An unusual appraisal story of a software engineer is going viral on Reddit after he shared how his performance review took an unexpected turn.
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“I had my appraisal meeting last week, and my manager told me to look for a job outside. Told me that 'there are no projects in our company and we think it will be a waste of your potential…',” the employee described the meeting.
The manager cited lack of projects as the reason behind his decision and suggested he serve a notice period while looking for jobs.
Appraisal meeting turned into firing and then turned into promotion
by u/harrisdunkin in developersIndia
However, things turned around quickly when the employee told the manager that he had some ideas to integrate artificial intelligence into the company's website and improve scaling.
“'I know I am fired at that moment, but something interesting happened,' I replied to him saying, 'I had ideas like integrating AI in our website, and you know, scale our business using AI and also other ways…',” the employee's post read.
The post further read that after this discussion, the manager paused the meeting and called the employee again. “...said 'we were going to see how you are performing in those 2 months, and we will give you a promotion and competitive salary if you can implement your ideas',” the employee noted.
According to the employee, the reason he suggested his ideas despite being fired is that he knew how tough the job market is currently.
“I searched for a job outside for 3 months and, with hard luck, didn't find a single offer. So in order to survive, I told him about my ideas, and he was impressed. Regardless, I am going to look for a job outside, but I can also work in the line I want, like integrating AI. So going to be exciting for the next 2 months for me, but have you guys faced any situation like this? What will the company usually do? Any advice would be great…,” he sought advice from fellow Redditors.
Reacting to the post, many people suggested the employee continue looking for jobs as the manager would eventually replace him.
“So he wants you to implement an entire AI strategy from scratch during your notice period and if he "likes" it you will get to stay. Please tell me you are not that naive….,” a user said, suggesting that the company would fire the employee once his ideas have been implemented.
Another user said that even if the company tried retaining the employee later, they must switch to a different job.
“If you get a new job with a decent offer, do not stay here no matter what they offer you..,” the comment read.
Echoing similar sentiments, other users also said that the employee would be fired anyway. Meanwhile, others suggested he work on his skills and focus on building personal brands as the market is genuinely tough right now.
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Responding to these comments, the employee said that he is not naive and will continue looking for other roles. However, he feels that his company and the manager are looking for people who can share scalable ideas on AI integration and he remains keen on exploring this opportunity to build his own skills, despite the concerns around his job security.
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