'It is exactly as she wanted': Designer gives nightmare client the "ugly" website design she insists on, then refuses to change design

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Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
May 8, 2024 5:00 PM EDT

This designer got stuck with a ceaseless micromanager. That's one way to make a job completely unpleasant. 

A designer headed to the r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit to share this eye-opening tale of an entitled client who got the website she deserved. With a client needing a website designed, it's typical for the designer to go back and forth with them numerous times. The designer will create a mockup, but the client will have just a few tweaks. Sometimes they'll say things like, "Wow, this looks perfect! I just have a few ideas, though…" From there, the designer has to try their best to convince the client to go with the website that looks professional and has a good user interface. 

Some clients just cannot be reasoned with. They're their own worst enemies. They hire someone to make them a website, only to demand the worst changes possible. Why even pay someone to make your site for you if you're going to sabotage them at every turn? 

Check out the whole story below, as well as a few comments from workers who've had the same type of micromanagement experience. Then, read about the woman who was so out of touch with reality that she called up a local grocery store and asked for 5 sheet cakes to be made for her to pick up immediately (and that was just the start!). 

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  • 01
    'Karen is extremely experienced... FOLLOW EVERY INSTRUCTION, EXACTLY AS SHE ASKS.' C C
    via Fujiphilm on Unsplash
  • 02
    Client wants us to create a design "exactly" like their ugly Powerpoint. We comply.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 03
    As a designer, I try to educate my clients on design and why something has to be done a certain way. My agency is not cheap, so we make it quite clear that they are paying for our experience and knowledge, not some Photoshop monkey. Most of the time, my clients are appreciative and enjoy the extra guidance and professional advice.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 04
    Occasionally, we get "fun" jobs. The sales pitch went well enough, the business owner, Bob, seemed like a decent guy and happy to trust our professional expertise. However, shortly after signing the deal, he brought on a new manager, Karen, who was put in charge of marketing, including the new website we were just contracted to do.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 05
    It quickly became clear that Karen thought of herself as a multi-disciplinary genius and despises us because she thinks she can do better than a professional design agency. Karen loves sending over incomprehensible design instructions and feedback in the form of design mock-ups she creates in Powerpoint. They as ugly as the devil's after a strong curry, but we try our best to translate the
    via u/[deleted]
  • 06
    abominations she birthed into good-looking professional design proposals that best reflects the intent of her ideas. Karen did not like it one bit. Karen was uncooperative, and removed Bob from the email threads when we tried to reach out to him to get his opinion. When we sent over a design, she would about how it wasn't want she wanted, and scream over the phone while our team
    via u/[deleted]
  • 07
    patiently explained why we couldn't design exactly as she wanted. Mainly: It would be ugly as heck and nobody would want to do business with them with a website like that. The last time Karen b ed about how we were "stupid morons" for not doing what she wanted, we got her on the phone with Bob. She was screaming incomprehensibly and nobody got a word in. Finally, Bob took
    via u/[deleted]
  • 08
    her side and said "Karen is extremely experienced and knows what she's doing. I want your team to FOLLOW EVERY INSTRUCTION, EXACTLY AS SHE ASKS." No problem.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 09
    Once again, Karen sent over a ridiculous 70mb Powerpoint. If we followed it exactly, it would look like a website from the 90s with the worst UX ever. We went through every little pixel of her PPT, asking her "So do you want us to copy this... EXACTLY?" To which she would reply with a smug YES. So we documented her instructions down to the letter to cover our 1. Once again, we asked Bob: "Are you SURE?"
    via u/[deleted]
  • 10
    Reply: "Yes please hurry up and make those changes exactly as she asked." Okie dokie. We copied every ugly font choice, every terrible gradient, every hideous element into the design. We even went the extra mile to export the ugly lopsided shapes she drew as .PNG graphics, so it would all be "exactly" as she wanted. Then we
    via u/[deleted]
  • 11
