By Mark Corrigan, inspired by Sally Dillon and “Who's Got the Monkey?” by William Oncken Jr. & Donald L. Wass
Also credit to an old gem by Engwall & Jerbrant's “The Resource Allocation Syndrome in Multi-Project Environments”
22 January, 2002

It's a pity that the wisdom is not better understood. Edwards W. Deming understood this perfectly!

In today's fast-moving work environment, the classic management dilemma still rings true: managers are buried under workloads that were never really theirs. Sally Dillon's reflections on Who's Got the Monkey? remind us that too often, managers take ownership of problems that rightly belong to their team. But when we add modern concepts like TA (Time Asking) and the danger of resource overallocation, the picture becomes even clearer—and the solutions, far more practical.

The Monkey Problem: Ownership and Accountability

Imagine walking down the corridor and being stopped by a team member with an urgent issue. At that moment, the “monkey” (the problem) is on their back. Yet when you agree to “look into it,” that monkey leaps to yours. Suddenly, your time—not theirs—is being consumed.

This dynamic happens every day in both traditional and Agile environments. The key lesson? Every problem must stay with the person who can—and should—solve it.

• Empowerment over rescue: Ask, “What's your plan to fix it?” rather than stepping in immediately.
• Boundaries over chaos: Make it clear who owns each next step and when it's due.
• Time discipline: Protect your discretionary time for strategy, not firefighting.

Managers aren't paid to carry everyone else's monkeys—they're paid to build a team capable of carrying their own.

Introducing TAsking: Time Asking, Not Just Tasking

In traditional project management, to task someone meant assigning deliverables and deadlines—often using structured tools like Microsoft Project Server. Each team member could agree to their TAsks, update progress, and submit evidence for approval. That's the heart of what I call TA (Time Asking)—not just giving tasks, but asking for clear commitments of time and accountability.

• Microsoft Project Server: Each member accepts and updates their TAsks, creating workflow transparency for the project manager.
• Agile & Scrum: Incorporate TAsking into daily stand-ups—each person states explicitly what they will deliver by tomorrow's meeting, by the end of the week, or by the sprint's close.
• Jira Tip: Use (+) and (/) to mark a circle with a tick or plus, and // to insert a timestamp for today's date. Do this every sprint to see measurable progress and ensure monkeys stay exactly where they belong—on the backs of those responsible.

TA (Time Asking) is the antidote to ambiguity. It's about commitment, clarity, and mutual accountability—ensuring that time, not just tasks, is being actively managed.

The Hidden Enemy: Resource Overallocation

Even with perfect delegation and clear TAsks, many projects still grind to a halt. Why? Because of a structural issue known as overallocation of resources.

Resource overallocation occurs when one person is assigned to multiple deliverables that overlap in time—sometimes across different projects. It's not just a scheduling issue; it's a systemic leadership failure. A single human resource cannot deliver fully to two simultaneous priorities. When this happens, tasks jam up, progress stalls, and project management unfairly takes the blame.

• Traditional project overload: Multiple dependencies and deadlines collide on a single team member's schedule.
• Agile burnout: Too many user stories in flight, too few people to close them cleanly.
• The executive's role: Resource overallocation isn't a project manager's problem to solve—it's an executive issue. Leadership must ensure resources are allocated realistically to avoid chronic work-in-progress bottlenecks.

Insight: Overallocated teams don't need more meetings—they need fewer competing priorities.

Modern Leadership Strategies

To thrive in today's environment, managers must evolve from “doing” to “enabling.” Combine the timeless Monkey principle with modern TAsking and resource realism to create a culture of ownership and balance:

• Empowerment through TAsking: Encourage people to commit their own time estimates and take accountability for progress.
• Clarity through documentation: Keep a living record of commitments, progress, and outcomes.
• Balance through realistic allocation: Protect your team from taking on overlapping deliverables. It's not heroic to be overallocated—it's counterproductive.
• Technology as an enabler: Use digital tools to automate tracking and reduce administrative drag.

Ultimately, leadership today is about creating the conditions where both time and energy are used wisely.

Conclusion: Reclaiming Control and Flow

The message from Who's Got the Monkey? remains timeless—keep ownership with those who own the work. By integrating TAsking and addressing resource overallocation, modern leaders can finally fix one of the most persistent problems in management: overloaded managers and jammed-up teams.

Protect your time. Respect your team's capacity. And ensure every monkey stays where it belongs.

Essential insight from Engwall & Jerbrant's “The Resource Allocation Syndrome in Multi-Project Environments”:

In other words, fixing the jammed state of project delivery requires executive-level commitment to reforming how resources are assigned, prioritised, and protected. Only then can managers and teams truly work at a sustainable pace and deliver consistent value.