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Things turning bad at work. Need advise. Go out on my own? Suck it up?

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    #61
    A little update:

    I have to be very generic in how I say this to hopefully keep myself out of trouble because specifics shouldnt be public knowlege ( for the companies sake, not mine )

    I made an offer to upper management ( not the owner ) to buy one of the smaller cnc lathes along with an offer to program on contract, guarantee preferential treatment in job routing, consulting and whatever else I can do to ease the transition. The offer was basically ignored and "upper management" ask what the problem was. So I admitted that at first I was pretty irritated at the situation and that ai was put back on a machine while the "favorite" person status was unchanged despite my performance. But that now I have come to realize that the owner has a right to do what he wants in his company and there is nothing I can do about it. "upper management" said that is correct, that this guy is the favorite and nothing we can do will change it. That it will never change, thats how it is and basically I have to live with it. "upper management" said I am important to the company blah blah. " upper management" said that I am still expected to manage the shop while on a machine. I told him that I do not feel that I can adequately manage the shop while programming and running a machine.
    ( running a machine is a fulltime job in itself-you cant know whats going on in the shop when you are in front of a machine all day )

    So now my duties now are managing the shop, running a machine and programming. I will admit Im pretty good at programming and machining. But attempting to do all 3 is a setup for failure.

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      #62
      Back when I got started we had "working foremen". They basically did what you are having to do. It's tough. I also both program and machine. I'm not sure if I could take on anything else. I wish you all the good luck in the world on whatever you decide.

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        #63
        Originally posted by Goldeneagle View Post
        Back when I got started we had "working foremen". They basically did what you are having to do. It's tough. I also both program and machine. I'm not sure if I could take on anything else. I wish you all the good luck in the world on whatever you decide.
        Thanks bud, I appreciate it. From 2008 till a couple of years ago I was a working there as a supervisor/programmer/machinist. Ran the machine fulltime while doing the other stuff. That was sometimes tough but manager has other duties and requires more knowledge of whats going on in the shop, dealing with assembly, quality, routing jobs, hiring firing ( of course no hiring right now ) etc

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          #64
          Originally posted by miket View Post
          Thanks bud, I appreciate it. From 2008 till a couple of years ago I was a working there as a supervisor/programmer/machinist. Ran the machine fulltime while doing the other stuff. That was sometimes tough but manager has other duties and requires more knowledge of whats going on in the shop, dealing with assembly, quality, routing jobs, hiring firing ( of course no hiring right now ) etc
          There isn't any way a person could add the manager duties on top of the rest. Some part of the duties is going to suffer. You can't put 100% into all of them at once.

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            #65
            Originally posted by Goldeneagle View Post
            There isn't any way a person could add the manager duties on top of the rest. Some part of the duties is going to suffer. You can't put 100% into all of them at once.
            And to be honest, Im not very good at being a manager. They just think Im good because the owners pet sucked so bad at it. Kinda funny actually.

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              #66
              Originally posted by Goldeneagle View Post
              Back when I got started we had "working foremen". They basically did what you are having to do. It's tough. I also both program and machine. I'm not sure if I could take on anything else. I wish you all the good luck in the world on whatever you decide.
              I program and machine too. I can't imagine trying to manage as well. We are a job shop and most jobs are rush, which would make it dang near impossible to do all three. Luckily all our CNC guys program and run.

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                #67
                Speaking as someone who has been self-employed for 21 years, in several different businesses, my suggestion would be the following:

                Do everything you can (working extra hours at night, more hours on the weekend) to build up your side business closer to where it can support your family by itself. Continue to do your best at your "full-time" job in the meantime. It doesn't sound like you feel the greatest currently about your job security. If you build up your side business in an aggressive manner, maybe if it gets to the point you are layed off from your full-time job, your side job will be at the point it can support you. And if you don't get layed off any time soon from your full-time job, you may come to a point where your side business is hopefully built up enough that you will have the option to quit your full-time job if you so choose.

                I would definitely agree with the person who commented above about never quitting your current job unless you have a new one already lined up. Especially if you have a family.

