Success factors of knowledge management in temporary organizations

The prevalence of temporary forms of cooperation and project-based work is increasing. Likewise, the knowledge-intensity of work contents is growing. However, the unique and temporary nature of projects and programs does not support knowledge transfer from, between and within projects.This research aims at spotting success factors of knowledge management in temporary organizations. Based on a cross-industry sample with 414 organizations, we apply the partial least square (PLS) method to test the influence of cultural, organizational, structural, and process-related factors on knowledge management effectiveness.Besides IT-support and formal elements of the organization, it is cultural factors that strongly influence knowledge management success. In temporary organizations they compensate for the lack of organizational routines and organizational memory. Our results contribute to a more differentiated understanding of knowledge management in project environments.     

The management of project management: A conceptual framework for project governance

For an organization to create optimal value from its investment in projects there must be a clear link between the outputs created by the projects and the requirements of the organization's business strategy. This means that organizations that have a structure in place for aligning the project deliverables with their organizational goals will be better placed to realize their investment in projects, and achieve the value defined by their business strategies. This paper examines existing research, ideas and concepts of project governance and enterprise project management, and offers a framework to build on current theory development and practice. Synthesizing existing literature of project/program management, governance and portfolio management, this paper proposes four key elements to improve the performance of projects and hence create value for organizations. These four elements are (1) portfolio management: focused on selecting the right projects and programs to support the organization's strategy, and terminating ones that no longer contribute to the business success of the organization; (2) project sponsorship: providing the direct link between the executive and the project or program manager, focused on the whole project lifecycle; (3) Project Management Office (PMO): providing oversight and strategic reporting capabilities; (4) projects and program support: the effective support and management of projects and programs are the measures of an effective governance system. The purpose of the framework described in this paper is to provide guidance to organizations in the development of effective project governance to optimize the management of projects.     

Ambidextrous strategy and execution in entrepreneurial project-oriented organizations: The case of Pagani supercars

This research explores the dynamics underpinning entrepreneurial project-oriented organizations. Specifically, it focuses on how strategy and execution by projects are managed and how ambidexterity – a firm's ability to exploit old certainties while exploring new possibilities – operates as a logic. The empirical findings from an explorative longitudinal research of supercar maker Pagani Automobili in the period 2007–2019, offer an insight of a complex entrepreneurially led project-oriented organization and suggest three integrative mechanisms that describe the ambidextrous management of the interplay within and between strategy and project levels. Additionally, this research recognizes the critical role of projects also in entrepreneurial environments and suggests that the accomplishment of ambidexterity is unique in nature as it is aimed at reconciling the uniqueness of competitive propositions and that of projects within a unique entrepreneurial environment, opening avenues for more theoretical and empirical studies at the intersection of project management and entrepreneurship.     

Reprint of: From open innovation projects to open innovation project management capabilities: A process-based approach

How do organizations use the experience from projects to build a systematic capability to manage open innovation projects? Drawing upon Project Management and Open Innovation capability-building frameworks, we studied the crusade of an industrial company to create an open innovation capability. In that sense, we applied an Event Structure Analysis (ESA) to evaluate the event network, which evidenced a four-stage process: closed mode, open driver, vanguard project, project-to-organization. Results demonstrate, from causal connections, that the referred capability can be leveraged from the execution of key projects, especially from a vanguard project. Our study contributes to Project Management theory by reveling that previous experiences in both project and organizational levels offer a fertile ground for the emergence of a vanguard project. For the open innovation field, this paper provides a project-oriented approach to the discussion of open innovation's adoption in mature firms.     

