I am a senior manager with 40+ years of work experience.

19 Comments

1. AnonymousJanuary 12,2025 at 5:05AM UTC

   If you want to keep your job, you play the game. No honesty about anything that will not keep you exactly where you are. This is nit about you being micromanaged, or about having no goals. Every single thing you do will be to play the game for one more year. You create a narrative of cooperation, adding value and adherence to the company's mission. Do not jeopardize your retirement unless you can just retire 1 year early without financial impact. Don't do it. It's not worth it.

2. AnonymousJanuary 12,2025 at 1:23PM UTC

   Excellent advice.

   I never have goals given to me. I create my own and talk through these with my boss to make sure mine buttress hers.

   To the point of the comment above, play the game! Google SMART goals, make something up

   Or, you could go in with your own narrative, ignoring your boss’s request for goals. Your blaze of glory approach won’t land well and will put your last year in jeopardy. The choice should be easy for you.

3. AnonymousJanuary 12,2025 at 4:14PM UTC

   Well far from retirement but I wish I had read your comment yesterday as I hit submit on my performance review! It wasn’t harsh just requested more support and feedback and actually training documents on tasks we don’t do daily. I’ve been the almost two years with no merit increase… to your point don’t rock the boat!

4. AnonymousJanuary 12,2025 at 5:16PM UTC

   Asked to see your emails before sending? Wow……

   Congratulations on your soon to be retirement - how exciting….

   with that said - I’d write a simple goodbye and thank you for their time and BOUNCE

   LOL

5. Michelle HoffmanJanuary 13,2025 at 1:26PM UTC

   NO, because if they let you go, you have unemployment. But you also have leverage to score a severance package of at minimum 1 week for every year of service. With 40 years and senior manager, it could be 3 weeks for every year of service.

6. AnonymousJanuary 12,2025 at 5:42PM UTC

   As another poster wrote play the game. Do not rock the boat. Play nice and come up with your own SMART goals and how you reached them. You are near the finish line, so don’t mess with anything that could jeopardize them from releasing you early. You’ve worked too hard to lose what could affect your future. Whether you agree or not be the survivor and give them what they want. In one year say toodledooooo!

7. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 11:25AM UTC

   Type in Open AI/ Chat GPT what you have done (based on your job description APPROVED BY HR) then ask it to put it in the SMART format. You’ll be surprised at the results. (Saved me a LOT of time with micro managers!)

8. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 1:19PM UTC

   This exact same thing happened to me except I was 3 years out from retirement. On the last day of our fiscal year 9/30/24, they eliminated my job. Hoping and praying you make it your last year. The job market is tough enough without being this close to retirement. Unfortunately I need the income to survive.

9. Maggie SoldanoJanuary 13,2025 at 1:48PM UTC

   how Frustrating. I’m sorry to hear it. Three recommendations.

   Prepare for the worst. They may be preparing to force an early retirement. Make sure you’ have a contingency plan and are emotionally prepared for that, just in case.

   I love the advice to use ChatGPT to create goals. I’m sure your work contributes to organizational success in some way, so let the robots help you clarify that.

   This is no time for honesty. Protect your benefits and be supportive, helpful, and know your hard-earned retirement is just around the corner. “Honesty” is rarely valued when micromanaging is a factor. Criticizing your leadership will only piss them off and maybe lean in harder.
   good luck!!

10. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 2:10PM UTC

    This is where you need to remember you are a professional. With 40 years experience, reading the room is your strength. I can totally relate, at 64 my position was”eliminated”. Life can sometimes suck. We don’t always get to write how we leave a job. You do. You got this!

11. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 2:10PM UTC

    Follow Dan Goodman on LinkedIn to be prepared in event of a severance offer. Not sure what role you are in as he mostly works with account executives to increase severance offers or get one if they don’t offer it. Be more prepared for being let go/terminated ahead of time and reach out now for help.

