To think you can’t have everything you want at work?

So she doesn’t like being interrupted by people needing a particular thing done. She doesn’t want to ask people to come back when X person will be able to help them. She thinks someone should provide the service there and then (but not her).

Thats madness.

You have been perfectly clear, imo, @Merryoldgoat. Lisa sounds as if she is being very difficult.

Your team sounds inefficient

If junior isn't available, Lisa should help with queries

could you survey the staff to actually find out if they do mind coming back and ask for possible ideas if they don’t. Then you have proof to shove in Lisa’s face why you are either not changing things, or having engaged with your ‘customers’, you might find a different solution completely?

I think that if Lisa can help them, then she must help them. Don't give her the choice to have them come back, unless she's working on something very urgent. If your office gives a service, then she should give it immediately without whining.

I would tell her that this is how the job works and if she doesn't like it the door is always open. I'm a manager of people and if the employees think that you're too soft will often take advantage.

There could be the point that she wants your job and by complaining wants others to "realise" that you can't run the office and that she could do it better.

If you're manning an office, then you need to change the ethos so the team actually help people. Nobody should be sent away who needs a physical thing, that's just wasting their time, if it's teachers then their time is less flexible and therefore more important than yours. Just change the model to say all requests in person must be resolved (physical thing like cash or urgent help needed within a day or two) or added to an email queue and say the person responsible will action within a day or two (to put a stop to the non urgent queue jumping). If someone doesn't like interruptions then the job doesn't suit, so tough. It might help to address a clearer rota though; if it's 9 hours each day and you've already got admin doing 5 that's 55% of the time, so split the remainder of cover into shifts, max 7 hours of being interrupted each for the other 3 of you.

None of us can have everything we want anywhere. Thats how life is. 🤷‍♀️

What changes is the staff member suggesting?

If you are the head of the team I don’t understand why you are not telling this employees she DOES have to do the petty cash/ admin task or whatever when people ask. She can moan sbout it all she wants but it’s the job, when the juniors not there.
You should be aiming to minimise hassle for your customers, corporate or not.

Why not look at it in terms of: you seem to be managing a team that is pissing off the teaching staff and unable to cope with anything that isn't planned or timed properly.

If you think of it as 'these are the tasks, how do I ensure that people's time isn't wasted by having to come back all the time, and make sure that all the tasks can be done by everyone, at the point of need, and when the need isn't at the door asking for stuff, people get on with their assigned duties and shit gets done'.

If you are the manager then you need to manage your team and get stuff done, not just sit by and turn people away from the door because the wrong person is in.

They probably think I don't mind because why would I be rude - I'd get even worse service!

I am also a teacher who often gets turned away from the admin or estates office because the one person who can do the thing isn't there.

My God it drives me mad.

I've actually cut down down how many trips out of school I do to avoid:

3 x trips to get the phone (one because the charger doesn't work)
3 x trips to get the first aid kit
3 x trips to get the parent contacts
Multiple attempts to check they've actually booked the free train tickets (not allowed to do it myself)
Probably into double figures if it involves anyone paying for anything (not allowed access to the database to check myself)

And I've been waiting for a key for an office I'd like to be able to use for about 3 months now.

You don't really seem receptive to feedback and seem defensive of the place.

You appear (based on your own words) to manage a team where

1. no one really knows when they can respond to requests (they very their hours and days)
2. "Customers/service users appear to have no clue when certain things can be done
3. These customers/service users often have to come back because of unexpected or unclear absences - that's hardly efficient and just because you don't hear the complaints doesn't mean they don't exist
4. You have a staff member who is clearly unhappy and you think it's completely her fault (it may well be)
5. You have a staff remember who really doesn't seem to know what her role includes/excludes
6. You don't seem to have any proper contingency in place to deal with illness or other leave (surely there should be an overlap on dome of the most common tasks and it should be understood that everyone should carry put these tasks when necessary)

Tbh @Cyanometer the colleague I’m thinking of is someone I really value. If I’m honest I can find her tricky as she views things very differently to me. But it’s actually really useful as it’s very helpful to have an alternative view when it comes to problem solving. Because she’s very capable and a decent human I always take care to listen carefully to her thoughts. It’s stood me in good stead in what is my first line management role and a think she’s brilliant for continuing to professionally challenge when it’s appropriate.

They never mind coming back.

I’m a teacher. We don’t say we mind coming back but we do.

Only one person is responsible for keys in our place. Three times I’ve visited the office to get a particular key this year (huge school, different block). All three times Queen of the Keys has been out. I still have no key to my classroom door and it’s the end of the year in three weeks! Will she nip across to me to pass on a key when she’s in? Nope! 🙄

The entire team/work tasks/flexibility seems like a mess tbh.

I couldn't work in an environment where the team seems to struggle with extremely basic things.