Meet Bob. An interesting guy. Sometimes he's a bit of a headache. Sometimes he's a bit useful. View the video below. You will get a feel for what Bob is like as a human being. You will also get a feel for his disposition and personality. This information will be invaluable to you as you engage with Bob later.
After viewing the video, read the additional background information on him. This will provide a third-eye perspective on Bob.
Enjoy!
More About Bob
Background Info
25 years old.
Senior Software Engineer.
Been with TLA for one year.
This is his second job coming out of college.
In that brief time, he has been pushed from team to team, with the general feeling that he fills a seat, but his work is mediocre and he sometimes has an attitude problem. No one has managed these issues, though, and HR has never been involved. You actually wonder how he got assigned to this team, given DFI's high profile.
He has a boa constrictor. You sometimes worry he will bring it to work.
Bob is dating someone from Marketing—this week.
Prior to DFI, Bob was on the Web Framework Initiative.
Disposition
Bob can be abrasive and is sometimes (ok, most times) oblivious to his behavior.
Depending on the day, Bob can be a bull in a china shop, or passive aggressive.
However, although the two bullets above are true, Bob is a paradox. He is popular in general and can be the life of the party at social events. He is often found “entertaining” and “holding court” in the cafeteria.
He has the ability to sway public opinion and influence how others feel about things.
But, frankly, he stinks at follow through.
He does the minimum to get the work done. But, he usually comes through in the end, although his quality does not match your high standards.
Under stress he tends to deflect, steamroll, and create conflict. He can also get quite sarcastic.
Sometimes, his co-workers get annoyed by his cockiness, which they feel is unwarranted.
Work
Bob has been on DFI for three months; to you it feels like three years.
He has missed deadlines, produced more bugs than his peers, and has trouble being accountable. He blames the Testing Team for his bug problems.
Bob wants to get promoted into a managerial role. He has no awareness of his current skills versus what it would take to be a manager.
Bob has severely enjoyed the new PTO policy.
He complains to anyone who will listen.
Some days, he is like a common cold, or a mild flu, on the team. Other days he produces and gets the works done. You worry about your ability to replace him adequately.
He has definitely been promoted beyond his capability and his abilities and skills do not reflect his title and band level.