Let Me Tell You About My Paladin
policy vs. procedure
Time for a rant. Thats what the CPA is for right?
More people need to realize the difference between policy and procedure. Especially in the workplace.
Policy: the written law. This is how companies want you to operate. In my somewhat limited experience these rules are brought into being by people who make way more money than I do and have most likely never been to my store. Probably not even my state, much less town.
Policy looks good on paper, thats the whole point. Studies are done and millions of dollars are bandied about until the policy makers churn out enough type to justify their ridiculous pay. Then more money is spent putting the ideas into binders and silly instructional videos are made. Eventually it filters down to the store level where the upper mgmt is beat in the face with it and threatened to burn in the Hell of 19 fiery fires for eternity if they don't guarantee 100% compliance.
So whats the problem? people are paid to think for you, then you just have to be a good little robot monkey and do their bidding. Takes the stress out of it right?
The problem lies with people who actually want to be good at their job. The people who actually want to promote customer satisfaction and allow the store to make money. Invariably these rare folks will make a discovery: Policy does not work.
sure it looks good on paper, but if you ran your business that way it would burst into flames in 15 minutes. Luckily there is another P word that steps in to save the day.
All hail procedure. This is much like Policy in that it is in the best interest of your company. The difference is that millions of dollars do not create it. Think more of millions of buckets of sweat. A few dozen cups of tears and twice as much blood. Those are the currency that bring procedure into existence.
This is what works. And what works varies from one store to the next and it always will. Sure policy has its place. When something is brought into question or the going gets rough you can bring out the ol policy manual and rub it against your face. Use its hard won pages to blot the tears from your face.
Thankfully most of the businesses i've worked for secretly realize the existence and distinction between these two entities. Policy will be lauded and celebrated while procedure lurks in the shadows doing the real work with little thanks. This is fine because yet again it works.
The problem comes when the uppers start to get stubborn. When procedure starts to become less cautious fear is the result. NONE SHALL KNOW OF THIS BEAST NAMED PROCEDURE! Then idiocy ensues.
Leave me alone and let me do my job. Trust me, I'm better at it than that doofus with a company car who gets paid an order of magnitude more than me.
More people need to realize the difference between policy and procedure. Especially in the workplace.
Policy: the written law. This is how companies want you to operate. In my somewhat limited experience these rules are brought into being by people who make way more money than I do and have most likely never been to my store. Probably not even my state, much less town.
Policy looks good on paper, thats the whole point. Studies are done and millions of dollars are bandied about until the policy makers churn out enough type to justify their ridiculous pay. Then more money is spent putting the ideas into binders and silly instructional videos are made. Eventually it filters down to the store level where the upper mgmt is beat in the face with it and threatened to burn in the Hell of 19 fiery fires for eternity if they don't guarantee 100% compliance.
So whats the problem? people are paid to think for you, then you just have to be a good little robot monkey and do their bidding. Takes the stress out of it right?
The problem lies with people who actually want to be good at their job. The people who actually want to promote customer satisfaction and allow the store to make money. Invariably these rare folks will make a discovery: Policy does not work.
sure it looks good on paper, but if you ran your business that way it would burst into flames in 15 minutes. Luckily there is another P word that steps in to save the day.
All hail procedure. This is much like Policy in that it is in the best interest of your company. The difference is that millions of dollars do not create it. Think more of millions of buckets of sweat. A few dozen cups of tears and twice as much blood. Those are the currency that bring procedure into existence.
This is what works. And what works varies from one store to the next and it always will. Sure policy has its place. When something is brought into question or the going gets rough you can bring out the ol policy manual and rub it against your face. Use its hard won pages to blot the tears from your face.
Thankfully most of the businesses i've worked for secretly realize the existence and distinction between these two entities. Policy will be lauded and celebrated while procedure lurks in the shadows doing the real work with little thanks. This is fine because yet again it works.
The problem comes when the uppers start to get stubborn. When procedure starts to become less cautious fear is the result. NONE SHALL KNOW OF THIS BEAST NAMED PROCEDURE! Then idiocy ensues.
Leave me alone and let me do my job. Trust me, I'm better at it than that doofus with a company car who gets paid an order of magnitude more than me.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by S.L. Shirley on -
Amen.
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Permalink Reply by Golgotha Kinslayer on -
I've been wanting to comment on this since minutes after Mr. Montie first posted it, but couldn't think of anything to really say. Those four letters sum it up perfectly.
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Permalink Reply by S.L. Shirley on
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*bows*
Honestly, I had typed about a hundred words when I realized that Montie had already said it; thus... 4 letters.
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Permalink Reply by Lon Sarver on
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Policy is that which best supports the needs of the central office. Procedure is that which best supports the needs of the folks actually doing the work.
The gulf between the two is the source of much of the fucked-upness on any large organization.
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