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I recently relocated and I took what I thought was a great job.

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Anonymous

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I recently relocated and I took what I thought was a great job. Sales assistant for a new home development. I would be doing data entry, greeting customers and assisting sales people with paperwork.

Show up on day 1, not introduced to anyone and did nothing all day. Day 2- same thing. Day 3 told I could have it off since they couldn’t get my computer login. Day 4 did nothing. Day 5, finally got login and 20 minutes worth of training on how they use Salesforce.

I take 3 days to catch up on the backlog of data entry and then am told they have nothing else to do. Bring in a book for when you are bored.

I’ve never experienced anything like it. I’ve completed 2 weeks and show up yesterday and am told they hired someone to back me up. There is nothing for me to do so not sure while I need back up. Meanwhile the manager refuses to have a conversation about my job duties and day to day expectations.

At this point, I think it’s best to cut ties. It seems clear to me that the fact that I need to be productive and busy dos not mesh with their philosophy. And that the job I was told I accepted is not what I would be doing.

Am I wrong for not giving them another chance?

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  1. Anonymous

    Is there anyone at the corporate office you can talk to?

    Also, if you plan to find another job don't leave until you've found it. Use this job to pay the bills.

  2. Anonymous

    I agree, start your job search but hold on to this paycheck until you have the next one lined up.

  3. Anonymous

    Thank you- but I did leave as I prefer to be productive and allows me the free time to interview.

    Already set up 4 between today & tomorrow.

  4. Antonia Calzetti

    If you can hold out, I don't suggest leaving your job until you've secured another one. If they want you to read rather than work, then read. It's called bait and switch and it is happening way too often.

  5. Kristie White

    I suspect with the housing market boom, they have more money than they know what to do with. This type of behavior is rampant in organizations that are currently flush and have grown too fast. They have probably added sales staff, who are grumbling about doing a few mundane tasks, and because they COULD afford to hire someone they did. Same reasoning went for your backup. And the manager is probably unsure what to tell you because they have limited experience managing. They are burning cash because they can - and if someone who understood the issues saw it, they would put a stop to it. But everyone is so busy selling, no one is paying attention.

    I would do what they told you - bring a book - and prepare your resume and start looking. Something is going to break - the housing market is cooling with interest going up, and having hired a backup may be an indication that they don't feel comfortable with the questions you are asking. So take the money and prepare for the change that is coming. In the meantime, you can bring in extra cash and start looking.

  6. Anonymous

    I think that is actually it.

    The manager has no idea what they are doing or that they are even over staffed. She hired back up because the person before me needed entire days to do what I do in like 3 hours. She is used to needing 2 -3 people.

    I actually left this morning. And will interview on my time. Just can’t sit around & do nothing all day.

  7. Anonymous

    Sorry you had such a crummy experience. Good luck on the new job search.

  8. Kristie White

    I would also ask if you can expand your role. Tell the manager that you have time to help in other areas. But the housing market is cooling, so a retraction is coming to staffing.

  9. Amie Fipps

    The title is sales assistant, usually in sales roles you need to sell in order to get paid commission? They give a lot of autonomy for these roles, because everyone sells differently. Did the employer give you a job description or paperwork? Do you get a bonus if you sell? Also, you should ask for clear expectations.

    If you want more work you should ask the sales people what they need help with. You can Make flyers for the houses. Send out emails. Make social media accounts and post. Call agents and brokers to let them know about the development. Find ways to be productive. A lot of sales jobs means take the initiative to find clients and sell. Do the sales people get commission? If so they will gladly take your help.

    I’m guessing they are worried when you ask these questions because that means you haven’t been in sales before.

    Is the development fully built? Sometimes things are slow until the are houses are built. Also the housing market has considerably slowed in my area.

  10. Anonymous

    I actually was a director of sales and a regional sales manager prior. And have 18 years of sales experience.

    Decided I wanted to slow down a bit. So took a position that was to be assisting and not actually doing any sales.