Change program management: Toward a capability for managing value-oriented,integrated multi-project change in its context

Program management has taken its position in project management research and in public and private organizations as a successful method for managing complex, uncertain, and large-scale changes. During the past 25 years, research has evolved from programs as the conceptual extension of projects to a rich field of empirical studies reflecting the special natures and contexts of change programs and their management, with unique theoretical foundations. To take stock of this recent history, in this article we analyze the patterns of previous empirical studies on change program management and their theoretical foundations. The goal is to identify and summarize proposals to guide forthcoming program management research. The results reveal three main themes of ongoing research: managing over the change program lifecycle, managing programs in their context, and program managers' capabilities. The roots of change program management in organization theories are apparent; structural contingency theory and information processing theories have dominated in previous empirical research, but are clearly being extended to agency, stakeholder, and actor-network theories. New research ideas are proposed for the use of programs in various types of changes, value creation and delivery through change programs, the profiles and capabilities of different actors in program management, the coexistence and interplay of multiple programs, and the complex stakeholder networks involved with change programs. When change becomes more prevalent in the organizations' dynamic contexts, there is an increasing need to develop program management toward an organizational capability for managing value-oriented, integrated, and multi-project change in complex stakeholder contexts.     

施工企业项目化管理的组织运行模式研究

施工企业的发展在很大程度上与其管理方式密切相关。采用项目化管理模式,健全项目化管理组织运行模式成为施工企业发展的关键。根据施工企业项目化管理模式和组织结构形式,结合项目化管理组织机构,设计其组织运行模式。应用时效质量熵模型对组织结构效能进行评价。并对一施工企业实证进行项目化管理组织运行模式的评价。评价结果表明,项目化管理组织运行模式效率更高。     

From open innovation projects to open innovation project management capabilities: A process-based approach

How do organizations use the experience from projects to build a systematic capability to manage open innovation projects? Drawing upon Project Management and Open Innovation capability-building frameworks, we studied the crusade of an industrial company to create an open innovation capability. In that sense, we applied an Event Structure Analysis (ESA) to evaluate the event network, which evidenced a four-stage process: closed mode, open driver, vanguard project, project-to-organization. Results demonstrate, from causal connections, that the referred capability can be leveraged from the execution of key projects, especially from a vanguard project. Our study contributes to Project Management theory by reveling that previous experiences in both project and organizational levels offer a fertile ground for the emergence of a vanguard project. For the open innovation field, this paper provides a project-oriented approach to the discussion of open innovation's adoption in mature firms.     

Foundations of program management: A bibliometric view

Are programs just scale-ups of projects, or do they represent something unique? Recent articles stress the difference of project and program management, but do neither show consensus nor precise definitions of program management. Our comparative bibliometric study of 517 program articles and 1164 project articles published in the last 21 years in leading scientific business journals identifies similarities and differences in theoretical foundations, indicated by the sources cited, and themes, indicated by the keywords. We show that programs have several theoretical bases, such as organizational theories, strategy, product development, manufacturing and change. Programs take an open system view and seek change in permanent organizations. Projects, in turn, have product development as the dominant theory basis. We elaborate eleven distinctive characteristics of program and project management research. Our study proposes themes upon which future theories and empirical studies of programs can be established.     

The integrative role of the project management office in the front end of innovation

This research addresses management control in the front end of innovation projects. We conceptualize and analyze PMOs more broadly than just as a specialized project-focused organizational unit. Building on theories of management control, organization design, and innovation front end literature, we assess the role of PMO as an integrative arrangement. The empirical material is derived from four companies. The results show a variety of management control mechanisms that can be considered as integrative organizational arrangements. Such organizational arrangements can be considered as an alternative to a non-existent PMO, or to complement a (non-existent) PMO's tasks. The paper also contrasts prior literature by emphasizing the desirability of a highly organic or embedded matrix structure in the organization. Finally, we propose that the development path of the management approach proceeds by first emphasizing diagnostic and boundary systems (with mechanistic management approaches) followed by intensive use of interactive and belief systems (with value-based management approaches). The major contribution of this paper is in the organizational and managerial mechanisms of a firm that is managing multiple innovation projects. This research also expands upon the existing PMO research to include a broader management control approach for managing projects in companies.     

Doing strategy in project-based organizations: Actors and patterns of action

In the project management literature, projects have often been conceptualized as mere implementation sites of organizational strategy. However, such rationalization seldom draws on empirical evidence of strategy as it unfolds at the micro-level and at the interfaces between projects and the organization. Drawing on rich case-study data, this article explores strategy as-it-is-practiced in a large project-based organization. Using a Strategy-as-Practice lens to identify key patterns of strategizing actions, we found that project mind-sets and skill-sets afforded project actors legitimacy to act as strategists on all organizational levels. Project actualities therefore broadly shape strategy in the organization, and play a much larger role in organizational strategizing than typically portrayed in the literature. The findings are used to suggest new perspectives regarding who are strategists and what strategy is in project-based organizations, and outline new directions for a revitalized research agenda on strategy in the project-management field.     

