Home HR in the Sun Memory Lane - Photo Tribute to my Job
A Eulogy for Dawn's Job
March 4, 1996 - April 1, 2004
I have a saying that a job is like a bird feeder. In good times, the man comes daily and keeps the feeder full of millet and sunflower seeds. During these times of bounty, life is good. Always in the background, however, are the squirrels. The squirrels try to figure out how to steal your seed, take it from you. You may try to fight off the squirrels yourself, the man may try to fix the feeder so the squirrels can't get to it. But squirrels are crafty animals, they are always watching, waiting, planning. There is a big-ass squirrel circling my bird feeder right now, and unless someone shows up with a shot-gun, I think this time...he is going to win.
I have always tried to follow the "one box rule" at work....meaning you shouldn't keep more stuff at work than you can fit into one box. That way, when it is your time to go, you can carry it all out in one trip and not have to look back. There is nothing more humiliating than going back to work to PYS (pack your s#$%). When you work in HR, you see a lot of people come and go. You see that a "key contributor" today can be at the top of the termination list tomorrow. You see peoples' years of work, relationships, valuable contributions, joys and losses, be shut off in the second it takes to turn off their network access. As you see these things, you come to understand that there is spinning rolodex that someday will stop on your name, and on that day you will be the one putting your life in a box and being escorted to your car.
Well, it seems that rolodex is finally stopping on my name. In some ways, I am surprised to have made it this long. After years of speculation about mergers, acquisitions, bankruptcy, reorganizations, etc etc etc.....the inevitable has finally come. The company has now been sold to a substantial competitor. As my job is a "corporate" function, I have now become a "synergy" (ie, a redundant headcount that can be eliminated and thus counted towards the savings promised to stock holders).
I always thought that people who know they are going to die have an advantage. They can tie up loose ends, share memories, have closure and celebrate their life. The loss of a job is a death of sorts. The life once known comes to a stop, and the people you worked with daily fade into the past as a new life begins.
But we come here today not to grieve my job, but to praise it. Let me take you through some of the wonderful memories I have from working at Intermedics Orthopedics/Sulzer Orthopedics/Centerpulse Orthopedics/Centerpulse USA (fondly referred from here on out as IOI).
I started at IOI in 1996
. I was fresh off a plant closure
after working for Medtronic. I was so happy to have a job I didn't care
what it was like at the new place. After a brief period which we now refer
to as the "dark days", we experienced a time of unprecedented happiness and
content. Oh sure, there were the rumours of mergers, acquisitions,
etc...but we were untouchable.......
I met one of my best friends while working at IOI, Esther
.
Together we had many a wild "happy hour"s that got us into trouble more than a
time or two with our husbands. I don't know how we crawled into work some
mornings. I am thankful to this day that I met Esther there. It is but one
of the many benefits that came with my job. When Esther left IOI for other
pursuits, I was fortunate enough to bring in an old acquaintance of mine, Bob
,
to take her place (isn't he a handsome devil!?!). Bob is my bestest work buddy pal in the whole world.
Together, we did great things, we went great places, and mostly...just enjoyed
working and being together. Perhaps he is one of the key reasons I have
loved my job so much. Combine that with our wonderful boss, Renee
, and
nothing could have been better.
In any case, there was period of time when our Company decided that we were a "Global Organization" with our counterparts in Switzerland. During this time, Bob, Renee and I traveled to Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Canada, Minneapolis, California....why, I can't remember all the places we "vacationed" together in the name of work. For HR flunkies, this type of travel is very unusual. We did not take it for granted. We vowed to appreciate every day we had, because we knew it could all end tomorrow. We had all the newest, fanciest work gadgets there were around. Of course, we repaid the Company for our perks by being the strongest "dynamic duo" ever seen in HR. No project was too much, too painful, or too boring...we conquered them all in a timely fashion and with a customer service attitude.
Things started to unravel when our Company was hit with a class action law suit. The Global Organization was disbanded, and we entered a time of great turmoil and uncertainty. The threat of bankruptcy loomed above us daily. All through, Renee kept her Rose Coloured Glasses on, always giving us hope. It was during this time that Bob and I decided that some day, we would form D&B Consulting. We would focus on this whenever the stress became overwhelming. There were many ups and downs, but through it all...we kept on working and kept on enjoying our work. Often, our laughter would fill the halls as we maintained a sense of humour about things.
Though we somehow made it through the litigation (a feat I understand has never been done before), there were terrible casualties. The Denver facility that I had so enjoyed working with got shut down, thus ending my prized regular trips to Denver. I felt that part of my family had been taken away, as I had many friends there. But, I still had Bob and Renee, and we continued on our path.
However, things were never the same for me after Denver was gone. I no longer found the joy I once had in my work. So, I decided to take a "corporate" job when it became available. I knew it would be more vulnerable in case of acquisition, but it was a great opportunity to learn and do new things, which I needed. Fully aware that one day I would be victim of a sale or merger, I took the job hoping to make it for at least two years. Though it meant not working for Renee or directly with Bob anymore, I was still in the same building and we interacted frequently. There was little change in this regard except for my duties. I also gained a department full of wonderful people...Rachael, Sonya, Melodee, Kathy, Francis...all special and talented ladies. Plus, I got to work for Rose, whom I had worked with for many years while she was HR VP for our sister Company. I learned lots of new things that I never would have learned had I not taken the job, and have no regrets.
Although we made it through the law suit, the management structure never recovered. After months of speculation, we have finally been sold. We are soon to be integrated in...resistance is futile. So farewell my beloved job! The memories will live on.
Though nothing can bring back the hour
of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower
We will grieve not.
Rather find strength in what remains behind.
William Wordsworth
Read my song parody, HR in the Sun