Ladies. I feel only here that I can talk openly and I am blessed to have you all here for me to open up on this. First off, I'm not doing this as a boast, but as a marking of a benchmark for myself, because there is no other place that I can do this without controversy.

I have had a hell of a last few months with my new assistant. People have been whispering in my ear that he is after my job and I'm not the least bit intimidated because he is all talk and no knowlege or experience. I hired him and I know. I hired him because I have been trying to hire someone for almost a year and the German head office has interveened so many times, but this guy they like. So desperate, I relented just so I could get someone to get this mountain of work done. I have another assistant, Susie who does excellent work, but I did need another.

I've had to reprimand this guy a few times for overstepping his boundaries and it's been reported to HR, but this week, 2 weeks before his probation was due, he made a major fauxpaux and really set me off. I was so angry, I went into my boss' office and asked for his guidance and for him to be present when I reprimanded him this time because the offence was so big and I just didn't want his lies to go without a witness.

I run a purchasing and strategic planning department and handle millions of dollars in contracts. I've been with this company since start up and it is very technical and I've been educated in technical aspects, plus I've gone to school to get my purchasing certification. Prior to this company, I've owned a few of my own companies and have an extensive resume. I lead by example and earn respect in a very male dominated industry.

This guy had decided that he would call in one of our suppliers and for whatever the reason in his warped head, he completely dressed her down. Told this salesperson, who we have many high value contracts with, that their company are run by "idiots" and that they were charging too much and that they could eat this charge and that charge and that we could get someone else, etc. He bullied this other strong intelligent woman, who, I have worked with for many years, and she sat there in total shock, and called me after the meeting and said that if this is how the company was going to treat them, then all favours were off, the contracts would have to be renegotiated so they could recapture unspeculated costs and they were going to reconsider doing business with us again. !!!!!!! WTF.

So, I had to take 24 hours to calm down and I called this guy in to ask him what his intent of the meeting was and he said that he wanted to save us money. That is when he got the lecture of his life. Everytime he tried to interrupt me I told him I wasn't finished and continued. I told him that under NO circumstances was he ever to dress down a vendor, even if THEY were the biggest idiot in the world and he had no business calling this company in to do this, etc. I went on and on. The boy was educated, but really, I don't think he was listening. I think he was tryng to think of his next rebuttle. My boss just listened, even as this jerkwad said, "I told you that they were charging too much". (and I showed him the matrix of how little their profit was and said every company has a right to profit) What an ass. I've already proved time and time again that this was the best price out there to my boss!

Anyways, my boss finally spoke and reinforced everything that I said, and more. The reason why I brought this story up for you is that I think I know why this guy did what he did. You see, it frustrates the hell out of him that is boss is a woman and that I know so much and can outperform him in intelligence in this industry. Both in purchasing and in technology. That is why he refuses to ask me for permissions or advise like he is supposed to. It bugs him so much that he attacked the only woman vendor we had. He didn't go after any of the male vendors, and lord knows, we have a lot of them. He went after the woman.

What he doesn't know is that that woman is just as strong and smart as I am and he messed with the wrong woman. So now, he is tasked to work with this woman, and I am to be cc'd on all the correspondence. Not only that, but this has put him on probabtion for another 3 months because he has shown a total lack of professionalism and if this guy thinks that I won't fire him.......guess again.

I'm not looking forward to the next two weeks when I have to take this guy into the meeting where I have to tell him he is on probation, but my boss has already said that he supports me and agrees under the light of this incident and other glaring errors, so that is half the battle. But after I tell him, you bet your ass he's going to form a boy's club to get sympathy and gang up on Angela. I've seen it before and I would much rather do my intelligent work that deal with this high school shit and have to gather backroom facts to take to HR to fire him sooner. What a big waste of time.

I just wish that I was free to pick whom I want to pick without the intervention of the head office boys club in Germany who think they know it all and are always trying to marginalize me. If I was a man, it would be so much different. More pay, more support, less struggle.

Glad I'll be retiring sooner than later. Love the work, hate the drama.