Stop Solving People Problems with Policies
Discover why "Stop Solving People Problems with Policies" is crucial for effective management. Learn how to address issues without over-relying on policies.
top of page
OCTOBER 2026
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Stop Solving People Problems with Policies
One employee repeatedly arrives late, so you rewrite the attendance policy. Someone stretches a flexible schedule beyond what was intended, so flexibility disappears. Another employee pushes the casual dress policy too far, and suddenly everyone has a stricter dress code.
​
It may feel like you have solved the problem, but have you?
​
Sometimes the workplace does not need another rule. Sometimes a manager just needs to manage.
Policies Feel Easier Than Conversations
There is a reason employers reach for policies when something goes wrong. Policies feel objective and consistent, and because they apply to everyone, they can seem like the fairest response. They also allow a manager to avoid an uncomfortable conversation with one particular employee.
A company-wide rule can create the appearance of action without requiring a manager to address the actual behavior. The message goes to everyone, the manager can say the issue has been handled, and no one has to sit down with the employee and explain what needs to change. The underlying problem remains, the employee receives no meaningful feedback or accountability, and everyone else absorbs the consequence.
We have essentially punished the whole class because one person would not stop talking.
Your Good Employees Already Know What Happened
Employers sometimes underestimate how closely employees are paying attention. They generally know who regularly arrives late, who is not getting their work done, and who has stretched a flexible schedule or occasional perk well beyond what was intended.
They also notice when everyone loses something because management did not address the issue with the person responsible.
For employees who were already meeting expectations, a company-wide restriction can feel less like accountability and more like punishment. Over time, it can also send an unintended message: good judgment is not particularly valuable here because everyone will ultimately be managed according to the person who exercises the least of it.
If every policy is written in response to the employee who demonstrates the worst judgment, eventually you build a workplace around your least responsible employee. That is probably not the culture most employers are trying to create.
Is It a Policy Problem or a People Problem?
Before changing a policy, identify which problem you are actually trying to solve.
If employees throughout the organization are confused about an expectation, managers are applying a rule inconsistently, business needs have changed, or the same issue keeps appearing in different departments, you may genuinely have a policy problem.
However, if 24 employees are successfully working within an expectation and one is not, rewriting the rules for all 25 probably should not be the first response. That is more likely a people problem, and people problems require management.
That may include clarifying expectations, providing direct feedback, coaching the employee, documenting the issue, and applying appropriate corrective action when the behavior does not change. Those steps can be more uncomfortable than issuing a new rule, but they are also a fundamental part of managing people.
Sometimes the Policy Really Is the Problem
None of this means employers should never change their policies. Repeated confusion, exceptions, or violations may be telling you that a policy no longer works.
Perhaps your attendance policy was written for a workforce that operated differently five years ago. Managers may not understand how much discretion they have, or a policy may not clearly explain what is expected. If employees continually find workarounds, the process itself may no longer make sense.
That is useful information. The important distinction is whether you are revising a policy because you have identified an organizational need or reacting to one particularly frustrating employee. One is thoughtful management. The other can quickly become policy whack-a-mole.
Do Not Make Everyone Pay for One Person’s Poor Judgment
When employers solve individual problems with company-wide rules, they gradually remove discretion from the employees who have demonstrated that they can handle it.
Most organizations say they want employees who use good judgment, take ownership, solve problems, and do not need to be micromanaged. Those qualities need room to exist. If every misuse of flexibility results in less flexibility for everyone, employees eventually learn that there is little benefit to exercising good judgment because the rules will always be written for the lowest common denominator.
This does not mean every employee is entitled to every privilege indefinitely. In fact, the appropriate response to someone abusing flexibility may be for that employee to lose flexibility. Depending on the circumstances, the employee may need clearer expectations, additional coaching, or corrective action. In some cases, the solution begins with a manager finally having the conversation they have been avoiding.
Before You Reach for the Handbook
The next time an employee situation makes you want to create a new rule, stop long enough to ask:
-
Is this happening with multiple employees or primarily one person?
-
Is the existing expectation genuinely unclear?
-
Have managers been applying it consistently?
-
Has the employee received direct feedback about the problem?
-
Would changing the policy solve an organizational issue, or would it simply make this individual situation easier to manage?​
​There are absolutely times when a policy change is the right answer. However, a policy should not become a substitute for leadership.
Policies should solve organizational problems. Management should solve individual ones. Before reaching for the handbook, make sure you know which kind of problem you actually have.
Treasury Tipped Occupational Code (TTOC)
isolved People Cloud now includes support for the IRS's upcoming Treasury Tipped Occupational Code (TTOC) reporting requirements, effective for Year-End 2026.
New system enhancements make it easy to assign and manage IRS-defined TTOC codes for tipped employees. Codes can be maintained at the Client job-level or Employee level, and Client job-level defaults automatically populate when employees are assigned to positions during Onboarding or Position changes.
