So, I Fired a CEO Today.

[Vash]

Or something to that effect. I quit RadioShack, my employer over the past 4.5 years.

Here's the things:

A few weeks ago, I put in an application at the local Alltel store. They have 100% higher per-hour rates, plus a much better commission compensation plan. Better hours, less prepaid (to be read as rude, arrogant, ignorant, and hateful) customers, and a better corporate atmosphere. Before the day I went in for an interview was over, my district office knew about it. Weird, but I figured it was Alltel hiring calling to verify my information. Anyway.

Ends up, I don't get the job - hiring freeze. Or something. I'm asked to not hold it against the recruiting store, and they requested the option to keep my resume on file and to request a hiring counsel in six months. Late, but okay. Never burn bridges, right?

Another week goes by, everything's koscher at work. Show up one day, see my next week's scheduled hours are 15. That's a 10 plus another five. My minimum is 32. So, I ask my assistant manager (who was given the position after I turned it down. Three times. Yet he's constantly reminding me how he got it so soon after working there) gets smiley, fidgety, and (literally) whiny. I ask him repeatedly if he knows what's going on, but the only responses I get are from an eight year old boy. "Please, dude, just call your boss!" Etc. So, I do. I ask if I've been demoted to part-time. She tells me I have. I simmer.

I explode.

Spend the rest of the day beat red, arguing with her, my co-workers, and many rude customers. I'm requested by district office to maintain my key-holder status, and my security code clearance, and do all the associated duties without the pay.

Whatever. No.

Today, I spend four hours turning the decision over in my mind: keep taking this garbage, day in, day out, for 65% less than I've been making, or fire the whole lot of them. I chose option B.

So, I call my district manager, who is touring the disctrict with his boss' boss, on his cell. I ask him (he immediately puts me on speaker) why I'm being treated the way I have, after my job history and performance with the company. Both iterate and reiterate my applying elsewhere was an act of extreme disrespect and disloyalty to the company, and couldn't go unnoticed (I wish I were making this up). I state my fiscal performance - disloyalty, disrespect. Adherence to procedure, sales guides - disloyalty, disrespect. The boss' boss finally tells me I can keep my 15 hours, or they can drop me to three, then I can work my way up to 15 again, then MAYBE I can get full-time status again, if I prove my loyalty to the -

I say "You know what, Steve? You're fired. You no longer have the privilege of employing me."

I hung up on him.

I think I orgasmed.

I've got a preliminary interview for a management spot at the local Office Depot. If that falls through, a local rent-to-own outlet is blowing up my phone to come in for an interview to take over the store so the region manager there can get back to his other stores.

I'm unemployed.

My options are nice and varied, now. Because of my education (BS in business, eight credits short of degree in exercise science), my experience, and my ability, I'll have another JOB rather quickly.

Next year, I'll be beginning my CAREER. I'll be moving to California, taking a minority piece of a gym there, and starting up.

I'm relaxed.

I'm excited.

Hope you're not bored.

[Lucas]

Congrats man. I know it felt good.

[diego]

Or something to that effect. I quit RadioShack, my employer over the past 4.5 years.

Here's the things:

A few weeks ago, I put in an application at the local Alltel store. They have 100% higher per-hour rates, plus a much better commission compensation plan. Better hours, less prepaid (to be read as rude, arrogant, ignorant, and hateful) customers, and a better corporate atmosphere. Before the day I went in for an interview was over, my district office knew about it. Weird, but I figured it was Alltel hiring calling to verify my information. Anyway.

Ends up, I don't get the job - hiring freeze. Or something. I'm asked to not hold it against the recruiting store, and they requested the option to keep my resume on file and to request a hiring counsel in six months. Late, but okay. Never burn bridges, right?

Another week goes by, everything's koscher at work. Show up one day, see my next week's scheduled hours are 15. That's a 10 plus another five. My minimum is 32. So, I ask my assistant manager (who was given the position after I turned it down. Three times. Yet he's constantly reminding me how he got it so soon after working there) gets smiley, fidgety, and (literally) whiny. I ask him repeatedly if he knows what's going on, but the only responses I get are from an eight year old boy. "Please, dude, just call your boss!" Etc. So, I do. I ask if I've been demoted to part-time. She tells me I have. I simmer.

