Anyone work in a tiny company?
 

I don't mean 100 people...I mean like 4 or 5. Also it doesn't count if you work in a dentist's office or something like that ;)

I'm trying to negotiate certain things but I feel stuck. I couldn't find topics on other message board about this so if anyone can relate let me know.

-Rudey

14...with 10 employees who are out in the field all day, and only 4 of us in the office.

My last job was 4 people including me. I left because the other three were a Father (owner), his daughter, and her best friend since high school - yeah I had no hope of getting in with that crowd.

The one before that was 50 people, but like AlphaFrog 45 of them worked in the field all day and the owner considered them a necessary evil.

Before I was here, I did. Not only was it tiny, it was family owned. So if your experience is anything like mine, you're probably stuck.

There seems to be no room for errors in these environments. The focus is always on you if something goes wrong.

Plus, there is no structure. You seem to leave in the middle of the day to play basketball or just take a day off but it gets confusing. Even if we're small, we have 2 offices and I'd like to be able to work out of the other one - even if it's part time.

Seriously this is the most difficult environment I could imagine working in. If anyone has any idea how to approach the office thing, let me know.

-Rudey

Lack of structure in the workplace is my number one pet peeve. In my experience, it indicates lack of long-term strategy.

is it run more efficiently? I imagine there is lest bureacracy

Two of us in the office. It can be uncomfortable.

It's just totally different. There is no red tape, but no tape at all. It's hard to explain.

DA probably knows what I'm talking about. I mean I can get up and leave in the middle of the day but if I do I don't know who to tell. It's a double edged sword.

Worse than anything is having to worry about getting the water muddy. You upset one person in this setting and forget about being comfortable for a long time.

-Rudey

This is what I hated when I worked for my small company. Granted there were about 6 of us total on payroll, 3 of them were working a warehouse on print presses, one was out making deals and one was either locked in his office or running errands for the company.

So that left me alone in an unsecured office. I did have some strange customers and I was left alone to deal with them. It sucked.

And since I was the sole designer, all backlash came back to me. And if the market was slow there was NOTHING to do. I spent a lot of my time on Greekchat back then.

all this is amazing to me. I interned in state government and it felt like ages before even small things could be done.

where I work is family business: (I'm stuck until I'm ready to leave the state)

6 "regular" employees
3 part timers
1 out of state salesman
2 people who work only a couple days a week (project stuff/marketing director)

My situation sucks so much ass. Basically, I'm responsible for making sure everyone else is responsible for their things, i.e. right information, input. But sometimes they try to pull "we need you to wear more than one hat" and that scenario almost got me fired, but then the boss realized what would happen if I left like that.

This is just biding my time though, just biding my time untill I find the magic P word man, and the real work begins. The real work's begun. The real work can go ahead and get finished up when the magic p man shows up. And then ~3 months later I'm gone forever.

Doing indepedent film.

How about working with 2 other people, one your boss and the other a person who does the same stuff as you do.

What do you do if the boss likes the other person more than you? Its like you could never win then if they like the other person more. I just got hired into this new job 4 weeks ago and it was me and the boss but this past week she hired someone else, which is fine, but it seems like she loves the other girl and Im like oh great now what if we all work together and they get along better Ill be working my butt off and the odd man out....

I just hate coming into some place and there is only 3 people and its sink or swim. I have to be at 120% everyday so I do good. I just dont like competition. I mean its ok to have some, but when its 2 people and they compete for the better commission and the boss likes one a little better, Im gonna have to work my ass off......

I know what you mean Rudey about small offices. My last job I only had 10 people in it, but only 3 were in the office everyday. It was hard.

I work in a heavy machinery auto repair shop. There are only 3 empolyee's here- the two guys who own the business and me. I keep the books. It works out really well for me. The do all the "hard work" and I...keep the books. They only bother me when its time to do some bills. Other than that, I'm own my own. I like it that. Give me a lot of time to do stuff on my own.

The company I work for is only 3 people and I feel this way a lot.

I also find that I can't just get up and run an errand unless I say something because it is noticed very easily when I'm not at my desk.