The Chemistry Lounge

Just updated the look of this blog with the Fresh theme. I like it so far. I am still trying to figure out if I will make this more of a design/art-related blog or if I shoul create more of a typical site for pat ryan design type stuff.

Still under consideration.  And, I need to update to 2.6.2 now.

This blog is not workin’ for me. Kinda like the theme (aside from the lack of widgetability and no direct way to log in and out as administrator) but it needs something more interesting. Maybe this should not be a blog at all.

I need to do something with this domain…

Processing.

Yesterday (well, it wasn’t just yesterday - this had been going on for quite awhile), the company I worked for just came to an end. It was kind of surreal. I was fascinated watching this whole train wreck take place. The company had been around for about five or six years. Until yesterday. Oh, we all saw it coming. The CEO repeatedly told us the company was “in negotiations” for a planned buyout by [insert big-name industry company here].

Most of the loyal, hard-working employees seemed to be buying this line. The official line was that a buyout was going to turn the company around and give it unbelievable buying power, increased profitability, and, of course, according to the executive team, more job stability (even raises!). Having weathered a few economic shit storms in my day, I was acutely aware that this was probably a load of crap. A smokescreen that management sets into action for the purpose of keeping a dying company on life support long enough to get the attorneys all the asset paperwork required to file bankruptcy before the creditors and customers get wind of it.

So, for the past two months, I collected a paycheck and observed a secretive, and tight-lipped management team go through the motions of acting like nothing was amiss. Even the monthly company meetings were a laughable shit-show of over-promises and bubbly team-building diatribe. To listen to the owner pump up his quickly-deflating ego in the face of impending demise was pure entertainment. Everyone in that room knew the train was heading down the mountain with no brakes. It was just a matter of time before it crashed at the bottom… how long was the ride going to last?

To see a viable business come crashing down is an interesting lesson in corporate dynamics that, like Enron in its day, always seems like such a shock. Although management knows it is inevitable, there is a certain faith employees seem to maintain throughout — always believing that the company is looking out for the interests of not only its employees but also its customers. Not so.

The biggest nightmare of all this is that the company continued taking customer’s money right up until the end. In fact, as of last night, the website was still operational. This means that anyone ordering online and paying for the equipment was simply throwing money into a black hole.

Although the business model was completely flawed, the executive team continued to push the tired, unprofitable sinking ship forward. With a buggy back-end system that required constant human tweaking and ad-hoc fixes on a continual basis, the model was doomed. A massive overhead was required to simply facilitate drop-shipping. However, the complications of moving heavy, expensive restaurant equipment across the country is a customer-service nightmare. It was not unusual for our reps to come in on Monday mornings and face two to three-hundred emails complaining about damaged merchandise or product that simply, never showed up.

The owner’s involvement in the business was arm’s length at best. His ego told him he could do everything. Yet his skill set for doing said everything was not in alignment with his beliefs. His complete misunderstanding of the design-service industry and principles created animosity and dis-trust between himself and potential clients. His contentious personality alienated rather than attracted, and my co-worker and I spent a great deal of time just repairing the relationships or making excuses for this giant ass.

In the end, the company’s demise never really was that big of a surprise. I think most employees were just happy the bloodletting was over. It was time for everyone to move on and let this runaway train crash, explode, and eventually burn up. Most were angry and rightfully so. You can only respect someone just so far as they try to save their own ass while blowing smoke up yours. We listened to his sappy speech where he had the audacity to take credit - once again - for creating the company, but stopped short of taking the blame for its eventual collapse. In fact, he found external reasons and individuals who were responsible in part of the company’s destruction. Whatever.

We all turned in our keys, packed up our offices, said shallow goodbyes, and turned off the lights behind us as we headed for the door. As I drove away I felt relief but also felt what some of the others might be feeling too. I felt sorry for two who had met at the company, fallen in love, got married, and with her now pregnant, both losing their jobs on the same day. I thought of the underpaid customer service reps, living paycheck to paycheck, who were leaving knowing, come Monday, they better hit the pavement running.  A single paycheck doesn’t go far.  I am lucky.  I have design work I am actively engaged in and can always find something to do.  When I saw this company floundering three months ago, I knew the warning signs way in advance.

Time for new gig.

So, looking at my stats today, I see we had a little spike around the 4th. Either the stat counter is screwy or I was really popular yesterday!

I just updated my theme to this nice, black and grey style from Warpspire. So, now comes the typical tweaking and futzing to get it just right. I like this clean, dark look because graphics and text will really pop on it!

this is not a blog.