    I did ask the sales people and they did not need help with anything. Was not a commission position. There was legit 6 admins sitting around doing nothing.

    Only real license people can sell. They have a waiting list of 6500 and are averaging 60 closes per month so definitely not slowing down.

    I just think they do not need that many admins.

  11. Anonymous

    I worked as a contractor for six months at a job where the supervisor gave me no instructions and brought in a manager and no one asked me what I was doing in staff meetings. After I left the admin told me that the person that they hired had the same situation.

    i sussed that the dept head had an approved position and kept it filled rather than cut it in the event that someday he needed that person to actually do some work

  12. Anonymous

    dont just leave, continue to collect that income while applying for other jobs. I wish someone would pay me to not work. No need to tell them anything. When you get a new offer, give them 2 weeks notice and bounce. But as a lesson going fwd make sure you are interviewing the people interviewing you to get a sense of a position you are about to work. Request to do a day or two shadow of someone already in the position to get an idea of the day to day activities

  13. Anonymous

    Agree with this response and want to add that this was a dead end job for someone so motivated. Leverage it to get a different job that allows you to learn. Or find ways to help others at this job to show off your skills.

  14. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition Specialist

    I would not recommend you quit your job if you plan to stay in your new location unless you have unlimited funds to support yourself while you look for a new job.

    If you have nothing to do, you should have plenty of time to search for a new job. Fire that resume back up. I would also recommend that you have an honest conversation with yourself and re-examine the interview process for this new position - did you drill down on everything you possibly could or could you have asked more/different questions that could have uncovered what this position would actually be like so you don't find yourself in this situation again.

  15. Crystal Howell

    Interesting, so you caught up the backlog and they have someone else? Manager refuses to discuss duties?

    I would have a word with the recruiter or HR manager, as there seems to be a disconnect. Try that first, my guess the other person can be your replacement? Stick it out, keep busy, better to get laid off for benefits than quit in this job market. Keep looking, their are many housing developments popping up. Energetically yours, Crystal

  16. Lynn

    I have a job where I get my work done & have ALOT of time to do nothing.
    I read Facebook, text my daughters, pay my bills, I’ve even read the whole Bible! At work!!!
    play games on your phone. Things will pick up then you may have more downtime. I love my job!

  17. C Allen

    The fact they brought someone in to back you up on a job that has no work is what's concerning. Start looking. Otherwise relish these low task jobs and the the opportunity to build yourself up for the next opportunity (extra classes, a certification, etc.)

  18. Nikki

    I had a job where I was underworked and under tasked so I got my Agile Scrum Master certification in that time. It helped boost my career at my next job where now things are a lot busier and I am more equipped to handle that.

  19. C Allen

    Congrats! That's exactly what I mean. I got my CAPM and the company that I was working for at the time paid for it!

  20. Anonymous

    Take advantage of the downtime and study or get additional skill sets when it is slow. This can be turned into an opportunity. Once you gain the additional skill sets.... Keep looking for a job.

  21. Anonymous

    Thank you all for the feedback.

    Here is the update: I had a conversation with managers and HR, they legitimate think that it is so busy they need 5 admins and that each admin should ONLY do one task. So one greets people, one does data entry, one stocks sales brochures and will back up data entry on their day off and so on.

    I did leave as within a day of my posting and was able to secure 9 interviews over the next week. On a personal level it is a lot easier to manage the interview process not lying to people to get out of work..

    I am far from independently wealthy but I did just sell my house before I moved and made a great profit. So taking a couple months off to get settled and find the perfect job that I will be happy at will not be a hardship.

    That being said, I did make the decision to leave. I’m more mad at myself as I interviewed 4 times, spent half a day with one of the admins and had a long conversation with hr about their values (that was important as I did work with the least employee friendly company in America for 18 years) and this still happened. Clearly I only saw what I wanted to see.

    So I will start my search again and define take everyone’s advice moving forward.

    thank you

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