Management is cutting my job after I automated 15 hours of weekly work, do I have to document it for them?

[u/Claptrap_5Z]

When I took this coordinator job, our team was losing fifteen to twenty hours every week just updating client logs and manually formatting spreadsheets.

I built a few simple macros and formula templates that cut all that data entry down to an hour. I thought saving twenty hours a week would free me up for higher-level projects.

instead, my manager called me into a meeting last Friday. She told me that because our administrative workload dropped, they are merging my role with a part-time position and letting me go. To get my severance check, they want me to write step-by-step documentation for every macro I set up.

I literally worked myself out of a salary. I should of just kept doing the data entry by hand like the last person.

Do I ACTUALLY have to document processes I created that were not in my original job description?

[u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

Plus the OP needs to password-protect the macros so no errors can be introduced accidentally.

Might be a good idea to password protect all the documents until the check clears.

[u/ItWearsHimOut → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

Better yet, sign them with an in-house cert that expires in a year. Modifying the macros invalidates the cert. That'll add an extra tech hurdle that will drive a non-techie insane.

[u/kzin → u/ItWearsHimOut]

I love this because it’s also a reasonable security measure

[u/Wonderful_Special681 → u/ItWearsHimOut]

This is the way. The macro can be edited with a hex editor.

[u/Ontoshocktrooper → u/Wonderful_Special681]

This has been the most pleasing of threads to follow. Yall are cruelly effective.

[u/Key_Butterscotch5326 → u/Ontoshocktrooper]

I thought I was in r/maliciouscompliance for a sec! Had to check the sub name again 😜

[u/Commercial-Place6793 → u/Ontoshocktrooper]

I don’t know what any of this means but I’m here for it. Sounds diabolical.

[u/Warm_Sandwich5038 → u/ItWearsHimOut]

As a person who has been in OPs predicament I fully wish I had thought of this!!!!

[u/Lahorn0124 → u/Warm_Sandwich5038]

Me, too!!

[u/mrkingkoala → u/ItWearsHimOut]

Love this.

[u/HeyYouGuyyyyyyys → u/ItWearsHimOut]

Satan says hi

[u/shoeless_doh → u/ItWearsHimOut]

(I'm kind of following what you're saying but am hazy on the definition of certification, is this something in the software that will make it actually not work physically at the end of that year or would this rely on someone internal noticing the cert is expired and just telling them they "can't use it" any more prompting an "ok, bud. 👍" From the person being told?

[u/abalt0ing → u/ItWearsHimOut]

As a PKI person I approve this message.

[u/abalt0ing → u/abalt0ing]

If I may pile on sign it with a code signing cert, but don’t use a time server!

[u/ManaSpike → u/ItWearsHimOut]

No, no. Standard practice these days it for all certs to expire in 45 days or less.

[u/Neat-Dig5964 → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

Why? Let them introduce errors. The only real problem with this is—and it has happened to me TWICE in my career—the person tasked to do the work likely won’t understand, and they will blame OP for sabotage. I was replaced once with a totally incompetent, inexperienced person. They thought my job was SO easy, anyone could do it. The second time, I was a temp that made things better with spreadsheets, etc. Instead of hiring me on full-time, they hired an outsider. They contacted my rep and said I sabotaged their files. My rep called and wanted me to straighten it out, but there wasn’t anything I could do because I did nothing wrong.

[u/X-Kami_Dono-X → u/Neat-Dig5964]

LOL. I wrote like 3-4 procedure manuals for one of my old jobs and after they gave me my first write up and called it a third and final and told me that I could not save my job, they were waiting out the 90 day clock with HR to fire me (dumb move really), I just showed up and looked for other jobs. When I finally found one I put my notice in, my boss was pissed because they wanted to fire me. I spent three hours in my exit interview going over my documentation I had been keeping regarding my supervisor’s activities over the last 6 years. I told them when I left it wasn’t “if” he got aggressive with a co-worker, it was a matter of “when” as he was a lying sack of crap. Anyhow, 6 months later I get a call from them telling me he was no longer with the company and was asking me how to do most of his job. I had already written the process and procedure guides but they threw them away because I was “complaining when leaving” and so they did not retain them. I told them my consultant fee for that was $10,000 and they laughed and told me it was a good joke, I told them I was not joking. It was that or give me his job and pretend I had never been fired and give me my 10 years seniority with the company and his salaried position. Needless to say, they never called me again.

[u/_Status_Quo_ → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

You could add a line to your macro which will wait 30 days from now, save the spreadsheet with a .xlsx file extension in the same file path, then add the kill command to delete the .xlsm version with all the macros in it. Your spreadsheet will automatically delete itself in a month and they will never be able to figure out what happened because all the data will still be intact in the .xlsx version, minus the automation.

[u/Historic1006 → u/_Status_Quo_]

I love this.... I would keep the waiting period at 15 days, not 30. Love this idea!

[u/4mystuff → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

Update the code to use static values instead of variables. For example use 2026 for the year rather than something that reference the current date's year. The software will work when you leave, but will bomb out by years end. Do that shit everywhere.

They'll likely have backups, so could be a temp issue if they realize it, still.

[u/shoeless_doh → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

Oh gosh, that sounds dangerous, what if he forgets the passwords to the macros!

[u/nononsensenotdense → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

The password is only required to be entered every couple of weeks... to keep some security while still allowing for business fluidity

[u/unicornhunter202 → u/Plastic_Wrap_1353]

This is genius