I explode.

Spend the rest of the day beat red, arguing with her, my co-workers, and many rude customers. I'm requested by district office to maintain my key-holder status, and my security code clearance, and do all the associated duties without the pay.

Whatever. No.

Today, I spend four hours turning the decision over in my mind: keep taking this garbage, day in, day out, for 65% less than I've been making, or fire the whole lot of them. I chose option B.

So, I call my district manager, who is touring the disctrict with his boss' boss, on his cell. I ask him (he immediately puts me on speaker) why I'm being treated the way I have, after my job history and performance with the company. Both iterate and reiterate my applying elsewhere was an act of extreme disrespect and disloyalty to the company, and couldn't go unnoticed (I wish I were making this up). I state my fiscal performance - disloyalty, disrespect. Adherence to procedure, sales guides - disloyalty, disrespect. The boss' boss finally tells me I can keep my 15 hours, or they can drop me to three, then I can work my way up to 15 again, then MAYBE I can get full-time status again, if I prove my loyalty to the -

I say "You know what, Steve? You're fired. You no longer have the privilege of employing me."

I hung up on him.

I think I orgasmed.

I've got a preliminary interview for a management spot at the local Office Depot. If that falls through, a local rent-to-own outlet is blowing up my phone to come in for an interview to take over the store so the region manager there can get back to his other stores.

I'm unemployed.

My options are nice and varied, now. Because of my education (BS in business, eight credits short of degree in exercise science), my experience, and my ability, I'll have another JOB rather quickly.

Next year, I'll be beginning my CAREER. I'll be moving to California, taking a minority piece of a gym there, and starting up.

I'm relaxed.

I'm excited.

Hope you're not bored.
cool...at least now you got more time to watch gung fu on the internet!.

[yenhoi]

:eek::D:eek:

:eek:

[cjurakpt]

stupid people (read: corpy drones), get stupid when presented with incompatible things like logic and appropriate human relations; you were right to keep your soul intact; fu(k 'em - one door closes, another opens...

[David Jamieson]

I for one am glad you got that off your chest instead of killing people. :)

[Oso]

enh, go kill someone.


'just kidding' :)




that reminds me so much of my experience with Waldenbooks back in the mid-90's

and just recently working for a large apartment management company that was so over top corporate that I ended up walking...and was technically unemployed for about 5 weeks.

hope things get better for you.

[Egg fu young]

I say "You know what, Steve? You're fired. You no longer have the privilege of employing me."

I hung up on him.



Your customer service skills are horrible that's why I had them cut you to 15 hours a week. You'd better not use our store as a reference.


Steve:mad:

[Eddie]

For such a liberal country, I do think that the labour laws of the USA kind of suck a bit.
If you were in SA, it would have been impossible for your employer to have done what he did. This is obviously good for employees, but in the same time it sucks for employers who honestly have problems with problematic staff members. You cant just fire someone or demote them out of will down here.

Hope you find a job quickly. Good luck!

[BruceSteveRoy]

man, that sucks. i am glad you stood up to them.

[AJM]

We essentially have no labor laws anymore. Started with reagon and continued unabated through bush. Welcome to the new feudal system.

[MaFuYee]

you got worked up over a position at radio shack?!
:rolleyes:

[MasterKiller]

Welcome to the real world.

If you turn down 3 promotions, you are of no use to a company. They aren't going to keep giving you raises to stick around and do the same thing that someone less experienced will do a lot cheaper.

[Oso]

you got worked up over a position at radio shack?!
:rolleyes:

*******.

it doesn't matter where someone works. only that they do a good job at whatever it is that they are doing.

what this world is lacking is people who take pride in doing good work.

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

Your customer service skills are horrible that's why I had them cut you to 15 hours a week. You'd better not use our store as a reference.


