Management - 8 Monkeys

(This is based on an actual experiment conducted in U.K. Just found this in a forwarded e-mail and thought it was worth sharing here.)

Put eight monkeys in a room. In the middle of the room is a ladder, leading to abunch of bananas hanging from a hook on the ceiling.

Each time a monkey tries to climb the ladder, all the monkeys are sprayed with ice water, which makes them miserable.

Soon enough, whenever a monkey attempts to climb the ladder, all of the othermonkeys, not wanting to be sprayed, set upon him and beat him up. Soon, none of the eight monkeys ever attempts to climb the ladder.

One of the original monkeys is then removed, and a new monkey is put in theroom. Seeing the bananas and the ladder, he wonders why none of the othermonkeys are doing the obvious. But undaunted, heimmediately begins to climb the ladder.All the other monkeys fall upon him and beat him silly. He has no idea why.

However, he no longer attempts to climb the ladder. A second original monkey isremoved and replaced. The newcomer again attempts to climb the ladder, but allthe other monkeys hammer the crap out of him. This includes the previous newmonkey, who, grateful that he's not on the receiving end this time, participatesinthe beating because all the other monkeys are doing it. However, he has no ideawhy he's attacking the new monkey.One by one, all the original monkeys are replaced.

Eight new monkeys are now in the room. None of them have ever been sprayed byice water. None of them attempt to climb the ladder. All of them willenthusiastically beat up any new monkey who tries, without having any idea why.

This is how any company's policies get Established.