Technological competence leveraging projects via intermediaries: Viable means to outbound open innovation and mediated capability building?

Aiming at reaping the benefits of open innovation, a growing number of organizations utilizes innovation intermediaries as external facilitators. However, the effectiveness of such intermediaries, especially in outbound open innovation, such as leveraging existing technologies in new market opportunities, remains unclear. We aim to investigate if and how externally conducted technological competence leveraging (TCL) projects provide value to the focal organization. Based on interviews with key personnel and analysis of reports from such projects conducted in the course of several research consortia at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, we find that the projects were successful in identifying new application fields. Further, the externally conducted projects also contributed to the development of TCL-related project capabilities within the focal organization. This research also identifies a number of barriers to short- and long-term success such as lack of a company-internal perspective and project owners without management responsibilities.     

Rethinking organizational design for managing multiple projects

This paper aims at positioning organizational design as an important phenomenon in the field of project management with a high potential of contributing to organizational theory. While organizational design has been neglected by scholars of management and organizational theory, it has been of great interest to those from the project management field. This incongruence—comprising the focus of this study—calls for new insights on theorization in context. The paper provides a preliminary theoretical framework combining contingency theory, the historical approach and social theory to understand organizational design, both as a thing and as a process. It provides empirical evidence from three case studies in healthcare. Findings confirm the specificity of each design while at the same time adopting a similar temporal pattern. We take this opportunity to highlight the seminal work of Rodney Turner on project-based organization and design.

Organizational climate in large-scale projects in the oil and gas industry: A competing values perspective

The aim of the present study was to identify central dimensions and develop a model of organizational climate in large-scale project organizations in the oil and gas industry. Interviews with 18 employees (15 men, 3 women) in a project organization in the Norwegian oil and gas industry were content-analyzed on two models: The global instrument, the Organizational Climate Measure (OCM) based on the Competing Values Framework, and the domain-specific instrument, Project People Survey (PPS). The findings indicate that a climate characterized by a strong focus on a) communication and cooperation with actors in the external environment such as vendors, and b) internal cooperation and communication with other projects and with the line organization, is perceived as critical to success in large-scale projects in the oil and gas industry. We propose a new model called the Organizational Climate Measure for Large-Scale Project Organizations in the Oil and Gas Industry (OCMP).     

Project governance interface and owner organizational identity: The Venice Biennale case

There is a considerable body of work on managing the governance interface in project organizing, yet there has been little consideration of how the organizational identity of the project owner might shape the design of that interface. This is important because organizational identity is known to shape various aspects of project organizing, such as how an organization is perceived by team members, so we might expect it also influence the performance of projects. We explore this question through a case study of how the Venice Biennale owner organization governs one of its temporary project events – the 2019 Venice International Film Festival. Through our empirical fieldwork, based on multiple data sources including a participant ethnography of the 76th Venice International Film Festival and semi-structured interviews, we found that the organizational identity of the project owner organization influences choices made for the governance of a delivery project. The study contributes to theory on project organizing by highlighting the importance of owner organizational identity for the design of the governance interface in project organizing and identifying the importance of an interpersonal approach to governance interface design for an owner organization with an identify of innovation and experimentation on its delivery projects.     

The unlearning dimension of organizational learning in construction projects

It has been suggested that contracting organizations in construction projects do not seem to adapt resiliently under changing market conditions. Interestingly, recent organizational management literature reveals the essential role of practicing unlearning for generating more resilient performance improvement actions. This paper reports on a study that aims to test empirically the contingent effect of unlearning on the relationship between organizational learning (OL) and organizational success. A conceptual model which depicts the hypothesized relationship among OL, unlearning and organizational success is presented. Data were obtained from a questionnaire survey. To test the conceptual model, Pearson Correlation Analysis and Multiple Moderated Regression Analysis were employed. The study hypothesized that interaction between the practice of OL and unlearning have a moderating effect on organizational success. The hypothesis was only partially supported by the results of the MMR analysis. Only the practice of double-loop learning was found to be symbiotic with the practice of unlearning for achieving organizational success. The effect was found to be more significant when organizational success was evaluated in terms of meeting the client's expectations on project cost.     

