March PMJ 2009

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March 2009
Volume 40, Number 1
4 Project Management Models as Value Creators

Pernille Eskerod and Eva Riis
19 Project Management Improvement Efforts—Creating Project
Management Value By Uniqueness or Mainstream Thinking?
Erling S. Andersen and Anne Live Vaagaasar
28 The Value of Project Management to Organizations in Canada and
Germany, or Do Values Add Value? Five Case Studies
Thomas Mengel, Kathy Cowan-Sahadath, and Fiedbert Follert
42 Exploring the Role of Steering Committees in Realizing Value From
Project Management
Thomas G. Lechler and Martin Cohen
55 Building Value Through Sustainable Project Management Offices
Mimi Hurt and Janice L. Thomas
73 Government and Governance: The Value of Project Management in
the Public Sector
Lynn H. Crawford and Jane Helm
88 Understanding the Adoption of Project Management in Serbian
Organizations: Insights From an Exploratory Study
Svetlana Cicmil, Zoran Dordević, and Sasa Zivanovic
99 Understanding the Value of Project Management From a
Stakeholder's Perspective: Case Study of Mega-Project
Management
Li Zhai, Yanfei Xin, and Chaosheng Cheng
110 Project Management Systems: Moving Project Management From
an Operational to a Strategic Discipline
Terence J. Cooke-Davies, Lynn H. Crawford, and Thomas G. Lechler
124 Exploring the Dynamics of Value and Fit: Insights From Project
Management
Mark Mullaly and Janice L. Thomas
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Project Management Journal ■ Volume 40, Number 1 ■ March 2009
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MARCH 2009
Volume 40, Number 1
The Professional Research Journal of the Project Management Institute
2 Guest Editorial
Janice L. Thomas, PhD, and Mark Mullaly, PMP
PAPERS
4 Project Management Models as Value Creators
Pernille Eskerod and Eva Riis
19 Project Management Improvement Efforts—Creating Project Management Value By Uniqueness

or Mainstream Thinking?
Erling S. Andersen and Anne Live Vaagaasar
28 The Value of Project Management to Organizations in Canada and Germany, or Do Values

Add Value? Five Case Studies
Thomas Mengel, Kathy Cowan-Sahadath, and Fiedbert Follert
42 Exploring the Role of Steering Committees in Realizing Value From Project Management
Thomas G. Lechler and Martin Cohen
55 Building Value Through Sustainable Project Management Offices

Mimi Hurt and Janice L. Thomas
73 Government and Governance: The Value of Project Management in the Public Sector
Lynn H. Crawford and Jane Helm
88 Understanding the Adoption of Project Management in Serbian Organizations: Insights
From an Exploratory Study
Svetlana Cicmil, Zoran Dordević, and Sasa Zivanovic
99 Understanding the Value of Project Management From a Stakeholder's Perspective: Case Study
of Mega-Project Management
Li Zhai, Yanfei Xin, and Chaosheng Cheng
110 Project Management Systems: Moving Project Management From an Operational

to a Strategic Discipline
Terence J. Cooke-Davies, Lynn H. Crawford, and Thomas G. Lechler
124 Exploring the Dynamics of Value and Fit: Insights From Project Management
Mark Mullaly and Janice L. Thomas
136 Cover to Cover—Book Reviews

Kenneth H. Rose, PMP
140 Calendar of Events
142 Project Management Journal Guidelines
March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal 1

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Guest Editorial
Janice L. Thomas, PhD, and Mark Mullaly, PMP
Explorations of Value: Perspectives of the Value

of Project Management
Over 4 years ago, the Project Management Institute data collected by a number of the individual data-collec-
(PMI) initiated a research project titled “Researching tion teams. The full study involved 65 case-study organi-
the Value of Project Management.” The project, which zations from 14 countries on 5 continents. The case stud-
came to be known fondly as the Value Project to all ies represented in the articles in this issue are based in a
involved, began as a discussion between two researchers range of countries, including Australia, Canada, China,
in a café in a small town in rural Alberta in July 2004. Denmark, Germany, Norway, Serbia, and the United
Ultimately, it grew to involve 48 academic volunteers States. One study focuses on an in-depth analysis of a
within the core team, as well as 17 case-study research single case (Zhai et al.), while most provide a small-scale,
teams on four continents around the world over a period multicase analysis of all the cases collected by a case-
of almost 4 years. If nothing else, the management chal- study team or set of researchers (Andersen & Vaagaasar;
lenges associated with such a large and complex research Cicmil et al.; Cooke-Davies et al.; Crawford & Helm;
project would be interesting for this audience; it is cer- Eskerod & Riis; Hurt & Thomas; Lechler & Cohen; Mengel
tainly not easy managing a research project of this scale, et al.). The final article provides a broad cross-case analy-
which requires the development of strategies to address sis of all 65 cases (Mullaly & Thomas). These articles
volunteer participants and multiple time zones, lan- cover the gamut of project management organizations,
guages, and cultures. Engaging though these stories are, from mega-projects through entrepreneurial start-ups,
they are discussions that we will leave for another article high technology through local government, and include
or issue. Here, we explore, through multiple perspectives consideration of research and development, service,
and through the lenses of many gifted researchers, the construction, and engineering organizations.
different views that have emerged on the value that proj- Ultimately, each article explores the value of project
ect management delivers to organizations. management in a unique and informative manner
The project officially ended with the delivery and pub- through the application of a variety of theoretical and
lication of the major findings of the study in the mono- empirical lenses. The articles in this issue are grouped by
graph “Researching the Value of Project Management,” concept. The first three articles deal most explicitly with
published by PMI in October 2008. Even in a manuscript how project management delivers value by facilitating the
of over 500 pages, only so many of the total findings of the human side of managing projects. Eskerod and Riis
study could be reported. This thematic issue of the Project describe the value of project management in terms of the
Management Journal is meant to highlight some of the efficiency, legitimacy, power and control, and satisfaction
additional research insights generated by the case-study generated through the use of common project manage-
research teams. Each case-study research team was tasked ment models. Andersen and Vaagaasar examine the
with collecting a full set of common data from its unique debate over whether value is best derived by implement-
set of case studies, as well as further contributing to our ing mainstream project management thinking or invest-
understanding of value by applying their own unique ing in developing unique approaches custom fit to the
interest lens to the study of this data and any additional needs of the organizations. The focus of their discussion
data they collected to further their own independent is on the value that project management delivers through
analysis. The articles included in this issue reflect a subset improved communication. Mengel et al. study the value
of these varied analyses and point to the breadth and that particular human values embedded in project man-
value of the dataset collected as it contributes not only to agement implementations deliver to organizations.
our understanding of the value of project management, The second set of articles explores the role of differ-
but also to project management practice in general. ent structural components of project management in
In total, we selected 10 articles from those submitted delivering project management value to organizations.
for consideration for this special issue. These 10 articles Lechler and Cohen explore the role of a particular orga-
are all qualitative studies based on analysis of case-study nizational structure (steering committees) in assisting
project management to deliver value to organizations.
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 2–3
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute Published online in Wiley
Hurt and Thomas seek to understand how the project
InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20100 management office structure delivers sustainable value
2 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

