I'm not buying it.  I was reading the other day about a study earlier this year at the Lund University School of Economics and Management in Sweden that produced a new theory literally titled, "A Stupidity - Based Theory of Organizations" which was published in the Journal of Management Studies.  Seriously.  In part, the study and the resulting article claim that an organization should rely on only short-term use of intellectual resources, and that consensus and an absence of questions about decisions and structures may prove more useful and contribute to harmony and increased productivity in a company.

According to the researchers, some industries are more stupid than others. Mass media, fashion industry and consultancy firms, are highlighted as being particularly likely to develop functional stupidity. Lucky for us I guess, commercial real estate was not one of the ones listed.   Nonetheless the research stated that their findings were applicable across all industries.  Again, I'm not sure I'm buying it.

A quick look at the concept of functional stupidity highlights the following for the owners, managers and employees:

1. Don't think too much, go about daily tasks without considering if there might be a better way.
2. Do not ask "why are we doing this like this" and do not seek out different ways of doing something.
3. Do not challenge anyone in authority who justifies current practice by saying "we've always done it this way" or "we do it this way because we don't have time to look into that" or any other similar deflections.

Sounds straight out of Dilbert cartoon doesn't it?

We've all been there, haven't we?  Working for a company knowing that there are problems just waiting to erupt, but feeling frustrated and helpless to do anything about it.  Perhaps management won't hear and are actively suppressing recognition of what others clearly see.  The options are to stuff your feelings, look for a new job, make a ruckus that leads to being passed over for promotions, being actively disciplined, being handed a pink slip and shown the door, or quitting in disgust.   I guess that's where the old business saying, "to get ahead, get along" originated from.

So where does functional stupidity fit?  From my viewpoint it comes down to an imbalance.  I'm going to fall back on the 80/20 rule.  I'm not willing to put functional stupidity in the same category as process automation, acknowledging that I'm biased because I really am passionate about doing things better and always improving on existing process.  I do believe that the more that something can be automated, whether that's creating a document, mailing a letter, writing a proposal, manufacturing something, or even providing a service, is just good business. Calling that functional stupidity just doesn't make sense to me.  In my world all activities should be as close to automatic as possible freeing up each individuals capacity for smart thinking and innovation. 

There's no doubt that you want your organization to have discipline and predictability. You'd have complete chaos if every employee was doing a task differently based on a particular employee's research and decision-making process. So that requires employees to adhere to repeatable practices and processes.  On the other hand, you and your business have to keep up with changes in customer tastes and needs, new technology in your industry.  Like a shark, if you stop moving forward you'll die. But you certainly don't want every day to be a feeding frenzy. And while it's easy to get swayed by and even go off in the wrong direction by trying to live by the mantra of Marshall Field's famous words "Give the lady what she wants", it's important to have some strong focus on the tried and true.

So here's my suggestion. Encourage suggestions about change.  Sort through them on a regular basis implementing what makes sense and storing others for a future date.  We all have busy times of the year and slower times.  Pick a day or weekend during a slower period and go through the suggestions that were not acted upon.  Involve your employees.  The goal is to instill a sense of ownership as well as understanding about why the organization does things the way they do. It's really the only way to get commitment on your processes and practices.  The goal is to examine why you're doing what you're doing and if there are better ways and if you should change.  I guess utilizing such a process on a repeatable basis is, in some people's mind, an example of Functional Stupidity.  Sorry.  I'm just not going to use that term.  I find it offensive.