First day of work under new management...

[Pete in MI]

went in at 11 AM and didn't get home til almost 3:30 AM the next morning with hardly a break throughout the day. Finally got dinner at 8 PM only to have to go do something before getting to sit for 15 minutes to eat the food.

If all goes well they won't call me in for anything today.

Had a group meeting where everyone introduced themselves and the owner explained why he bought the hotel and intended plans for the future. We were all blown away! This is going to be not only more hours for us to work as employees but will impact the community. He is also going to buy an elementary school which the city was just going to bull doze and use it as a teaching facility. This will become a multi-national conference center and hotel for those attending the conferences from all over...including Canada and other countries. It will still be open to guests coming up to the area.

Where we barely kept the place open in the winter, under the plans of the future, I expect 40 hours a week and a staff of 2 or 3 other maintenance guys as well. They are opening up the kitchen which has been pretty much closed in the year + I have been there and will be cooking multi-national cuisine...and even have promised to send 2 of our people to Chicago to learn Indian (as in India) cooking.

The Doctor who owns the place has been in medicine over 20 years and has a teaching college overseas and has a larger hotel in Chicago he already uses for the same thing there.

Spent quite awhile yesterday just installing new energy saving lights in the main lobby area. We had mass insanity yesterday. Had a wedding reception I had set tables and chairs up for 370 people. Had a family reunion back in the pool area. The changeover of management. Every one wanting everything done at once.

16 hours of work....2 days of work in one day. Man, I still am trying to get my brain working.

Anyway, just thought I'd let ya know how the changeover is going.

(On an interesting note, I read the Muslims - said to "make friends of the enemy, then kill them". Don't know if that has a bearing on anything related to the above. Maybe the hotel is a "holding cell for those refusing to get their flu shots" or are "American terrorists".)

Anyway, whatever God wants let it be done. Let me be a Light to the ungodly.

 

[SeniorSeeker]

Hello Pete,

May God's blessing be upon you, as well as upon the new owners. I truly hope all goes well for everyone's sake.





Minelab X-Terra 70, Garrett Pro Pointer, Wilcox Pro100 Digger

 

[Anonymous]

God has a plan for you, Pete, and I don't believe He will let you down by lifting you up with encouraging news of more work with bigger paychecks and then let everything fall apart! He loves you so much and wants you to be His witness by living holy like our Lord is holy before those who have or need Jesus as their Savior! They may be checking to see how good a worker you are without complaining and, hopefully, they will see who you are in Him and give you favor! Sounds good right now but don't give up when things aren't as great, for it will take time and word spread through the land to get this business on higher ground to do what they want to do! Just pray that all goes well and that all will work out for the owners and the workers in very good and prosperous ways! Remember, God is good and He is good all the time!

May our Lord Jesus Christ bless you and your family with everything you need to serve and live for Him! Amen! God Bless! Betty

 

[Mike Chgo area]

n/t

 

[Anonymous]

God Bless! Betty

 

[TURNMASTER]

Sounds like a good thing

 

[Mike from MI "Iron Brigade"]

Work, money and a chance to be a wittness for Christ!

 

[Zectron2348]

It is always quite a challenge when there is new ownership of a business. I hope your ownership change goes better than mine.

I worked in management for 22 years at a privately owned Aluminum Manufacturing plant, then suddenly out of the blue the owner sold the facility to one of the Aluminum Manufacturing giants, a multi-billion dollar company. We were a very successful plant at the time of the sale, .................. then along comes the New Owners, ............. who think they know everything there is to know about Aluminum, and not too proud to let you know you have been doing it wrong for all those years.

Long long story short, at the time of the sale, we had 11 people in management and 101 working the floor in manufacturing, bookings were out 12 weeks, and profits were good for many years straight. Our management staff at the time of the sale had over 78 years of experience manufacturing our specific products, and we did what we did very well. Our manufacturing floor had many talented long time employees, with almost half of them with 10 plus years experience. At the end of the first year under the new ownership, they had replaced 9 of the old managers, and added an additional 6, bringing the management staff from 11 to 17, but, ......................... Not one of the people they brought in had any experience with our specific products at all! They brought in their own people, but not one of them knew anything about our manufacturing processes or procedures. Additionally, in the first 12 months we also lost almost 75 percent of our experienced manufacturing floor workers, replaced with inexperienced cheaper employees. Yes indeed, ..... they cleaned house!

