Imagine working in a position where it’s important for you to have access to the data center in order to do your job. What would you do if a manager made a new rule restricting your access?

In this story, one person is in that situation, and there’s no choice but to comply. However, complying is exactly what will prove how ridiculous this rule is.

Keep reading for all the details.

Data-Center manager forbids Systems Programming(Mainframe SysAdmins) from entering data-center without getting supervisor to sign them in first. Even during an outage!!

This is an old story that happened to me. It’s at an insurance company. Other than medical folks and IT their employees weer either clerks or management so they really liked rules(not always well thought out ones)

This was back in the dark ages of mainframe computers that were located in a central data-center, so remember no desktops, or smart(or even dumb) cell phones to make contact easier.

I had been a Systems programmer ( kind of like a mainframe SysAdmin) who had moved up from operations (physically run the datacenter) so was very comfortable there and got along great with the staff and supervisors.

But the manager (one more level up. Lets cal them Manager X ) was a straight management paper pusher and didn’t really understand the work flow of the room and for some reason didn’t like seeing me in his computer room. (My job did officially take me in there sometimes, and so we did have access).

OP tried to be proactive.

While there I’d do my official tasks and talk to the staff to try and identify any upcoming issues as they came up but before they became serious and impacted the production work flow. Between us we would improve their work flow and make life simpler for us all.

Now if there was a big issue that stopped the running of the production jobs or impacted the online terminals, Systems Programming would be contacted and someone (Usually me) would come down to resolve the problem so they could get things running again and the 20K clerks could get back to processing people’s medical insurance claims.

So obviously time was of the essence.

There was a new rule.

One day at an inter-departmental meeting with all department heads (and the head of IT) present, the data-center manager handed out a memo stating that from this point forward NO ONE (including Systems Programming, looking straight at me) could enter his data-center without being signed in by the shift supervisor. Each new entry required a new sign-in signature.

That was going to a bit inconvenient on a normal day, but oh well, it is his datacenter. So I’ll live with it.

Of course knowing that not all days are normal, I asked if there was going to be any exceptions for when there is an outage and we need to get in quickly and fix things so the rest of the company can get back to processing their medical insurance claims.

His response was that rule was in place at ALL times and there will be NO EXCEPTIONS and that includes YOU (again making a point of looking straight at me). A supervisor will will come out to the security desk and sign you in. No sign-in, no entrance !! (NOT a bright move since this will be the time the supervisor is running around like crazy and not want to deal with signing someone in)

OP knew this would happen eventually.

Everything is fine for a while. A little slower getting some projects done, but workable.

Then the not unexpected data-center outage happens. (You don’t know when, but you know it will happen at some point).

Cue Malicious Compliance

I go to the data-center’s security desk to get signed in. (They are the entire floor and you can’t get in without going thru a revolving metal turnstile).

Where’s the supervisor?

The security officer make the announcement that someone from Systems Programming needs to be signed in over the PA(Public Address system, remember no cell phones yet).

We wait a few minutes but no one shows up.

I ask hime to repeat the announcement in case the supervisor didn’t hear or got distracted. I also suggest that he put entries for each of attempts to reach the supervisor in his log book since I don’t want them being used as a convenient scape goat.

This is getting repetitive!

Wait a few more minutes and ask the security officer to try again. No response.

Wait a few more minutes and ask the security officer to try again. No response.

Wait a few more minutes and ask the security officer to try again. No response.

Wait a few more minutes and ask the security officer to try again. No response.

Finally!

After maybe 25-30 minutes the supervisor walks by (by chance) and sees me. He of course asks me where I’ve been, and why I didn’t just come in.

I remind him that Manager X had made a point of there being NO EXCEPTIONS and that I was only allowed in if signed in by a supervisor.

He thought a second and his shoulders slumped, oh yeah I remember Manager X saying that now. I’ll sign you in, and work on getting that changed.

The rule changed again.

Next interdepartmental meeting a new memo is given out giving Systems Programming access again without having to be signed in each time. To try and save face he also made some comments about using restraint as to frequency while doing his best not to look in my direction.

Glad I asked the security officer to log all their announcements in their log book since Manager X did try and claim that they probably didn’t make enough attempts.

When the security supervisor came to give them a “Talking to” they just showed them the logbook. Security supervisor made a photocopy and shut down Manager X

I have no idea how much money it cost the company to have al the customer service and data entry people sitting around for an extra half hour due to his rule

The manager definitely didn’t think that rule through very well. At least the supervisor was smart enough to get it changed immediately.

Let’s see how Reddit responded to this story.

Here’s a similar situation.

Here’s a story about the plane that went down in the Hudson.

This is probably what happened.

Another person can relate to this story.

Too many managers make rules that backfire.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a woman who tracked down a contractor who tried to vanish without a trace.