When I worked for BT as a switchboard fitter this often included carrying out work on an office floor with staff all around and a manager overseeing them. The usually ment also having to get where desks were over floor cable traps etc
So first of all going to see the floor manager and explain what I was doing and asking for some of the desks to be move so I could carry out the work. The number of times these jumped up little twerps who thought they were god almighty refused to let me carry out the work required was quite often.
Of course experience then came into play.
Being very polite I would say “ok thats fine, Can you direct me to the manageing directors or CEO’s office to say I was unable to carry out the works order for your company because “office manager” would not let me, so I am going to leave”
This usually made an office manager change their mind pretty quick as i went to leave that office floor.
There are ways to make these people look very small infront of their staff politely of course
I used to have similar issues with some owners of launderettes ( not that I did many) trying to explain that their ducting requires cleaning and being met with, “ it’s working just fine” , I would then quote the regs to them and ask to sign an at risk notice, of course, if it was classed as immediately dangerous, and they wouldn’t let me cap it off, then having to explain that I would have to call transco for them to turn off the entire premises until it was fixed, soon had them think differently
What I found quite off-putting was when a CEO’s assistant of a company called me to ask for something his CEO wanted to have and I declined and he then raised his voice and reminded me in no uncertain terms that he was calling on behalf of the CEO probably assuming that his name and job title would make me gaze at him in awe.
the problem lies with the structure in this country of how to get a higher position in a company. Long gone are the days when one started at the bottom of the ladder and earned the way up by learning the job. Now it is “oh lets pluck out a university graduate” who has not got a clue about the job but thrown into middle management because of a useless degree.
I could name but i won’t a person who BT employed at level 4 management who had a degree in believe it or not Zooology