Steve:mad:

steve .... if you fu ck with vash ill have sex with your grandmother. and her lapdog. at the same time. while we chant your name. and say hurtful things about your face. cause its funny lookin. like someone threw up jello on a paper bag.

[Lucas]

steve .... if you fu ck with vash ill have sex with your grandmother. and her lapdog. at the same time. while we chant your name. and say hurtful things about your face. cause its funny lookin. like someone threw up jello on a paper bag.

I better be invited to that.

[Vash]

steve .... if you fu ck with vash ill have sex with your grandmother. and her lapdog. at the same time. while we chant your name. and say hurtful things about your face. cause its funny lookin. like someone threw up jello on a paper bag.

I want your babies.

[cjurakpt]

I better be invited to that.

obviously, he did mention that the lapdog would be there...:eek:

dibs on the jello throw-up...

[Lucas]

obviously, he did mention that the lapdog would be there...:eek:

dibs on the jello throw-up...

I just want to be invited to make sure he goes through with it.

I think I could swing it into an internet phenomenon.

[cjurakpt]

I just want to be invited to make sure he goes through with it.

I think I could swing it into an internet phenomenon.

BTW, who's gonna be the one to dig grams up?

[冠木侍]

Welcome to the real world.

If you turn down 3 promotions, you are of no use to a company. They aren't going to keep giving you raises to stick around and do the same thing that someone less experienced will do a lot cheaper.

Spoken like company leadership. Make use of the cheap labor and get rid of the vets. Although, when being offered a promotion, it is wise to look to their motives. Do they want you because they think you are good or do they just need a body to fill in a spot. A lot of shady sh*t goes on during Sup/Manager meetings.

[Vash]

Spoken like company leadership. Make use of the cheap labor and get rid of the vets. Although, when being offered a promotion, it is wise to look to their motives. Do they want you because they think you are good or do they just need a body to fill in a spot. A lot of shady sh*t goes on during Sup/Manager meetings.

Each time the offer came up, it was to get me trained to take the manager spot for some other guy who had quit. Each time, for the same store.

I don't know if it's all RadioShack districts, or just this one, but we had a LOT of internal theft. I know at least one assistant manager (the first I let take my spot) got the company for around $3000 in stolen merchandise and eBay'd it.

From what I gathered at various meetings and speaking to managers, he was on the low end.

Hell, the last district manager embezzled over 10k, and the store manager at my store falsified over 3k in returns, pocketed the cash.

The crew I was working with was the closest to clean we had for a while. We only had one thief, and two pot-heads.

[冠木侍]

*******.

it doesn't matter where someone works. only that they do a good job at whatever it is that they are doing.

what this world is lacking is people who take pride in doing good work.

QFT.

I notice that a lot of the younger generation lack the self-motivation. Changing jobs or careers is a common thing but doing a good job at what you do now is crucial to good development work ethic. Management can/will foster their employees, train and develop them but it is up to the individuals to take the extra step and maintain a good standard of quality.

[cjurakpt]

Each time the offer came up, it was to get me trained to take the manager spot for some other guy who had quit. Each time, for the same store.

I don't know if it's all RadioShack districts, or just this one, but we had a LOT of internal theft. I know at least one assistant manager (the first I let take my spot) got the company for around $3000 in stolen merchandise and eBay'd it.

From what I gathered at various meetings and speaking to managers, he was on the low end.

Hell, the last district manager embezzled over 10k, and the store manager at my store falsified over 3k in returns, pocketed the cash.

The crew I was working with was the closest to clean we had for a while. We only had one thief, and two pot-heads.

probably you were wise to turn down the offers - sounds like you would have been setting yourself up for being in charge of a situation that was untenable

sounds like RS needs to seriously re-format their revenue auditing / inventory control mechanisms...

ironic how they penalize the guy who was being honest!

[Vash]

Welcome to the real world.



Oh snap, that's what this is? I thought putting myself through college, assisting with cancer treatment/recovery for my grandfather, and supporting myself with an underpaying job was the "real world."

Thanks for the head's up. :)




If you turn down 3 promotions, you are of no use to a company. They aren't going to keep giving you raises to stick around and do the same thing that someone less experienced will do a lot cheaper.

