Feel like piece of crap on shoe - Boss is controlling

[CarolAnne]

I work under a supervisor who assigns me projects that are given to him by the company's 6 CEOs.

 

The problem is that the CEO's are competitive with each other, and they all want their projects done first. My supervisor is a J.D./PhD like the CEOs and sometimes I get the feeling he wants the same amount of respect that they get from their position as the company's founders.

 

Anyway, I get along really well with one of the CEO's, and sometimes when I am having lunch he will come over just to chat and make jokes, and he tells me about his projects and asks when I will have time to do them. I'm paid on a per-project basis, plus I think he's a funny guy, and so I want to finish it for him and get $$$.

 

The problem is, my supervisor acts very offended whenever this happens, as if though the CEO is going behind his back and getting me to do projects without my supervisor's supervision. My supervisor tells me that he never heard from the CEO about the project and so doesn't really want me to work on it, which makes no sense since the CEO came to me directly and on two different occassions has brought it up. CEO said it would be great if we could work together on the project this week while most everyone else was out of the office and things were slower with the holidays, which would mean Monday. But I don't know what to do, my supervisor isn't even returning my emails about whether or not I should show up on Monday.

 

I called on Wednesday to remind him to please ask the CEO on THurs. about it, as they meet every Thurs. morning

 

But the sup. was "too busy", and I sent an email yesterday that I have never even heard back from.

 

The CEO and I are on friendly terms and used to email jokes and pictures to each other, nothing too personal though -

 

Should I email the CEO directly and tell him that I have most of this week free to work on his project, even though my supervisor is out of town and hasn't even returned my call/email about it?

 

Or wait until after the holidays, even though the CEO said it would be great for us to spend this week working on it and finishing it?

 

If I do contact him, will it make my sup even more angry that I'm "going behind his back"? Or will not emailing the CEO lead him to believe that I forgot and don't care about his project?? Aaarrghhh!

 

So confused!!! Am I so worthless that I'm not even worth 5 minutes of my sup's time regarding this? Or is this perceived as a threat in some way? SHould I just lay low?

[Curmudgeon]

Since you're essentially being paid for piece work, I'd go for the gold!

[CarolAnne]

Thanks Curmudgeon-

 

I guess I'm feeling bad / confused because I've just started working here -

 

I'm afraid of alienating my supervisor, if I make him feel insignificant then he could very well stop giving me projects and write me out altogether. You know how it is with egos. He seems to want to make the point that he is in charge, and it makes sense to avoid chaos by having one person keep control of the projects.

 

On the other hand I don't want the CEO to feel like I forgot or don't care about his project. Quite the opposite I was looking forward to hanging out with him this coming week and never expected that my supervisor wouldn't even get back to me about it. The sup is even out of town what does he care if the CEO and I start on a new project?

 

I just graduated and so this is my first time working in the "real" world. I know I've made mistakes typical of people who are used to uni. I think I will write to the CEO, more than anything I'm trying my best to understand this situation in a positive light, maybe I am being paranoid and maybe the sup is just busy for Christmas and didn't have time. I have a real tendency to draw battle lines, us vs. them and I'm trying really hard to fight that, it's never gotten me anything but trouble.

[westernxer]

The CEO should go through your supervisor with projects designated for you. If your supervisor is out of the loop, then he's at a disadvantage when it comes to dealing with the other five. If one project is urgent yet you're stuck on something else without the supervisor knowing, it could generate a lot of friction between everyone.

 

Just let the friendly CEO know that you have to okay his suggestion with your supervisor before starting on anything. However, if you work quickly, maybe you can juggle a few projects without losing ground, but you should definitely bring this up with your supervisor in person the next time you see him.

 

You'll learn what to do as you get used to everyone. It can take weeks, even months, to settle in comfortably, but people notice when you're sincere in your efforts to make a difference.

[lindya]

IShould I email the CEO directly and tell him that I have most of this week free to work on his project, even though my supervisor is out of town and hasn't even returned my call/email about it?

 

I take a line somewhere between Westernxer, and the advice Curmudgeon gives...as I think they both make very valid points.

 

You're fairly new to the organisation, so you're not going to know what the history between all these people is. Just because the CEO is friendly to you, doesn't automatically mean you can stick a "good guy who will be on my side if things get messy" label onto him. Westernxer's right in that you'd be wise to give your supervisor the benefit of the doubt and treat him with a bit of professional courtesy - even if he is being a petty git.

 

Then again, I like Curmudgeon's "you go for it" encouragement. Women don't necessarily progress careerwise by being nice and doing exactly what they're told 100% of the time. Sometimes you have to show a bit of initiative - and there will be times when showing that initative gets you into trouble with the "I don't care if I'm wrong....you are my subordinate, and you do what I tell you to do..." brigade.

 

My inclination here would be to send the CEO an email and copy it to your boss - "I refer to the project you mentioned in conversation last (whenever), and note that you would like me to assist you with this as soon as possible. I wonder if you and (wobbly lipped supervisor) have had an opportunity to discuss this yet?"

 

By this stage, you've made several efforts to keep your supervisor involved in these discussions, and he hasn't responded. You can put that to him if he gets shirty about the email. Remember - be courteous to him, but don't be intimidated by him.