So I’ve gotten a new job. I’m the Web Development Manager for the council, yeah me!

Officially I haven’t actually started the job yet, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t started doing it. After all there is no manager and it’s silly for me to refuse to make decisions now that will be my problem in a few weeks time anyway. So this week I’ve changed my email signature, and I’m getting CC’ed in to email left right and centre.

Fortunately I had a two week break over Christmas to get use to the idea of being a manager, which has helped me not to look like a rabbit in the headlights. I spent at least the first weekend going… 10 staff! there’s ten of them! (there’s 12 if you count contractors), I’m over (most) of that now, I only occasionally look around the room, and then try and hide under my desk. So how is my first ‘unofficial’ week going?

Tuesday was quite an odd day:

I mentioned something I had been thinking about to the head of service (my boss):

“Yes that’s a good idea”

“I don’t think I’m best suited to do it… N is better at this”

“OK then”

and with minutes someone was doing it!
It’s never worked like that before, usually people go “Yes Kevin….” and move on, something actually happened. It gradually dawned on me over the rest of the day, that yes I actually can make things happen now. I need to make sure I know what I am talking about

Today was my first management explosion day.

I’ve still got quite a large project on at work which means technically I should be getting as much done as possible so I can hand some of it over before I become totally pointy haired. Which is fine in practice, but in reality, my list of things today changed from 2 to about 8 in the space of 10 minutes this morning. All ‘urgent’ things that need dealing with. I even reverted to having two coloured pens, a blue one for things I had to do, and a red one for things I HAD to do. It was a very red day for most of the day. and I know that I have a piece of paper on my desk waiting for tomorrow and it’s mostly red.

A lot of today was spent talking to people and working out how we are going to solve problems. Which is what I like and really enjoy. The people bit of the job is the bit other developers keep saying they would hate and is the bit i’m really looking forward to. It’s not measurable in you old fashioned developer way, It’s much more ’soft’ management type stuff. You know the type of stuff that make you think your manager isn’t really working.

I’m really enjoying it

I haven’t been totally assimilated yet and I do feel a slight fraud, but if I stop and think about it, I’m fairly sure it was all benificial, and I’ve yet to find sympathy for the PHB in Dilbert cartoons, although that Wally need taking in hand.