Forum Topic

Bad reputation careers.

Certain jobs have bad reputations. Once, estate agents and property professionals were the culprits.  Then, bankers became bad.  Recently, MPs and our polititions are malodorous. What professions are going to be the pits?

Gerry Tan ● 4682d17 Comments

So we are all agreed then?(Well, apart from Nigel who is allowed an abstention on this particular occasion for understandable reasons.)The ultimate 'scum of the earth' job is not after all, and somewhat to the surprise of the gallery, 'investment banker', but is, in fact, 'management consultant'!:-)

Tony Colliver ● 4681d

Once again I have to wholeheartedly agree.

Tony Colliver ● 4681d

Ha!Brilliant!Absolutely spot on!Bunch of tossers the lot of them.I had to put up with them charging a quarter of a million pounds to turn around and re-present my ideas to management as their own back in the early nineties.  (And back then 250 grand was a substantial amount of cash even for a bank.)Their report - of a considerable weight and thickness - was referred to in the ensuing weeks and months thereafter as "the most expensive exercise book ever stuffed down a pair of management underpants".

Tony Colliver ● 4681d

I had my own watch! :-)Tony, to be honest that echoes my experience of may for the 'Big Four' - not worthy of the word 'management' let alone 'consultant'.

Nigel Brooks ● 4681d

An absolute echo of my own personal experiences as well, Michael.Andersons were always the worst for me.Then there was PWC, and even Logica to name just three!

Tony Colliver ● 4681d

Management Consultant: a person that borrows your watch to tell you the time.(Certainly my view as a practicing professional engineer of some 30+ years experience. Sorry Nigel!)

Tony Colliver ● 4681d

Bad consulting. If you don't understand the problems 'at the coalface'' then you can't make things better.Too many hire consultants to find a reason to throw technology at a problem in the hope that it will be the panacea for all ills. It never is. People, processes and technology; strictly in that order.

Nigel Brooks ● 4681d

You have a great surname for a plumber Charles!I took have had negative experiences with management consultant.Or that should be consultant.As a worker bee I find the only consultation I get is to be consulted about the decision that has already been made.No involvement before the minds have been made up.I just let them get on with it.

Keith Iddon ● 4681d

Had the same when I worked alongside a team from Arfur H'Anderson (name altered as they are litigious in the extreme). They used to 'hunt in packs' and would not even go to the toilet unaccompanied lest one was able to corner one and ask him a question.One funny from the assignment, which was to enable remote working for a whole group of BT employees, was the interim report. It was presented in their normal 'grave, another phase of work needed' manner to an internal policy group. One member of the group then stopped the presentation mid-flow and asked them if the 'conclusion' was that (some proprietary technical thing I forget) would be required alongside (some quirk in working practice). They patronisingly complimented him on his perspicacity. To which he replied "No, THANK YOU, for lifting 'your' conclusion almost word-for-word from the book that I co-authored on distance working". An uneasy silence fell over the room and the project lead called a private meeting with the 'Consulting Principal'.

Nigel Brooks ● 4682d

I had to look after a group from McKinseys several years back.Right from day one they did not really understand the business or the way of working.Their streamlining systems were instigated and 200 lost their jobs.Short term, the cost savings achieved made the company look good on paper and shareholders were delighted. Then their fee came in and another 50 had to go to just to pay for that exercise .2 years on and the company was wholly uncompetitive having lost all its creative and most able staff. Clients fell away like a cliff fall.The directors who brought McKinseys in had all had golden goodbyes but the rationalising went too far and rendered the company unable to compete and eventually was taken over and what was left was absorbed.Prior to that the company was healthy, reasonably profitable, had solid assets and a happy,keen and engaged workforce and salaries were good across the gamut. Nothing too low and no excesses.But to McKinsey it was not profitable enough and everything was about assets and shareholder performance. Huge salary hikes for directors and management and nothing but cuts for the rest of the staff. The fine balance was tipped right over and with it went morale and goodwill.It's the third time I've had to deal with this set up and each time the end result has been in the businesses being worse off or not even remaining in the industry they were specialist in.

Michael Brandt ● 4682d

As a former Management Consultant I beg to differ. we are NOT all the same.I have only been involved in one project where job losses resulted and it would have been easier to raise The Titanic than to save the company which was on it's last legs and called in 'the consultants' to appease the investors.Most projects resulted in finding more work for the existing (and in many cases expanded) workforce and using the resources they had 'a little smarter'.I must post some of the consultancy jokes here.One to start.A new client asked his consultant "Can I ask you a couple of questions?" The reply, "Of course you can, what's the second one?"

Nigel Brooks ● 4682d

Plumbers are bad, they charge you what they like and they are too expensive if you dont watch out

charlie bucket ● 4682d

Management Consultants. Almost without exception, they wreck companies dissolve jobs and create ways for CEOs and directors to make huge short term profits which go to them and their clients.Arrogant 'experts' whom most businesses could do well without.

Michael Brandt ● 4682d

Traffic Warden is certainly at the bottom of the sewer for me.But, I then ask myself, if I lost my job ahnd had to carry on paying the bills and this was the only option available to me, would I take it. Of course I would!

Bud Richards ● 4682d

I supose the one everyone loves to hate are traffic wardens. But the one where I feel I'm paying for nothing and getting ripped off is insurance. Happy to take your money but never want to pay out, and if they do they push your premium up and charge extra for 5 yrs after making a claim. Makes you wonder if you're just better to pay for the damage yourself.

Marie Shelny ● 4682d

"Formula 1 tyre changers."Yeh they're the pits.

Tony Wood ● 4682d

Quarrymen and miners.Oh,and Formula 1 tyre changers.

Keith Iddon ● 4682d