What do you do if your temporary and contract system administration colleagues are unresponsive?

1 Assess Urgency

When you notice that your temporary or contract system administration colleagues are unresponsive, the first step is to assess the urgency of the situation. Determine the impact of their absence on ongoing projects and system stability. If they are responsible for critical operations, their non-responsiveness could pose a significant risk to your organization's IT infrastructure. In less critical scenarios, you might have a bit more leeway to resolve the issue. Either way, understanding the severity will guide your response and help you prioritize actions to mitigate any potential damage.

2 Communication Attempts

Make multiple attempts to reach out to your unresponsive colleagues through various communication channels. Send emails, make phone calls, and use instant messaging platforms if available. It's important to document each attempt, noting the time and method used. This documentation can be useful for follow-up actions and serves as evidence of your effort to resolve the situation. If there's an emergency contact listed, use it as a last resort. Remember, there could be legitimate reasons for their absence, so keep your communication professional and courteous.

3 Escalate Concerns

If your attempts at communication fail, it's time to escalate the issue. Inform your direct supervisor or the human resources department about the situation. Provide them with the documentation of your attempts to make contact. Escalating the concern helps ensure that the issue is taken seriously and that appropriate measures are taken from a managerial level. This step also helps protect you from any potential fallout by demonstrating proactive management of the situation.

4 Contingency Planning

While waiting for a resolution, start developing a contingency plan. Identify which tasks are at risk due to the non-responsiveness and determine how to reallocate these responsibilities among available team members or yourself. If necessary, consider bringing in additional temporary staff to cover critical gaps. Your goal is to minimize disruption to your systems and maintain business continuity. Remember, a good contingency plan should be flexible and scalable, depending on how the situation evolves.

5 Policy Review

Use this experience as an opportunity to review and possibly update your organization's policies regarding temporary and contract workers. Ensure that there are clear guidelines on communication expectations, escalation procedures, and consequences for non-responsiveness. Having robust policies in place can prevent similar situations in the future and provide a clear course of action when issues arise. This proactive approach demonstrates good governance and can improve the overall management of temporary and contract staff.

6 Knowledge Transfer

Finally, consider implementing strategies for better knowledge transfer between permanent staff and temporary or contract workers. This might involve creating detailed documentation, cross-training team members, or using collaborative tools that allow for easy sharing of information. By ensuring that critical knowledge is not siloed with individuals, you reduce the risk associated with unresponsive personnel. This also fosters a more resilient IT environment where the absence of one or a few individuals doesn't cripple your operations.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?