MY IT Consultant sux, but he's my bosses bro! 1

[TekkieDave]

We have an IT Consultant on retainer, who is unreliable, not always available, and not very knowledgable.

He's a nice guy I guess, but he just doesn't know his stuff. Not as well as he should anyway.

The problem is that he is my bosses brother. How do I get him out without insulting my boss?

Help!!!
Dave

 

[pmonett]

TekkieDave:

Your problem is in your hierarchical position. You are an underling - no managerial status. Even without working in a family company, you would not have the clout necessary to oust a consultant called in by a manager.

Not unless you have a manager on your side.

That is your only chance - escalate the issue to a manager who is capable of picking up the tab and taking it to home base. If another manager starts yelling about efficiency and cost and diminishing performance, then this jerk might see the end of his relationship with the company.

If you do not have another manager to work on, then you must realize that however much the situation sucks, this is how the company wants to work. Not your budget, not your responsibility, but it may be time to start looking at the wanted ads because a small company that wastes money does not stay a company for very long.

Meanwhile, the only other thing you can do is document everything that happens, so you are not blamed for his incompetence when the inevitable day of reckoning arrives.

The only person who can help you is a manager with an eye on what the return on investment is. We are limited to sideline support.

Pascal.

 

[SGTRawlins]

I sympathise with your situation, my manager is the Managing Director's son,

He is un-reliable and un-obtainable most of the time, however the issue was resonably easy to resolve, I had an informal chat with the MD and it would seem that he was completly aware of the situation.

I am sure your boss is also aware of the situation, you must try and understand that the situation is delicate for your boss aswell, trying to cope with seeing your brother act like that cannot be easy. Discuss the matter with your boss, i am sure he will understand your fustrations with this awkward dilema.

 

[TekkieDave]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure my boss is catching on. He was supposed to come in and check out some issues I was having, and he cancelled that morning. When my boss heard he cancelled, she was visibly annoyed.

She said she was going to talk to him to see if he really wanted to work with us.

Then, the other day, I was rewiring part of the office, and half way into the job, he says,"I dunno about you guys, but I don't feel like finishing today.", and he up and leaves!

I had to pick my jaw up off the ground. Is this guy for real?

**Okay, have you tried rebooting the machine?**

 

[BobJacksonNCI]

To rephrase what's already been said, you are in a "flight or fight" situation and fighting could result in an unhappy ending for you.

Globally, isn't this situation indicative of one of the reasons that outsourcing is becoming an attractive alternative? And to paraphrase a quote by someone, failing memory keeps me from saying whom: "All it takes for Evil to triumph is for good people to stand by and do nothing".

You started this post presumably to obtain ideas.
My idea is that inefficiency makes it easier for those who are willing to work harder to take our jobs. Yours is just one company. What if there are 1,000 other companies employing people in similar situations - who are choosing not to speak up? You don't have to be a Lemming, but you DO have to live with yourself - Be Proud.


HTH,
Bob