The turnip supply chain:not exactly rocket science!

Let's say there's this issue that I'm having at work. Now, instead of telling you what the issue really is, I'm going to pretend that I'm having an issue getting turnips for my guests. I hate turnips -- always have. So for the sake of this post, let's pretend that I'm talkin' turnips and how to get 'em for my guests.

Now, organizing turnips for my guests through an outside supplier is a pretty big part of my job. It's pretty basic: someone has the turnips, and I arrange to make them available for my guests. The means by which I acquire those turnips changes somewhat from city to city, but gettin' turnips for my guests is an ever-present component of the service I provide.

And let's say that, in Hong Kong, I need to organize those turnips through someone named Steve. I've been working with Steve for a few weeks now, trying to smooth out the challenges we've had, trying to make it easy for everyone. Basically, I just need to make sure that the supply chain (from Steve to my guests, via me) is working. Unfortunately, Steve seems a bit thick and is causing me a series of migraine headaches a bit of grief.

Now, you'd think that.....

• ...turnips aren't that hard to get right cuz there's no lack of turnips at Steve's disposal *; that supplying turnips ain't exactly rocket science.
• ...someone like Steve, who wants to encourage guests to come back and buy more turnips from him in future, would want to make it inviting and easy for guests to acquire them in the first place.
• ...Steve would want to implement methods that would make supplying turnips to my guests more administratively streamlined for both his team and mine.
• ...having Steve change the turnip rules every few days might lead to some really pissed off guests confusion.
• ...it might be a priority for Steve to fix the mistakes printed on the information card given to every guest who buys his turnips.
• ...yelling talking on the phone to Steve each and every day would convince him that this issue really does matter. A lot.

You'd think, wouldn't you?

Unbelievably, getting turnips for my guests from this outside supplier is the biggest, most nightmarish part of my job. Crazy, huh?

Then again, if working with inept turnip suppliers is the biggest problem I have, then I have it pretty damn good.

* note: whether there really are plenty of turnips in Hong Kong is irrelevant, cuz it's an analogy! stay with me here, people!! the real product/service I'm talking about is in no short supply