Tips to inspire field crew?

And before anyone says it, yes, money is inspiring. They are all make more that I did when I was (with a baby on the way no less) at their point in my career. Gosh I’m turning into an old man. I’m paid pretty well but we should all be making more. We live in a very HCOL area and and inflation is brutal.

Just my $0.02 but it sounds to me like you're in the wrong place. What solidified that thought for me was when you said "It doesn’t help that our boss is apathetic and I most likely care about the end result more than him."

You want better for these folks but you can't make them love the same things you love. You're fighting an uphill battle and you're going to lose.

Cut your losses, move on and concentrate on being the best you can be while providing for your family.

*cough cough* we're hiring 😉

Congratulations, you're one of the ones who cares! Here's your reward...

I refer to this as the "sandwich effect". Bosses/PMs/PLSs just want to get the work done and out the door, entry- and lower-level employees are disgruntled, apathetic and/or set in their ways.

Pressure from the top to get done faster, get UT up, make their numbers look good, but don't bother them with any questions or, god forbid, ask for training or mentorship.

Pressure from the bottom to resist any sort of improvement that requires more than the bare minimum of effort. Question everything they're asked to do and actively resent anything that they didn't think of themselves.

I'd be looking to jump ship.

> I’d be looking to jump ship.

Yeah, me too.

I would echo what the others have said so far. I would add that leading by example (which you are already doing) is a key example of good leadership. Good morale comes from a lot of different paths and it is acquired by everyone differently. The leadership above you is not helping the situation and good luck trying to change that. Best you can do is offer them some ideas on what you are thinking about and maybe spark their interest enough to help. Apathy is very hard to break through; especially from "below" the ranks. One small thing is ask you managers for some funds to buy the crew lunch or dinner maybe once a month after a tough day. It's small money but it does go a long way.

In my career as a surveyor I have worked in 15 different offices. I've seen a lot of management styles, some good, most various degrees of bad.

The managers who I consider good had crystal clear visions of what they wanted and how they wanted it done. They weren't always the easiest to get along with and I - in my youth - didn't always agree with their vision. But looking back those were the happiest times of my career, the times I learned the most about what works, and the times I developed the ideas about surveying that I use today.

The worst bosses were those that never could quite express what they wanted. So it always seemed very arbitrary. You felt like you were shooting at a moving target. I didn't learn a lot about surveying from these people, but I did learn some coping skills - which is also important.

Sometimes things don't meet our expectations but we are already doing the best we can. Your crew is what it is. Offer to pay me twice as much if I can climb a rope. It won't motivate me, because I have never been able to climb a rope and there is no reason to believe I will suddenly be able to.

If the bosses see no problem, then it is time for you to find an employer that actually cares about the end product.

I am dying to meet an old guy who loves surveying to show me the ropes.

Find that guy, you'll be much, much happier and he will appreciate the fire in your belly.

Like it or not, it's time to move on.

Appreciate it, all. I am at a bit of a crossroads in my career. I am studying for my PS (again zero help from my LS). I have worked my entire 7 yeah career at this firm which is a pretty successful small civil/survey firm. They took a chance on me as a green guy who didn’t even know what surveying was and had zero relevant education.

I understand that in this day and age it is foolish to have loyalty to a company but I have really established myself as a critical part of the survey office and quite frankly they would be in a tough spot without me. When I got my LSIT I negotiated a very, very large raise. So I get paid well, full medical, dental and vision and enjoy the guys I work with

I plan on becoming licensed but my boss is incapable of teaching, it’s odd. Almost a disability of sorts. He also never goes to the field which is definitely not the type of surveyor I want to be. I don’t mean to trash him he is a good guy. But of course training the new guys falls on me. Coming up with SOP falls on me. I Love going to work in the morning and enjoy the jobs we do. So all of this is hard to leave behind. Maybe I keep reading browns et al cover to cover and pass that test.

My concern is leaving to a less enjoyable work environment and potentially take a pay cut just for some supposed mentoring.

What Squirl said!

Attitudes like you describe for your LS I think have a lot to do with the lack of people moving up in the profession, if you're not getting the employees interested in progressing, why should they stick around.

In my current employ, like everywhere else it seems, we are having trouble finding people that are more than drafters and at least on their way to licensure, so it has been discussed to set aside some time, maybe once or twice a month to train up the 20 somethings in the office that are really interested in the profession and for the past few years have been pretty much draftsman and learning as they go. The owner has myself, who he knows will only be around for maybe a few more years and one other person that is studying for licensure.

