No time for quality

Abstract

Purpose

This investigation focusses on the mechanisms that obstruct an organization’s ability to develop. The purpose of this paper is to focus on short-term phenomena, which occurs during an organization’s general development process.

Design/methodology/approach

The key resources in the development process include time and knowledge availability. The amount of the resources is one of basic factors of development effectiveness. From the “problems cleaner” equation, it follows that effectiveness depends on time, within which tasks are to be completed.

Findings

There are a set of generic circumstances that produce specific organizational behaviors, referred to as the “culture of hurrying.” These circumstances are based on the natural expectation that organizational function is recovered as soon as possible after a failure occurs. The pathology begins when hurrying becomes a basic way to compensate for the effects of the failure, without eliminating its mechanisms. The culture of hurrying affects the organization’s ability to develop. Consequently, the conditions that stimulate the “culture of hurrying” to grow are formulated.

Originality/value

Organizations managed by objectives provide examples of the culture of hurrying. On the other hand, organizations that adopt lean management illustrate how to escape from the culture of hurrying. This investigation shows that attitudes in favor of the culture of hurrying are related to the organization’s strategy.

Citation

Myszewski, J.M. (2015), "No time for quality", The TQM Journal, Vol. 27 No. 4, pp. 435-449. https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-01-2015-0014