Bottom line, the new owner systematically destroyed a very successful and profitable business, with their "know it all " attitude and resulting changes. First year for the new ownership showed a net loss of over 500 thousand, as opposed to the prior year profits of over 750 thousand. They spent money like crazy implementing silly programs, moving equipment, and changing processes and product flow, ......... it was a mess. It took 4 years for the plant to again show a profit, and in the mean time we lost many customers due to repeated quality problems and late shipments.

I stayed 5 years with the new ownership, then I could take it no more and called it quits. It was like watching your child you nurtured and grew, ......... slowly die from abuse.

Hopefully your ownership change will be different and positive, and it sounds like it will.

Stay calm, take every day one at a time, ........... pray and put your trust and faith in GOD to carry you through this.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Zectron......you post sounds like the story my brother Cliff told me.....He worked for Midas Muffler and had a good manager and did okay with his work. Well a new manager was sent in (a college learned younger man) and he wanted everything changed from the way Cliff had been doing it and always did good work even though he was to do it in their time requirements. He took his retirement and left, for he just did not want to learn new ways after working there for years, so MIdas Muffler lost a good employee who worked hard for them! Sounds like that company you worked for lost a lot of good workers and also lots of money! The school of hard knocks and being in business for years is far better than BOOK Learnin' any time! God Bless! Betty

 

[Pete in MI]

n/t

 

[Zectron2348]

Hi Zectron......you post sounds like the story my brother Cliff told me.....He worked for Midas Muffler and had a good manager and did okay with his work. Well a new manager was sent in (a college learned younger man) and he wanted everything changed from the way Cliff had been doing it and always did good work even though he was to do it in their time requirements. He took his retirement and left, for he just did not want to learn new ways after working there for years, so MIdas Muffler lost a good employee who worked hard for them! Sounds like that company you worked for lost a lot of good workers and also lots of money! The school of hard knocks and being in business for years is far better than BOOK Learnin' any time! God Bless! Betty

Very true Betty.

Sadly, this seems to be a very common story in today's America. I started to write a book a couple years before I left the company, the book was called "THE RISE AND FALL OF AMERICAN MANUFACTURING". Talking with many people, I heard the same story repeated many times, one company purchasing another, and immediately making huge changes, which had extreme negative impact. I watched it first hand, and it made me sick. I watched over and over as extremely good people were driven out of the organization, their replacements incapable of performing in their new positions. To me it just never made any sense, it would be like buying a very successful race car, (which had won many races), ...... and immediately just on a whim changing the suspension, engine, and type of tires used, ....................... there is that old saying, ........"If it ain't broke, ... don't fix it!"

 

[ronaldj2]

Usually the first thing to go is employee moral. I have been a glazier in the glass trade for 22 plus years I'm 43 yrs old, thats more than half my life. The same thing happened to my Dad and I. My Dad was with a particular Co. for almost 15 yrs and I was with the same Co. for 11 yrs. A man sweet talks his way in from another Co. and next thing you know my Dad is getting the golden handshake. I gave my notice of departure, but stayed an extra 3mths because my wife was pregnant with our third child (pre-existing condition). We needed the health insurance at the time. They asked me what they could do for me to get me to stay with them. I told them get rid of the sweet talker and get my Dad back. Within 3yrs of our departure the owner could no longer stand the new guy(sweet talker), and so fired him. He had also lost two other employees because of his poor judgement. He also ended up selling the business and has kicked himself in the rear ever since. There is a principle here, both my Dad and I are born again spirit filled christians, and Gods blessing was all over that business while we were there. God takes care of his own, and when Gods children are harmed God intervenes. We have both been at our present jobs for the past 12+ yrs and God has blessed this place also. We are still in the glass trade for a different Co. than the first, but God's principles still apply. He takes care of his own. Have never had a layoff in the past 22+yrs. Why is it that somebody always feels they have a better plan than God's ? Or a better idea. Love in Christ, Ron Lefebvre

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your posts Zectron and Ron! This is just like BO (wanting to change everything and he thinks for the better) but the way he is doing it is out of God's will and he doesn't give Jesus a thank you for anything! He is so self-centered that there is no way but his way and he doesn't even know what is in that 1500 or so pages of his new Health Care Plan just what he's told by those who also want their way---just too many lies told! May God have mercy on America and His own Children and save us from those who don't know Him but think their way is right and are calling evil; good and good; evil! God's will and way is always the best for everyone! Amen! God Bless! Betty