r/careerguidance 18h ago

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

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?

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u/ItWearsHimOut 7h ago

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 5h ago

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

u/Wonderful_Special681 6h ago

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

u/Ontoshocktrooper 4h ago

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

u/Key_Butterscotch5326 4h ago

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

u/Commercial-Place6793 1h ago

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

u/Warm_Sandwich5038 5h ago

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

u/Lahorn0124 1h ago

Me, too!!

u/mrkingkoala 4h ago

Love this.

u/HeyYouGuyyyyyyys 3h ago

Satan says hi

u/shoeless_doh 3h ago

(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 3h ago

As a PKI person I approve this message.

u/abalt0ing 3h ago

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

u/ManaSpike 1h ago

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