15+ Technologically incompetent coworker stories: 'Old coworker used to print out 100+ page PDF just to scan it all back into email one by one'

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Apr 27, 2024 8:00 AM EDT

Every office has a technologically incompetent coworker. The truth of the matter is that some people simply should not be allowed to have phones or computers, and sometimes, I will include myself in this category. The number of times in which I have accidentally texted the wrong person is proof alone that I am not the most careful when it comes to technology. This is also proof that it is not always the oldest coworker in the office who is the technologically challenged one. In fact, I have had many older coworkers explain to me how to connect my computer to the conference room TV, and every single time, I still get it wrong. 

Still, there are several Boomer stories that Redditors included in their coworker venting stories, and there are a few instances of the reverse as well. It's further proof that while technology is usually intended to bridge people closer together and to make productivity easier, sometimes, the exact opposite result ends up happening. The best thing you can do in these situations is to laugh it off and not let it frustrate you too much because new technology isn't going anywhere.

Keep scrolling below for this fresh collection of coworker stories. When you're done, check out this post about a regrettable micromanager.

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  • 01
    De G "I had to gently explain right clicking"
    via Austin Distel
  • 02
    Tell me your low tech ability coworker stories I just want to feel like I'm not alone with this.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 03
    My coworker just had a Teams meeting with me, and didn't realize that her speakers were turned down/off....but she wasn't muted. When I joined the meeting I tried speaking and even turned my camera on and waved, I then did a screen share and took myself off camera because her boyfriend was also there and I felt awkward. I then had to show her in the screen share how to fix her volume.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 04
    Even though our meeting was for X o'clock, she was just wandering around her house, yelling to her boyfriend, etc etc. I mentioned during our meeting that someone that she voluntold for something had actually spoken to me about how he didn't have the 'bandwidth' for doing it, and she kept asking what I meant by that, what the internet had to do with it it.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 05
    She technically has more experience in the role we both do. Prior to this I was a team lead on a specific project, and before that I did some data analysis (my lazy girl job that I miss). She will print out a fillable form from Adobe, fill it out, sign it, scan it and send it to the next person to sign.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 06
    I just need to know I'm not alone with this. And please tell me something happened with these coworkers, something karmic and wonderful.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 07
    PM_ME__UR__FANTASIES 11 hr. ago Boomer coworker in accounting constantly up payroll. Wrong ledgers, departments, periods, etc. and would get very exasperated with me when I pushed for corrections. Refused to try to update any of her insane processes that were fine 20 years ago when the company was 1/10 the current size. Keyboard COVERED in food crumbs oh my god it was so disgusting.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 08
    Company got sold a few months ago. Lots of questions about the ledgers. She majorly on a recent up payroll (didn't account for several hundred thousands of labor dollars leading to a ton of reports having to get redone). Her boss retired and she assumed she would be reporting to his replacement (from new parent company), threw a fit when she found out she was now reporting to a different person who she thinks is an idiot (probably because he wants things done the right way).
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 09
    Boom, early retirement with medical leave for the last month of it because she's so angry about her new boss. Retired in disgrace, angry, right after the biggest she's probably ever had (that we know of...). Feels good to be successful and outlast the dinosaurs.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 10
    josefkeigh 9 hr. ago In one business trip to a remote office in 2002, I had to: 1. Teach someone how to use a mouse. They had literally never touched one before (hint: get them to play solitaire)
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 11
    2. Stop someone from using a pencil and a ruler to draw a grid on a piece of paper. Fill out a list of delivery addresses with map codes (this was before GPS devices and apps). Cut out each of the addresses from the sheet they had made and filled out. Rearrange them in map code order, and then glue them to another sheet of paper, and photocopy it. The give the photocopy to the truck driver for his route that day. Let's just say that their heads exploded when I showed them Excel, and how to sort
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 12