工程项目可持续管理中的二元组织构造

研究了传统项目管理组织与工程项目可持续管理的不兼容性,构建了适用于工程项目可持续管理的二元项目管理组织。分析传统项目管理组织在工程项目整体管理组织中的局限,找出它与工程项目可持续管理不兼容的原因:项目管理参与者多元化导致项目管理目标多样化和动态化,进而在保证管理目标动态化的前提下将多元项目管理参与者压缩为二元,使多元化的管理目标随着管理主体的分类在项目整体组织中通过两条不同的目标管理渠道分别进行管理,并在宁夏石化炼油污水风机改造工段中建立二元项目管理组织进行实践     

A performance-based approach to project assignment and performance evaluation

Project assignment and performance evaluation have been addressed as two important and separate research issues in project management. This paper develops a new performance-based approach for integrating the project assignment and the performance evaluation processes in a project-based organization. An objective-oriented preference-based assignment process is developed to assign a project to a project manager. An optimal project assignment model is developed to maximize the total weighted contribution value of all new projects to the organizational objectives. An efficiency-based evaluation process is developed using data envelopment analysis to measure the relative performance efficiency of the completed projects and of the project managers. The approach provides a proactive mechanism for facilitating objective-focused management of projects. The outcomes of an empirical study conducted provide managerial insights in assigning projects to project managers and in evaluating the performance efficiency of both projects and project managers.     

Linking entrepreneurial orientation to project success

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) is a strategic posture of an organization, and it is related to basic policies and practices for the development of entrepreneurial actions looking for creating competitive advantages. This study develops and tests a model of the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and project success in Brazilian context. As quantitative research, a survey was used to collect data. A sample of 100 valid answers from project practitioners was treated through the structural equation modeling method. As research implications, the main result points out the positive correlation between the entrepreneurial orientation and the project success, contributing to the development of this research subject and helping to minimize the gap in the literature that addresses the relationship between project success and EO. In practical terms, understanding that innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, autonomy and competitive aggressiveness (the dimensions of the EO) can contribute to project success and can also indirectly impact on organizational performance, could help organizations get competitive advantage when developing correlate factors. Finally, the results suggest that practices of project management can be aligned to the firm's entrepreneurial orientation to enable firms to attain better results in their projects and generate a competitive advantage. On other hand, given the proportion of the impact of EO on project success (20.3%) identified in this study, it is critical that project management professionals expand their horizon to recognize other factors that affect project success.     

重大工程组织场域的结构化与变迁——以港珠澳大桥珠海口岸工程为例

从制度理论出发,分析整合组织种群间关系、制度逻辑系统、组织原型和集体行为等核心要素,尝试构建出重大工程组织场域的理论模型,基于模型探究了制度环境与组织间关系、组织行为的交互影响;并以港珠澳大桥珠海口岸工程为例实证分析了组织场域结构化和变迁过程。指出重大工程组织场域的动态变迁多,需要场域中各组织种群协同发挥能动作用,降低风险,提高绩效水平,实现重大工程可持续发展目标。研究结论也为项目组合和项目群研究提供了新思路。     

大型建筑工程总承包企业项目型跨组织的集成创新研究

在分析项目型跨组织知识流和集成创新关系的基础上,考虑项目型跨组织一次性、临时性的特点,从知识管理理论和系统理论两个角度构建了项目型跨组织集成的SECI 模型和三维模型,以及以知识获取、吸收、转移、共享、创造为内容的项目型跨组织知识流集成创新的知识管模型。通过知识管的知识互动以及临时型知识团队的整合,为项目型跨组织在项目实施过程中组织目标的协调、冲突的解决以及共享机制的建立提供了一个互动平台,使参与主体可以参与到整个网络中去,更好地促进组织间的相互信任和有效的沟通。