Ask HN: Promoted, but now I have the workload of two jobs. What do?

3 pointsjellyfishbeaver2y ago2 comments

I am a North American developer at a Fortune 500 company. My manager has always been over the moon about my work. Recently, the topic of a promotion came up. Hesitant, I took time to think about the offer but ultimately accepted with a minor pay bump. I talked with several good friends before accepting and they warned me that the proposed job description was very broad and there was no clear division of duties. I brushed it off and figured everything would be alright.

So, now here I am. I have all the responsibilities of my last job plus all the new responsibilities. I have no time for anything deep, I frequently ignore messages and tasks because I am just too swamped to deal with them. I am engulfed by notifications and emails every time I open my computer.

I've mentioned my unhappiness to my manager who chalked to up to a learning curve and he suggested I hang in there until we find other people to pick up the slack, which is not looking likely. I see certain tasks go undone, and nobody else picks them up. I was very proactive in my last position and did a lot of behind the scenes work to keep things running smoothly, but others have not been keen to pick up that work when asked.

Just looking for some support, things to say or bring up, similar experiences you all may have had, and how I can maneuver this.

2 comments

brudgers2y ago

The lesson here is that things don't run smoothly because the purpose of the sausage factory is making sausage.

What you are getting is the opportunity to learn how to deal with complexity and impossible problems.

The ability to deal with complexity and manage impossible problems is the difference what large corporations value.

All those emails and messages are people problems. People problems are the core of the problems Fortune 500 companies have. And people problems are complex and impossible.

Just do what you can.

You're not going to be fired.

Because your manager would have to find someone to do what you used to do, plus what you are doing now...your manager has people problems, understand?.

Maybe you quit. Nothing wrong with that. It's useful to realize that quitting would be a rejection of the opportunity to gain experience valuable in Fortune 500 culture.

And a rejection of it's central tenant of behaving as if you are in for the long haul. That's ok too. Just understand what you are doing.

The reward for work is more work. Good luck.

Aurornis2y ago

The more senior you get, the more you’re expected to be able to manage your workload.

The important part about managing your workload is communicating what can and cannot be done. If you have more work than can be done in the time allowed, it’s up to high to explain this to others and propose solutions. In your case it looks like you need to go to your boss and propose offloading or pausing certain tasks.

Learn how to explain that there are more tasks than bandwidth available. Learn how to push for prioritization of tasks rather than letting everything be equally important.

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