One of our clients recently brought up the topic of ‘monkey management’. Coined back in the mid-1970’s this term refers to the problem of managers reducing their effectiveness by taking on unsolved problems (monkeys) that rightfully need to stay with their employees.
A manager’s job is to develop employees, create opportunities, remove obstacles, clarify priorities, etc. These are things that are important to keep the business moving forward, but are not urgent.
Problems tend to be more urgent. A manager’s job is to ensure problems are solved, but not to personally solve all problems. When managers take over ownership of problems from their employees, the important issues they’re responsible for are delayed and the organization as a whole suffers. It is critical that we recognize when problems are being ‘delegated upward’.
I’m interested in your perspective. Are you the employee who delegated upward? At the time was it your intention to have your boss solve the problem for you? Or are you are a supervisor or manager who picked up monkeys in the interest of solving problems? Were you aware that you were taking on someone else’s problem? Did you reach a point when you recognized that you were becoming the bottleneck in productivity? Did you come to the realization yourself or did someone point it out to you? More importantly, regardless of which side of the issue you were on, how did you go about changing your own behavior?
Tom Cline
A manager’s job is to develop employees, create opportunities, remove obstacles, clarify priorities, etc. These are things that are important to keep the business moving forward, but are not urgent.
Problems tend to be more urgent. A manager’s job is to ensure problems are solved, but not to personally solve all problems. When managers take over ownership of problems from their employees, the important issues they’re responsible for are delayed and the organization as a whole suffers. It is critical that we recognize when problems are being ‘delegated upward’.
I’m interested in your perspective. Are you the employee who delegated upward? At the time was it your intention to have your boss solve the problem for you? Or are you are a supervisor or manager who picked up monkeys in the interest of solving problems? Were you aware that you were taking on someone else’s problem? Did you reach a point when you recognized that you were becoming the bottleneck in productivity? Did you come to the realization yourself or did someone point it out to you? More importantly, regardless of which side of the issue you were on, how did you go about changing your own behavior?
Tom Cline
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