Managing inter-institutional projects: The significance of isochronism, timing norms and temporal misfits

Project studies and engaged scholarship

“…Today, PMOs are an essential part of most organization of project business. Studies have also advanced beyond the organisational level, and involved analyses of the global context of large projects (Scott et al 2011), the national institutional context hosting projects (Sydow & Staber 2002;Grabher 2002), and their related social networks (Manning & Sydow 2011), within and beyond organizations directly engaged in projects (Morris & Geraldi 2011;) and the nature of so-called interinstitutional projects (Dille & Söderlund 2011), and alternative approaches to guide their complex relationships (Walker & Lloyd-Walker 2015;Bresnen 2010). The latter highlights the fact that projects often span institutional boundaries, regulatory frameworks (Klakegg et al 2015), and organizational fields, which make it difficult for projects to uphold all-embracing legitimacy for what to produce, how to produce it, when to produce it, and who to involve (Brady et al 2006).…”

Temporality in Organization Studies: Implications for Strategic Project Management

“…Implications follow for project managers and project organizations [44]: Since projects differ, they cannot be seen as identical entities, thus should be analyzed, managed and organized differently, depending on the particular context, implying vertical as well as horizontal integration of practices, processes and performance criteria. Vertical integration refers to the alignment between the permanent and temporary parts of the organizations, where goals are often misaligned (i.e., long-term vs short-term) Horizontal integration, on the other hand, refers to the different time dimensions that occur within a project itself (i.e., cyclical vs linear), which need to be managed and addressed.…”

“…In other words, project managers and project organizations value time as a resource and as a performance measure that has a major impact on the execution of projects and the financial outcomes. Due to this objectified emphasis, project management research has predominantly emphasized chronos and neglected kairos or social time [44].…”

“…Dille and Söderlund [44] point out the importance of temporal issues that arise in inter-institutional projects. They point out that macro cycles set by dominant players or situations in such projects act as time givers (zeitgebers), to which other organizations in the project have to adapt; such times can be set by industry leaders or government entities through budget or audit cycles.…”

Continuity and change in interorganizational project practices: The Dutch shipbuilding industry, 1950–2010

“…Institutionalized practices consist of rules and resources that are produced and reproduced over time (Dille & Söderlund, 2011), shaping how organization members perceive the environment and guiding organizational behavior (Phillips, Lawrence, & Hardy, 2000).…”