Drive Thru!

Have you ever wondered where did quality relationships go? Why are people so superficial, judgmental and shallow today? Where have philosophical people gone? Even the books available in the market, the majority of them are commercial, where did quality go in our lives? .. Are we in a hassle for everything? and in everything we do? Are we expecting results in business too quickly? Are we making premature decisions?

Are we living our lives in a drive thru queue?

The rule of Quality

I remember the good old days, where I used to ask my grandmother “What are we going to have today for lunch?”, and then she used to say “Let’s visit the farm and see what is ready” .. The whole gang of grand sons and daughters used to enjoy going together, picking veggies and fruits and preparing for the lunch from morning time .. Lots of laughs, lots of activities and also few falls, bumps and bruises on the way ..

I then compare this to how we are today … not speaking of the food quality, because it is already known, but to what is behind it … think deep ..

Are we obsessed with risk management? Are we being too careful? Is it because we are busy running, and running? Are we losing the value of quality in our lives? .. Let’s look at those three dimensions carefully .. Risk, Speed and Quality

1. The “Risk” obsession

With the growth of science of project management, managers across the world became obsessed with risk management, mainly trying their best to avoid risk, forgetting that big part of risk management is actually around mitigating risk, and also controlling risk, but not preventing risk alone ..

Another part of risk management obsession, is that it calculates the material risk, and spreads that into matrices and tables, then evaluates priorities based on impact, probability and proximity of risk .. but what about the non-material risk? Are we calculating that in the same manner?

What is the impact of the risk of not seeing your family again? What is the impact of not hearing the voice of your father anymore? How about the impact of missing a prayer? or time to meditate? The risk of losing your best friend?.. Are we really serious about risk management? or just focusing on what we can measure in order to apply scientific equations and work procedures?

Probably one thing about academia today, is that they will always teach you what to apply at work, and rarely reflect on how science should impact life as a whole …., which is why science from the first place was created ..

2. SPEED Obsession

“High speed internet”, “Fast check-in”, “Express Service” … and all sorts of “Do it fast” signs are brilliant for us .. isn’t that correct? Aren’t we all attracted by speed some how? ..But why is that? .. Again, think deeply and reflect … is it because we truly appreciate the value of time? or is it because we are in a race with others to catch up with life obligations? Is there a link between both or are they two different directions? .. Let’s reflect a bit …

If we truly know the value of time, then we will plan it ahead, and mitigate any possible wasters to ensure we use every minute.. For example .. we would take along a book while we are expected to stand in a queue to use the time in reading, or plan a phone call (while waiting) to a dear friend or relative to also make use of the time .. So the rule of knowing the value of something is basically “Planning” to ensure we use this value in the best possible way ..

Oppositely, when someone is in a race, they are in continuous contingency and can’t plan ahead properly .. so they will be more reactive than proactive and will tend to look around for solutions focusing on moving ahead and faster with their plans, rather than focusing on possibilities or other alternatives .. It is simply focusing on efficiency rather than effectiveness ..

So which ones are we? .. How much focus are we giving to efficiency Vs effectiveness?

3. Quality & Standards Obsession

While the majority of organizations, and individuals are obsessed with quality standardization, it is just fair to challenge this race for quality certification by reflecting on the root behind it .. whether it was for “real quality” or “Business success” .. Again, many business people will argue that they are linked .. .. Reflect once more for a minute ..

We speak “quality”, yet eat “junk” food … We speak “Safety” yet allow “smoking zones” neglecting that scientific research (coming from labs that are ISO certified by the way) confirm all that smoking “Kills” .. What’s worse, in safety procedures, than losing a life then? Are we really serious?

Don’t be surprised if you get to know that the majority of tobacco companies have ISO certification for quality of manufacturing, and the majority of junk food processors, that cause all sorts of obesity and cardiac problems also have ISO certifications .. but does ISO mean quality? Are we too obsessed by the certification and neglecting the final product?

Be true to yourself … did your grandmother’s food taste better or today’s junk food? Did our grand parents ever apply for ISO? …. Let’s face the fact … Quality certification doesn’t by any means relate to quality products .. it is just satisfying an individual, and business greed to show the world that we have great processes, even if the processes at the end produce poison, junk, or sewage!

While academics will teach you in business, or engineering schools that project management is all about managing time, cost and quality, please don’t forget to reflect this fact on your life ..

Faster means that you need to compromise on cost or quality, and in today’s life, we are not properly calculating the costs of non-material losses .. We are too obsessed by processes, focusing on efficiencies and pushing our engines to move as fast as possible, celebrating material achievements, while on the route to the business success, we are all throwing away priceless moments and we are not being true to our principles ..

Time, cost and quality are all values, not business concepts .. if we truly believe in the value of time, the value of resources and the value of true quality, then it is time for us to sit, reflect, and plan how to use our resources to the best, and also define for ourselves what quality means, and how to achieve this in our lives …

Written by:

Engagement Expert, International Speaker & Pragmatic researcher