The other day I was talking to one of the smartest people I know and we were discussing organizational inertia.
“It’s like that ladder at the church.”
To which I kindly and professionally responded,
“I’m sorry, the what at the where?”
Enter Wikipedia and the delightful story of one ladder, six denominations, a couple hundred years, and a formalized “Status Quo.”
Here we go…
High above the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, there’s a wooden ladder that hasn’t moved in centuries.
It rests against a window on the church’s facade, untouched. Not because it can’t be moved, but because no one will agree to move it.
Under what’s known as the “Status Quo,” six Christian denominations share control of the church. Nothing can be altered without unanimous consent. So the ladder stays. Over time, it has become less of a tool and more of a symbol, representing what happens when agreement is required but alignment is absent.
The history is interesting. But that’s not really the point.
The question is: What is your organization’s immovable ladder?
At first glance, the idea feels absurd. A ladder, stuck in place for centuries, because no one can agree? But it becomes a lot less amusing when you start to recognize the pattern.
Every organization has them.
They rarely look dramatic. More often, they’re subtle and deeply embedded. A policy that no longer reflects how the business actually operates. A process that continues out of habit, not necessity. A decision made years ago that has quietly hardened into, “This is how we’ve always done it.”
Over time, these choices stop being examined. They become inherited.
That’s when inertia takes hold.
Immovable ladders aren’t just operational. They’re cultural. They show up in how decisions get made, how quickly an organization responds to change, and how comfortable people feel challenging the norm. In some environments, the ladder is caution. In others, it’s speed without direction. Either way, it’s something that once served a purpose but is no longer being actively evaluated.
And that’s the real issue. Not that the ladder exists, but that it goes unquestioned.
Because once something becomes untouchable, it starts to shape behavior. Teams work around it. Leaders avoid it. New ideas are filtered through it. Eventually, it becomes part of the organization’s identity, even if no one can clearly articulate why it’s still there.
Market shifts have a way of exposing these blind spots. Growth, disruption, or even constraint can force organizations to take a closer look at what they’ve been carrying forward. What once felt fixed starts to look like a choice.
And often, it always was.
The most effective organizations aren’t the ones without immovable ladders. They’re the ones willing to identify them, challenge them, and, when necessary, move them.
Before the market forces the conversation, it’s worth asking it yourself:
What is your immovable ladder?