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to an organization—with the emphasis on sustainable— management in organizations? (see Hurt & Thomas;
by applying the concepts of Collins (Collins, 2001; Mengel et al.)
Collins & Porras, 1994) to help understand the creation • How do social and cultural heritage influence the suc-
of three project management offices. Crawford and Helm cess, adoption, and value derived from adoption of
comment on the governance implications of project globalized practices such as project management? (see
management through an analysis of the project manage- Cicmil et al.)
ment implementation of four government organizations • What governance structures are best suited to helping
and the value that was realized. Of particular value is the project management deliver value? (see Crawford &
variety of government structures and models explored in Helm; Hurt & Thomas; Lechler & Cohen)
the article and within their case studies, embracing both • What influences the sustainability of project manage-
traditional and extremely innovative models of service ment offices and the value they deliver to organiza-
delivery and project execution. tions? (see Hurt & Thomas)
The final set of articles explores a central concept of • What is the role of fit in determining the value project
the Value Project—fit—and how the relationship management implementations deliver? (see Cooke-
between the project management implementation and Davies et al.; Zhai et al.)
various aspects of the organizational and environmental • What aspects of context and project management
context influence the value project management delivers implementation influence the types of value received?
to the organizations. Cicmil et al. describe the role that (see Cooke-Davies et al.; Mullaly & Thomas)
culture and political structures play in understanding
the value derived from project management implemen- As the co-leads of this project, we had the great priv-
tations. Zhai et al. use the example of an organization ilege of working with this team over an extended period
that specialized in the delivery of mega-projects to eluci- of time and learning from, and enjoying, the insights of a
date the value of project management through the lens highly diverse and challenging group. We would like at
of the various important stakeholders in such projects. this time to express our sincerest appreciation for the
Cooke-Davies et al. study the role that fit plays between authors in this issue, the team leads, and all the other
strategic orientation and project management imple- research participants. Particular thanks as well go to the
mentations in realizing value from project management organizational participants in the Value Project who con-
investments. Finally, Mullaly and Thomas explore the tributed to developing and delivering these insights into
evolution of the fit concept over the course of the Value the value of project management; without their partici-
Project and how the results of the project are grounded pation, this research would not have been possible.
in the fit literature. This article provides a cross-case Lastly, PMI deserves acknowledgment for funding this
analysis of the insights into the fit of environmental con- research study, while supporting the principles of aca-
text and project management implementation in demic freedom and independence that are so necessary
enabling realization of the various dimensions of value in ensuring the results are credible, defensible, and,
that were sought by participating organizations, based above all else, meaningful.
upon all 65 participating case studies. Ultimately, we believe that value comes from under-
Each of these articles uniquely contributes to our standing. We hope this thematic issue contributes to
understanding of the structural and value contributions building understanding of the value project manage-
that project management makes to organizations. Taken ment can and does deliver to a great many organizations
as a whole, they provide food for thought on a number of around the world. ■
challenges faced by managers of project management Janice L. Thomas
everywhere: Mark Mullaly
• What is the role of common and unique models of
project management in delivering value? How do we
References
Collins, J. (2001). Good to great: Why some companies
ensure that knowledge transfer between senior and
make the leap and others don’t. New York:
junior project managers is accomplished on an ongo-
HarperCollins.
ing basis? (see Andersen & Vaagaasar; Eskerod & Riis)
• How and when can the essence of good leadership be Collins, J., & Porras, J. (1994). Built to last: Successful
operationalized into the structures supporting project habits of visionary companies. New York: HarperCollins.
March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 3

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PAPERS
Project Management Models as Value
Creators
Pernille Eskerod, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
Eva Riis, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
ABSTRACT ■ INTRODUCTION ■
A
n often-mentioned property of projects is their uniqueness (Davies
Based on findings from five case studies, we
& Brady, 2000; Eskerod & Östergren, 2000; Lundin, Söderholm, &
discuss benefits obtained by using a common
Wilson, 2001). Therefore, a situational approach to project manage-
project management model. The case studies
are part of an international research project ment is recommended so that the project is managed according to
aimed at determining the value of project man- its specific needs and circumstances. At the same time, companies are
agement. All five companies applied a cus- becoming more and more project-oriented and run growing numbers of
tomized project management model. The five concurrent projects (Blichfeldt & Eskerod, 2008). Often, the projects are
models are presented, and their characteristics, quite similar, implying that it may make good sense to apply common ways
similarities, and differences are discussed. of managing them. The common approach that is used could be based on
Based on interviews and comparisons with liter- what has been found to be good practice for that particular type of project.
ature, the values obtained are identified. The Mikkelsen and Riis write: “The art [when dealing with more projects] is, on
values relate to efficiency, legitimacy, power the one hand, to use a situational guided understanding, with basis in a
and control, and stakeholder satisfaction.
specific project situation—and on the other hand, to identify a small num-
Further, the article points to necessary precon-
ber of general elements which are present in every project” (1996, p. 22, our
ditions (both technical and human factors) in
order to harvest the values. translation).
When such general or repetitive elements can be identified in a multi-
KEYWORDS: project management model; project environment, it may be desirable to introduce a project management
value; stakeholder; efficiency; legitimacy; model. A project management model shows and specifies the management
power; control breakdown structure, the management processes, and the roles in project
management (Associations of Danish Project Management, Norwegian
Association of Project Management, and Swedish Project Management
Society, 2005).
An early user of the project management model approach was the
Swedish company, LM Ericsson AB (hereafter referred to as Ericsson), which
in 1989 introduced a common methodology for handling projects, especial-
ly product development projects. The methodology was called PROPS. At
that time, Ericsson was the world’s largest telecom supplier, with more than
90,000 employees in over 100 countries. Several cross-functional and cross-
national projects were running simultaneously in the company (Mulder,
1997). By implementing PROPS Ericsson aimed at
. . .a shared view on how we allocate scarce (human) resources, the roles that
need to be played by all those involved in the project and the supporting line
functions, the criteria to be used for decisions to be taken inside the project
and in relation to other projects, and many more issues that require a com-
mon view. A shared view on project management is also a prerequisite for
handling conflicts within an organization in which the project, as a working
form, is predominant. (Mulder, 1997, p. 189)
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute
Published online in Wiley InterScience In addition to a common terminology, PROPS consisted of several tools
(www.interscience.wiley.com) that included a well-defined phase model and a uniform reporting structure.
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20098 Phases were separated by decision points called “tollgates” (for decisions

