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SURPRISE EMPLOYEE

When I accepted an internal transfer to a new team, I assumed that my direct supervisor had been part of the interview committee, but I was sorely mistaken. The gentleman who interviewed me and extended a job offer to me wouldn’t be my boss. Instead, I was called into an impromptu meeting to meet my new manager (someone I had never met before). He was polite but visibly upset. I later found out he got as much notice as I did about that introductory meeting and had no idea that anyone had even been hired in the department. He was understandably upset at not having been included in the hiring process and informed beforehand. 
With that gaffe over, I assumed it would be smooth sailing from there. I was invited to the daily team meeting and sat in the corner to allow room for the others to sit. As the team trickled in one by one, each of them looked at me in surprise and said hello.  I introduced myself and thought nothing of the interactions. Once the meeting began, my boss introduced me as the new hire and the rest of the team was equally surprised. They thought I was from another department to provide an update on a company initiative, but were glad to have a new teammate. Apparently, my boss and hiring manager didn’t learn from their prior communication issues and forgot to tell my coworkers I’d be joining the team! 
As the meeting continued, a grumpy teammate called in a few minutes late from an international business trip and our manager introduced me. The introduction was received with silence on the other end of the line. So the manager tapped on the phone, repeated my name and asked if he could hear us. The grumpy man exclaimed: “Yeah, I heard you! Who is that?” The manager explained that I had joined the team, but it was strike three for managerial communication skills. Despite starting off on the wrong foot with an angry manager who felt excluded from the hiring process, shocked coworkers and a suspicious overseas teammate, I ended up having a great working relationship with each of them. I suppose being a surprise employee has its perks...I made a big first impression!