Monday
Entirely wasted day looking at six possible venues in London for the Institute's AGM. These were suggestions by Alec Nussbaum at head office. Privately the Institute's Director, Vijay Singh, has already decided the AGM will be held over two days at a country hotel in the west midlands, but we do not want Alec Nussbaum to know this until the last minute, hence my day in London.
I also went to the British Museum but it was so crowded I came away without looking at anything.
Tuesday
My desk so covered with Christmas cards there is hardly room to work.
I wrote a report on the six venues I visited yesterday, rejecting all of them, but hinting that we might go with the Great Eastern room at the Andaz Hotel if we can't find anything better (this is just a ruse to keep Alec Nussbaum quiet).
During the morning a meeting with Vijay Singh, Telephone Surveys Manager Abi Reed and Acting Deputy Director Marcia Walsh. Vijay Singh announced that Lois Cooper, who has cancer, will not be returning to the company and that Marcia Walsh was confirmed as Deputy Director. A formal letter is to be sent to Lois Cooper thanking her for all she has done for the Institute over the ten years she has been with the organisation.
The meeting itself was acrimonious, with Vijay Singh attacking each of us in turn. He is under a lot of pressure from head office to get results (related to our campaigns). Our softly-softly approach may be dropped in favour of a harder and more overt strategy.
When I returned to my desk after the meeting I received a telephone call from Abi Reed in her room downstairs - "I'm asking myself whether I want to go on working here" she told me.
No time for lunch because of a deadline to get an article drafted.
Then I worked my way through a mass of other e-mails, most of them rubbish (but rubbish that had to be responded to politely).
Wednesday
Vijay Singh out, which was rather a relief.
I allocated the day to completing the annual report, but in the end this didn't get done. Where did all the time go? Frittered away on distractions and interruptions.
Lunchtime more Christmas shopping. I despise the giant Tesco, but it does come in useful. £102 spent today, £120 spent yesterday, and still I am not finished.
In the afternoon a meeting with Abi Reed. She was still depressed after yesterday's meeting ("I've applied for two jobs"). Our mutual enemy Marcia Walsh has made a terrible mistake with the end of year accounts, which caused us a great deal of satisfaction.
Thursday
Marcia Walsh has marked her elevation to Deputy Director by moving into Lois Cooper's corner office. She has also had screens put up around Accounts. Katie (silly vacuous person) thinks she might get Marcia Walsh's job of Finance manager, but she has no chance.
It was imperative that I got the first draft of the annual report finished, and I just managed to do this by 11am when I went into a meeting with Vijay Singh to discuss the report. The meeting went well and he hardly changed anything. I was told not to leave a copy on my computer but to delete everything and just carry the draft around on a memory stick (more stress, as I am now worrying about the stick getting damaged).
More shopping at lunchtime.
In the afternoon I went down to the Reading Room to ask Gary to find some articles for me. He later brought them up to my desk. Despite his laddish reputation he is always very grave and courteous towards me.
In the evening the office party, held at a local hotel. All the drinks were free, but because I was driving I just had orange juice. As well as the permanent staff there were several volunteers present, which made things livelier.
Friday
We only worked in the morning. A bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne arrived, a gift from a printer we use - I put it in the office raffle. At 1 o'clock everyone gathered upstairs for mince pies and chocolates.
And then we were done for the year.
Entirely wasted day looking at six possible venues in London for the Institute's AGM. These were suggestions by Alec Nussbaum at head office. Privately the Institute's Director, Vijay Singh, has already decided the AGM will be held over two days at a country hotel in the west midlands, but we do not want Alec Nussbaum to know this until the last minute, hence my day in London.
I also went to the British Museum but it was so crowded I came away without looking at anything.
Tuesday
My desk so covered with Christmas cards there is hardly room to work.
I wrote a report on the six venues I visited yesterday, rejecting all of them, but hinting that we might go with the Great Eastern room at the Andaz Hotel if we can't find anything better (this is just a ruse to keep Alec Nussbaum quiet).
During the morning a meeting with Vijay Singh, Telephone Surveys Manager Abi Reed and Acting Deputy Director Marcia Walsh. Vijay Singh announced that Lois Cooper, who has cancer, will not be returning to the company and that Marcia Walsh was confirmed as Deputy Director. A formal letter is to be sent to Lois Cooper thanking her for all she has done for the Institute over the ten years she has been with the organisation.
The meeting itself was acrimonious, with Vijay Singh attacking each of us in turn. He is under a lot of pressure from head office to get results (related to our campaigns). Our softly-softly approach may be dropped in favour of a harder and more overt strategy.
When I returned to my desk after the meeting I received a telephone call from Abi Reed in her room downstairs - "I'm asking myself whether I want to go on working here" she told me.
No time for lunch because of a deadline to get an article drafted.
Then I worked my way through a mass of other e-mails, most of them rubbish (but rubbish that had to be responded to politely).
Wednesday
Vijay Singh out, which was rather a relief.
I allocated the day to completing the annual report, but in the end this didn't get done. Where did all the time go? Frittered away on distractions and interruptions.
Lunchtime more Christmas shopping. I despise the giant Tesco, but it does come in useful. £102 spent today, £120 spent yesterday, and still I am not finished.
In the afternoon a meeting with Abi Reed. She was still depressed after yesterday's meeting ("I've applied for two jobs"). Our mutual enemy Marcia Walsh has made a terrible mistake with the end of year accounts, which caused us a great deal of satisfaction.
Thursday
Marcia Walsh has marked her elevation to Deputy Director by moving into Lois Cooper's corner office. She has also had screens put up around Accounts. Katie (silly vacuous person) thinks she might get Marcia Walsh's job of Finance manager, but she has no chance.
It was imperative that I got the first draft of the annual report finished, and I just managed to do this by 11am when I went into a meeting with Vijay Singh to discuss the report. The meeting went well and he hardly changed anything. I was told not to leave a copy on my computer but to delete everything and just carry the draft around on a memory stick (more stress, as I am now worrying about the stick getting damaged).
More shopping at lunchtime.
In the afternoon I went down to the Reading Room to ask Gary to find some articles for me. He later brought them up to my desk. Despite his laddish reputation he is always very grave and courteous towards me.
In the evening the office party, held at a local hotel. All the drinks were free, but because I was driving I just had orange juice. As well as the permanent staff there were several volunteers present, which made things livelier.
Friday
We only worked in the morning. A bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne arrived, a gift from a printer we use - I put it in the office raffle. At 1 o'clock everyone gathered upstairs for mince pies and chocolates.
And then we were done for the year.
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