weekly ramblings about work...

this has been one helluva busy week - at work, that is. work seemed to pile up non-stop and my boss just kept it coming and coming. had quite a few sleepless nights but thankfully, the week ended with no major fumbles. here's a run down of my previous work week...

• it started with me having to conduct some orientation briefings for new staffs and as my ceo had to make the quarter announcement, a town hall session was hastily organised and all my briefing plans had to be adjusted. i felt a little disturbed when i heard my ceo said to my boss in much angry and unhappy tones, in front of the company. it went something like "what the hell, why did he have to do orientation briefing when we have a town hall..." when we (me and the group of 3 new staffs) walked into the room. and we were not even late. not a good start to the week. negative experience.

• successfully organised a lunch for the board chairman, senior management and the newly elected members of the union. everyone, particularly the management, was anxious about it and everyone had their views about how things should be done. simply had to change and adjust things as it unfolded. after all, this lunch was for senior people and one can never be too careful about protocols. was glad it went well. and yes, the lunch was one thing, it was another thing altogether with the administrative follow-ups... and guess what, my chairman's driver didn't know the way to the lunch location and my ceo faulted me for not providing a map to the driver (duh! the lunch location was given to the chairman's office weeks in advance and as a driver, would it not be his responsibility to find out? further to that, the lunch location was not some out of the world place. and doesn't the chairman's car even have a gps for that matter?). this feedback just added to the negative experience in the morning (see above). then again, it was a lesson learned for me. 

• amidst the crazy pace and many ad hoc demands, there were also the non-stop interviews that i needed to conduct. in all, i did close to 5-6 interviews during the whole week. it was one after another, and it was rather challenging to have to sit down and rattle corporate stories and ask probing questions non-stop. but that was what i did. it didn't help for the fact that when i talk a little more, my throat would go into spasms and i would cough like crazy. somehow, when i first took over the business partnering role, interviews and managing line managers were rather challenging. it continues to be so today, but compared to other things i am currently handling, challenges related to interviews and handling line managers seemed so easy.

• and then there're the challenges of all the tasks that needed to be done to hire new staffs and set up an overseas office. first time we are doing it and there was absolutely no previous examples to follow. and everyone was in a rush to get it done and as i was the only person working on it. the challenge was made worst by the fact that overseas government procedures were complicated and it was in a different language that i was not too proficient in. doh! had to work late almost every day and even had to return to work on saturday, just to get the documents done. the positive side to things was that it was pretty exciting and there were lots to learn. good exposure!

• and many things also appeared out of no where that needed my immediate attentions - line managers wanting to restructure their departments (and that i had to tread very carefully especially when such matters always make my boss go into emotional overdrive), people resigning that needed follow-up, people requesting for early release, off-cycle promotions and salary adjustments that was not planned - just because some hod wanted to do it and my senior management agreed and proceeded with it. and out of no where, i was required to compile data on a handful of staff, rush through to get the letters ready, draft employee communications liners, etc etc etc, recruiters that asked to meet up, end of the month payroll, la la la... it came fast and furious through the week.

• of cos, there were very positive developments too, particularly from my training side. managed to complete developing an e-learning module for the safety department. thankfully, i had a great staff who was able to get the details in place after i gave her my guidelines as to how i wanted the details structured. i was very pleased with the end-product and hope the head of department is happy with it. look forward to launching this e-module soon. also, managed to launched and conducted a new training for the office this week and i was totally elated when the feedback that came back was very positive. reinforced my belief that what i had worked so hard for was in the right direction. and last but not least, managed to complete the groundwork for 2 major trainings that i have planned for for next month.

amidst all these, a pile of new things have already piled up on my table... this coming week will also be intense. and it didn't do good for the fact that the lunar new year is coming and people are already starting to take their leave. i was just glad the week ended and i had the saturday to catch up. there are still lots on my table, but i shall take a deliberate break today and just chill.