Influencing factors of horizontal leaders' role identity in projects: A sequential mixed method approach

Horizontal leadership is temporary and often short-term compared with vertical leadership. Therefore, the role identity of horizontal leaders' is more difficult to be legitimated. In this study, we investigated how different factors interact and work in concert to influence horizontal leaders' role identity (hereafter, HLs' role identity). A sequential mixed method approach was chosen to conduct this research. Twenty-four interviews were analysed, and we identified eleven influencing factors associated with HLs' role identity. Subsequently, a sample of 150 questionnaires was analysed by using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to ascertain the collective effect of different influencing factors on HLs' strong and weak role identities. The results showed that high job complexity, intrinsic rewards, self-efficacy and personal expectations were the necessary conditions for HLs' strong role identity. The lack of expectations of other team members was the only necessary condition that resulted in HLs' weak role identity. Based on the 13 configurations of HLs' strong and weak role identities that were obtained from this research, we formed an HLs' role identity model. It was found that the expectations of other project team members together with empowerment by project managers are the most common and effective ways to establish HLs' strong role identity. Through a comparison, experienced and less experienced team members take different paths towards a strong or weak role identity. The theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

How to go global: A transformative process model for the transition towards globally distributed software development projects

We employ design science research to develop a process model for the management of globally distributed software development (GDSD) projects. The model provides guidance for transforming established project frameworks in organizations to cope with additional challenges that a global project scale entails. The model integrates extant GDSD project management knowledge and makes it actionable for project managers, especially those with limited GDSD experience. The model was evaluated and found to be effective in transforming an actual GDSD project with teams in Germany, Poland, and India. Interviews with project managers with and without GDSD experience support the model's wider applicability to other contexts and IT project types. The model can also be used in GDSD project retrospectives to identify areas for improvement. In a research perspective, our model constitutes a novel type and instance of a social meta-artefact intended to transform existing social artefacts to retain their usefulness in evolving contexts.     

Simplified approach for prediction of nonlinear response of bored pile embedded in sand

Based on the ‘t-z method’, this paper presents a simplified approach to analyzing the nonlinear response of a single bored pile embedded in sand. The lateral pile-sand interaction of the pile shaft is modeled using the cylindrical cavity expansion theory, and the axial load-settlement behavior of the pile base is analyzed using the spherical cavity expansion theory. The softening model and hyperbolic model are employed to describe the strain-softening and strain-hardening behavior, respectively, of the axial pile-sand interaction observed in elemental tests. The constrained shear-dilatancy response near the pile shaft and the particle-crushing behavior beneath the pile base are subsequently incorporated into the parameters of the present load-transfer models. Using the proposed load-transfer functions, an efficient iterative program is then developed to predict the nonlinear response of a single bored pile embedded in sand. Comparisons of the responses of the bored pile embedded in sand demonstrate that the present calculated results are generally in good agreement with the well-documented observations and the computed results derived from other approaches. A parametric study is also carried out to assess the influence of some key parameters related to the proposed model on the load-displacement response of a single bored pile embedded in sand.