Rethinking Project Management: Researching the actuality of projects

Abstract

This paper puts forth the somewhat controversial position that what is needed to improve project management in practice is not more research on what should be done or the frequency and/or use of traditional project management practices. We argue that while a great deal is written about traditional project management we know very little about the ''actuality'' of project based working and management. This paper formulates a research approach that takes seriously practitioner's lived experience of projects. We explore the ontological, epistemological and methodological assumptions underlying this kind of research and provide examples of some project management research originating from this perspective. We conclude by summarizing the findings from these studies and providing insights into the map ahead for future such research. In this kind of work the attention is refocused on praxis, on context-dependent judgement, on situational ethics and on reflexivity which enables social actors to see how power actually functions in context.

Embracing emergence: problem solving on complex projects

“…The aim of this research was to explore lived experience or empirical reality of projects as outlined in actuality research (Cicmil et al 2006) in order to provide insight into how project managers make sense of, and respond to, problems within the dominant narrative framework.…”

“…There has been criticism of mainstream research into projects and project management in the past for its heavy reliance on the functionalist view of projects and organizations (Blomquist et al 2010;Cicmil et al 2006;de Bakker, Boonstra & Wortmann 2010). This control theory approach views project management as "the accomplishment of some finite piece of work in a specified period of time, within a certain budget, and to agreed specification (which is, in turn, a conventional definition of a project)" (Cicmil et al 2006, p. 677).…”

“…However, proponents of project actuality reject the view of projects as pro-forma (Blomquist et al 2010;Cicmil et al 2006), instead believing them to be constituted by "the actions of interdependent actors through the process of power and conversational relating" and through engaging in sense-making processes (Cicmil et al 2006, p. 677).…”

“…It focuses on the empirical reality of project work, creating knowledge which is relevant to practice by exploring neglected themes from practitioners' experiences, including complexity, nonlinearity, values, multiple perspectives and social processes in project environments (Cicmil et al 2006). Actuality research was the foundation for this research to explore the lived experience of six project managers in the international development sector (IDS) or, expressed colloquially, "what is actually going on" in projects (Cicmil et al 2006, p. 676).…”

“…Actuality research (Cicmil et al 2006), with its focus on lived experience and its base in complex social processes and project complexity, provided the foundation for the praxis study. The storytelling diamond model (Rosile et al 2013) was used to select appropriate methodological approaches, and data analysis was undertaken using NVivo software.…”