Manager promotes untrained hire after trusted employees quit, company tanks: 'The place is a ghost town'

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Jul 21, 2024 2:00 PM EDT

One would think that a manager would make careful judgment calls after a group of high-performing employees quit. This is the opportunity to do some serious self-reflection about why they felt the need to leave and what changes can be implemented so that more hard-working, well-trained folks don't leave high and dry. Unfortunately, in order to make smart judgment calls in these scenarios, these managers need to develop an ounce of self-awareness and honesty so they can realistically admit where they might have gone wrong.

This manager, like so many bosses, refused to go there. Instead, he promoted the wrong person, refusing to take advice from one of his former employees (the Redditor). They had properly trained another new hire before their ultimate departure, but this manager had too much of an ego to promote him. So, you can guess what transpired next. Let's just say that business was not booming.

Keep scrolling below for the full story. For more, check out this post about an employee who learned that a new hire below him was getting paid more.

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  • 01
    CLOSED
    via Kelly Sikkema
  • 02
    How two people quitting almost wrecked a large electronics retailer store
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 03
    I worked for this large electronics retailer for over 14 years. I started as a part timer and bounced around until I found my way into the back end side of the company: warehouse. I was a rare commodity for this retailer, I'm self motivated
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 04
    and I work hard because I feel it reflects on me. I don't need any supervision, just tell me what needs to be done and I will do my best.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 05
    I did, basically, the same job the whole time and became a master of my craft. Eventually a coworker joined me on the other side of the warehouse and became one of my best friends. Between the two of us we kept things going:
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 06
    paperwork, training, product flow, store set up, etc. To keep a very long back story shorter, the store became very dependent on us, more than we realized.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 07
    I decided I wanted more from life and gave them a 1 year notice, I would be moving on. Give me someone to train or it could be disastrous. So they did, I trained him in everything I knew. Ordering systems,
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 08
    merch systems, ways of flowing product so it can best be shopped by customers (sales employees were awful, but that's a story for another time)
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 09
    everything I could pass on. So I drop to part time to go to my new job and instead of promoting him, they promote someone else who I haven't trained at all.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 10
    Over the next few months things start unraveling, product not getting to the floor, new displays, ordering. Now I have to start working more hours to make up for it while trying to show him what to do.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 11
    Spring turns to summer, summer to fall. My coworker/friend quits to join me at the new job. I then decide to do the same.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 12
    Now understand, I had numerous meetings with our leadership, going over all the things we did, all the things that would need to be done for holidays, day to day, hours and hours of learned experience. Do you think he or they took notes?
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 13
    Wrote anything down? Nope, they were all sales people and you know how they feel about warehouse: waste of labor dollars. So I put in my two weeks and left.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 14
    Holiday season, instead of a well oiled machine, chaos. No one knew how to replenish shipping materials, no one knew or paid attention to any back end paperwork or processes (all you warehouse people know what that means), it was a disaster. Most of the leadership team was fired, I don't know how the GM
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 15
    kept her job. The store has never recovered as far as I can tell. It looks terrible, you can't get any help. I have had nothing but terrible experiences so I no longer Shop there. The place is a ghost town and honestly, I used to care so much, now... the place could close down and I would care at all.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 16
    CermaitLaphroaig ⚫ This is such a common problem, the disconnect between admin and frontline, regardless of the industry. It's also how big problems get worse and worse, because admin will dismiss concerns, and frontline smooths it over and makes it work because they'll get yelled at if they don't. Eventually the whole thng is made of duct tape and hope, and admin will be pikachu-face when it inevitably collapses
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 17
    LNGTIM555 Some companies rely on you and your coworker's work ethic to make someone's life easier. The easy life becomes addictive and now you have people wanting to keep the easier roles and responsibilities because we got reliable people.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 18
    The point, you became the most vital person in the company while the others enjoyed the perks. Go do something else and don't care, drop the emotions and loyalties and build another job roles for yourself.
    via u/Paladinknight86
  • 19
    Good workers never have trouble adapting to new jobs because they want to learn.
    via u/Paladinknight86

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workplace-stories work stories toxic-workplace job work satisfying quitting story reddit thread Reddit company quitting toxic-work-environment
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