Monkey Lessons
(Or How Policy is Formed)
Start with a cage containing five monkeys. In the cage, hang a banana on a string and put a set of stairs under it. Before
long, one monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana.
As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the monkeys with cold water. After a while, another monkey will make an attempt
with the same result - all the monkeys are sprayed with cold water.
Pretty soon, when any monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other
monkeys will try to prevent it. Now, turn
off the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with
a new one. The new monkey will
see the banana and want to climb the stairs. To his horror, all of the
other monkeys will attack him.
After another attempt and attack, he will know that if he tries to climb
the stairs, he will be assaulted.
Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a
new one. The newcomer will go to
the stairs and be attacked. The previous newcomer will take part in the
punishment with enthusiasm.
Again, replace a third original monkey with a new one. The new one will
make it to the stairs and be
attacked as well. Two of the four monkeys that beat him have no idea why
they were not permitted to
climb the stairs, or why they are participating in the beating of the
newest monkey.
After replacing the fourth and fifth original monkeys, all the monkeys
which have been sprayed with cold
water will have been replaced. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again will
approach the stairs. Why not?
Because that's the way it's always been around here. And that's how
organizational policies begin.
Copyright © 1998 by MINDFART