I’M CONFUSED!

20 Comments

1. AnonymousMay 4,2023 at 3:18AM UTC

   I commend you for your thoughtfulness of the company/position you are leaving. I think honesty in this instance is the way to go.

2. Kelley LambMay 4,2023 at 4:03AM UTC

   Be honest with feedback but be sure you are giving the new person every opportunity to learn your tasks. I would tell the new person to take very good notes and record my explanations I am fgiving for tasks they can't seem to remember after training them. I get irritated when people who are being trained don't take notes then expect me to write them detailed directions that I have gone over and over with them . It's lazy and not taking responsibility. Remember you have been doing the job for long time and it's easy to forget what it's like to be new.

3. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistMay 4,2023 at 5:58AM UTC

   YOU SAID: "My problem is that I don’t believe this person has the experience that the company needs for my role."

   That's not your problem unless you hired this person. Which it sounds like you did not.

   YOU SAID: "Although she told my supervisor that she’s done this type of work before, I have my doubts. I’ve been training her on a very basic task that all people in my current role perform."

   She can tell your supervisor whatever she wants during the interview process but it's your supervisor's job to drill down with questioning or testing to make sure the person knows what they say they know. You are not responsible for the quality of the hires someone else makes.

   YOU SAID: "She had no idea what I was talking about, admitted to me that she’d never done this task before and was going to need more training…and for me to write out the process in detail."

   Uh, no. This person is presumably a grown up. They are to take whatever notes they need to learn the job. It is not your responsibility to spoon feed information to this person nor do their training for them.

   In regards to more training, there comes a point where you need to tell her to consult the notes she has taken and to figure it out. Based on your post, you're not talking about complex tasks here - you're talking about the most basic functions of the job. Does she have the critical thinking skills to figure it out? Is she waiting for you to get frustrated with her repeatedly asking you, hoping you'll say it's just easier to do it myself?

   My recommendation on how to respond to your boss is with facts, not opinions. Tell her that the new hire told you she had no idea what you was talking about and admitted to you that she’d never done this task before. Tell her that you have gone over things multiple times but she's still asking the same basic questions (if that's true).

   YOU SAID: "Or should I not let this bother me since I’m leaving anyway?"

   You should not let this bother you because this is not your problem. Lay out the facts for your boss when asked and let her come to her own conclusions. She's going to be the one who has to live with the decision she made to hire this person - it's not your concern. Your job is to provide the best training you can - you can't make someone learn it or catch on. And if she lied during the interview process, that's not your problem.

4. AnonymousMay 4,2023 at 12:31PM UTC

   I would hope you would award the same opportunity to grow and learn as you have over your tenure. How much time did you put into your role and you want a subject matter expert to just pick up the ball at where you are at with the knowledge of your position and the company is going to send a message of already failure to that new employee. Please know they may have some bumps, as you may have had during your time, and allow them to grow. They may not be 'perfect' prior to your departure, that's ok. That's not on you, don't worry about that. Be a great coach, open-minded as they want to have a different productive flow. Ask questions after you share a process and say hey, you now saw how I would do this, is there anything you would want to do different. They didn't hire you, they hired a new person for the role, not a clone. Be Open, and be excited for your next journey and proud that you are about to be part of a mentoring opportunity for someone new. good luck.

5. Leah AshtonMay 4,2023 at 1:21PM UTC

   I would continue to be honest with your soon to be former boss.
   Let them know your concerns, tell them how the trainee is doing.

6. AnonymousMay 4,2023 at 1:56PM UTC

   Be factual, talk about the goals and the progress the person is making. Your opinion on their overall capability reflects on your boss, since they made the hiring decision. It also can make you seem bitter and think yourself “irreplaceable”.

7. MislynMay 5,2023 at 12:40PM UTC

   If your relationship with her is great I would let her know. She needs to know what to expect. I trained someone I knew was not qualified for the job and the boss was so excited about her. He raved about how intelligent she was but I doubted her abilities from the beginning. She wasn’t a good fit and it was obvious from the beginning. The hiring pool is so low you have to hire what you can.