    . Successful-Basil2174 9 hr. ago Old co-worker used to print out 100+ page PDF just to scan it all back in to email out one by one. Used to sneak into the office during covid to print paper invoices because he didn't like using 2 screens. Went back to hybrid and refused to have a proper set up at the office just used his laptop, took him hours to complete simple tasks. System we used had a consolidate or split function on costings, instead of consolidate he would use split and use a calculator t
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 13
    B-owie 8 hr. ago I had to gently explain right clicking didn't mean clicking toward the right hand side of the icon/cell/page and it was a whole separate button. They thought it was for left handed people when they moved the mouse over, and had never had to use right click in their 15+ years of admin...
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 14
    88k8e 8 hr. ago I always had her passwords written down (they were generated by IT and were things like wmU8k&Oa) and would do her surveys for her (she told me her answers). My coworker and I always did her online orders (personal orders on her phone) because one time she accidentally ordered a $200 sports jersey. We don't know how. I love her and didn't mind. She reminded me of my aunt.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 15
    My aunt, btw, didn't know how eBay worked. In the mid 2000s she used my uncles eBay account and accidentally bought $10,000 worth of paintings. She thought you could bid on things and decide later if you wanted to buy them. That's also how they ended up with a 16th century French chair that had no seat. Literally. It was like the torture chair from Casino Royale, but old and fancy.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 16
    moodychurchill • 8 hr. ago I just got put on medical leave and emailed the pdf of my drs note to my boss. He doesn't know how to forward it or download it to give it to HR. He printed a paper copy and walked it up them.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 17
    birdmanrules · 6 hr. ago Two new hires 19 and 20. On employment they claimed to be computer literate. Given task using excel part of which was adding up a column to get total cost. Caught them using their mobile phone calculator to add up the column in excel. Two other slightly older employees apparently told them that is the only way they had found.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 18
    Groundbreaking-Fig38 - 9 hr. ago Honey, can you fax that back to me it's the only copy I have. I've been in IR for 30 years, and there are things I HATE about teams and new SharePoint, but I still try to learn.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 19
    LoubyAnnoyed · 7 hr. ago One coworker is constantly amazed that I can fix their computer problems by turning it off, and back on again. They are amazed by this at least four times a year. Over three years. Slow learner...
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 20
    Ok-Strawberry-9991 8 hr. ago My colleague, not quite half my age but young enough to be my kid, walked past me while I was busy typing a super detailed email at the workstation. Except at some point the cursor had done the thing where it hits the desktop or whatever and what he actually saw was me typing furiously and no words appearing on the screen. We had a good old laugh at what a dummy I am and honestly it was a bright moment of levity at the end of a day.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 21
    SlugSandwiches - 6 hr. ago A senior manager complained that the excel spreadsheet "contained hashtags in some boxes instead of actual numbers". They had no idea that they would need to expand the column or zoom in if the number was longer than the cell was wide.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 22
    Top-Airport3649. 5 hr. ago Manager would copy herself in every email so she would have a copy and proof she sent it.
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 23
    emmadilemma71.7 hr. ago Boomer who thought he was soo advanced and always busy. His typing skills were one finger. Fair enough but looking for the key every single time. So this paragraph for example would take him a good 20 minutes to type. And he would make me watch him. Close to tears with the boredom in knowing I could have done it in less than a minute
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 24
    geekgirlau⚫ 5 hr. ago Many moons ago I was a computer trainer. This was the olden days, when we actually trained people in the basics of software they were expected to use on a regular basis. Now we just expect them to know it. I have a reputation at pretty much every company I've worked for as the "Excel Guru". And yeah, my skills are actually very good. But I'd probably still have the title if all I had was a decent grasp of pivot tables and charts
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 25
    thikkflair · 4 hr. ago I watched a 55+ year old women put a can of soup in the microwave. This was after she had been struggling to learn our computer systems with a very extended training opportunity. Felt really bad for her, she started a lightning storm in the break room with that soup
    via u/quiet_confessions
  • 26
    Medical-Towel-9477 4 hr. ago Someone way up the food chain inadvertently send an email to the entire corporation. 47000 people replied all
    via u/quiet_confessions

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terrible coworkers workplace-stories work stories toxic-workplace job work coworkers Horrible Bosses reddit thread Reddit company toxic-work-environment
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