I Walked Out.
June 26, 2012
After ten minutes in the wood-panelled reception area of a top global consulting firm, I knew they weren’t my people. I saw one harried administrative assistant who looked like she could use a stress test or her own assistant, or both, dash by. She returned and quickly told me that my consultant was running late.
I watched an equally unhealthy looking man respond to the introduction of the receptionist-in-training not with “Hi I’m Steve welcome to the company” but with “Hi, I’m a pain in the …” He didn’t speak to her. He spoke to the corner as he rounded it. Then, at the altar of the billable hour, I was kept waiting.
I had seen enough. I wasn’t going to give this workplace culture a cent. People watch everything you do, then they talk, tweet or blog. You get the picture. We are under constant surveillance.
