This place is in what I’d call desperate need of some DIY. The maintenance guy was apparently fired before I got here, for misdemeanours in his Melbourne office. The report said that he very much enjoyed burning things. I suppose it could’ve been worse, but we really need to find a replacement. Even when people are frustrated at a flickering light, or a ripped up piece of carpet, just having a shiny aluminium toolbox sitting there can be a reassurance that something is being done about the problem. Still, I would prefer for there to be some actual action alongside the presence of the toolbox.

The rest of the report seems a tad unreasonable. The maintenance fellow said he needed more equipment for his office duties, for which he was reprimanded. Unless he planned to burn these too, and voiced this desire to the manager, I see no reason not to equip the person who keeps us running. Let’s see…roof racks and bars, a screwdriver set, draw systems for a ute…they all seem reasonable enough in the line of duty. Cleanliness, orderliness, happiness…that’s the order of importance for a happy and thriving office space. I’ve already got my best cleaners on the job, but the second item is failing. We simply cannot be orderly if every time the air conditioner breaks down, we have to go running to someone in the office who might have had a similar skillset in a previous job. It loses precious company time, and it’s simply not worth it in the long run.

Naturally, the responsibility for replacing this position has fallen for me. The delegation of responsibility has become a lot more prevalent, but there’s still a lot to work on. So if I need someone to order roof racks and bars, Melbourne has plenty of places, I can assure you that I’ll GET someone. I can’t be doing everything, especially when I have my hands full making sure everyone else is doing their own job.

-Sandrine