A Friend Who Lost the Boss Gacha

I'm changing jobs.

My friend Yamamoto said it as casually as if he were ordering an extra side dish. As if to cut off his words, a female server with a piercing voice placed a second highball in front of him.

Until ten years ago, the phrase 'changing jobs' was treated as a synonym for 'running away.' Even saying it out loud carried an atmosphere bordering on taboo.

But today, changing jobs is a 'choice' and a 'strategy.' The weight of the words may have lessened, but that also means there is more freedom.

The reason for his job change was a failure in the boss gacha.

The 'boss gacha' is a term that compares the situation of whether the boss you get in your assigned department is good or bad to the luck involved in capsule toy gacha machines. It means Yamamoto pulled a dud in the gacha.

He works at a printing company in Tokyo. There are about 200 employees, and the average age is quite high at 45. It was acquired as a subsidiary three years ago. From what I hear, he doesn't feel stressed by the work itself, and since the labor environment is well-maintained in connection with the parent company, he was able to go home on time relatively often.

The problem was his direct supervisor.

Even though he was his direct supervisor, he was 52 years old, nearly 20 years older than Yamamoto. No matter what he was asked to do, his work was slow, and he only gave abstract instructions like 'I'll leave the rest to you,' 'How is that going?', or 'What do you want to do?'

To top it off, even though he caused trouble for a client due to delays in internal approvals, he would push the responsibility onto others, saying, 'I checked it beforehand, didn't you submit it late?'

Wanting to get away from his boss as soon as possible, he reported it to the department manager, but was told, 'Can't you just be patient and work a little harder?' Yamamoto, angered by this, decided to change jobs.

I have also had the experience of getting a dud for a direct supervisor.

In my case, I was dealing with a boss who was just incredibly anxious. Moreover, he only became anxious when he was involved.

For example, a product scheduled for delivery was delayed in production, and the client urged us to move up the schedule even a little. When I reported this to my boss,

'Summarize the circumstances of why this happened and report it to me!'

he made me write a report on the circumstances. However, I had reported to my boss in advance that there was a possibility of a delay. At that time, my boss was indifferent, saying, 'Well, if it's delayed, we can just deal with it then.'

It wasn't even worth summarizing the circumstances, and since I had already prepared the persuasive materials in advance, I explained the situation to the client and they understood. Even so, my boss demanded a report, saying he wanted to know the circumstances to report to the department manager.

Only bosses like this are sloppy with evaluations. Because they think they are managing, they don't understand what kind of work I am doing. It makes me sad to think that my salary increase depends on the evaluation of such a person.

Yamamoto must have been feeling the same way.

There is one thing I have learned after changing jobs twice. Unfortunately, there are dud bosses in every company. However, there are also duds based on compatibility that are separate from work performance.

In other words, it is possible that you just happen to be incompatible with a boss who is otherwise respected by those around them for being highly capable and hardworking, making communication difficult.

Therefore, even if you change jobs just because you don't get along with your immediate supervisor, you might run into a similar wall again.

In such cases, the strategy I take is to target the person one level above my immediate supervisor.

For example, if your immediate supervisor is a section manager, you should make sure to report your work properly while also maintaining frequent communication with the department manager.

Of course, bypassing your immediate supervisor for reports is strictly forbidden. Take the steps carefully without rushing, and focus solely on building communication.

In my case, I ask the department manager to accompany me on sales calls to key clients, using those opportunities outside the office to communicate. As I began to share not just work-related topics but gradually my values and way of thinking as well, I started to gain recognition from people other than my immediate supervisor.

By solidifying your position from those around you in this way, your level of trust increases significantly. By showing the department manager directly who I am—rather than just being seen through the perspective of my section manager (my immediate supervisor)—my evaluation changes as well.

What Yamamoto lacked was that he only communicated with his immediate supervisor. Therefore, from the department manager's perspective, the assessment remained, 'Well, Yamamoto is still young, I suppose.'

The most important thing in navigating internal company politics is to make allies.

Work results are certainly important, but your evaluation changes significantly depending on who you team up with and who is watching you. Especially when your relationship with your immediate supervisor isn't going well, increasing the number of 'allies' within the company who have a different perspective can greatly influence how easy it is to work.

Changing jobs is one effective way to change your environment. However, before deciding to switch jobs, simply tweaking 'how you present yourself' can sometimes change the situation.
I hope that those who, like Yamamoto, are struggling because they haven't been blessed with a good boss, will remember the 'strategy of targeting one level up' and the 'perspective of making allies within the company.'