Managing complex projects in the infrastructure sector — A structural equation model for flexibility-focused project management

Eriksson, Per-Erik; Larsson, Johan; Pesämaa, Ossi

doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2017.08.015

Cited by 85 publications

(81 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…However, previous studies have revealed that complex construction and infrastructure projects are often plagued by cost and time overruns [41,42]. Hence, numerous studies have investigated causes of these overruns and found evidence that traditional project management approaches are inappropriate in these inter-organizational and complex endeavors [15]. The traditional approach involves control-focused practices based on competitive procurement procedures and extensive planning, with subsequent control and surveillance during implementation [5].…”

Section: Collaboration In Construction Projectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Considering and respecting potential interests of stakeholders is essential in the management of any project, but especially large projects, such as infrastructure projects, that are often complex and inter-organizational [8,15]. As sustainability becomes more important for project success, the numbers of stakeholders that must be coordinated and engaged in project processes are increasing [1].…”

Section: Collaboration As Part Of Sustainable Project Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Integration, Application and Importance of Collaboration in Sustainable Project Management

Larsson¹,

Larsson²

2019

Preprint

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The need to consider sustainability has substantially increased the complexity of implementing construction and infrastructure projects and new management practices have emerged during the past decade to tackle the global sustainability challenges, where the engagement and coordination of broader competences from stakeholders throughout the supply chain is required. This new project management paradigm has been accompanied by greater attention to the concept of collaborative business arrangements, often called partnering, that has emerged in construction and infrastructure projects to improve project deliveries. However, there are uncertainties about the optimal strategy to foster, integrate and maintain the required collaboration, particularly in sustainable management practices in infrastructure maintenance projects. This paper addresses these uncertainties, based on a single case study of an infrastructure maintenance contract involving an extensive collaborative business arrangement. The findings reveal that different collaborative practices affect diverse aspects of sustainable project management. Further, the extensive collaborative business arrangement has promoted sustainable deliveries based upon organizational learning and continuous improvements. Thus, this study offers an encouraging example of how extensive collaboration can be fostered and play a key role in sustainable project management practices.

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Section: Collaboration In Construction Projectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Collaboration As Part Of Sustainable Project Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integration, Application and Importance of Collaboration in Sustainable Project Management

Larsson¹,

Larsson²

2019

Preprint

Self Cite

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“…In the infrastructure sector, complex projects seem to ask for a different management approach, characterized by flexibility rather than the more traditional predict and control [34,35]. A more flexible project management approach includes the facilitation of collaboration, explorative learning, and adaptation and was shown to positively influence project performance of complex projects [36]. Instead of focusing on reducing project complexity, "playing with complexity" could be considered [6].…”

Section: Differences and Similarities: Opportunities For Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing Project Complexity across Different Industry Sectors

2018

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Increasing complexity of projects is mentioned as one of the reasons for project failure—still. This paper presents a comparative research to investigate how project complexity was perceived by project practitioners in different industry sectors. Five sectors were included: process industry, construction industry, ICT, high-tech product development, and food processing industry. In total, more than 140 projects were included in the research, hence providing a broad view on Dutch project practice. From the complexity assessments, it is concluded that only one complexity element was present in the top complexity elements of projects across the five sectors: the high project schedule drive. The variety of external stakeholders’ perspectives, a lack of resources and skills availability, and interference with existing site were found in the top lists of three sectors. It was concluded that a framework to grasp project complexity could support the management of complex projects by creating awareness for the (expected) complexities. Further research could be focused on the subjective character of complexity as well as on the application of cross-sector learning, since this research does show similarities between large technical projects in different sectors.

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“…In order to achieve project efficiency, specific approaches must be adopted in complex projects, aimed at strengthening the ability to assimilate and apply new and relevant knowledge, learning from past experience so as to understand which behaviours can positively drive project's performance (Papke-Shields and Boyer-Wright, 2017; Heravi and Gholami, A, 2018;Eriksson et al, 2017). For instance, it has been recently demonstrated that good HRM practices can strengthen the positive relationship between absorptive capacity and project's performance (Popaitoon and Siengthai, 2014) and that, more specifically, the presence of absorptive capacity at the teamlevel can partially offset the effect of complex projects' peculiarities on their cost and time performance (Bjorvatn and Wald, 2018).…”

Section: Waste In Complex Projectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping wastes in complex projects for Lean Product Development

Belvedere

Cuttaia

Rossi

et al. 2019

International Journal of Project Management

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Lean Product Development (LPD) is suggested as an approach that can reduce waste in projects aimed at developing technically complex items, which typically present substantial uncertainty about their output, as well as higher costs and longer development times. However, how can LPD be implemented in complex projects, where some redundancies in the development process are considered necessary in order to guarantee the quality of the final outcome? This paper answers this question, through a survey conducted at INAF, the Italian Institute of Astrophysics, that runs complex projects. The evidence shows that complex projects can actually be affected by the types of waste reported in LPD literature. Still, researchers may fail to determine the real priorities of intervention as they have trouble distinguishing between value-adding and value-destroying activities. Furthermore, they do not perceive the relevance of addressing the wastes generated by their own work; on the contrary, they place considerable attention on inefficiencies that are beyond the scope of their direct responsibilities. Recommendations to overcome this problem are proposed.

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Managing complex projects in the infrastructure sector — A structural equation model for flexibility-focused project management

Cited by 85 publications

References 72 publications

Integration, Application and Importance of Collaboration in Sustainable Project Management

Integration, Application and Importance of Collaboration in Sustainable Project Management

Comparing Project Complexity across Different Industry Sectors

Mapping wastes in complex projects for Lean Product Development

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