                Edit: I just read your latest update from today and would just reiterate to try and get cranking on getting that side business built up. From the sounds of things, you are "too reliable and responsible" for your own good, which means they will try to give you more than you can handle because they feel they can depend on you (and not so much on their other employees), but without appreciating what all you do. My brother-in-law ran into the same type situation when he worked for a Fortune 500 company in Texas, and eventually they just totally overworked him and he decided to go into business on his own in a different field. He's been doing really well ever since.
                Last edited by Joshua Flournoy; 02-07-2017, 09:11 AM.

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                  #68
                  Make sure that you haven't signed a non compete for anything that you are currently making for the shop before you leave it.

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                    #69
                    Originally posted by marceco View Post
                    My career path exactly parallels yours , except I started in 1977 on Acs , then NCs , and finally CNCs with just enough Manual and Welding Knowledge to make the things I needed for jobs / setups . I also had to do Quality Control / Instrument Certification which helps for an ability to cover all aspects . The only difference is my Wife's Job , Oil Company , had us transferred around a bit . For that reason I never bought my own equipment , although I had many friends who have . The biggest problem they encountered was not having money set aside for broken machines / tooling which you probably already understand how expensive that can be . The next biggest problem was if their shop grew and they purchased additional equipment was finding competent help . The ones that have been the most successful were the ones whoo kept it to just them ; a one man shop . Their wives / kids even help with some of the work . One other thing to consider is the area you are in ; obviously the closer you are to a Large Metro Area the more opportunities to find small run jobs . One individual back in Oklahoma somehow hooked up with a Company in either Montana or Wyoming making a little part for them back in The 80s and they have continued to use him . That little job year in and year out has always provided him with enough income to meet expenses so that everything else he would pick up was profit . He runs his business out of a building that is basically a Two Car Garage with a little work area . All that said , i would work for The Company you are with and build up a Cash Reserve for Your Business . You have obviously proved your worth where you are at . If possible I would have your wife or yourself try to find the time to take some Business Classes to better prepare you for that side of Your Business . Good Luck !
                    I have put quite a bit of thought into the idea of hiring someone or not. As you stated, finding competent help is a serious issue. I have had quite a bit of trouble finding decent employees for my fulltime job so I am sure it will be harder to find good ones for my shop. Add in the cost of equipment and the relatively low margins in a mchine shop I also believe it may be best to just do it all myself. I would have to invest ( very roughly ) $250k ( easily up to 1 million ) at a bare minimum to clear the same hourly pay I get running one machine myself. At the added risk employees inherently bring.

                    Thankfully, machine repair costs for the most part will be just for parts. Most things I can handle myself though electronic stuff is far out of my league.

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                      #70
                      Employees are kind of like kids, you look at some of the things they do tear up, shake your head and wonder WTH!

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                        #71
                        Originally posted by Traildust View Post
                        The best cure for red azz is trail dust!
                        The way I see it, they have no loyalty to you at at. I'd find another company and never look back. I've worked in the oil / chem construction and maintenance industry since the late 80's....so thats just how I'm geared.
                        lol

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                          #72
                          I have a lead for you if you are willing to move to Midland! PM ME if interested in uprooting.

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                            #73
                            Originally posted by miket View Post
                            Long term I would much prefer working for myself. I will admit I am not a risk taker. I am very conservative so it does make going out on my own pretty nerve wracking, but at the same time I feel like I have accomplished something at the end of the day. Working for someone is not fulfilling at all for me.

                            I am not in that industry, so take this with a grain of salt. If what you wrote above is true, then bail. It is nerve wracking, but worrying won't alter the outcome. If you are good at what you do people will pay you to do it. Its a tough decision and may result in some lean years. What if this gamble results in financial freedom you only dreamed about? if you can weather the storm, take the risk. Fortune favors the bold.

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                              #74
                              Something I learned long ago that has stood up over time - a good, general rule of thumb in these situations:

                              If it's a good company, but a bad boss - stay put, hunker down, and it will change (usually) for the better.

                              If it's a bad company but a good boss - start looking for something else/somewhere else to go. The good boss will eventually get fed up and leave, and then things will really get bad/worse.

                              Best of luck to you, Miket,

                              Dave

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                                #75
                                I have been in your position as far as being asked to run a machine, program, and manage a shop at the same time. It was a challenge to say the least and was extremely difficult at times when we were slammed. We were a small shop so I can't imagine being asked to do this for a larger shop. I hope whatever route you take, you are very successful.

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