Message #59932

[tiffanyctd]

Debbie,
I would seriously consider whether this is the work environment you want to be working in, with regard to the attitude of your boss. If you decide you can live with the attitude, you might want to suggest he get at least a part time receptionist and separate those duties from yours. I've been in the position of having to make those types of calls and still act as a receptionist. You end up not being able to do either effectively (eventually, they changed that position for me). Point out to your boss that if sounds very unprofessional to the customer to have a lot of noise going on in the background. If they do hire someone, you could use noise cancelling headphones to reduce distractions while you're working on bookkeeping, and perhaps you could use an empty office or conference room to make collection calls.

Unfortunately, you are probably not going to have as much luck with changing the physical environment. Most offices I know of are going to more open space rather than less. Fewer employees are getting walled offices. Even most of the higher ranking managers I know are in cubicles now. If you are just out in the open, perhaps you can talk your boss into getting some cubicle walls to give you at least a little bit of privacy. If they balk at the cost, you may be able to find some used ones at a government surplus or a thrift store. It's not very glamorous, but from personal experience, it works.

Good luck,
Tif