Hope everything works out for the good of yourself and your family.

If you don't mind the heat of Phoenix in the Summer, we're always keeping an eye out for qualified people.

If anyone is in The north bay feel free to reach out.

I didn’t learn a lot about surveying from these people, but I did learn some coping skills – which is also important.

LOL, that is called making lemonade out of lemons.

My first boss told me: if I could take the best from every party chief I worked with, I could be be the best party chief ever!

I took it one step further and took the worst from the party chiefs I worked with and DIDN'T do that, I could be even better!

Make good choices and don't worry about what your bosses and co-workers are doing; stay in your lane and you'll go a lot further...

Yes exactly. I was fortunate enough to fall. back asswards into a profession I love and am bummed others don’t feel the same way. I will say when I ask my boss the right question I see a glean in his eye and hopefully he remembers his long extinguished fire. 10 hours a day behind a computer and 1000‘s of emails a day ain’t good for ya. We are animals after all.

In reading your post, questions come to mind. Are you speaking of individuals only in your crew or are you concerned with multiple crews? The answer to that question can make a difference.

It seems that you have one guy who is a grunt but is short. Then you speak of the woodworker who sounds terrain challenged, followed by the guy who is boisterous, doesn't interact well with clients, and doesn't care for the clients who put food on his table. All of these things can be frustrating as a Crew Chief but, in the end, you are the person responsible for the performance of the crew collectively and the data that is collected.

Each person that you mention has strengths and weaknesses, for that matter, we all do. To be an effective leader, you have to find a way to capitalize on their strengths and help them improve in their weak areas.

You mention that you are not in a management position and lack authority. To a certain extent, that is true, in other ways, maybe not so much. Your job is to supervise those working underneath you and assure that you are providing quality data. Fine tuning your crew(s), to the maximum extent possible, falls under your responsibilities.

If you are trying to work with these people to help them improve their performance and are not seeing any positive results, then, it's time to go to your superiors and let them deal with the issues, how they see fit. What you say to those working under you, and how you say it, can make all the difference in the world, especially is others are there to hear it. Dale Carnagie wrote a book entitled "How to win friends and influence people". It is available in paperback for $20 or less on Amazon. I would suggest that you read the book as it will surely make you more effective in communicating with some people and motivating them.

If all else fails, there is always an opportunity for you to seek a better situation but you will always find yourself working with people of varying strengths, weaknesses and physical abilities.

Thank you , Chris. They do have their strengths and weaknesses (as do I) and I feel I do a good job at getting good work out of them. We have a great rapport. I would easily have a drink or two with them. In my experience it takes a certain type of weirdo to be a surveyor (no offense) and it is a rare blend of characteristics. Having and handful but not all of these characteristics is still valuable.

Staying in a spot where you are stagnating your career is not worthwhile unless you are just working a job.

If, however, your goal is not to just cash the next paycheck, but to build a career, then move to the next challenge.

When I finally moved on, it definitely helped that I had stayed in one place for 20 years, and had progressive (but slow) growth throughout, and it was easy and very low risk. I also had a low monetary reward. (My experience was top notch and the company was great, other than $$$.)

What I missed was the chance to see how other professionals worked, how other organizations approached challenges, and the results of other cultures. Also, with lateral moves, I could have significantly compressed the income growth curve.

That said, if you are near your 8 years in and want to have a single source reference for your experience and want a place where you are the big fish and place to comfortably study while you get your PLS, I get it. But, as soon as you apply for the PLS test, I would recommend sending out your resume.

When you get your PLS, I advise you to start looking and set a deadline for yourself to find a position elsewhere. Your existing company will have difficulty moving you from a position where you are a rockstar and a top producer to a position where you might be the lowest producer.

Hiring you for new position, that company will see only your upside potential, and they will stretch you. The old company will have to look at both your upside in the new position, and the downside of losing you from your old position.

This is why it can be difficult for high performers to move forward in a career like ours. Lateral moves to different companies can break that friction.

My liability for anyone following this advice is limited to what you paid for it.

Like you, I have worked in management positions in a hand full of different companies and have experienced the good, bad and ugly. Those experiences were instrumental in having me experience what works and what doesn't work. I think that those experiences make us more rounded and better equipped to figure out how to approach any given situation.