Swamped

First time ever for me. First time I’ve stopped long enough to assess – who I am, what I do and how well I do it.

First time I’ve ever taken a good hard look at my job. A good hard look.

I have to admit it – at least to myself.

I am swamped. Overwhelmed. Exhausted.

This has been my job for years. Most of my life. And make no mistake – I love this job, the work I do. The value and worth of my job.

I’m a compliance professional and proud of it. I’ve done this work, and I’ve done my very best at it.

The work I do is important. It matters. This work helps others, makes a difference, protects us all.

Only thing is that lately I’ve felt like I can’t keep up. Not since our company began to grow.

Plenty of new work. New employees. New kinds of jobs.

At first, it was exciting to see our company growing. New projects. More jobs. More responsibility. More problems and pressures.

But only one compliance professional. Me. Just me. No separate department. No additional workers to help me. Nobody to help me keep up with the training we need to do, preparing reports to the board, following up on Speak Up system messages – one thing after another.

So, it’s no wonder I feel swamped. Overwhelmed. Exhausted.

More work than I can handle.

I feel bad about how worn out I feel all the time.

For the very first time here, I realize I can’t handle compliance on my own.

I need help. I admit it. In a way, I hate to admit to a weakness.

But the company has grown – by leaps and bounds. The company is changing so much – almost every day new work, new workers, new rules and regulations.

So, there we are. Me overwhelmed. The business growing, expanding, getting bigger and better.

What to do now?

Guess I need to hunt down the big boss and tell him I need help – more hands to help, more space, the right tech, room and resources to grow to match our growing business.

Change demands even more change.

I’m about to confront the big boss – tell him I need more resources, more workers, a team of my own, an entire trained compliance group.

But before I can march up to his office and demand help, trained workers to be my team. . . .

All of a sudden I get a memo. From the big boss. He realizes what I’ve been struggling with. He’s good, our boss.

He let me know he wants me to build a team – a compliance team. Trained, competent workers to serve under me, my own team.

I feel like a weight is lifted off my chest. He’s a smart man, our boss. He pays attention. He sees our needs often before we even do.

No wonder our business is growing so fast. No wonder we are swamped with more and more work. No wonder this business has a good reputation.

Our boss cares. And maybe that’s a big reason we give our all for him. He helps us be our best.

I plan to lead the best compliance department in the known universe.

Just watch me do it.

© 2024 K. Leet

What do you think?

Are you good at what you do?

Do you get help? Encouragement?

Do you have what you need to do your job?

How do you feel about your job?

These are stories (usually fictional, but not always), based on insights and experiences from the world of compliance & ethics.