Manager demands construction workers stop using shortcuts to keep an efficient workflow, leading to a backlog in orders when they follow her rules: ‘Hope you’ve got time to wait’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Oct 8, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

Do you sometimes use "shortcuts" to do your job faster and much more efficiently? 

It's okay, your boss can't hear you, you can say the truth, because I do too. If you do your job exactly by the book, without a single step outside of the manual, then you are one rare unicorn, but I'm not sure that is a good thing. Finding ways to improve your workflow should be encouraged, and not frowned upon, even if it is not exactly a traditional way of doing the job.

Which is exactly what the employee in the story below was trying to convey to his boss.

Even after a big client placed a last-minute rush order, this boss still demanded her workers do everything by the book. That meant there was no way to get this order out in time before the weekend. Instead of insisting, the worker followed procedures without skipping a single step, which led to a dispute with the client on Monday morning when their order was nowhere to be seen.

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  • So, should “shortcuts” be allowed from time to time? Keep scrolling to read the full story and let me know what you think in the comments below.

  • 01
    7.7.70
    via Sorapong's Images

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02

    You Want It Done by the Book? Alright, the Book It Is.

    My uncle used to work at a small construction supply company in the early 2000s. He was one of those guys who could get anything done even if a delivery truck broke down or a supplier messed up an order, he'd find a workaround and keep things moving.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 03
    Then one year, corporate brought in a new operations manager who was obsessed with "process compliance." She didn't like that my uncle and his crew used shortcuts to keep things efficient.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 04
    Her favorite phrase was, "If it's not in the manual, don't do it." One Friday, a big client placed a last- minute rush order that had to go out before the weekend.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 05
    Normally, my uncle would've just called a buddy at the warehouse, swapped some inventory around, and made it happen.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 06
    But the new manager overheard and stopped him: No, you follow the written procedure exactly no exceptions.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 07
    So he did. He filled out every form, waited for every approval, and followed the documented chain of command.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 08
    The problem? Each step required sign- off from departments that closed at 5 p.m. He finished all the "by the book" steps right at 4:55 p.m.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 09
    and dropped the paperwork on her desk. "All done," he said, "just waiting on Accounting's stamp they'll be back Monday." The client's order sat there all weekend.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 10
    The client called the regional manager furious on Monday morning, and the operations manager had to explain why the rush order hadn't gone out.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 11
    My uncle just shrugged and said, followed every rule. You told me not to do it any other way.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 12
    Construction Workers in Orange Vests Walking
    via Mesut Yalçın

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 13
    Corporate didn't fire her, but she suddenly became much more flexible with "unofficial methods" after that.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 14
    Now when anyone in the family gets told "do it by the book," we just laugh and say, "Sure thing hope you've got time to wait.
    via Many_Technician6190
  • 15
    piecepaper Make the inofficial workflow to an official one.
    via piecepaper
  • 16
    MonCappy Procedures exist for a reason and should be generally followed. Having said that, when you have rush orders and the like, the system should be flexible enough to have fast tracking procedures in place when going by the book means the customer's needs aren't met.
    via MonCappy
  • 17
    AlsoMaHulz 2 problems: priorities unclear and long process bottleneck. Your uncle was a very clever man, selling and delivering should always be priorities, she didn't understood that the process itself was bad.
    via AlsoMaHulz

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boss workplace-stories employee manager job malicious compliance tales-from-the-workplace construction reddit story overworked-employees workplace Reddit company funny construction workers
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