I used to work for a nonprofit. I was the head IT guy and the head forklift driver. I loved it. This organization did tremendous good for a lot of people. I volunteered and interned with this group before joining them full time, yet I was around only a few weeks before quitting. I found out some things about how this organization was run that I didn’t agree with (turns out the Feds agreed with me).

One thing always bothered me: despite being built on the premise of service, the leaders of this organization had reserved parking spots. There were the closest spots to the door and the signs literally had their names and titles on them. I didn’t think too much of it at the time, but it seemed quite incongruent with their stated purpose.

Fast forward a few years and I find myself working with a large Fortune 100 organization. This company prides itself on their customer-focus, with great sincerity and with well earned recognition. Their business is so good that they literally have more people than desks and more desks than parking spots. Despite that and despite that their leaders travel a good bit, the entire first two rows of every level of the parking deck are reserved for management. Incongruent at best.

As I reflected on my career as an organizational consultant, I realized that parking spot assignments are a primary indicator of cultural health. Every organization with cultural issues I have been part of has reserved parking spots. It’s a cultural artifact: a physical representation of a cultural reality.

My experience with the nonprofit was egregious, taking the spots closer than even the legally required handicapped spots somehow. Their names and titles were literally posted on the signs for the world to see. (Once, I made the mistake of parking in the spot one time to drop something off, knowing the person was traveling and was unapologetically corrected. It only happened once). Years later, the Federal government sent the designees of these spots to jail for taking more than a parking spot.

The Fortune 100 company was built from the ground up with the hands and feet of the front line worker. Then a big CEO joined. One of his many sweeping changes was the introduction of reserved spots. He is long gone, but the spots remain. Meanwhile, this organization has introduced reserved parking for honored customers, going above and beyond what is legally required. Customer centricity at its best.

So which is it? Reserved parking for special customers or empty spots for traveling executives?

Parking spots are indicators, like office doors, corner windows and dedicated assistants. Together they tell a more complete story, but years of going into organizations of all types suggests that this particular indicator is pretty accurate.