004-018PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 5:27 PM Page 5
made outside the project) and “mile- Eskerod and Riis (2008) state that research method applied. Thereafter,
stones” (for decisions made within the key informants in their case studies we summarize our findings concerning
the project). PROPS differentiated the saw the existence of a common frame the first two research questions, while
steering function (management con- of reference for project management we relate the findings to relevant con-
trol), the project management func- as one of the most important value- cepts in the literature. In the last sec-
tion, and the execution function (the creating factors in project manage- tion, we discuss the findings and the
work model) in three different parts. ment. Like Ericsson, the informants cases in order to determine the answer
The project steering model was generic emphasized the need to have a uniform to the third research question.
and, therefore, it was suitable for approach to the processes, methods,
Ericsson companies all over the world. instruments, attitudes, and behavior
The project management function and for managing the projects in their com- Method
the execution function were more panies. In particular, the informants
The Cases
closely related to the characteristics of pointed to values in the form of better
Five companies were selected for the
the individual projects. communication, more efficient use of
research. From the media and project
Ericsson’s PROPS model became resources, higher customer satisfac-
management networks, all were known
very popular, and other companies tion, easier knowledge sharing, and
as having been actively developing
wanted to adapt the methodology. improved future possibilities.
their project management skills over
Ericsson was willing to share experi- Across all cases, Eskerod and Riis
the past couple of years.
ences and knowledge. The company (2008) identified the following ele-
In all five companies, a specific
even made this into a new business ments for enhancing the creation of a
department was chosen as unit of
area, building up a project management common frame of reference: (1) an
analysis for the research project. Key
support group with some 50 consult- internal, common project manage-
data of the five case companies and the
ants, which was the launch pad for an ment model; (2) common project man-
units of analysis are summarized in
independent business area under the agement training; (3) common project
Table 1.
Ericsson umbrella. The PROPS online management exams or certifications;
version (1999) contained approximately and (4) activities enhancing knowledge Research Approach
900 files, many of which were continu- sharing between project managers. The Concerning data collection, a broad
ously updated (Räisanen & Linde, project management model was sin- range of research approaches have
2004). gled out by the informants as the most been applied (Thomas & Mullaly, 2004),
Since the time that Ericsson intro- significant element in bringing value to including desk research about the
duced PROPS, many other companies the company. organization and its record in project
have developed and implemented a Our article builds on the findings of management implementation. Further-
common PM model (Eskerod & Riis, Eskerod and Riis (2008) and discusses more, the research team reviewed all
2008) in which the findings of four findings in the same four case compa- relevant company documentation
case studies are presented. All four case nies, with the addition of one more case issued during the last ten years. Finally,
companies had recently introduced a company. Its purpose is to get a deeper one completed project file was ana-
PM model. understanding of the values that are lyzed in detail to understand actual
Our article as well as Eskerod and created in a company through the project management practices, assess
Riis’s paper (2008) form part of an inter- introduction of a common project the evidence of compliance with stated
national research project aimed at management model. Based on a cross- policies and processes, and check on
determining the value for an organiza- case analysis of the five companies, we the results of both for the project per-
tion of implementing project manage- discuss in which ways project manage- formance.
ment (Thomas & Mullaly, 2004, 2007). ment models act as value creators. Our Against this background, a mini-
The research project was funded by the research questions are: mum of seven interviews were con-
Project Management Institute and co- • What are the characteristics of the ducted in each case company. The
led by Dr. Janice Thomas, Athabasca project management models? informants included key stakeholders
University, and Mark Mullaly, president • Which values do the project manage- such as senior management, project
of Interthink Consulting Incorporated. ment models bring? sponsors, project management office
The project included in-depth case • Which preconditions must exist in or project management support staff,
studies in 65 companies all over the order to harvest these values? project managers, and human resource
world, carried out by a network of 48 representatives. Finally, the research
experienced researchers in the field of In the next section, we briefly intro- team participated as observers in one
project management. duce the five case companies and the project status meeting.

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Project Management Models as Value Creators
Unit of Analysis
Type of # of # of Project # of Projects
Case Company Employees Unit # of Staff Managers Annually
A IT 3,000 Sales department 150 43 130
B Financial services 30,000 Corporate IT 1,000 126 200
C Manufacturing 20,000 Corporate IT 400 16 50
D Consulting engineers 5,000 Regional office 100 42 500
E Pharmaceutical 5,300 Supply, operations, 1,000 30 30
IT, and engineering
Table 1: Case companies.
The interviews were recorded and Results results were delivered on time. The
transcribed. Afterwards, meta-matrices quality of the project results was so high
Findings From Each of the Case
for each company were developed for that rework was not necessary, even
Studies
comparisons across the informants. though a three-month period had been
Findings from the interviews were Company A allocated for this in the project plan.
compared with data from the surveys “Company A” is one of Denmark’s most For Company A, selling project
and other collected data. important players in the information management knowledge has become a
Value statements related to the technology industry. It is the principal new field of business. Since the success
PM models were identified. Afterward, supplier of IT systems to the Danish of the municipality program, cus-
the identified values were classified municipalities and to the public sector tomers and independent companies
according to a conceptual framework in general. It has about 3,000 employ- have contacted Company A to get help
provided by Eskerod and Östergren ees. The unit of analysis was the sales to develop project management skills
(2000), in which the implementation department of the company. or even hire one of Company A’s project
of a common project management A few years ago, the Danish munic- managers on a temporary basis.
model is seen as a way of standardiz- ipalities were undergoing a major
Project Management Model
ing project management within the reform with far-reaching consequences
company. Eskerod and Östergren for their IT systems. Company A sup- The Municipality Reform Model (Figure 1)
identified three driving forces behind ported the reform with a program that was developed and implemented in
implementing a common project consisted of more than 60 complex stages, and this took the company’s
management model: a striving for projects for more than 60 customers. newly established project management
efficiency, a striving for legitimacy, The program involved about one-third office (PMO) more than a year. All proj-
and a striving for power and control. of Company A’s workforce and a large ect managers were asked to participate
These three categories were used to number of employees in the customers’ in the work: some as members of a
categorize all values identified in the organizations. development team, others as reviewers.
case studies. Further, sensitivity to For the program, the company All were asked to deliver best practice
other possible categories than those developed and implemented a com- examples from their respective areas of
presented by Eskerod and Östergren mon project management model, operating the model. Furthermore,
(2000) was presented. By analyzing called the Municipality Reform Model. questions and answers about the use of
the data, it became clear that stake- With the help of this model, all project the project management model were
holder satisfaction was an often-
mentioned value. Therefore, this was
applied as a fourth category. In sum,
each value from the case studies was Preparation Startup Harmonization Conversion Closeout
categorized as “Efficiency,” “Legitimacy,”
“Power and Control,” or “Stakeholder
Figure 1: Project management model of Company A.
Satisfaction.”

