Oncken and Wass in their article "Management Time: Who’s Got the Monkey?" asked: "Why is it that managers are typically running out of time while their subordinates are typically running out of work?" This question may be difficult to answer since it seems that many professionals and their managers consider themselves to be overworked in some way. Of course some may consider the question irrelevant. The authors ask a few simple but important questions. Do you as a manager really need to be involved? Do you need to accept all these monkeys thrust on your back by your subordinates? Why do you accept responsibility to provide subordinates with information? Why don’t you just reverse the process and give the responsibility to the subordinate? You’re expected to delegate, so why don’t you delegate? Do you allow subordinates to place additional responsibilities on your shoulders?
The answers include a range of responses: insecurity in making decisions; prestige if the question involves acquiring information from upper management; the desire to micromanage; the inability to accept responsibility for the actions of others; and a subordinate, by taking initiative, may make you look like a wimp. The authors refer to these subordinate-imposed responsibilities as monkeys.
Oncken and Wass present five hard-and-fast rules for the "care and feeding of monkeys":
- Rule 1. Monkeys should be fed or shot. Otherwise managers will waste valuable resources.
- Rule 2. The monkey population should be kept below the maximum number the manager has time to feed.
- Rule 3. Monkeys should be fed by appointment only.
- Rule 4. Monkeys should be fed face-to-face or by telephone, but never by mail.
- Rule 5. Every monkey should have an assigned next feeding time and degree of initiative.
From my years of experience I propose a few additional rules:
- Rule 6. Subordinates who deliver too many monkeys may need a change of environment. So find the problem. Maybe these subordinates think they can survive on monkey business.
- Rule 7. Monkeys must present everything in writing. This exercise forces them to think before asking you to do the thinking for them.
- Rule 8. Don’t attach yourself to monkeys in the elevator or at social occasions.
What does a manager do with these people who like to raise monkeys? There are two answers, but only one really helps you recoup your investment in people: If they are educable, then educate them to meet your expectations; if not, find them a different cage or send them back to the wild.