We had a new employee start in a group near me this week, highly touted, “we’re lucky to get them” and all that. It’s a clerical position like mine, so my expectations are set accordingly.
I wasn’t quite prepared for her to ask for the manuals for Microsoft Excel (the onlike/Windows help files are pretty comprehensive), nor could I imagine what — on one’s second day — would require RTFM. We have a site license so manuals are not available, anyway. Between the online help and Google, what else do you need?
An hour or so later, she asked someone else “why anyone would use Excel, instead of Word? What’s the difference?” I was glad my back was turned. To me, they’re like a fork and a spoon: they have their uses, and a complete place setting has both. Eating soup with a fork can be tedious.
It will interesting to see how financial reports get done in an Excel-less world.
The position description required a solid understanding of mainstream office software, so I’m not sure how this one was finessed in the interview process. I know I didn’t apply for a lot of jobs because I didn’t want to make claims I couldn’t back up. Not everyone adheres to that, evidently.