lay off, man

This is the 7th week that I have spent with Grameen. The last time I mentioned a progress update, I still needed to document on Fonkoze's Social performance reports and create a discussion deck on Grameen's travel spend. I'm happy to report that both of these items were completed, as were :

• the hiring of a programmer for the SPM project (thanks to networking with Gen)
• all reporting requirements for the SPM project
• the writing of test scenarios and test scripts for the SPM project
• presentations to the Director of Operations and then to the Chief Operating Officer on the Safe Harbor Travel Project
• test script execution for the first alpha release of the application

I'm patting myself on the back, because at many organizations, what I just completed would have been 4 separate people's jobs. And all of this has been completed in a worldwide environment of watching individuals get affected by layoffs.

Layoffs have had 2 effects. The first is that I have an intense reminder that CA is an at-will employment state, so I too could be on the government dole. The second effect, which is a consequence that saddens me, is that layoffs in corporations where this has not occurred in the past, breaks the employment contract. Loyal employees who have believed that doing their best, their company would do their best by them ... well... it'll be harder for those employees to maintain that trust when that contract is broken. As with my diatribe on the world's financial market trust issues, layoffs also develop questions with whether one's employer will hold true to the values for which they previously stood.

Because all of this is a major downer, I decided to lay off of the seriousnes and head to the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden to hear the Friday lecture series. I figure that seeing some strange bodies like the big man above and spending some time in the gardens since it's a beautiful day, will bring a smile to my face. And Alaynè smiling is good for everyone.

:)