Employee Job-Level Assignment:
Client Job-Level Assignment:
During year-end processing, isolved handles the reporting logic and includes up to two (2) TTOC codes on employee W-2 forms.
These updates help streamline compliance while minimizing manual effort for employers with tipped workers.
​
A new Year End Designation is also available to route qualified voluntary tip earnings to both W-2 Box 7 and Box 12 Code TP.
If you have questions about tracking this for your employees, please reach out to your HR Business Partner or Payroll Specialist at Vida HR.
​
Vida HR will be reaching out to clients directly with tipped employees to confirm the applicable TTOC code(s) that should be assigned to each job in isolved.
​
The TTOC requirements are part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) – more information about this reporting requirement can be found here: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/treasury-irs-issue-final-regulations-listing-occupations-where-workers-customarily-and-regularly-receive-tips-under-the-one-big-beautiful-bill
QUESTION:
One of my employees loves to bring in their famous peanut brittle every year during our Halloween potluck. Most people look forward to the potluck and are excited about it for weeks in advance. A new staff member is concerned that it's unsafe for them to be here due to their peanut allergy. We don't want to lose fun traditions, but we also want to make sure everyone is safe.
How should we handle food allergies for an office potluck?
Answer:
Health and safety of our co-workers is always top priority. The potluck can still be fun without putting a coworker at risk. Talk privately with the employee about their allergy and what they need to feel safe, then plan the food and set up around that. In this case, that may mean asking the peanut brittle maker to bring a different treat this year. Productive dialogue and understanding of people’s safety concerns can lead you to an effective compromise such as safety precautions or an alternate recipe.
​
Long Answer
Allergies can be a complicated topic, especially with potlucks at work. The first step is always to have a conversation with the employee about the nature of their allergies. Do they have to consume the food to trigger a reaction, or can it happen from indirect contact? What kind of support might they need if they have an allergic reaction? Are their emergency contacts up to date? Is the employee comfortable sharing their allergy triggers with other team members? These are things we may need to know to create a plan. While it’s not appropriate to share someone’s allergies with the whole office if they want to keep them private, with no plan in place people could accidentally expose them to allergens. Let’s explore some solutions that will keep the treats and skip the tricks for this Halloween event!
Before getting into the HR world, I was a chef who did a lot of catering at self-serve events for guests with allergy and dietary restrictions. Here are some best practices you can consider using at your potlucks to reduce the risks.
​
Label all foods and list the ingredients!
Not only is this helpful for people with allergies, but it’s an opportunity to come up with creative on theme names for dishes. Names and descriptions are how you can transform a mysterious tray of monochromatic blah into something with an enticing flavor profile, while also making everyone aware of what they are eating.
​
Give favorite recipes a new twist!
The potluck doesn’t have to lose its favorite traditions to make room for everyone. The famous peanut brittle might need to sit this year out, but its maker could bring a new Halloween treat for everyone to try. If employees know ahead of time which ingredients to avoid, they can plan dishes that everyone can enjoy. Just remember that changing one ingredient doesn’t automatically make a dish safe, how it’s prepared matters, too.
​
Avoid cross contamination at the serving table!
Make sure that every dish has its own serving utensils then make sure they don’t get mixed up, have the people setting up wash their hands or change gloves before they touch a different food, and do your best to set dishes up in a single row so no one has to reach over any dish to get to the back row. Crumbs, drops of sauce, or residue left on a spoon can often be enough to trigger allergies. If an allergy is severe, it may be wise to put those foods on a completely separate table.
Encourage everyone to wash their hands before AND after eating!
Most people know to wash their hands before a meal, but often people don’t think to wash their hands afterwards. Any crumbs or oils left behind on your hands can easily spread around the office and turn the whole building into an allergy risk.
Keep food limited to one area!
I’ve seen many work potlucks where people go back to their desks to eat, this is another way that allergens can spread. Even if it’s just finger foods people start looking for a seat once you put a plate in their hands. Plan for seating somewhere away from work spaces so that food and crumbs are limited to that space. This is also a good way to prevent pests like mice or bugs from showing up.
Clean up and take all leftovers home!
Plan for a few volunteers to clean and wipe down the area, then make sure everyone brings their dish back home at the end of the day. This limits the window of time in which some of these allergens will be present while also avoiding the chaos of a breakroom fridge filled with half eaten trays of who knows what for the rest of the week. You can even provide some to-go containers and sharpies at the end of lunch so anyone who wants to enjoy more later can take it home with them.
When an employee comes forward to disclose an allergy or any other medical concern the first step is always to listen and ask questions. The above strategies can be very effective at keeping people safe but it’s always important to speak with the affected employee first. Having a better understanding of the allergy’s severity and triggers will empower you to create a great safety plan or determine if peanut brittle is off the menu this year.
bottom of page