Thread by @DellAnnaLuca

WHAT FINES CAN TEACH ABOUT MANAGEMENT

Three lessons from the story of how yesterday I got fined for a parking violation.

(Thread, 1/N)

2/ Yesterday, I received a fine because I parked my car where I wasn’t supposed to.

Even though I’m seldom angry, this time I was furious. First of all, the “cannot park here sign” was partially hidden by a tree.

Lesson #1: managers who aren’t clear have frustrated employees.

3/ The second reason I was furious is because I parked the car in a place that wasn’t bothering anyone.

Why did the police fine me but not the car 100m away double-parked, slowing traffic down?

4/ Lesson #2: managers who don’t prioritize in order of descending severity who they hold accountable and what for end up with frustrated employees who feel treated unfairly.

5/ The third reason I was furious is because I felt that I didn’t expect to be fined.

To be clear: if I had known about the no-parking sign I wouldn’t have parked there. Still, I felt unfair to be punished just because in my city, most violations go unpunished.

6/ Yes, in theory, the law is clear: if you park in a no-parking area, you get fined.

But in practice, the rule most people learn is: if you park in a no-parking area, the chances are that you won’t get fined.

Hence the feeling of unfairness when one is fined.

7/ Lesson #3: if your words are clear but your actions don’t follow up accordingly, then what you want is effectively unclear.

A recipe for dissatisfaction.

Hence the importance to both be clear with words and consistent with action.

8/ A lot can be learned just by understanding how people feel when they are in a confusing and incoherent environment.

One of the best things a manager can do for employee engagement is to be clear and consistent.

9/ Don’t aim for motivational speeches and theoretical incentives.

Instead, aim for clarity of words and consistency of action.