Admin access
A long time ago, we had an uppity admin in the public service who told his boss that he was the only one who knew how the main system worked, and that he needed a promotion. There was a very high level meeting where it was decided that this was unacceptable.
I had written said system, was very senior, and was responsible for it throughout the organization. I was asked my opinion. Plans were put in place, and some weeks later I travelled on a Sunday to where the system was. I dumped the data from the files, then reinstalled the system, changed the system password, reassigned the admin to a lower group role, and reloaded the data.
On Monday, everybody in the location was told that their sections were being merged with others, that they should apply for new roles within the revised organization, and that they should continue in their old assignments until further notice. The admin just happened to have started his annual leave on the previous Friday. Funnily enough the admin was the only person who didn’t get a job similar to their previous role. All of the Byzantine rules of dealing with staff were scrupulously followed, and he left later that year.
Yes, if sufficiently provoked, the public service can be at least as bastardly as anywhere…