004-018PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 5:27 PM Page 7
posted on the corporate intranet. To supplement the project manage- arose. A high rate of customer satisfac-
Feedback and suggestions were system- ment model, the company invested tion was also reported.
atically used for revisions of the model. heavily in project management knowl- Finally, the project managers stated
Eventually, the model included: edge sharing, training, and certification. that they had developed a higher self-
• Standard milestones and deliverables, Staff were assigned to knowledge-sharing esteem due to the fact that they had
and a set of templates. teams on a mandatory basis where been successful in delivering the project
• Project organizations in the 60 cus- video-supported meetings could be objectives and that this was recognized
tomers’ institutions that mirrored the arranged. Every new project manager inside and outside the company. The
organization in the case-study com- was assigned a mentor for a period. All successful application of the municipal-
pany. Further, the company provided project managers received specific ity reform model and the extensive
the customers’ project managers with mandatory training. In the unit of training/certification made the sales
a free course in project management. analysis, all project managers had par- department very attractive in the eyes of
• A common steering committee for ticipated in a certification program in other stakeholders. Company staff from
each customer project. project management (International outside had shown interest in a project
Project Management Association manager job in the sales department.
To supplement the organizational [IPMA] Levels C and D). At the time A summary of value statements
solution and improve the decision- when the research project was fin- based on our observations and inter-
making capability, the PMO developed ished, all of the project managers start- views about the implementation of a
a formal escalation procedure so that ed on a mandatory PRINCE2 training common project management model
everybody knew what to do if some- course. in Company A is presented in Table 2.
thing went wrong. In addition, the PMO Company B
Perceived Value of the Project
established a detailed follow-up system
Management Model of Company A “Company B” is a Nordic financial serv-
with green, yellow, and red symbols
ices group. It is the result of mergers
(mimicking a traffic light) in order to In the interviews, project managers
and acquisitions of a number of banks
track progress and identify issues that expressed a multifaceted view of the
in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and
needed to be resolved. The “traffic project management model and its
Finland that took place between 1997
lights” were shown on the company’s value-creating potential. They had a
and 2000.
intranet and on electronic posters so well-developed understanding of tools
The company is headquartered
that everybody would get a common and methods, and of the roles of the
in Sweden but is well represented in
understanding of the status of the vari- project organization. The concept of
Denmark and the other Nordic coun-
ous projects. Finally, the PMO ensured knowledge sharing was widely accept-
tries, as well as in Poland and the
that its own project organization was ed. The common frame of reference
Baltic countries. In total, it has about
strongly linked to the customer organi- had been fully adopted and had
10 million customers, approximately
zations, and that the members of the become the project managers’ own.
1,300 branch offices, and a strong net-
steering committees possessed suffi- Management support was found to
banking position with some 4.9 million
cient formal authority to make all rele- focus on leadership more than on proj-
e-customers.
vant decisions. ect control. A major initial challenge
Use of the project management was to get the nonproject parts of the Project Management Model
model was mandatory because the top company to work with the projects and At the time of the merger, it was found
management found that the company not against them. For the municipality that each of the merging banks had its
would profit from the common approach reform project, this was achieved with a own way of dealing with projects, and
only if everybody complied. After some very high degree of top management that these different ways were incom-
hesitation, the project managers accepted involvement and an efficient escalation patible. Carrying out cross-national
this strict requirement since the interde- procedure. Informants agreed that the projects that would involve the group
pendence between the various program municipality reform model, especially as a whole was next to impossible. The
components was high and the deadlines the project organizing, and the follow- solution was to implement a common
were tight. Furthermore it helped that up and escalation procedure had Nordic project model. Its main goal was
the project managers had been closely been very useful. All agreed that these to ensure that a project was on time, on
involved in the development of the elements had helped the company to specification, and within budget. Thus,
model. However, in the interviews for the exercise a thorough coordination and it had to be strong on control, with very
present study, the project managers control, while allowing everybody to rigid reporting requirements. On the
pointed out that they would have pre- focus on progress and on resolving other hand, it did not promote proper
ferred a less rigid approach. conflicts and problems whenever they project leadership.

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PAPERS
methods and tools. A career path for

Value Statements Value Types project managers has been implement-
ed. External certification of project
The organization gets paid earlier Efficiency
managers, as part of their career devel-
Cost reductions due to delivery on time and Efficiency opment, has been introduced. Other
earlier payment integrative functions were also intro-
Applying project management model avoids Efficiency duced, including, for instance, using
failing projects English as the language for projects. To
build up and maintain the common
Knowledge sharing is easier due to a common Efficiency
frame of reference, PMC is holding two-
project management model
day conferences for all project man-
Efficient resource usage Efficiency agers once every year.
Securing uniformity in treating customers Legitimacy (seen as professional)
Improved top management involvement Power and control Perceived Value of Company B’s Project
Management Model
Application of the project management Stakeholder satisfaction The interviews described a very wide
model brings satisfied customers
range of benefits that were achieved
Table 2: Company A’s value statements regarding its project management model. with the introduction of the project
management model. Examples includ-
ed the ease of setting up a project’s
structure, ease of reporting and assess-
In parallel with the control model, management unit was established in
ing project reports, and ease of transfer
another model was developed (Figure 2). 2003. In the past, the project manager
of project responsibility from one proj-
This model built on A Guide to for a given project had reported to a
ect manager to another.
the Project Management Body of line manager in the business area in
Previously, project managers felt
Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) (Project which the project was situated. Once
that they had to introduce new tools
Management Institute [PMI], 2004) the project was completed, the project
and techniques on their own, which in
but was customized to meet specific manager was transferred to another
turn led to numerous misunderstand-
corporate requirements. Adaptation business area. Thus, the project man-
ings. With the implementation of the
was achieved by internal working agers appeared not to belong any-
common model, the problem has
groups and with experienced project where, and nobody really knew or
largely been resolved and communica-
managers as reviewers. The core team understood their competencies. The goal
tion has become much easier, allowing
was led by an external project man- of the common unit, called the Project
a much smoother implementation of
ager. By February 2007, it was fully Management Centre (PMC), was to
cross-national projects.
implemented. Its use was made overcome this problem. Since 2003,
The communicative value of the
mandatory for all cross-national proj- all full-time project managers across all
project model has been boosted by pro-
ects and for projects with a budget business areas have been attached to
viding the appropriate project manage-
exceeding €1 million. this unit.
ment training. Using the same terminol-
The introduction of both corporate The company established a company-
ogy was frequently mentioned as a major
project models was combined with some wide generic project management train-
success factor of the common model. In
major organizational changes to ease the ing program—providing a common
this context, the company’s experience-
integration of cross-organizational proj- terminology and understanding of
sharing efforts were found to be particu-
ects. For instance, a central project concepts and project management
larly useful. The two-day conferences
and other integrative efforts have made
it much easier for project managers to
share knowledge across projects and
D1 D2 D3 D4 countries.
A summary of value statements
Preparation Run Close based on our observations and inter-
views about the implementation of a
common project management model
Figure 2: Project management model of Company B.
in Company B is shown in Table 3.