    sent the design over: "Here is the design, we have done everything exactly as instructed!" Karen once again replied, taking Bob out of the loop, "PERFECT! Now, it wasn't so hard to do things EXACTLY ASK I ASKED, was it? ;)". We waited.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 12
    Bob exploded, demanding a meeting the very next day to explain why we were delivering such shoddy work. We go to the meeting and Karen starts demanding that we propose a completely new design.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 13
    We presented all past designs, the document in which Karen confirmed that she wanted all the changes, the countless emails in which we painstakingly explained to her why her ideas , and finally, the last email in which she praised us. "You see, Bob, after our last call with you, we had followed Karen's instructions TO THE LETTER, EXACTLY AS SHE HAD ASKED. She seemed very happy with it. I am confused, why the quick change of heart?"
    via u/[deleted]
  • 14
    I then pull out the contract and calmly point out the portion which stated the number of design proposals we would create. Karen had used up all of it. I had reminded her that she was limited to X number of proposals, but she clearly didn't remember any of it because she didn't bother reading our emails, and would keep talking or yelling over us when she spoke on the phone.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 15
    I looked Bob in the eye and told him he could either pay extra for each additional new proposal Karen wants, or choose from the existing designs done. They ask for some time to discuss privately. We break for coffee. "Well, Karen is extremely experienced in this field. We will go with the last design since it is exactly as she wanted."
    via u/[deleted]
  • 16
    Even my intern couldn't hold back his surprise. As we drive back to the office, he asks, "Is Karen sleeping with Bob or something? Why does she have like that?" him by the I shrug. It's his business, and we're getting paid anyway, and he clearly doesn't appreciate our design expertise after all. The
    via u/[deleted]
  • 17
    less time we spend arguing with them, the more time we could use to focus on my appreciative, good clients. We make Bob and Karen sign off on the design, and finish up the project quickly. Karen still tries to be difficult, but we stick to the contracted terms and she couldn't do anything.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 18
    2 months after the project ended, I get a call from Bob. He began with some small talk about innocuous project-related business, but I realized it wasn't the purpose of his call. Karen had been fired after making more serious mistakes causing major losses to his company. He sounded contrite, but did not offer any real apology. "That's terrible, Bob. I'm so shocked. I thought Karen was extremely experienced and knew what she was doing."
    via u/[deleted]
  • 19
    Edit: Sorry guys! As much as I would love to show you the site or Karen's presentations, I'm afraid I must keep things anonymous! You'll have to trust that it looks every bit terrible and outdated as a website designed by a Karen(tm) could be. We did not put our company name in the footer, and it is obviously not included in my company's portfolio.
    via u/[deleted]
  • 20
    MySpaceLegend This is so much like my job. I work in big corporate (on the other side of the table from OP) and it's full of incompetent managers like this. Also, (no offense, OP, not directed towards you) it's full of scammy agencies who charge crazy rates for sub par deliveries.
    via u/MySpaceLegend
  • 21
    LogicalExtension "That's terrible, Bob. I'm so shocked. I thought Karen was extremely experienced and knew what she was doing." Jesus, talk about rubbing salt (and lemon juice) into the wound.
    via u/LogicalExtension
  • 22
    pi_tau I would love to see this website
    via u/pi_tau
  • 23
    DZP You are a true professional. On my side, I have reached the point in life where I no longer suffer complete idiots anymore, they grind me down too much, and I have walked away from contracts with them and lost money. But you have guts and discipline and I salute you.
    via u/DZP
  • 24
    outline01 I left a job (designing annual reports) that was exactly like this. Their account managers were complete pushovers, so whatever the client wanted, they got. I had a wealth of knowledge and experience that just wasn't ever used, as if the client didn't get exactly what they'd drawn on a scrap of paper (Powerpoints were
    via u/outline01
  • 25
    pretty good too), they'd throw a fit. Didn't last long there. Love these people that employ you, but think they know better on all accounts anyway.
    via u/outline01

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workplace-stories jobs micromanager job malicious compliance work malicious-compliance-reddit design client designer workplace entitled website malicious compliance reddit karen
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