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I work with a person like this now. He actually doesn't delegate a great deal despite being a project lead. He snows people with jargon, is often late to meetin

by Jurden 10y ago

I work with a person like this now. He actually doesn't delegate a great deal despite being a project lead. He snows people with jargon, is often late to meetings, rarely comes into the office, and has produced no usable contributions in years. If I had acted as he does at any of my previous jobs, I would have been fired. I truly don't understand why he still has his position. The sad thing is that he'll probably get promoted.

johansch 10y ago
I have worked with similar people. It can be fun to take them down, if you're so inclined. It takes patience and discipline but it's oh so satisfying.
- woodandsteel 10y ago
  You should explain how it is done. I expect most people who are suffering in this sort of situation don't think it is possible to take such a person down, much less know how.
  - johansch 10y ago
    I don't have any brilliant insights besides the obvious: - documenting their BS claims (for your own usage, primarily) - building trust and credibility with superiors and peers - biding your time and eventually calling them out on BS in meetings, but only doing so when: a) they go quite deep into the BS (as they inevitably do) b) you have firm and credible facts/knowledge ready to use against the BS c) you are able to pull it off in a calm manner, preferably something that could be perceived as you just asking for a clarification, but still leaves the meeting in a slightly uncomfortable state because the bullshitter's "explanation" seems so obviously fake to anyone with half a brain. 2-3 well-directed questions for "clarifications" like that can be quite lethal over time.
    - mildbow 10y ago
      This sounds like a lot of "should works". I'm curious whether this is something you've successfully executed. Anyone who is doing a good enough job of perception management is going to be better at managing perceptions from conversations better than you. They've had more practice! You can end up looking like a person who overly cares about individual glory/not being a "team player"/trying to rain on someone else's parade. Especially with C. People can spot disingenuous comments much easier than non-expert comments. And easier way would be to implement something like stand-ups or demo days where each person has to own something. Consistent underperformance should then be easily visible.
    - lsseckman 10y ago
      Point C being really important. Lose a lot of credibility if you lose your cool while doing that.
    - vorg 10y ago
      > biding your time They will see you coming long before you see them. They will have previously set up their reward system with you so it's a Mutually Assured Destruction relationship.
    - chupy 10y ago
      c) you are able to pull it off in a calm manner, preferably something that could be perceived as you just asking for a clarification, but still leaves the meeting in a slightly uncomfortable state because the bullshitter's "explanation" seems so obviously fake to anyone with half a brain. This seems like a great idea until you realise that these bullshitters thrive together and the meeting is full of them so they are going to hang on each others claims.

by Jurden 10y ago

johansch 10y ago

I have worked with similar people. It can be fun to take them down, if you're so inclined. It takes patience and discipline but it's oh so satisfying.

woodandsteel 10y ago
You should explain how it is done. I expect most people who are suffering in this sort of situation don't think it is possible to take such a person down, much less know how.
- johansch 10y ago
  I don't have any brilliant insights besides the obvious: - documenting their BS claims (for your own usage, primarily) - building trust and credibility with superiors and peers - biding your time and eventually calling them out on BS in meetings, but only doing so when: a) they go quite deep into the BS (as they inevitably do) b) you have firm and credible facts/knowledge ready to use against the BS c) you are able to pull it off in a calm manner, preferably something that could be perceived as you just asking for a clarification, but still leaves the meeting in a slightly uncomfortable state because the bullshitter's "explanation" seems so obviously fake to anyone with half a brain. 2-3 well-directed questions for "clarifications" like that can be quite lethal over time.
  - mildbow 10y ago
    This sounds like a lot of "should works". I'm curious whether this is something you've successfully executed. Anyone who is doing a good enough job of perception management is going to be better at managing perceptions from conversations better than you. They've had more practice! You can end up looking like a person who overly cares about individual glory/not being a "team player"/trying to rain on someone else's parade. Especially with C. People can spot disingenuous comments much easier than non-expert comments. And easier way would be to implement something like stand-ups or demo days where each person has to own something. Consistent underperformance should then be easily visible.
  - lsseckman 10y ago
    Point C being really important. Lose a lot of credibility if you lose your cool while doing that.
  - vorg 10y ago
    > biding your time They will see you coming long before you see them. They will have previously set up their reward system with you so it's a Mutually Assured Destruction relationship.
  - chupy 10y ago
    c) you are able to pull it off in a calm manner, preferably something that could be perceived as you just asking for a clarification, but still leaves the meeting in a slightly uncomfortable state because the bullshitter's "explanation" seems so obviously fake to anyone with half a brain. This seems like a great idea until you realise that these bullshitters thrive together and the meeting is full of them so they are going to hang on each others claims.