I do not hate my job...

I do not hate my job.  I really don’t.  In fact, I would venture a guess that most of you have no clue what I do, other than post on Facebook all day.  This is not true.  Truth be known, it is my outlet, how I vent, whatever…and I think we all know I like to vent.  I am personally going to be one pissed off sucker if I ever die of a heart attack, because I DO NOT keep things bottled inside.  (Or die of any other stress related issue really.)

Anyway, first things first.  I am a Project Manager for a metal fabrication/structural steel company.  I gave myself that title if you want the truth, because I didn't have one and I have enough trouble in life without having an identity crisis at work also.  It perfectly sums up what I do, but explaining what I do is a lot harder.  But I will try.

We build things, steel things, usually buildings, think banks, schools, Sam’s clubs, etc.  When you drive past a new building going up and see the metal skeleton of it, or its framework, that is what we do. I am with a project from the moment it gets bid on (I do not estimate, but I do sometimes do material calculations for weight, etc.) until the time it’s shipped complete.  If we did in fact get the job.

So let’s pretend my estimator bids on a job.  I will find out all the contractors that are bidding on the job, I will type up our bid; I will send the bid to them and wait to hear if we won it.  If we won it, I then become the contact with the contractor from the fabrication (building) standpoint.  I will get the list of materials from the shop, I will send that out for bids, I will find and negotiate the best price; I will issue the Purchase Order for those materials.  I will take the drawings from our detailer and I will forward them to the appropriate parties and maintain their path through the whole project.  I am the keeper of all things needing documented.  I am also the one who gets their ass chewed when the estimator fails to include something on the bid he should of, or if the detailer draws up the prints wrong, or prints are missing etc., or if material is list, or so on and so forth.  It’s a thankless job usually.  Call me a liaison.  The middle man.  I don’t care what you want to call me, but I am in charge of a lot of info and keeping the project on schedule.

Perhaps that sounds simple and somewhat glamorous.  It is neither.  It’s not rocket science, but it is a lot to keep track of, especially if you have more than one project going on.  No one taught me how to do any of this, I taught myself and by process of elimination at this facility, it needed done.

Besides that being my main daily task, I can also do 90% of Sisters job, as the Office Manager.  Shipping, receiving, purchasing, accounts payable/receivable, etc.   Think of her as the financing, human resources, payroll kind of person.  If you have ever worked in a company before, really of any kind, you would know that between the two of us, we wear a lot of hats…doing the job of multiple people at times.  We work well together and it is a blessing we can.  Although I can do her job, she really wants no part of mine.  Most days, no part of her own really.  But anyway. 

I complain a lot about my job.  I am aware of this.  But it’s important that everyone know it’s not my job I am complaining about, meaning the actual work I do.  My job is highly dependent on several other things and PEOPLE doing their jobs as well.   I take my job very personally.  So if something negative happens, it affects me personally.  Most people, well some, can blow shit like that off, I, I cannot.  I take too many things to heart as it is, but I especially do with my job.  If I mess up, I take full responsibility.  I don’t like pointing fingers or finger pointers…accept it, move on.  I don’t give a flying leap whose fault it is, how do we fix it?

So, in case you have ever wondered what I do…there ya go.  I am at a desk, at a computer entirely too much which is why I gained all the weight back that I lost when I owned the bar, and I hate that, but I do not hate my job.

Glad we cleared that up.