8. QMay 6,2023 at 2:19PM UTC

   It depends on what the basic tasks are she is struggling with. Are they basic tasks that would be performed in this type of work at any workplace? Or are they basic tasks but specific to your industry or environment? If the latter, she may genuinely need a bit more ramp up to see how her experience applies to the role. If the former, I think you do need to take the facts kindly but truthfully to your boss. You should not agonize over it, though. This is not your problem to fix. People do lie to get roles and if she honestly has no experience in basic tasks related to the role, which are not special things for just your company, then there is an underlying problem that your boss will need to address. Not you. It's their job to decide if they want to invest in teaching them from the ground up, and your coworkers who are not retiring will be the ones who would have to help with that. There's no way you could train a person from zero before retiring. To me, it truly depends on how you define "the basics" in this context.

9. AnonymousMay 6,2023 at 5:18PM UTC

   The truth is what you should share. I would sit your manager down now, don't wait. Let them know exactly what you shared here. Be specific be kind, give details. Give as much verbatim info as you can about what the new hire exactly said. Let your manager know that if she does retain this person then there will be a ramp period and you cannot assure that things will be done correctly. As an alternative you could also let the manager know that the new hire asked for a playbook to be written. You could do this, offer it to the manager and let them know that you don't want to be the person to train the new hire any longer and that they could use the new hires first 60 days using the guide to assess them for themselves. Since you did not share if you were in the interviews for your replacement you could also offer to help find a better choice for your legacy. Enjoy retirement and good for you for caring about those you leave behind!

10. Carolina Perez SanzMay 7,2023 at 12:38PM UTC

    I agree: tell the truth. And also, trust that the new person will learn and acquire the necessary skills and knowledge: they have 8 months before you leave. Design a plan with your boss and the new person for this time before you leave.

11. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 6:37PM UTC

    Yes… I just want to boost this reply here - developing a plan or even an outline w. Your boss for the core competencies needed (and the sub tasks) is crucial. Makes it not about you or her… just the job and hard skills / soft skills to get it done.

12. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 12:50PM UTC

    Train her, and hopefully after your expertise, she develops the competencies to do the essentials duties of the job..Reporting back to your boss perhaps she's capable with continuous training.. She was hired, so she qualifies for something.. Happy retirement! ?

13. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 12:51PM UTC

    in my experience, when someone transitions out of a role, Companies often use this opportunity to bring a different skill set than that which currently exists on the team. I would start the conversation with seeking to understand if expectations for your successor may be shifting, and speaking to the additional level of training or support that will be required to get her up to speed on the gaps you’re currently seeing.

14. Joann MorganMay 7,2023 at 1:27PM UTC

    I have been in the CS Admin for years, I will tell you, As for someone who trained people in the past. and your boss wants the status of this person's training. you have to be honest with her. Show her how to do it at first, let her take her notes. then let her do it hands on taking more notes of anything she missed. If she still is not getting it. its time to change replacements. You doing it all of her training, is not going to help her. and it does reflect on the co. and you for you are the one training her. Be honest with your boss and let her know whats going on. good luck. and happy retirement to come.

15. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 2:07PM UTC

    I would hope you would tell you boss the truth. Why wouldn’t you?

16. Anonymous 1May 7,2023 at 6:28PM UTC

    Agreed. Kindly suggest she get a notepad and write details down in her own words. It’ll aid the learning and shows initiative.

17. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 6:33PM UTC

    I’d stick to business. Train the skills - the core workflows…the non negotiable tasks that must be done… ask her to grab a notepad and take notes. The company may have liked a certain skill in her … and it also be true that she lacks comprehension of current scope. This is what training is for - so get her to take her own notes. It will help her learn more quickly. When asked be honest. Don’t over share just the facts. But when asked how she is doing… do be honest.

18. AnonymousMay 7,2023 at 8:14PM UTC

    I would say, “my training style might not be a good fit for this person, as I have assumptions about what she should know, and it may benefit her to get further training from someone else.”

19. Liz MilneMay 8,2023 at 12:15AM UTC

    Tell the truth because a) you're going soon, so any criticism shouldn't come back to affect you; b) the company will be poorly impacted by leaving her in the job, which they will if you say it's all good; and c) it's the right thing to do!

20. AnonymousMay 8,2023 at 12:19PM UTC

    First of all, congratulations on your upcoming retirement! Because you have a good relationship with your boss, I would be honest. You haven't said how long you've been training this employee, but I would try to add balance to the conversation. In addition to sharing that she admittedly does not have experience in certain areas, are there any tasks that she is picking up on quickly or doing well. Also, it might help to understand her learning style better -- some people learn best by someone showing them how to do something, others learn better if given the chance to actually do a task while someone walks them through it. Finally, I agree with what others have posted, she should be taking notes and writing down procedures as you are training her. Good luck with the training and your upcoming retirement.