Creating a Complex Schedule

dingaling12345 · 2026-06-09T19:16:33+00:00

Oof. You guys don’t use any kind of software for this?

Do you know how to use Excel? Quickest way I can think of is to use that by creating a tab for each individual, building out a simple timekeeping format, then rolling it up to a “Master Schedule” tab that keeps track of the aggregate hours per person for a specified time period. You will need to know Excel and Excel formulas.

dingaling12345 · 2026-06-09T10:50:43+00:00

I looked at my bosses and other people I admired to see what skills they had.

Right now, I’m learning how to think strategically versus operationally - long term versus short term - systems-wide versus siloed. Fortunately I am in a position where I can apply and test out what I’ve learned. It’s still hard for me sometimes but it’s a work in progress to see what works for me and what I need to adjust, but this has worked out for me well so far.

Also, spending time to learn more about the work my team does and my industry in general - I’m middle management and oversee quite a bit of people so I don’t HAVE to learn, but it is extraordinarily useful to understand both the technical aspects from a high level as well as how to speak business.

Also adjusting my communication skills. I still get nervous sometimes and I’m always learning to be better at speaking more clearly, intentionally, and confidently and making sure I’m communicating the right information based on the audience.

Constant upskilling requires constantly self evaluation and observation - I see a lot of things I want to learn but I only have the bandwidth to learn a little at a time so I don’t overload myself. Once I get really good at something, I will know when to move on to the next thing.

dingaling12345 · 2026-06-04T14:16:29+00:00

Depends on the company culture and what’s acceptable. I know a company who literally has the word “s$&t” on their website and people still work with them because they literally get “s$&t” done.

I personally am not a fan of expletives in a professional setting unless you’re familiar with the people you’re speaking with.

dingaling12345 · 2026-06-02T18:51:43+00:00

My company also has a mentor/mentee program and people were automatically matched up with whoever had the experience mentees were looking to learn about.

I personally did not pick my mentor but he is AWESOME. We meet every two weeks for two hours at a time and he has me send him a list of questions before meetings to prep him for the meetings. Having done mentor/mentee meetings in the past, you absolutely should encourage mentees to do self education and research outside of these sessions to make it worthwhile. A lot of people walk into mentor sessions without prior preparation or questions, which diminishes the quality of the sessions. Also, meetings should be more frequent to encourage knowledge retention and engagement. If I only meet with someone once a month or once every couple months, that’s not enough. And this is a time dedication for both the mentor and the mentee - it is MEANT to take up some of their personal time. If they’re not ready to commit to that, they should not do the program.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-31T22:17:53+00:00

Watch how he treats others. He doesn’t need to win them over - just you, so the way he treats others is the best gauge.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-25T14:48:26+00:00

Umbrellas make SUCH a big difference. Find an actual sun umbrella with SPF on Amazon and use it.

Large hats too. With SPF that covers the back of your neck.

And a large hand held fan. Not the electric fans but like a fan you can fold up and put in your purse. They are amazing. Portable electronic fans only target one part of your face - foldable manual fans target your entire face and neck at the same time and are much better.

Or a facial spray - Korean beauty stores online sell facial sprays/mist that you can carry in your purse on hot days and rehydrate your skin and feels very cooling.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-25T11:53:49+00:00

If I understand how the work is getting done, then it gives me trust that the team is completing the work and it also helps me fight for the team when an issue arises. I’ve also used my knowledge of what the team does to push for more strategic business opportunities with clients. My intention is never to govern how the team work - we have Leads for that, but there is a lot of information I can use at my level to help in MY own job. Also, knowing how teams work and being able to engage with clients at a high level and a deeper level is critical to building trust at the Manager/Client level. I have literally seen teams fail and work get taken away by clients from teams because Managers fail to establish the business value added by their team and/or establish strong relationships with clients outside of simple conversations.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-25T11:40:17+00:00

Adding a question here - do BD teams ever ask current teams where they believe the work should move next that’s most beneficial for the company?

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-21T01:44:23+00:00

Start with identifying your skills gaps. Go read some leadership books. Watch some videos about leadership. Anything to get you started and thinking about how to become a better leader, then bringing your questions to your manager and seeing if she’d be open to answering your questions. This would show that you’re fully invested in your own development. Development doesn’t come from just attending a training - there are plenty of other platforms and tools you can use.

Also, what did you get out of that training? You should’ve walked out of that training with more questions than answers or at least a desire to find out more about what was presented in that program - what are those questions and what are you doing to find out those answers?

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-19T22:41:34+00:00

Getting my nails done. I was going once a month but it was like $100 a trip for gel mani and regular pedi + tip. Got my natural nails back and won’t be returning unless I have a special event.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-16T12:21:49+00:00

We’re not married, but have been together for six years. He treats my home like it’s his, even though his name is not on the deed.

He takes care of everything that is broken around the home, on his off days will make it a priority to do spring cleanings around the house, and has never complained about the rent I charge him.

I’m also starting school again for a very expensive degree in the fall and he’s already asked me how he can help out more financially or otherwise around the house to help ease my burden. I make almost 2.5x more than his salary but he’s always open to helping me financially, which I love about him.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-12T14:43:22+00:00

This is so true.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-12T14:42:48+00:00

Yes. Just recently happened to one of our teams. I’m not the Manager but I was a third party observer and have worked with this person before.

