Hall-way chats are an inefficiency to operations management
One of the things that is often overlooked is the fact that what we perceive as "day-to-day business" is indeed operations management.
Looking at it this way, it usually becomes obvious how much waste there is in "day-to-day business" - hallway chats, non-business phone calls, etc.
Are these activities something that should be calculated into a business plan and the company recognize that it absorbs the cost.