It’s tempting to follow the system.

There’s safety in it. There’s comfort in knowing that a mistake made while following the system isn’t a mistake. The employee is off the hook. When the outcome isn’t what you expect, the system is the only thing to blame. The rules were followed, the checklist was checked, and the prescribed procedures were followed, even though the result was disastrous. It’s the fault of the system, not the employee. Yes, that’s comfortable.

The system is dangerous if it’s followed too closely.

Danger Is Lurking in Rote Behavior

The most effective way for employees to sabotage your law firm is to do exactly what they’ve been told to do.

Yep, following your instructions is a powerful way to damage your business.

That’s because following the rules, abiding by the system, and doing as told are sometimes exactly the wrong things to do. Sometimes situations require judgment and discretion. Sometimes things aren’t what they appear, yet your employee knows exactly what’s happening.

The good employee brings emotional intelligence to the table and understands the dynamics of the interaction. The good employee fixes things instead of making things worse. The good employee breaks the rules and solves the problem.

But it’s safer for the employee to stick to the system and let things disintegrate. The employee who wants you to fail—the sabotaging, devious, malicious employee—can just follow the rules and watch the client burst into flames. The employee knows that he can defend himself by having followed the system.

Systems Have Limits

Systems are not designed to wring the humanity out of your law firm. Systems are intended to relieve your team members of the burden of making tiny decisions along the way so they have the resources and energy to make the big decisions when the time comes. Good systems enable your team to get the work done day by day while simultaneously looking for ways to get the work done better.

Nothing is ever easy. I’m sorry, but that’s the nature of the work. There is no perfect system, and things will never run like clockwork. We serve humans, many of whom are upset, agitated, and distraught. Systems can’t account for everything these folks might do, say, or think or for the problems they’ll create.

Yes, you need your team to follow the rules. Yes, you need your team to break the rules too.