Page 48 - Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company

Make Everyone’s Dreams Come True 29

In the 1950s, on the Japanese island of Koshima, scientists studying
macaque monkeys dropped sweet potatoes in the sand. The monkeys liked
the taste of the potatoes, but they found the sand to be unpleasant. One
innovative monkey discovered that washing the potatoes in seawater elimi-
nated the grit and made the potatoes taste better. She quickly taught this to
her mother and several of her playmates.
As one would expect, other young monkeys in the troop were soon
imitating this monkey’s intelligent behavior. Then, after several years had
passed, the last lines of resistance were finally eroded after one particular
incident. Legend states that one morning, a certain number of monkeys
were washing their potatoes. The exact number is not known, but for the
sake of the story, we’ll say that it was 99. Later that morning, one more
monkey learned to wash his potato. As the day progressed, each of the
remaining dirty-potato-eating monkeys began washing his or her potato
until, by evening, every monkey in the troop had developed a taste for clean
potatoes!
A similar transference of learned behavior also occurs in organizations
that are undergoing change. Although the exact number may vary, a point is
reached where, if only one more person adopts a new set of values, the syn-
ergy is so great that nearly everyone else will internalize the behavior too.
Whether or not this story is legend or fact, there are several lessons that
we can learn from the hundredth monkey story.

■ First, total transformation takes time. In the case of the Koshima
monkeys, it took several years.
■ Second, the benefits of transformation must be real. Just as the monkeys
enjoyed the benefits of eating clean potatoes, employees must be able to
experience real gains as they adopt cultural change.
■ Third, management must consistently model the desired behavior. The
innovative monkeys continued to exhibit the potato-washing method
before other members of the troop. Be persistent.
■ Fourth, there must be top management commitment at the outset.
When the first monkey learned to wash her food, she taught the skill to
her mother and to a handful of adults. The adult converts provided pos-
itive feedback by embracing and using the newly learned skill. Without
their early commitment, it’s unlikely that the entire troop transforma-
tion would ever have taken place.