The Eccentric Manager

Once upon a time at a workplace, someone hired an exceptionally bizarre manager and then promoted her. It was that promotion. That moment of bad judgement on her hiring manager’s side. Foundational information presented by various departments from legal, audit, a questionable personnel file, and security all against it – Kathy was hired in the corporate office.

She didn’t have quirks; those sound positive and happy. Kathy was bitter, conniving, and entitled. Her hobby was eating a full loaf of bread with butter as she sat with her five cats and watched TV. She never mentioned ever what she watched. Alienated her neighbors. Odd family relationships. No personal relationships. So, her reoccurring comment tossed out was that she was unsettled that her cats would most likely eat her when she died alone. Weird thought for a pet owner, normal for her.

Kathy was a social distancer before covid was a distant thought. She honestly didn’t like other humans. Could drop a lead topic in a meeting knocking off the flow, just because she could. There was no professional or business reason for it. It was how she flexed her power. Someone gave her a book about happiness on her desk. She was more upset that her office door was open than about the book. In fact, that book disappeared and was never seen again.

Her level of laziness was fascinating. Most would simply move an electronic file outside of its normal file. Not Kathy. Just because it was her folder, under her control, and IT produced it and missed the folder. It was an infraction of the highest level. She would call IT and ask if it be placed in the folder. Send an email follow up with it and require it to be taken care of immediately. Go to the head of IT to voice a complaint about the file, she requests ignored. Sure, she could have just moved it in under 10 seconds, but Kathy didn’t operate that way.

Was quick to blame her ‘morons’ that were under for any errors, problems, or issues. Lightning fast to take credit of other’s work. Kathy’s amazing personalities were only in her mind. She was a horrible manager. No emotional intelligence. Kathy was completely transparent if she disliked you. No coaching. No positive encouragement. Kathy let you know upfront, as a manager, doing work was beneath her.

Very conniving in her methods, she had a high achiever who ran the department. Everyone knew this. Highly respected. Others across the business and outside of the business as well would go around Kathy to get things done. The achiever did her best to walk the very thin line with Kathy and others, but she’d get burned. There was no give in Kathy. All judgment and oddity.

Everyone needs a support system in a corporate environment – not Kathy. She took it out by spreading gossip about her achiever and would get angry when no one bought it. The worst thing she did was quietly hire her only friend from the outside and into the role the achiever was about to step into. It was an open wound in which everyone enjoyed pouring acid into it, every single time her or Kathy didn’t do something right.

'Kathy's live at every mid-to-large company. Internal promotions require vetting and having the promotion go to the most qualified, not a poor choice. Disregarding other voicing real opinions and backing it up with documentation about bad behaviors, skills, and the experience to run a department. Workplace survivors want to work, do a great job and go home talking about the insanity of bizarre eccentric that no one wants to work with.