Office Lunch

[Christine]

It's great to hear everyone's thoughts!! It's a pretty small office...three sales people and three assistants. We are short two sales people so normally five sales people and three assistants.

It was not a sales meeting where information was exchanged. They do have those and it is just for the sales people. It was a "Hey, we've had a pretty good week, I'm taking you out to lunch."

I agree with the opinion that it is a special skill set and personality to be in sales and be successful. And not everyone is cut out for it. I've been on the fence about how I feel. In the long run, it doesn't matter it was just lunch. But on the flip side because it was a reward for a good week, it does kind of sting more. Since we do all work closely, they wouldn't have had such a good week if not for the "help" that was given.

I see what you're saying but there is obviously a hierarchy where you work and, in those cases, it often goes that way.

Honestly, I think the sales people should now pay it forward and take the sales assistants out to lunch.

 

[morgan98]

It's great to hear everyone's thoughts!! It's a pretty small office...three sales people and three assistants. We are short two sales people so normally five sales people and three assistants.

It was not a sales meeting where information was exchanged. They do have those and it is just for the sales people. It was a "Hey, we've had a pretty good week, I'm taking you out to lunch."

I agree with the opinion that it is a special skill set and personality to be in sales and be successful. And not everyone is cut out for it. I've been on the fence about how I feel. In the long run, it doesn't matter it was just lunch. But on the flip side because it was a reward for a good week, it does kind of sting more. Since we do all work closely, they wouldn't have had such a good week if not for the "help" that was given.

With all due respect, how do you really know what was discussed? It is 100% a bosses right to ask their direct reports to lunch and discuss whatever they want. Maybe having a good week was the reason for the lunch. Maybe that was only part of the reason for the lunch and other things were discussed.

I take people to lunch and am taken to lunch to discuss confidential things all the time. I do not tell others the purpose of my lunch. I use general terms like to catch-up, etc.

I am sorry you felt slighted, but I still think worrying that you should have been included is not the best thing to be worrying about.

 

[sk!mom]

I agree that there is nothing wrong with different groups of people going out to lunch together.

However, I currently work in an environment that has become very cliquish and overall morale is lower than I have ever experienced and we are having a lot of turnover because of it. So basically, I get how you are feeling.

Something can be technically, “OK” but still hurt your feelings or lower morale.

 

[Allison]

I would not give it a second thought and I hate when people take this personally. Different things go on with different jobs. Different meetings happen all the time. Sometimes you are part of them, sometimes you aren't.

 

[PlainJane]

The only reason I would be annoyed is if you are currently performing job functions outside of your job description because they need to hire 2 new salespeople. For example, if you are now required to sell.

If that’s not the case, I would see literally zero reason to be annoyed if the treat was specifically for hitting/exceeding sales numbers, that’s directly tied to the salesperson’s performance. The salespeople could even be more stressed out right now if they are expected to perform as well as a 5 person team.

 

[morgan98]

The only reason I would be annoyed is if you are currently performing job functions outside of your job description because they need to hire 2 new salespeople. For example, if you are now required to sell.

If that’s not the case, I would see literally zero reason to be annoyed if the treat was specifically for hitting/exceeding sales numbers, that’s directly tied to the salesperson’s performance. The salespeople could even be more stressed out right now if they are expected to perform as well as a 5 person team.

These are good points.

However, believe me, not all lunches out are treats. I just caution the OP that sometimes business/hard discussions are had over lunch that are not everyone's business. There is no way for sure to know what the purpose of a business lunch is.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Now if some of the sales assistants feel like they are actually doing the job of

I couldn't simply "like" this. It bears repeating!

The only time I could see someone legit being upset with this if all the people in their position got invited and they didn't (for example all of the sales people except one got to go) or something like that.

Um, okay, that happened to me once. I worked in order processing for a food wholesaler. I was in my early 20s, mostly working with people old enough to be my parents (i.e. I had graduated with one coworker's daughter). Technically we were all sales, but only a couple of people actual went out to see customers.

Anyway, one day a couple of women came to work dressed better than normal. Then one who typically came in and left earlier than most of us, didn't leave at the end of her shift. I left on time and was waiting in the yard for some co-workers from a different department, and the rest of my team rode by in just two cars.

 

[ronandannette]

Makes sense to me that the manager would meet with sales team but not their assistants. It would then be up to the sales team to relay the information to the assistants.

This is exactly what I was thinking. In our organization we have a top-down structure where everybody reports to whomever is directly above them.

Yikes, this wording makes me cringe - I know what you mean, but I happen to personally think that a salesperson is in no way an improvement over a sales assistant in any of the ways that count.

Unless of course you're "counting" position on the organizational chart and/or level of compensation.

I've been a sales assistant in the past. I never, ever had any ambitions to become a salesperson. It's a different skillset altogether (and often a different personality type, which I'm happy not to share.)

I don't think the original comment was meant to refer to anybody's relative merit as a human being. You seem to have taken it a bit too personally.

I couldn't simply "like" this. It bears repeating!

Um, okay, that happened to me once. I worked in order processing for a food wholesaler. I was in my early 20s, mostly working with people old enough to be my parents (i.e. I had graduated with one coworker's daughter). Technically we were all sales, but only a couple of people actual went out to see customers.

Anyway, one day a couple of women came to work dressed better than normal. Then one who typically came in and left earlier than most of us, didn't leave at the end of her shift. I left on time and was waiting in the yard for some co-workers from a different department, and the rest of my team rode by in just two cars.

Is there a "...the rest of the story..."? Not sure what you're saying happened here. Did the company organize something for all your co-workers and specifically exclude you or were all your co-workers doing something social of their own accord? I understand how either/both would have made you feel bad, but they are actually quite different scenarios.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Is there a "...the rest of the story..."? Not sure what you're saying happened here. Did the company organize something for all your co-workers and specifically exclude you

Sorry. My team and the owners went out for dinner. I don't recall if it was a client's invitation or something internal. One of them told me the next day she felt bad that I was excluded but had no say in who was invited. Honestly, I hadn't felt bad about it when I saw them - only when I learned about the snub.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Tacky, but that's how it is sometimes.

 

[Skippy918]

Do the sales assistants and sales people have the same manager or do you report to different people? I could see it being unfair if you all had the same boss and they took the sales people out frequently while leaving the assistants behind.

 

[MrsCobraBubbles]

Sometimes even bosses can lack social skills and basic human decency. Sorry they excluded you all.