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project cycle from project preparation

Value Statements Value Types
to a follow-up stage three months after
Projects launched and accomplished Efficiency finishing implementation. During follow-
according to schedule and specifications up, project results are evaluated together
Common frame of reference gives easy Efficiency by the IT department and the client
communication internally and externally before they are handed over to the client
unit for operation.
Easier task solving Efficiency An organizational perspective on
Clear roles and responsibilities Efficiency stakeholder satisfaction project management (see Andersen,
2008) is predominant. Management is
A structured, well-defined, and accepted Legitimacy
process mainly provided for the interaction with
customers and clarification of needs of
Customer experiences professionalism Legitimacy stakeholder satisfaction their respective business units, ensur-
Higher resilience to illness or quitting Power and control ing that the business processes are opti-
mized and that project outcomes are
Greater transparency in the projects Power and control manageable for the business unit.
Table 3: Company B’s value statements regarding its project management model. Project management training in the
company includes, in particular, instruc-
Company C tions on the use of the corporate proj-
past, it had carried out one or two large
ect management model. Terminology
“Company C” is the Danish leader of an projects per year at one central site, but
and management concepts are the
industrial group that develops and now it had to show that it was capable of
same for all training efforts. To become
manufactures mechanical and elec- implementing many small projects at
an EPMT project manager, the person
tronic products. It employs about many different locations. Among other
in question must have participated in
22,000 people worldwide. things, this required the ability of apply-
an internal project management train-
The group, which is one of the ing full project management instead of
ing course that is equivalent to the
largest industrial concerns in Denmark, technical project management.
requirements of IPMA Level D. When
comprises 53 factories in 21 countries. As a response to these challenges, a
they are assigned to the project man-
It has 110 sales companies and 110 project management model, called
agement function, project managers
agents and distributors all over the EPMT, was introduced in 1997, and the
are expected to participate in another
world. Over the past few years, annual entire IT department was trained in
internal project management training
net sales have been in the range of €2.6 using the model (Figure 3). The model
course equivalent to the requirements
billion. The case study essentially dealt was made mandatory if a given pro-
for IPMA Level C.
with the company’s IT department. ject was of strategic importance or if it
For each project manager in the IT
exceeded a certain size, (e.g., in the case
Project Management Model department, a mandatory personal
of an IT project if it required more than
leadership program is carried out.
Before 1996, the IT department had 100 workdays).
Project managers are coached by a psy-
been in charge of a single software plat- Furthermore, the department decid-
chologist. The training modules end
form that supported all corporate activ- ed to develop an IT strategy that included
with an in-company examination.
ities. New activities needed to be a project function. Corporate manage-
External certification is not offered.
aligned with the characteristics of the ment endorsed the strategy, the project
Project managers meet every sec-
central platform, and a great many peo- function was established, and a couple
ond week to share lessons learned. In
ple in the company needed to agree of project managers were positioned in
addition, an annual experience-sharing
before any change would be accepted. the function. Today it is the organiza-
conference for all project managers is
As the company was facing an increas- tional unit for 15 full-time EPMT project
held. Furthermore, a tutoring activity
ingly dynamic business environment, managers. Both the project manage-
takes place in which each project man-
the centralistic arrangement with its ment model and the project function are
ager is being evaluated and given feed-
heavy organizational demands was being continuously improved.
back by his or her tutor.
found to be less and less practical. In each project, the client also has
Thus, it was decided to decentralize to appoint a project manager. Thus, the Perceived Value of Company C’s Project
the IT activities. As a consequence, the project has both an EPMT project man- Management Model
IT department had to turn itself into an ager and project manager of the client Due to the common project manage-
information solution department. In the unit. Together they manage the full ment approach, it has become very

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PAPERS
development services. While maintaining

its home market presence in the Nordic
Project Agreement
Implementation
Clarification countries and the United Kingdom, its
Acceptance
Preparation
Hand-Over
Follow-Up
Initiation
market shares have been increasing in
Kick-Off
Go-Live
Design
Idea
the Russian Federation, the Baltic region,

and in Asia.
Project Management Model

Business Case Initiation Planning
Imple-
Closeout
Benefit The case company launched work on a
mentation Realization
common project management model
Supporting Activities with the intention of helping the firm
in its transformation from a mainly
technical orientation to customer ori-
entation. The modus operandi of a
Preparation Start-Up Harmonization Conversion Closeout sample of successful project managers
at two of the firm’s regional offices was
studied to determine the reasons for
D1 D2 D3 D4
their success. With the help of internal
consultants, they developed a set of
Prepare Run Close
seven principles they found essential
for good project management. In their
view, project management should:
• create the settings for a dynamic proj-
Pre-
Imple-
ect implementation process—and
Qualification Contracting Planning Closeout
and Offer
mentation allow insights into the entire process;
• act as an integrative force;
Figure 3: Project management model of Company C. • apply knowledge the right way and at
the right time;
• keep opportunities for development
open—and avoid restrictions as long
easy for the IT department to help ideas and scope is perceived to be espe- as possible;
establish a new business within the cially helpful. The result of a good clar- • support the customer in his or her
group. As the model has proved its ification phase is that project aims are own organization;
worth, project managers do not have to achieved within time and budget, and • transform tacit knowledge into shared
sell the model every time a new project that the stakeholders are satisfied with learning; and
is started in one of the company’s busi- the deliverables. • create ownership and give responsi-
ness units. The business units have A summary of value statements bility.
realized that the model is helpful. This based on our observations and inter-
saves a great deal of time. views about the implementation of a The statements point to the fact
Top management found the com- common project management model that the firm’s successful project
mon frame of reference to be quite in Company C is presented in Table 4. managers did not see project manage-
helpful because progress can be easily ment as something mechanical and
Company D
monitored. tools-oriented (i.e., requiring tools to
The interviewed project managers Company D is one of the largest and manage quality, tools to manage
found that the greatest value of the oldest consulting firms of Denmark. the budget, and tools to manage the
project management model and its With roots in civil engineering and a schedule and staffing). Instead, they
underlying common training could be mainly Danish client base, the firm has perceived project management as
found in the clarification phase. The been changing itself into a global player human processes that involved coop-
model ensures that clarification is car- with a workforce of more than 7,500. eration with partners and the cus-
ried out in such a way that customer In 2007, turnover reached about €640 tomer. Central to their view of project
expectations and the expectations of the million. management is the concept of under-
project team are aligned as early as pos- The firm is providing a wide array of standing the customer in his or her
sible. The structured way of discussing engineering, consultancy, and product own context.

004-018PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 5:27 PM Page 11
they can boost their competitive advan-

