I heard what you meant, not just what you said

a short meeting with one of my alleged superiors today that illustrated just how profound the miscommunication between us is. One of the goals for 2004 is to get my position as a classified employee (a clerical employee under the university’s collective bargaining agreement) converted to professional staff, usually reserved for people with demonstrable skills. I officially called an end to that charade today, to a surprised reaction. But my reasoning is quite simple, I think.

I asked for a raise a week ago, having successfully cleared the 6 month probationary hurdle. The response was a lengthy epistle about how the university’s bureaucracy was so difficult to work with, that it would be like moving heaven and earth, etc.

I pondered that for awhile, and realized that if it was that difficult to get a small salary increase within the classified staff pay scale, what chance anyone will find the intestinal fortitude to reclassify the position?

So that settles that. Expectation management on full strength from here on out . . . .