Marie McIntyre, Ph.D

What are the politics behind your job title?

March 4, 2019
Q: “Our new Executive Director wants to change my job title from ‘communications director’ to ‘communications manager.’ I don’t believe the title of ‘manager’ accurately reflects the complexity of my work. When I meet with my boss to discuss this issue, I plan to show him my current job description and explain how my work is instrumental to achieving his vision for the company. Do you have any other suggestions?” More than a Manager

New co-worker has ruined my job!

February 10, 2019
Question:  “I can’t stand my new co-worker, even though she seemed nice at first.  After only a few months, this woman is already trying to take over.  She constantly sucks up to our boss, so now he listens to her instead of me.  Whenever I talk about my personal life, she becomes very critical and starts telling me what to do…

Mysteriously fired? Spot the red flags

October 25, 2018
Q: “After ten years in my job, I was called into my boss’s office and informed that I was being fired. He said they were “no longer confident in my ability to complete the project.” This came as a total surprise, because I had always received positive performance reviews. I can’t understand how my employer could be so heartless. Shouldn’t they have told me what I was doing wrong and given me a chance to improve? Do I have any legal recourse?”  Blindsided

Are you really worth the money you think you are?

September 24, 2018
Q: “Even though I am a top performer, my pay is low based on market comparisons. To be smart about my career, I believe that I should refuse to accept this mediocre salary. If I’m offered a standard 5% raise, how do I say, ‘Thanks, but I’m worth more than that. What can you do to bring my pay up to market level?’” Underpaid

Base a big career move on facts, not hunches

August 9, 2018
Q: “I recently learned through the grapevine that an account manager who is assigned to work with me has said he would much rather work with someone else. Supposedly, he feels this other person is a lot more professional. Now my supervisor says that I’m being reassigned to a different group of accounts. If the account manager had problems with me, I wish he would have talked to me directly. I assume this means the writing is on the wall, so I have begun to look for other employment opportunities. I would like to leave gracefully, but I also want to tell someone what this individual said about me. Is that a good idea?”  Dazed & Confused

Do these new manager blues feel familiar?

May 14, 2018
Q: “My boyfriend, ‘Doug,’ was recently promoted, but he’s having a lot of problems. He is now supervising his former boss, who is unhappy about being demoted. On top of that, the assistant manager applied for the job and resents the fact that Doug was selected. Their negative attitudes have spread to other employees, who are becoming insubordinate. Doug is expected to clean up this department, which is a complete mess. However, he has no management experience, and these toxic people seem to feel they can run all over him. He is feeling really stressed out. Do you have any advice?”

When the boss wants a say in absolutely everything

March 2, 2018

Q: “My boss, ‘Karen,’ feels the need to control absolutely everything. Ever since Karen promoted me last year, I have been so frustrated that I can hardly stand it. How can I work with this obsessive woman?”

Beware the sullen co-worker’s sinister quicksand

February 9, 2018

Q: “Ever since I came to work here a year ago, I have gotten nothing but attitude from the woman in the next cubicle. I keep trying to be nice to ‘Mandy,’ but she refuses to develop any kind of relationship with me. Sometimes she doesn’t speak to me at all. Our supervisor told us that we needed to work on our communication problem, but that didn’t help at all. This situation has me ready to explode, but I know that getting angry will only make me look bad. What should I do?”

Confronting the ‘TMI’ employee

January 9, 2018
Q: “Whenever one of my employees, ‘Gina,’ has personal problems, she describes them to everyone in excruciating detail. Then she calls her friends on the phone to talk about them some more. Gina does a good job, but these conversations take up a lot of time. How can I put a stop to this without seeming hard-hearted?” Caring & Concerned

When do you tell the boss about a diagnosis of depression?

January 2, 2018

Q: “For the past five years, I have suffered from depression. During that time, I have been on and off medication. However, I have never told my employer about this problem. During my recent performance review, I received a ‘needs improvement’ rating for the first time, which was very upsetting. Do you think I should tell my manager about my depression?”