Yeah, about that. Sales Associates with RadioShack don't get "raises." Base pay is $1 over minimum wage, plus commissions and special incentives. Commission rate is 2.75% for accessory items, and up to $30 for a screw-the-customer-in-their-ass-sans-lube cellphone deal. The pay the associate receives never goes up, not counting commission and sales differences.

[Vash]

probably you were wise to turn down the offers - sounds like you would have been setting yourself up for being in charge of a situation that was untenable

sounds like RS needs to seriously re-format their revenue auditing / inventory control mechanisms...

Seriously. K-Mart had a better computerized inventory management system. Most of R$'s stuff is done with an "honor system" scanner; you can just type in the store product number without having the item on-hand, and float stolen items over several inventories , so no one at corporate notices.



ironic how they penalize the guy who was being honest!

That's what irked me. I mentioned I was looking around for other jobs, and my assistant manager ratted me out to the corporate office so he could get a better shot at his own store. I tried to contact the DM, but I never got a single response, aside from my demotion/insult.

[cjurakpt]

my assistant manager ratted me out to the corporate office so he could get a better shot at his own store.
oh NOW I get it - you're trying to recruit fellow KFM brothers for a good ol' fashioned beat down! where do we meet up?

[Vash]

oh NOW I get it - you're trying to recruit fellow KFM brothers for a good ol' fashioned beat down! where do we meet up?

It's a temptation, I'll say that much.

But, he knows what a threat from me really means - I call his phone when he's at home, and his wife's panties need to be changed.

[冠木侍]

Each time the offer came up, it was to get me trained to take the manager spot for some other guy who had quit. Each time, for the same store.

I don't know if it's all RadioShack districts, or just this one, but we had a LOT of internal theft. I know at least one assistant manager (the first I let take my spot) got the company for around $3000 in stolen merchandise and eBay'd it.

From what I gathered at various meetings and speaking to managers, he was on the low end.

Hell, the last district manager embezzled over 10k, and the store manager at my store falsified over 3k in returns, pocketed the cash.

The crew I was working with was the closest to clean we had for a while. We only had one thief, and two pot-heads.

Well, it seems that you figured out their intent. From what I read, you had been there for a good while, so the uppers know about your work ethic. If Radio Shack uses a true merit based promotion method, then that stuff should not exist in the corporate culture. I gather from your experience sir that your former co-workers were not the cream of the crop (to say the least) and that merit is not a requirement for advancement. You may have done yourself a favor by leaving such an environment. Even though you may not have been directly involved in or having to do with theft, the mere attachment to to your name or position is grounds for unofficial blacklisting.

I realized that in your line of business, it is easy for things like cellphones and small electronics and accessories to disappear from the truck shipments...probably more so because that is the bulk of your inventory. Shrink and Internal/External theft is still a major issue with a lot of the big electronic retailers. Their is usually a plan of action to try and prevent such things and their are boring meetings about loss prevention and the like. But from the information you provided, it seems that they are aware of the problem but aren't taking much action. The numbers you mention are just staggering. Either these were master thieves or their was something internal that had gone awry.

Regarding promotions in general, I am told that once you turn down the first promotion (regardless of THEIR motive), they do not see you in the same light as they once did before. So they are less likely to give that person another opportunity (a little bit of personal experience). But in this case, it is probably better to not be associated with all this shady business.

Good luck with your future endeavors.

[Vash]

Regarding promotions in general, I am told that once you turn down the first promotion (regardless of THEIR motive), they do not see you in the same light as they once did before. So they are less likely to give that person another opportunity (a little bit of personal experience). But in this case, it is probably better to not be associated with all this shady business.


Yeah, I tried to stay out of the corporate culture as much as possible, particularly with this company. It was like a bizarre combination of Dilbert and the Soprano's, without all the kinky sex. I meant violence. I saw more strange sex there than at the local orgy hot-spot.

I feel like I got a good idea on what NOT to do with a business, how to search for holes in inventory management and employee behavior, and how to structure team-building and management. All good skills for running one's own business.


