The insane part is that a startup has bureaucracy, not that code is in a RDBMS.
People tend to disagree on what should or shouldn't be able to do. Should a developer be able to release code to production servers? Should a developer be able to change the database schema? Should a developer be able to access the database tables through an ORM or ad-hoc SQL or must everything go through stored procedures?
A healthier way to look at process is that it's about facilitation, not control.
The alternative to fixed rules, is to discuss issues and tradeoffs, and trust developers to make good decisions based on knowledge.
I would add to that, "give individuals enough room to make mistakes that everyone, especially themselves, can learn from"