Value Statements Value Types tages with a fully developed project
management model. The value state-
Projects are delivered on time and within Efficiency
budget ments are summarized in Table 5.
Reducing number of repeated problem Efficiency Company E
Better alignment of expectations with Efficiency stakeholder satisfaction The company is an international phar-
customers maceutical group with headquarters in
Denmark. In 1937, it launched its first
The team members know their tasks and Efficiency stakeholder satisfaction
self-developed medicinal drug. Over the
responsibilities in good time
past 20 years, the firm has been increas-
PM model creates high credibility Legitimacy ing its turnover substantially year after
Customer experiences professionalism Legitimacy year. An antidepressant that the compa-
ny had developed in the 1980s has been
Better foundation for achieving what the Power and control the keystone to their success. Turnover
company wants reached nearly €1.5 billion in 2007 with
Greater transparency in the projects Power and control the antidepressant accounting for
almost two-thirds of the total.
PM ensures meeting clients’ expectations Stakeholder satisfaction
The company is spending approxi-
Table 4: Company C’s value statements regarding its project management model. mately 20% of its earnings on research
and development of new drugs. Con-
sequently, its corporate culture is
Perceived Value of Company D’s Project strongly focused on scientific achieve-
The project management model was
Management Model ments. The workforce is highly educat-
developed based on these principles
ed, with most researchers holding a
(Figure 4). However, it was not intro- Use of the corporate project manage-
PhD degree. As a drawback often found
duced as an independent project ment model had been optional at first
in a silo culture environment, profes-
management model, but as part of the (although at the time of the interviews,
sionals find projects outside their areas
quality management in the company. a few elements of a common reference
of competence not particularly inter-
Nevertheless, project managers were frame had become mandatory). Appar-
esting. In 2007, the company employed
also offered training in leadership and ently, top management initially failed
a workforce of more than 5,300 in 54
context management. to see the benefits that could be gained
countries. Production was located in
Although the company has a sub- from a more systematic use of the
Denmark, Italy, and the United
stantial in-house training program in model and its affiliated tools, methods,
Kingdom, and research facilities were
project management, it still has no and templates.
in Denmark and the United States.
mandatory training in the use of the This has changed, as a series of
The case study was conducted in
corporate project management model. experience-sharing events opened the
the corporate division of Supply, Opera-
Participants in the project manage- eyes of both top management and
tions, IT, and Engineering (SOE), which
ment training are organized into action the project managers. Together they
has a staff of about 1,000. At the time of
learning groups. Certification is offered found that having a common frame of
the study, the division employed 30
to project managers who have com- reference made them appear more pro-
project managers. All of them were
pleted ten days of basic or advanced fessional to their customers, and the
experienced in carrying out projects in
project management training. company is now fully convinced that
their respective parts of the organiza-
tion. Corporate management perceives
its project managers as essential to the
future development for the company. A
Pre- career path for project managers has
qualification Contracting Planning Implementation Closeout been established and international cer-
and offer
tification (i.e., by the Project Manage-
Supporting Processess
ment Institute) to project managers is
being offered. Yet no plans were made
to set up a central department for proj-
Figure 4: Project management model of Company D. ect management.

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Value Statements Value Types change requests, and the quality man-
agement system was insufficient.
Preventing losing money on projects Efficiency
Various resource management systems
Project managers more conscious in their management Efficiency coexisted with a bespoke production
Customer experiences professionalism Legitimacy management system.
Thus in 2000, a newly appointed
High credibility and good reputation Legitimacy SOE director introduced a common
More holistic thinking Stakeholder satisfaction resource management system. The ini-
tial aim was to create an integrated sys-
Project manager ensures meeting clients’ expectations Stakeholder satisfaction
tem to gauge how many resources were
Customer experiences a better process Stakeholder satisfaction used for projects and for the depart-
Table 5: Company D’s value statements regarding its project management model. ments carrying out the projects. This
was followed in 2002 by the establish-
ment of a project management office and
a project management governance
A formal project model called EPM emerging difficulties, thereby consider-
group (PMG group) that brought togeth-
has been in use since 2005 (see Figure 5). ably shortening the time requirements
er divisional directors and functional
According to corporate management, of problem resolution.
managers with a special interest in proj-
EPM made SOE better in ensuring that
Project Management Model ects. The PMG group’s prime task was
the right projects are selected, and
to ensure that project decisions cutting
that there are enough resources for The introduction of the project man-
across departmental boundaries were
achieving the intended benefits. At the agement model was caused by the
correctly and readily carried out.
time of the study in autumn 2007, virtu- rapid growth of the company, which
The group also was given authority to
ally no project backlog was found. from 1990 onward created a need for
decide in matters of project documenta-
Projects in the portfolio were generally larger and more modern constructions
tion, and it was to assess project charters
on track and showed no indications of and facilities. Arrangements for carry-
and closeout reports. Nonetheless, by
serious complications or delays. Project ing out these and other undertakings
2005 most SOE activities still concerned
staff and key project stakeholders were found increasingly inadequate.
production and operations. Only in the
appeared to be capable of resolving all No systems were in place to cope with
engineering department had thinking
and working in projects become
increasingly common.
From 2005 onward, however, more
Imple- Benefit
Benefit and more tasks were defined as proj-
Business Case Initiation Planning Closeout
mentation Realization
Realization
ects, and more and more resources
Supporting Activities were channeled into projects. Since
that time, the PMO has been producing
a quarterly status report on the SOE
project portfolio, including a road map
Preparation Start-up Harmonization Conversion Closeout of future projects. The status report
uses “traffic lights” (as described earlier
D1 D2 D3 D4
in this article) to categorize projects.
For its part, the PMG group began
formalizing the SOE approach toward
Prepare Run Close
project management. It started by
defining what a project is from the per-
spective of the company. In addition,
roles in the project organization were
Pre- defined. Finally, and following the
Imple-
Qualification Contracting Planning Closeout
mentation strong advice of the head of the PMO,
and Offer
EPM as a corporate project methodolo-
Supporting Processes
gy was developed.
EPM is based on the PMBOK®
Figure 5: Project management model of Company E.
Guide (PMI, 2004) and contains 15

004-018PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 5:27 PM Page 13
tools, including the necessary tem- In line with this approach, project experience is a well-established activi-
plates. Four of the tools—namely, busi- management leadership is not fully ty. Here it is included in the IT project
ness case, project charter, project plan, incorporated in EPM. Although a gener- managers’ regular meetings, and the
and project evaluation—are mandato- al course on management is offered to exchange is kept focused on important
ry for all SOE projects. In addition, for project managers, no courses on leader- points.
all major projects and for all IT proj- ship behavior from a project management The user-friendly approach of the
ects, a risk management plan is perspective are given. The perception of project management model appears to
required. project management focuses on the have been well received by the SOE
Twice per year, the PMO arranges project triangle and control. project managers. In the interviews,
networking days for all project man- In summary, for parts of the organi- there was a clear willingness to align
agers. The intention is to support the zation SOE has put into place a uniform approaches and operation with EPM,
use of EPM and to enhance the compe- approach to the processes, methods, even if actual behavior sometimes
tence of the project managers. In 2007, instruments, attitudes, and behavior appears to be lagging behind. Mandatory
their networking days dealt with busi- for managing its projects. Tools have elements of the EPM methodology are
ness benefit and benefit realization and been developed in cross-functional applied. Other tools and methods are
leadership development. In addition, cooperation, and training and certifica- used, but not to a full extent.
the PMO offers individual coaching of tion are offered. Corporate leaders, in A summary of value statements is
project managers and advertises particular the SOE director and the shown in Table 6.
the offer on the intranet. The head of head of the PMO, are open and orient-
the PMO maintains frequent contact ed toward learning from other compa-
with the project managers to assist nies. Their reasons for participating in
Discussion
them in formulating project charters the research project were to be bench- Characteristics of Project
and to handle specific EPM challenges. marked against other firms and to Management Models in the Case
Finally, a handbook and a long list receive an outside opinion on their Companies
of templates have been prepared in project management implementation. The main features of the project man-
cooperation between R&D, IT, HR, and agement models of the case companies
Perceived Value of the Project
the SOE to support the EPM methodol- are summarized in Table 7. From the
Management Model of Company E
ogy. It is presented in the company’s table, the following characteristics can
intranet in a very precise way. Its intro- From the interviews, it is clear that SOE be identified:
duction emphasizes that the methodol- is very strong on project portfolio man- • The project management models
ogy “is not meant to be mandatory, but agement and that the PMO functions (with one exception) cover only the
that it is hoped that project managers very well. EPM receives good backing project life cycle—all ignore the post-
will find the methodology sufficient and from the management group and the project phase.
attractive to use.” PMG group. • The models are developed from well-
This quote is a good illustration EPM has the whole project life cycle known phase models such as that
of the user-friendly management in view. Recently, special emphasis has described in the PMBOK® Guide (PMI,
approach that can be found in the com- been placed on benefit realization. This 2004) but are customized.
pany. In an organization where science has helped to achieve a high degree of • There is a high involvement of project
is the dominant field, it is a long senior management attention to proj- managers in the implementation of
process to get project management ect work. Consequently, scope creep in the models.
acknowledged as a skill that is in the the projects could be largely avoided. • An intraorganizational common
same league as the application of scien- Still, project managers found it desir- frame of reference is in place.
tific knowledge. Management methods, able to continue with the development • The models contain a substantial
rules, and techniques must make of EPM—in particular, benefit tracking number of templates but a moderate
immediate sense and be sensible, so and competence development. number of mandatory ones.
that project managers are happy to use However, these positive results and
them. When this is not the case, they attitudes have not yet made project Companies A, B, and C indicated in
are dropped. For instance, when it was managers ready to engage in a system- the interviews that they ought to do
found that lessons learned at closeout atic exchange of experience. The les- better in measuring and following up
evaluations, which the PMO posted on sons-learned database never took off, on benefits, but there is no formal
the intranet, met with next-to-no-inter- and the face-to-face exchange of expe- process in place yet. Company C has as
est, this form of communication was rience appears not to be working well. part of its model a follow-up phase of
simply given up. Only in the IT department, exchange of three months ending with the official