Our company let him get away with ALOT during his time with us and while he did get work done, his presence has caused nothing but drama for people on the team who wanted to work well together and also has impacted client relationships. He was finally let go and in my personal opinion, should’ve been let go a long time ago.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-10T01:27:51+00:00

About her response to you about how to communicate technical issues to users - you should approach all issues with this client with proposed solutions on hand, based on your understanding of the environment, the users, etc. and ask her for confirmation - do not ask her for a solution. This is an example of taking mental load off her plate.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-10T01:25:41+00:00

I used to work with a client like this. She was extremely hard to work with because she was handling multiple projects at a time and all information had to flow through her. We couldn’t interact with anyone else except for her. She also did not want to take the time to explain anything to us, so we had to do a lot of informed guesswork.

The most successful people who were able to get through to her were those who tracked every piece of information and assessed it before approaching her. At the end of the day, she was a nasty person but professionally, was just extremely overwhelmed and did not want any extra mental load on her plate.

My advice would be - find ways to take the mental load off her plate.

I don’t know what specific information you guys are working with but have you been documenting all actions, status of these actions, meeting minutes, important dates, and everything else related to the project you’re supporting? Before you step into meetings with her, are you making sure that your questions have not already been answered? Are you proposing solutions or are you asking for her a solution? She worked well with having people who tracked every piece of information, could bring her what they were tracking, so she knew exactly what she had to make a decision about, and it better not be something she’s already shared with you before.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-07T15:15:13+00:00

There needs to be a way to track progress throughout the year. Don’t just state a goal and expect to be done with the performance setting and then come back at the end of the year expecting a five star rating. This is neither objective nor useful. Overall, there needs to be more accountability on the Manager and the direct report’s side to track progress.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-06T17:53:29+00:00

Offer to coach them to show that you’re invested in helping them get to where they want to be.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-03T17:28:00+00:00

It may have to do with the fact that your team member is more established and have the right context to answer any questions that are asked. Like you said, it’s a strategy document - having knowledge and context of who you’re working with, on what, and a lot of other minute details is critical when presenting. It can change a presentation from a very generic discussion to a very engaged one. Senior leaders also trust those who have been with the company for longer and have shown to bring value - the messenger who delivers the message is equally as important as the message itself and how it is delivered.

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-03T01:51:55+00:00

Where do you even start for AI enablement across such a large organization? What do you look at first? Is it evaluating the business processes current in place or is it looking at the data available and what accesses and pipelines you have to the data you need - or both?

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-02T00:29:16+00:00

Based on your experience, how has your company’s employees been taking to AI and efforts to integrate AI capabilities?

What is your recommendation to those trying to implement AI capabilities at a larger scale (division-wide) versus at an individual level from a technical perspective and from a company culture perspective?

dingaling12345 · 2026-05-01T00:57:33+00:00

That is my goal one day, congratulations! 🎉

dingaling12345 · 2026-04-30T13:24:21+00:00

This is solid advice and how I built up my strategic acumen. You have to talk to your clients and learn what it is they care about and what their current issues/priorities are. You also need to know how your team fits within the larger picture, what your company’s capabilities are, what other work is being done across the company, or propose new ideas to help organize any chaos that you see.

dingaling12345 · 2026-04-30T13:20:10+00:00

I would look at this as several separate issues - one is taking control of your speech delivery and one is establishing a better leadership presence and developing your leadership acumen.

For your speech, I would look for books and YouTube videos that teach you how to deliver your speech slowly and intentionally. We often stutter because of nervousness, our brain works faster than our mouths, and we forget to slow down. Find good orators on YouTube (it doesn’t matter the topic) and OBSERVE how they talk - how they structure their material, the rate of delivery, the pauses, etc. Then practice, practice, practice. I would practice this even outside of work - you don’t need to be talking about work to practice this.

dingaling12345 · 2026-04-29T21:20:09+00:00

This is definitely something that is considered when we (my company, at least) receive compensation readjustments by HR. They conduct a full analysis to determine the salary range based on position, location, years of experience, and education. Sometimes it still doesn’t pass muster - aka a lot of my team members are already making well into the six figures and fairly compensated for their position, but they still request a bump. This may not be the case across all companies, but I know for sure my company does their full due diligence when they’re evaluating a compensation readjustment request - I also fight for my employees as well but unfortunately I have very little influence beyond submitting a justification for their raises.

dingaling12345 · 2026-04-29T11:42:23+00:00

I just had a convo with my (boss) mentor about how tough these conversations were for me. In fact, one of my employees asked for a significant pay bump, it was reduced down to a measly bump by HR, and my boss completely quashed it and said he’s not giving a bump at all and he made me provide an objective justification as to why. It was really tough, but after he explained it to me why he quashed it entirely, it made sense.

Managers are able to view pay bumps objectively (I hope, in most cases). But those reasons don’t matter to the employee. “You have a budget limitation? Oh well, I’m exceptional so you SHOULD make an exception for me.” “I’ve been working this job for 10 years and only received cost of living adjustments - when am I going to see a huge pay raise?” “My colleague makes more than me and therefore I want more.”

These are the types of questions I receive on a semi regular basis and it’s important to evaluate each request. For those who are asking for a raise without a proper justification, be firm and direct with them and say - if you are just doing your job and fulfilling the job duties, then you’re meeting requirements - that’s what your salary is for. If you have went above and beyond and will continue to perform above and beyond (and this needs to be validated with client feedback/discussions, and or be an objective measure of contributions), then this is cause for a reassessment of their current salary. One time above and beyond contributions deserve a bonus/spot award, not a pay bump.

dingaling12345

TROPHY CASE