Polycronicity and speed in hypercompetitive industries: Strategy and performance

This research investigated the temporal components of organizational culture, polychronicity and speed, and their impact in hypercompetitive industries upon strategy and performance. The data was collected from 20 firms in two industries, one hypercompetitive and the other non-hypercompetitive, Several relationships were investigated: (1) the impact of polychronicity upon organizational performance; (2) the impact of speed in organizational culture upon organizational performance; and (3) the role that organizational culture plays in hypercompetitive and non-hypercompetitive industries, as related to firm performance. This research examines several new concepts that have not been examined fully in the strategy research stream. It was found that speed of activities in an organization is statistically associated with firm performance. However, this relationship appears to be opposite of that hypothesized. More firms with a high-speed culture experienced lower firm performance. Speed and polychronicity were also significantly correlated. This suggests that managers may need to rethink incorporating the capability of speed into the organization as a strategy