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ing how to structure, approach, and

Value Statements Value Types
organize the execution of project work
Better project presentation, time, budget, Efficiency for a specific type of project. The final
and quality stage was a move to a higher-level
Avoiding beginner’s mistakes Efficiency model valid for all types of projects in
the organization, covering project
Project teams do not spend time on Efficiency management processes. In four of the
unnecessary things five cases, the project governance roles
Greater empowerment of team members Efficiency stakeholder satisfaction and structure were also included, but
project execution was not.
Clear roles and responsibilities Efficiency stakeholder satisfaction
The time spent on moving from a
Demand for the project management model Legitimacy project model to a project management
approach in other parts of the organization model or implementing a project man-
Improved control and follow-up Power and control agement model varied from three years
in Company B to ten years in Company
Table 6: Company E’s value statements regarding its project management model. E. The integration with other business
systems varies too, yet deepening the
integration is a top priority in none of the
hand-over of project result to the line own project management staff very companies. At the time of the interviews,
organization. Only the project manage- intensively in the adaptation processes. the focus was more on decisions and
ment model of company E concerns Four of the case companies had strategic direction than on integration.
itself with life after project completion. provided their project managers with a Alignment with the project man-
The last part of the model is called ben- substantial number of templates, but agement model is required for all proj-
efit realization. All other project man- left it to the managers to develop project ects in two of the companies and only
agement models deal only with the documents in line with the require- for larger projects in the other three
project life cycle and stop at project ments of a specific project. Only a companies. But observations show that
closeout. limited number of documents are alignment with the procedures, meth-
Where project management models mandatory in each of the five compa- ods, and tools in all of the companies is
have been implemented as successors nies. much higher for the larger projects
to a project model, the integration of Three main differences among the than for the small projects. The challenge
the two approaches is still lagging project management models and their seems to be to draw more attention to
behind. Project models are firmly rooted implementation in the case companies the smaller projects—both manage-
in the technical specialist environ- were identified: ment attention and conscious project
ments, and the links to the project • time spent on developing and imple- management applied—in order to cre-
management models are still to be put menting the project management ate value from these projects. Somehow,
in place. model; the smaller projects seem to be forgot-
Although four of the five models are • degree of integration with other busi- ten in the attempt to benefit from a
based on well-known project manage- ness systems; project management approach. This is
ment models or phase models, the case • number of procedures; and in line with the findings of Blichfeldt
companies have spent resources on • required project management model and Eskerod (2008).
adapting the models to the company alignment for project categories. The cost of implementation of a proj-
context. This customization has mainly ect management model was an area that
covered the terminology concerning In three of the case companies, had yet to be researched, but the lack of
phases and methods, but not the basic project models were used for a number available historical data on project costs
structure. Now, all perceive their mod- of years before work on a project man- and internal accounting rules has made it
els as highly adapted and fully aligned agement model was begun. For the difficult for this study to determine what
with their corporate cultures. This most part, these were highly extensive was invested in implementation and
includes the interviewed project man- IT project models. The move to the subsequent maintenance.
agers, who without exception felt a project management models was
sense of “ownership” toward the project accomplished in stages. The first stage Reasons for Implementing a Project
management models. This strong feel- was a move from a simple project Management Model
ing of ownership may be due to the fact model to one that was more detailed, Why do companies choose to introduce
that the case companies involved their covering project processes and indicat- a common project management model

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Characteristics Company A Company B Company C Company D Company E

Year that model implementation 2004 2003 1997 2000 2005
was started
Project model in use before project Yes Yes Yes No Yes
management model
Degree of customization 5 5 4 5 5
Degree of integration with other 3 4 1 1 4
business systems
Degree of integration with internal 3 3 N/A N/A 2
project models
Project management model covers Project life Project life Project life cycle Project life Product life
cycle cycle follow-up phase cycle cycle
Project categories covered by the All Budget above 100 man days All Cross-
project management model $34,000 and/or strategic departmental
attention projects, budget
above $195,000
Based on model Own PMBOK ® Guide SAP Quality PMBOK® Guide
Assurance
Model
Number of procedures— 16 5 21 3 15
i.e., written methods and tools
Number of templates 50 30 11 50 30
Number of mandatory documents 6 3 5 0 4
Contains governance structure Yes Yes Yes No Yes
Implementation approach— 5 5 3 5 5
participation by internal project
managers
Supportive efforts on top of the Competence Strategic PM Leadership Statements Networking
PM models development initiatives, development of on internal for PMs days
of PMs, annual PM PMs, biweekly best practices, twice per year
certification, conferences exchange of knowledge-
mentor scheme, experience, sharing groups
knowledge- annual PM
sharing groups workshop
Note. 1: not at all; 5: very high.
Table 7: Characteristics of the project management models of the case companies.
when it is well known that the strength vations in the present study. This is in When large companies have standard-
of projects and project management is line with the observations of Engwall, ized their project work, they feel that
that projects are efficient for handling a Kling, and Werr (2005), who point to the they have increased efficiency and that
nontypified task on a situational basis? fact that models may be interpreted this, in their view, is the dominant value
The three forces (efficiency, legitimacy, differently by different users. Almost achieved.
and power and control) identified by half of the statements concerning the In addition, the five cases indicate
Eskerod and Östergren (2000) as under- values created by the use of project that other real benefits can be created
lying the trend of increased standardi- management models relate to efficien- by moving to the project manage-
zation within project management cy aspects. Another 17% relate to legiti- ment model approach. The number of
were all found in statements and obser- macy, and 13% to power and control. value statements made by each company

