Professional Review

I work in subsidized housing. Once a year we are audited by a state agency. It is usually about as much fun as dental surgery with no novacaine.  Veeeeery small errors can and will be found.  Out of the hundreds of tenant files I deal with I guarantee they will find one where I forgot to date a form for instance.  It will be written up.  Usually there are about 4 errors found.  Which means we always score well.  But I stress about it.

After all, an auditor has to prove not just my competance but in a sense, prove the need for their auditing skills.  So like the teacher that never gives 100 on a test, an auditor must find a mistake. I get that.  The company I work for gets that.  The company I work for also provides an excellent support team that come out to our site when audits happen.  They help explain the company procedure in auditor speak. So things that are sometimes initially perceived as errors are found not to be errors after all.  I am sort of the "good little soldier."  I know what to do and do my darndest to do it well. But I don't necessarily know all the back story of why that is done that way.  So I treasure the support that my company offers.  And in a weird waya it makes the audits nearly pleasurable as although I am in phone contact with these people often, we rarely have as much time to chat and catch up as one does during audits.  There tend to be long hours while the auditors comb the files and you wait around for their questions.  These pauses are good for conversation!

But although the audit results were really good, this was a very bittersweet audit.  My company is being sold.  It is pretty definate that by next week, or the first of February at the latest, I will have new bosses.  This kind of hit all of us as we were together in my office today.  My regional manager was originally employed at my site. She trained me in my earliest duties back in 1978.  One of our other company higher ups is related to her and I have known her for many years as well. They trust my character and my honesty.  I trust them to have my back and not to offer me up in sacrifice on the altar of the corporate world.  And for more than 30 years we have kept that faith with each other.

Working for a new company will be exciting.  I am optimistic that there will be new challenges and interesting things to learn.  I am also somewhat apprehensive.  The handbook we were issued  for our new employers even dictates the length of our skirts.  And while I can buy new skirts, what I can't buy is trust.  I can prove myself, but in a good working relationship there is a level of reciprocity.  I'll know what that is by this time next year, when the audit comes due.