The major barriers of project quality improvement are as follows
General uncertainty:
Employees prefer the status-quo and do not like the uncertainty associated with changes. They feel uncertain about how these changes will affect them in general.
When changes are introduced, then they would need to face complexity afresh, which makes them anxious. Then, there are communication gaps with the managers.
Uncertainty over job performance:
Employees might fear how a change will impact their job performance. They might feel that they are not capable enough to meet the required challenges introduced by the change.
For example, an organization introduces a new technology to carry out processes. Its employees might develop a negative attitude towards it due to anxiety and fear that they might not be able to cope with the new technology.
Lack of involvement:
When employees are not involved in the improvement process, they remain dubious about the changes. This increases their anxiety level and reduces their commitment to necessary modifications. Thus, organizations should ensure that there is total employee participation before introducing any improvement process.
Lack of motivation:
Employees should be convinced about the need for change. If they are not convinced and forced to agree to the changes, their level of commitment and morale suffer.
Poorly motivated employees resist changes. The organization should clearly indicate to employees the need for change and how it is going to improve their jobs and organization.
Failure to commit resources:
An organization should support employees and provide them with adequate resources to enable them to better adapt to project quality improvement. If employees do not have sufficient resources, they might oppose the proposed changes.
Culture:
The existing culture of an organization might not be conducive to modifications, which acts as a barrier to improving quality. If the existing norms, values, and beliefs do not support the change, the organization cannot expect its employees to support it.
Lack of responsibility:
A general perception is that quality improvement is a responsibility of the quality department only. Organizations should educate employees that quality is everyone’s responsibility.
Although everyone contributes to project quality improvement, the project manager has the overall responsibility and authority for individual project quality. The management is responsible for improving quality of projects across the organization.
Focus on short-term goals:
Sometimes project managers have a misconception that project quality improvement is a costly exercise. So instead of long-term goals, they might focus on short-term objectives. These are strong barriers to project quality improvement.
