Paperwork

“Our civilization suffers from a superstitious belief in the magical effect of printed forms. And the superstition is most dangerous when it leads us into trying to handle the exceptional, nonroutine situation by procedure. In fact, it is the test of a good procedure that it quickly identifies the situation that, even in the most routine of processes, does not fit the pattern but require special handling and decision based on judgment.”— The Essential Drucker, page 123

<idle musing>
I love that first sentence; it is sooo true. I've worked in many different companies over the years, and every one of them suffers from this to at least a small degree. No wonder C.S. Lewis chose the corporation as his model for hell in The Screwtape Letters!
</idle musing>