Will There Be Cake?
It’s a question that occasionally gets asked around here when someone is retiring. “Will there be cake?” Such a simple question, so much information tied up in an even simpler answer of yes or no. Obviously, when I leave a job, I always want the answer to “will there be cake” to be yes.
That was brought home to me even more in this last week as a VP of our company, a man who I have been privileged to work with, retired after 30 years. (He’s not really retiring. He’s going to go be a consultant for Milliman.)
He has been a great advocate for encouraging staff under him to grow, to take on new responsibilities. He believed in promoting from within and giving people a chance to shine. He was one of my supporters as I looked to move from an admin role to a management role. I was looking at old organizational charts the other week and noticed that in the last 15 years, another woman has gone from being a supervisor to an executive director, all of it pretty much while reporting indirectly or directly to this man.
He created a culture in his division where staff were free to express their ideas, to come forward with improvements and also critiques of the way things were going. His goal has always been to retain the talent he sees and to help it grow and flourish.
It wasn’t just about the re-orgs he oversaw, or the initiatives he lead, or his amazing knowledge of our industry and the work his staff did. He will be missed because of who he was as a person and as a leader. I don’t know if he really understands the impact he had on so many of the rank and file staff.
Last week there was cake- well, three cakes and two dozen cupcakes, and that was just in the offices on this side of the state. There was another party a two hour flight the next day. Last night there were after work drinks. Today, there was a flash mob of over 100 staff cheering him as he walked out of the building after his last morning at work.
He almost lost it when he got to the corner of the hallway and saw everyone standing there.
I don’t know that I will ever manage 30 years at a single company. I’ve been at this one for 7.5 years, and that’s a record for me. I’ve never stayed in a single position for more than 5 years (and I started looking after 3). I doubt I’ll ever get a flash mob cheering me on my way. And that’s okay. But I hope that anytime I leave a position, if someone asks “Will there be cake?” that the answer is yes.
That is so awesome. I have left two jobs and there was no cake at either. I was also only there a year each time. I do get cake on my birthday at work though 🙂
After only a year, I can understand no cake on leaving, especially if you're not a big wig. But cake on your birthday is always good.
Wow, that is a man not just well respected, but loved. That's amazing.
I have never had a real going away from most of my jobs. One manager took me out to lunch for a farewell exit interview; that was nice.
I expect that when I leave my current company my staff will do something for me (I have a great team), but my superiors will not care. Such is life sometimes.
He made sure to connect to the staff that reported to him on a regular basis. It makes a hug difference when you can call your VP by first name, and he likely knows your name, too
I've had a couple of last day lunches. I've been at my current position for six years which is a record for me. My prior best had been 4.5 years. Hopefully my career winds up giving a bigger legacy than a cake, but hey, the cake will be a must one way or another, even if I have to provide it 🙂
Last time I left a job, my Executive Director and one of the managers bought pizza for the whole department on my last day. It was a nice "send off", as I was leaving the department, but staying with the company.
I definitely want my legacy to be bigger than cake, but it is a nice way of knowing you meant something to the people you worked with.
So I'm driving all over creation…come back and WOW! Cool look to the site. Crisp.
We had cake on my last day with my company before we moved AND we went out to a local upscale bar and the whole team (drinkers and non-drinkers) all came. It was awesome. 16 years of money management was enough for me, though. Other mountains to climb….
That guy sounds like a cool man. I've been lucky to work with only two or three people that were like that at all. Unfortunately, most bosses don't seem to "get it."
Thank you. I'm still not positive I'm in love with the new theme. I can have featured images, but can't post more pictures in posts. Not a big fan of that.
Cake and the whole team showing up for drinks? I'd say that's a pretty good send off.