The Compliance Koala

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Adam and Hazel
turteltaub-adam-200x200-150x150By Adam Turteltaub
adam.turteltaub@corporatecompliance.org

This is Hazel.  I met her in Australia last week.  She’s every bit as adorable in person as she is in the picture.  Her fur is kind of wooly, only softer, and she’s surprisingly mellow.

I was able to hold her for about a minute or so while my family and the photographer snapped away.  Then it was time for the next person to have their picture taken with her.

It was one of the best minutes of my life.  I was happy and incredulous that I actually was holding a koala.

But that’s all that I got to do because, even for koalas, there are compliance regimes: lots and lots of very strict rules about who can own them and for what purpose.  And, no, you can’t possibly bring one home with you legally.

What struck me on the very long flight back from Australia is that relatively few people would say, “To hell with the rules.  I’m getting myself a koala.”

I think there are two reasons, aside from the obvious logistical difficulties, why people don’t think of challenging the rules.  First, few of us beyond the age of 10 seriously think we could own a koala.  It’s a dream so far outside of our reach that we accept the rules as validating our own sense that it would never happen.

Second, you’ve never seen someone with their own pet koala.  So the “why him, not me?” equation never comes into force.

That’s very significant.  At work employees report seeing many people break the rules, often getting away with it.  Those who play by the rules may feel a bit like suckers wondering “Why does he get to break the rules, while I can’t?”

It’s all an argument for applying the rules fairly and consistently.  It will leave employees feeling better with their work and likely keep them more compliant.   Of course, offering the opportunity to hold a koala probably wouldn’t hurt either.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. My experience this week with our 7-year old granddaughter at the Jersey shore causes me to say “Harumph!!” in even heartier agreement than usual! Thanks for this fantastic analogy! Devastated that we couldn’t rent bikes to ride on the boardwalk in the afternoon (because the rules, which we didn’t know when we tried to rent them, didn’t allow boardwalk-riding after noon), she expressed sincere frustration each time we encountered a scofflaw bike-rider. If only we’d had a koala for her to pet!! Great illustration!

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