Decoding the Snafu, Together
Blogging about the unexpected twists and turns of organisational life.
Every workplace has its moments — the printer that prints sideways, the meeting that needed a map, the email that launched a thousand interpretations. Here at Snafu Blogs, we celebrate the beautiful mess of management decisions, tech tangles, and event planning escapades. Through lighthearted storytelling and gentle satire, we turn blunders into bonding and confusion into comedy. No finger-pointing, just a wink and a chuckle — because sometimes, the best way to fix a snafu is to laugh at it first. MRASWA's 'Snafu Blogs' is a platform dedicated to navigating the inevitable complexities of staff welfare. We share insights and solutions for those unforeseen issues. Our mission is to turn snafus into learning opportunities.
The Ten-Year Club
By MAMA LUBA
Policy says: “Rotation ensures fairness, exposure, and efficiency.” Reality says: “Some staff rotate… while others build permanent homes.”
Musical Chairs Without Music
Rotation was designed to be like musical chairs. Everyone gets a turn, everyone learns new skills, and nobody gets too comfortable. However, some chairs seem to be bolted to the floor.
Entire segments of staff have been posted in the same department for more than ten years. They’ve mastered the art of staying put, while others keep waiting for their chance to move.
Privileges on Repeat
Instead of rotation, we see accumulation: overtime opportunities, familiar routines, and privileges that pile up year after year. For some, it’s less about rotation and more about reservation.
The Impact
Morale sinks: Staff who follow the rules feel sidelined.
Efficiency suffers: Skills stagnate when people stay in one comfort zone.
Fairness fades: Privileges pile up for a few, while others get crumbs.
The Punchline
Rotation without rotation is like a comedy skit where the punchline never changes. The policy exists, but its application is selective. And selective application is the perfect recipe for a workplace snafu.
So here’s the question we leave hanging:
Is rotation a policy… or a privilege?
Grooming:
The Corporate Hunger Games
By MAMA LUBA
Every morning begins with the same sacrifice: time, money, and sanity offered at the altar of corporate grooming. The company insists that being well dressed is a Key Performance Indicator. Translation: if your eyeliner smudges, so does your career.
The ritual is costly. Foundation, suits, hair products—none of it reimbursed. The hours spent sculpting yourself into a “professional” are invisible labor. And then, after the transformation, you sprint to work, praying you don’t arrive late. Because in this twisted morality play, punctuality is the only virtue that matters.
And then comes the lift. The senior manager, perched like a vulture, delivers his daily line: "At what time do you wake up in the morning?"
It’s not curiosity. It’s mockery. A reminder that while the company demands polish, individuals within it sneer at the polishers. Grooming is mandatory, but apparently also laughable.
This is the corporate paradox:
Your face is a KPI.
Your time is expendable.
Your dignity is optional.
The lift becomes a confessional booth where you’re judged not for your work, but for the hours you sacrificed to look employable. It’s less “team culture” and more “corporate Hunger Games”—may the best-groomed survive.
So here’s the punchline: the real KPI isn’t grooming, punctuality, or stakeholder perception. It’s endurance. Endurance to wake up early, endure the unpaid ritual, endure the sprint to work, and endure the commentary in the lift.
Because in this theatre of absurdity, mascara isn’t just makeup—it’s war paint..
When Poor Planning Becomes Everyone’s Problem
By mama luba
Projects don’t fail because of lack of effort. They fail because of lack of foresight.
Recently, we witnessed a textbook snafu: senior managers launched a project without thinking through the basics. On paper, it looked straightforward—deploy 25+ officers to handle client-related tasks. In practice, it turned into a time-wasting exercise.
Why?
Because the officers were forced to retrieve information one by one—business sectors, phone numbers, client details—that could have easily been compiled at the very start. Imagine the hours lost in chasing down data that should have been sitting neatly in a file from day one.
The irony?
Senior managers dismissed the importance of this preparation, only to later pile pressure on the officers to meet deadlines. Stress levels skyrocketed, efficiency plummeted, and morale took a hit. The officers weren’t failing; they were being set up to fail.
Had the managers taken the right decision at the planning stage, the assignments could have been completed in half the time. Instead, the project became a cautionary tale of how ignoring small details creates big problems.
Lessons from the Snafu
Respect the execution team: Officers can only work with the tools and information they’re given.
Pressure doesn’t fix poor planning: Deadlines mean little if the foundation is flawed.
Efficiency starts at the top: Senior managers set the tone—either for success or for chaos.
SNAFU in the
Audit Department
By Mama luba
When Metrics Trump Mission
It started with a spreadsheet. A crisp, colour-coded KPI chart landed in our inboxes one Monday morning. The directive was clear: every audit officer was required to complete 200 cases per year. That’s one case per working day. No exceptions. No context. Just numbers. At first, we thought it was a mistake. Surely, someone had miscalculated. After all, preparing a case for audit takes a full day — sometimes more. The actual audit? That’s another week or month. But the directive stood firm. The director had spoken.
The Fallout Begins
The mood in the office shifted overnight. What was once a collaborative, mission-driven team became a pressure cooker of stress and silent panic. Officers scrambled to meet the quota, cutting corners to make it through the day. Thoroughness gave way to speed. Quality bowed to quantity. And then came the ripple effects. - Objection and appeal cases skyrocketed, as sloppy audits led to flawed conclusions. - The appeals department, already stretched thin, began to buckle under the weight of rework. - Morale plummeted. Conversations turned into venting sessions. Some officers even considered leaving.
A Mission Misaligned
Our organisation prides itself on integrity, diligence, and fairness. But this KPI decision — however well-intentioned — undermines all three. It’s a classic SNAFU. A decision made in isolation, without understanding the operational reality, has created chaos that now feels routine.
What We Need?
This isn’t just about numbers. It’s about people. It’s about purpose. It’s about aligning metrics with mission. We need leadership that listens, adapts, and understands that not all productivity is measurable in daily quotas. Until then, we’ll keep doing our best — even if the system seems determined to trip us up.
Understanding Murphy's Law
Explore the nature of unexpected issues. Gain perspective on dealing with the unpredictability of Murphy's Law.
Preparing for the Unexpected
Build resilience through proactive planning. Anticipate and prepare for potential issues before they arise.
Adapting to Changing Circumstances
Embrace change and remain agile. Adaptability is essential for overcoming unforeseen issues effectively.
Snafu Blogs: Learning from Mistakes, One Blog Post at a Time
Documenting Lessons Learned
Capture insights from past experiences. Document lessons learned to prevent repeating the same mistakes.
Sharing Failure Stories
Create a culture of open communication. Share failure stories to foster learning and prevent future issues.
Turning Failures into Fuel
Use mistakes as motivation for growth. Transform failures into fuel to drive future success and innovation.