Good luck with your future endeavors.

Thanks! I've got another job lined out already, start in two weeks. Better company, better pay. I'm confident I'll be building my first business within five years.

[David Jamieson]

*******.

it doesn't matter where someone works. only that they do a good job at whatever it is that they are doing.

what this world is lacking is people who take pride in doing good work.

Oso takes the correct into the back room and gives it the lashing it's daddy should have as a boy. lol

[Egg fu young]

assisting with cancer treatment/recovery for my grandfather.


Does GunnedDownAtrocity know you have a helpless Grandparent? You should of seen what he did to my Grandmother who's been dead for 9 years. Grandpa is still furious.....










P.S. He want's his dog back

[Vash]

Got a part-time job at Office Depot. Stock boy. With a business degree. Woo.

Lasted four weeks, got a job offer from a Select Comfort. Going to pay me three and a half times what I was making at the 'Shack.

So, moving to a new town, making huge money, with a huge apartment near the river.

Thanks, RadioShack, for being a douche. You made me a bundle. :)

[Pork Chop]

Where you moving to?
Anywhere interesting?
'grats on the new job :)

[Vash]

Shreveport, La. Not a huge metropolitan area, but much, much bigger than my current digs.

And gracias.

It's pure sales. I'm looking forward to it.

[Pork Chop]

Shreveport, La. Not a huge metropolitan area, but much, much bigger than my current digs.


If you're ever in Texas, hit me up.
I know Shreveport's a little ****her north than say, New Orleans, but I frequently visit my parents in Houston who are only a couple hours from the border.

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

vash ... congrats bud. everything in life seems to have a way of moving up if you keep your eyes peeled and allow it.

egg fu young ... i've told you this before. your grandfather promised me a pair of your grandmothers dentures for the dog, and has never made good on the deal. now if you'll excuse me im out of peanut butter.

[cjurakpt]

Shreveport, La. Not a huge metropolitan area, but much, much bigger than my current digs.

And gracias.

It's pure sales. I'm looking forward to it.

is this (http://www.selectcomfort.com/mattress_store/findLocationResults.cfm?maplocation=11179&loc=621) where we go to get our KFMF discount?

[Vash]

That's me. KFM discount is 30% . . . but . . . I charge a 47% personal gratuity for it's use.

So, you know, everyone gets it!

[Vash]

If you're ever in Texas, hit me up.
I know Shreveport's a little ****her north than say, New Orleans, but I frequently visit my parents in Houston who are only a couple hours from the border.

I'll do it. I know I have to go to Dallas, maybe houston, for an employee meeting eventually.

[Vash]

vash ... congrats bud. everything in life seems to have a way of moving up if you keep your eyes peeled and allow it.

Indeed. Good thing I didn't start looking for a career in stocking.

[Pork Chop]

I'll do it. I know I have to go to Dallas, maybe houston, for an employee meeting eventually.

If you go to dallas, get xcalkid to take you to bonedaddy's, though I don't think it'll take too much convincing. ;)

[Oso]

congrat's man...so, you're like selling beds to old people????


or do you get to lie back on one and pat the bed next to you and invite the milf to try it out????


:D

[Vash]

or do you get to lie back on one and pat the bed next to you and invite the milf to try it out????


:D

. . . I would, but that's a habit I'm trying to break. Had one too many husbands standing Hulk-like over the bed I failed to hide all the way under, asking me that immortal question; "are you ready to die, mother****er?"

But yeah, it's on. primary clientelle is women 30-45, high income.

[Oso]

there could be worse things....


I'm working on some due dilgence in exploring a potential business to open and operate: a service company dedicated to the spa and salon industry. I got a call at my current job (hot tubs and pools) to take a look at a pedicure chair and it turns out that mostly these places try to get plumbers and electricians to work on their equipment and most of the time they are declined service. So, I'm making some contacts and talking to the bigger spa owners here. I don't know about elsewhere, but here in AVL there is a spa about every other block of one sort or another. we'll see.

oh, and the owners/managers tend to be rather attractive women in thier mid to late 30's.