12. Joann S. LublinJanuary 13,2025 at 2:39PM UTC

    At this point, it also might be a good idea to consult an employment attorney as you may have the basis for an age discrimination suit. Even just threatening to bring such litigation could pressure your employer into offering you a generous severance package that would allow you to retire sooner than you expected. Let us know how things go!

13. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 4:29PM UTC

    Consult an employment attorney because the OP was asked to detail goals and accomplishments from 2024? Get Real!

    According to this ridiculous advice
    -OP, please detail how you performed in 2024, connect your outcomes to goals.
    -I'm going to threaten litigation for being asked to complete an annual review.

    Do better Joann, this is absurd!

14. RobinJanuary 13,2025 at 4:42PM UTC

    I would say the possible employment age discrimination comes from the ‘being overly micromanged’ and asked without reason to have emails ok’d before sending. These are tactics used to push someone out. We all know this and Im not posting anonymously to say so.

15. Dawn McDonnellJanuary 13,2025 at 4:30PM UTC

    My advice would be positive with in any kind of narrative - comment.

    Find anything good that will celebrate you and give some positive recognition to the supervisor offering gratitude for the position

    you have. “ Think” if you know and they know you are retiring what makes you believe you will be there for an xtra year unless you have a contract, a legal document protecting you- You may get off loaded before you think u will be.

    It happens through out corporate America .

16. AnonymousJanuary 13,2025 at 5:28PM UTC

    Advice is to only share positivity so as not to affect your upcoming retirement because if you do you could find yourself retired sooner than later. Say something like I would like some stretch goals for this upcoming year and would like some leeway to meet those goals independently. Good luck.

17. Julie landauJanuary 14,2025 at 2:37AM UTC

    Based on my experience, it’s essential to approach this self-evaluation strategically, showcasing your professionalism and dedication while managing any frustrations diplomatically. Here’s how:

    1. Highlight Your Contributions: Focus on the results you achieved despite not having formal SMART goals. Use measurable examples where possible, e.g., “Proactively handled specific projects/tasks, ensuring specific outcomes.

    2. Frame Challenges as Strengths: Acknowledge the micro-management constructively. For example, “Close oversight has strengthened my attention to detail and reinforced my commitment to excellence in communication.”

    3. Reflect on Your Legacy: With retirement nearing, emphasize your focus on continuity, transmission and knowledge-sharing: “I have prioritized mentoring and documentation to ensure a smooth transition for my successor.”

    4. Be Honest, Yet Diplomatic: Avoid airing grievances directly. Instead, frame feedback as an opportunity for improvement, e.g., “Greater clarity in goal-setting would have further aligned my efforts with organizational priorities.”

    5. Maintain a Positive Tone: Keep your comments solution-focused, showcasing your adaptability and contributions under challenging circumstances.

    hope that helps :) you got this!

18. Liz MilneJanuary 14,2025 at 1:47PM UTC

    Pick out some of your biggest successful projects and reverse-engineer SMART goals for them? And be very honest but tactful:

    [Manager] is highly detail oriented which I appreciate, however in the year ahead I am looking forward to becoming a bit more hands-on with my work to free up [her/his] time for those team members who still need closer guidance.

    Something like that, parlay it into a 'good' thing, but one that you no longer need?

19. Tami L CannizzaroJanuary 17,2025 at 7:08PM UTC

    Use active verbs to describe your accomplishments as though you were updating your resume - remember, your supervisor may or may not remember the details of your achievements. "Increased sales by $X by managing project Bring Home the Bacon on time and under budget"; "Managed team of 6 direct reports; onboarded and trained new hire"; "Exceeded new customer acquisition goals by X%, leading cross-functional team that included finance, legal, operations, advertising" - etc. RE: retirement - if it were me, I would not mention this at all. It's not part of your review. This is no one's business but yours. When you decide to retire - right now you say 1 year, yet you might change your mind - Then it's your decision when to tell people. Don't let anyone know until that moment in time comes. As others have stated, once that information is out, it's now on the company's radar and if they want to let people go, your name could be at the top of the hat.