[Porsche-O-Phile]

Reminds me of something that happened at my old place. They brought in a do-nothing middle-manager type (translation: overhead) who proceeded to strut around and mark her territory by trying to tell people what to do - bad scene. Anyway, I remember this one time I was having a "discussion" with one of our mechanical engineers (total freekin' slacker/skater/do-nothing) about why he ought to PLEASE finish off the calculations and drawings for an HVAC system that was about two weeks late. He started mumbling his usual list of excuses, how it wasn't his job and so-and-so said they'd look at it and whatever. Sure enough, Jan (our new nark) "prairie-dogs" her ugly mug over the cubicle wall (she sat next to this guy) and says (schoolteacher-like), "now Charles. . . regardless of who said they'd do it, don't you think it would be in the interest of being a team player to follow up on this?"

Got my blood roiling a little. The sassy, smug manner in which she said it, plus the fact that she was undercutting MY authority to deal with this guy kind of irritated me. Not to defend Charles (the lazy engineer), but I looked Jan (nark) right in the eye and said (loudly enough for everyone around to hear), "you know, Jan. . . it's been my finding that if someone has to TELL you you're on a 'team'. . . that you're not actually on a team". Couple chuckles and snickers from around. Deer-caught-in-headlights look from Jan. She just sort of melted back behind her wall. I finished my conversation uninterrupted and somehow made it back to my desk without busting out laughing at the fact I'd been able to do that with a straight face.

Don't miss that kind of corporate crap at all. "Team-building" exercises and "quality circles" and schit like that. Puke.