Those two things will undoubtedly be the ones I will remember about last week’s training on process managing. Let me tell you a story about monkey logic, and you may discover that you work in a cage full of monkeys… and that you are a simian yourself.

Here it is: the story of four monkeys that lived together in a cage. They loved bananas, but they rarely got one. One day, a banana appeared tied to the upper side of the cage, so they were happy and sent one of them to get it. But when the monkey touched the fruit, they all received a not very pleasant cold shower. And they hated cold showers!

...when the monkey touched the fruit, they all received a not very pleasant cold shower

Confused by the experience, they sent a second monkey up, and the same happened again. So they learnt that they should not try to get the banana if they didn’t want to have a cold shower. They got used to living with the banana over their heads, and when one day one of them was moved from the cage, and a new monkey came instead, they did not let him try to get the banana. They did not want to get wet.

One by one, all the original monkeys left the cage, and all the newcomers learnt that they should not try to get the banana. And the day came when all the “original” monkeys were gone, and none of the inhabitants of the cage would touch the banana, even if they couldn’t know why.

This tale illustrates fairly well what may happen in many organisations. Rules are fixed on a certain basis, but with time nobody remembers anymore why it was decided to follow rule Y and not rule X, but as it is already part of the routine, nobody really discusses it.

That can be a good attitude when things are working fine. But what happens when more and more people start feeling that the rule could be improved? And even if everything works well, and everyone’s used to and comfortable living with a certain rule, what if a new perspective shows that things could be even better? The banana is still up there, but is does not disturb the monkeys down on the floor. But one day a new monkey decides to try to get it on a new way, and nobody gets wet. Even better: they are still comfortable in the cage, but now they have a banana.

Lots of conclusions can be driven from such a story. Procedures are fine, and it is always advisable to inform newcomers about the rules. But don’t be too rigid, be open to new ideas: new perspectives can bring fresh air in. Either new ways to do things or constructive critics to procedures that may be already out of date and worth considering substituting.

And about the coffee machine… you should have one in the cage, as they are “places of knowledge”, according to the trainer. So let the monkeys meet around the coffee machine and they may find more than one way to get the banana without having a shower. Or who knows, maybe they decide to go to the supermarket and buy bananas for everyone.