fw: I am leaving my company - should I inform top mgmt of major IT issues? -- MIDRANGE-L

I should have provided a bit more info regarding this posting.

  a.. Yes of course I have spoken up when employed; I often informed IT mgmt 
and other programmer types of the IT issues hurting the company.  And yes of 
course they have been ignored.  Most (all) were offended and think they are 
doing a great job.  Maybe they are (probably not)!

  b.. I have even told some in mgmt above IT, but IT personnel always deny that 
specifics are accurate.

  c.. I hope that I am not doing this for spite, in fact the only reason I see 
NOT to inform top mgmt is that I dont want to bring trouble to IT people I have 
worked with for several years.

  d.. My (former) company has been downsizing for 5 years now; and things keep 
getting worse.  Regardless if I inform or not, the company has not yet seen the 
bottom and has a ways down to go before leveling out. 

  e.. Top mgmt is all new within the past 2 years - they have no way of knowing 
the details of what is going on in IT, good or bad.  IT is not like a 
restaurant or production floor where a lay person can walk around and see 
things out of order.  Everything is hidden from view in IT.   Only the symptoms 
are visible to mgmt.

  f.. I would feel good if they make changes that help the company out.  Isn't 
that worth something, even if I get no direct benefit?  Has the world come to 
that a person only does something helpful if that person gains from it?

  g.. I would imagine that readers are wondering what kind of issues I am 
thinking about revealing.  There is nothing illegal or unethical to reveal.  I 
will give an example:  How many part master files should a company have 
spinning on Iseries disk?  One?  One production plus one test?  That makes two. 
 Add a QA-that makes 3. How many logicals?   One by part#, one by brand, one by 
vendor #?  That makes 3 PF's and 3 LF's.  Each extra part master copy makes 
changes exponentially more difficult and complex. If a field needs changing, 
now a programmer needs to worry about touching 6 objects.  This company has 
-are you sitting down - 500 part file PFs and 1500 associated LF's.  Of course 
some are year end copies, others are John's test part file and Mary's test part 
file, others are part spin-off files. But to make a change to the file would 
take considerable effort.  And of course no pgmr would ever attempt a change 
with that magnitude of risk!

Thanks to all  for all the helpful words of advice! 



On Thu, 10 Feb 2005 15:28:17 -0500, Larry Bolhuis <lbolhuis@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I think Ron's approach is right on here.  You certainly risk trouble by
> telling them because they will likely take one of two views of the
> situation a) you are bitter or b) you are incompetent because you didn't
> bring it up even though you've know about it for a long time.  On the
> other hand if you don't tell them it's on your conscience.

I disagree, and think it is bad advice.  If you didn't speak up when
you were employed there, so you shouldn't speak up now.   Clearly,
your interest is not about doing good, it is spite for the people who
let you go.  Acting based on those kinds of motivations rarely turns
out well.