Some managers seem to believe that more rules automatically meant better results.

So when one store supervisor insisted a stock worker scan dozens of identical cans one by one instead of by the case, the employee obeyed so thoroughly that the entire backroom ground to a halt.

Keep reading for the full story!

Scan every item individually. Okay, boss.

I once worked at a big box retail store where management loved making up random rules to boost productivity.

His latest bright idea had to do with inventory.

One day, our floor supervisor decided we were no longer allowed to scan full cases of items; we had to scan each individual unit, even if there were 24 identical cans in the box.

His reasons? Inventory accuracy.

So when the employee raised concerns, he was immediately dismissed.

I pointed out that the system already accounted for cases properly and that this would slow down stocking.

He just said, “Don’t care, one at a time. That’s an order.”

We began doing it his way, and it went well because we didn’t really get a lot of the same items that day.

But then the cracks in the system began to show.

However, on my next shift, I got a pallet of canned corn. 96 cans in 4 large cases.

I cracked open every case, scanned each can one at a time, and placed them carefully on the shelf like I was arranging fine china.

This ended up taking up way more time.

It took me about 40 minutes to do what normally takes 10 minutes. I did this for every similar item the whole day.

By lunch, the backroom was a disaster.

The consequences rippled throughout the rest of the store.

The line of carts waiting to be stocked had tripled, and other departments were short staffed because people had to come help us.

By the end of the day, the supervisor was fuming. “Why is this taking so long?”

So the employee was quick to remind him exactly why.

I reminded him what he said. I’m just following your order exactly.

He tried to backpedal, but I asked if he wanted it in writing that I should ignore his previous instruction. He dropped it.

By the next day, the rule was gone. We were back to scanning cases.

The boss most definitely doesn’t know best.

What did Reddit think?

This commenter shares another decision made by a clueless boss.

Dumb rules usually only manage to hold up real productivity.

There definitely is a better way to manage inventory.

Turns out, when you scan problems one by one, they pile up fast.

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