.
When I started at Unisys, the dress code was “business casual”. Jeans were OK as long as they were in good condition but shirts with collars were required. Today when I walked into the building, the first person that I saw was wearing a dirty tee shirt and baggy shorts full of holes that were hanging around his butt. The guy looked so unprofessional that it was embarrassing. Granted, Unisys has had a “casual summer” but people should still dress appropriately for a business environment. I remember a day when this guy would have been sent home to change his clothes.
Also, there are way too many people that work there who have no business in the IT industry. Not everybody who knows about computers can fix them over the phone. It takes a special person to be able to convey instructions clear enough for a lay-person to understand. When I started, the interview was was extremely tough. It was good because you knew that the new-hires would be competent and hopefully do their job well. Then there was a hiring freeze and Unisys started bringing on contractors. In my mind, this is what started the downfall.
A few months after I started, I got a call from a staffing agency asking me if I knew anything about computers. I said that I did and they responded by offering me a job at Unisys. Fortunately I already had a job there but that was the entire interview. “Do you know anything about computers?” I could have said “I’ve heard of them.” and gotten hired. I know this because I helped train people who had “heard of” computers. It’s sad how far the hiring standards have fallen. I guess it’s good though if you’re unemployed and don’t know anything about anything but have heard of these computer things. Or if you’re a feral employee…
One thing that I won’t miss is the chaos and confusion that I dealt with on a daily basis. In IT, organized chaos is pretty common; I can deal with that. On the Cadbury queue though, the chaos was not organized. I tried to help keep it somewhat under control but with constant roll-0uts and new software implementations that were either not relayed to the help desk or very poorly relayed to the help desk, it was next to impossible. Many times, we’d find out about new things from callers who were having problems with the mystery application/process and then have to try and figure out what was going on. It was extremely ridiculous and got old very, very fast.
I will miss working with my friends. I made a lot of them during my time at Unisys. There are a lot of really smart, cool people there despite the high percentage of feral employees. It seems that we always managed to have a good time with each other even if we weren’t happy with things that were going on. Sometimes we probably had a bit too much fun but in a high-stress environment, it was necessary.
I’ve enjoyed my first few days at my new job at Harmon’s. I’ve discovered that there’s a lot that I need to learn but I’m very excited for that. It’s a new chapter of my life and I can’t wait to get into it.
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You will be missed!
I think you made the right choice. As a father, you shouldn’t be away for all that time.
So, you like Harmons, thats great.
You made the right choice, and Holly will need your support. The nursing program
i really tough, she will need your help, and the kids will love seeing more of you.
It’s actually ironic because my kids now see less of me but it gives me more time to help Holly out at night by making lunches, doing dishes, etc. without me being dog tired.
Yes, those lunches are much appreciated. I think it makes the whole process worth it. Just kidding! Kinda… Anyways, good luck at Harmon’s.