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Percent of
Number of Value Statements in Interviews Total Number of
Value Type Company A Company B Company C Company D Company E Value Statements
Efficiency 5 5 4 2 5 46%
Legitimacy 1 2 2 2 1 17%
Power and control 1 2 2 0 1 13%
Stakeholder satisfaction 1 2 3 3 2 24%
Table 8: Obtained values in the case companies according to the informants.
for each type of value is presented in strong top management involvement, are preferred to others, but treats proce-
Table 8. higher resilience to fluctuation among dures, methods, and tools as a whole.
Half of the efficiency value state- project managers, greater transparency, In addition to the project manage-
ments refer to cost reductions, better uti- a better foundation for achieving what ment model, time and resources are
lization of resources, easier task solving, the company wants, and improved con- continuously invested in the human
and avoidance of beginner’s mistakes— trol and follow-up. dimension. Activities related to this
closely related to the project triangle. But dimension take place not only when
the other half of the efficiency state- Conditions Supporting Obtaining the model is introduced, but are con-
ments refer to the project’s environment, Values tinued in the following ways:
including better exchange of knowledge Every aspect of project management • training and certification (in Com-
between the project managers, easier has two dimensions: a technical dim- pany A), knowledge-sharing meetings,
communication internally and exter- ension and a human dimension and mentor scheme;
nally, and that the project managers are (Cooke-Davies & Arzymanow, 2003). • each year a new strategic initiative is
more conscious in their project manage- The technical dimension encompasses introduced in PMC to improve project
ment. This demonstrates that the effi- those groups of practices or processes management skills (in Company B),
ciency gained is reaching further than that are integral to project manage- and annual project management con-
the individual projects. ment, while the human dimension ferences are held;
The study points to a fourth value includes not only the people who are • personal development of the project
created—stakeholder satisfaction, operating these processes, but also their managers—e.g., leadership develop-
which accounts for 24% of the value expertise. All of the case companies ment program (in Company C) and
statements. These statements cover the have encompassed both dimensions, biweekly exchange of experience;
customers’ experience of professional- not only implementing procedures and • situated learning (in Company D)—
ism, a better process during the project processes, but also implementing activ- knowledge sharing groups; and
life cycle, and being ensured of meeting ities in the human dimension. The tech- • project managers networking days
client expectations, but also team per- nical dimension has had no greater twice a year, and a governance group
formance with clear roles and responsi- weight than the human dimension; the that provides feedback on the quality
bilities and greater empowerment of number of procedures and mandatory of project documents (in Company E).
team members. documents is moderate, and a higher-
The value statements referring to level project management model has In all companies, the implementa-
the value-type legitimacy cover the cus- been implemented. tion has started with the emphasis on
tomer experiencing professionalism, Our observations indicate that if the the human dimension by heavily involv-
high credibility and good reputation of technical dimension is compared with ing the companies’ project managers in
the company, and recognition of the the alignment, the simpler the project the customization or development of
project management approach in other management model (relatively low num- the model.
parts of the company. These values fol- ber of procedures and mandatory docu-
low the explanation of legitimacy in ments), the higher the use of the defined Conclusion
Eskerod and Östergren (2000). procedures, methods, and tools. The Based on the findings from the five
Finally, the value statements relat- data collected does not specify whether case studies, some conclusions can
ing to power and control concern the certain areas of procedures and methods be drawn.

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The characteristics of the five proj- costs (direct and indirect) and the ben- investigation into variations between
ect management models are as follows: efits of implementing a project man- project management models.
1. The project management models agement model in financial terms. International Journal of Project
(with one exception) cover only the Therefore, we are not able to point to Management, 21, 471–478.
project life cycle and ignore the post- the monetary investments necessary in Davies, A., & Brady, T. (2000).
project phase (even though this order to guarantee values gained from Organisational capabilities and learn-
phase is reported as very important implementing a project management ing in complex product systems:
by many key informants). model. Second, because the case stud- Towards repeatable solutions. Research
2. The models build on well-known ies took place in Denmark, the results Policy, 29, 931–953.
phase models such as that described may not be representative of those that Engwall, M., Kling, R., & Werr, A.
by the PMBOK ® Guide (PMI, 2004) may be experienced by all companies (2005). Models in action: How man-
(but are customized). worldwide. Third, the project manage- agement models are interpreted in
3. Project managers have a high level of ment models in the case companies new product development. R&D
involvement in the implementation were mainly suited for large projects. It Management, 35, 427–439.
of the models. would be interesting to study how a
Eskerod, P., & Östergren, K. (2000).
4. The models are combined with other project management model can create
Why do companies standardize project
initiatives to support a common value even for the smaller projects in an
work? Project Management, 6(2), 34–39.
frame of reference (e.g., common organization.
project management training, a Eskerod, P., & Riis, E. (2008, July).
common terminology). Acknowledgments Creating value by building an intra-
5. The models contain a substantial The authors wish to acknowledge the organizational common frame of refer-
number of templates, but only a mod- financial support of the Project Man- ence for project management.
erate number of them are mandatory. agement Institute, the donation in kind Presented at the PMI Research
support of the organizations that partic- Conference, Warsaw, Poland.
In the analysis, the values created by ipated, and the intellectual stimulation Lundin, R. A., Söderholm, A., &
the PM models were identified to be effi- of all of the Value Project team members Wilson, T. (2001, August). On the
ciency, legitimacy, and power and con- in the preparation of this article. conceptualization of time in projects.
trol, as well as stakeholder satisfaction. An earlier version of this paper was Paper presented at the 16th Nordic
The analysis showed that, in order presented at the PMI Biannual Research Conference (16:e Nordiska
to harvest the values, a precondition (in Conference in Warsaw in July 2008. ■ Företagsekonomiska Ämneskonfer-
other words, an implication of the ensen—Projekt, tid och organisering),
study for practice) is substantial invest-
References Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Andersen, E. (2008). Rethinking project
ment in both the human and technical Mikkelsen, H., & Riis, J. O. (1996).
management: An organizational per-
dimensions of a project management Grundbog i Projektledelse. Rungsted,
spective. Harlow, UK: Pearson
model. An effective involvement of Denmark: Prodevo.
Education Limited.
the company’s project managers in the Mulder, L. (1997). The importance of a
developmental process is a sine qua Associations of Danish Project
Management, Norwegian Association common project management method
non. This will lead to a strong presence in the corporate environment. R&D
of the human dimension. of Project Management, and Swedish
Project Management Society. (2005). Management, 27(3), 189–196.
Another implication for practice is
Competencies in project management— Project Management Institute. (2004).
the finding that value is best created
National competence baseline for A guide to the project management
if the organization makes sure that the
Scandinavia. Hillerod, Denmark: body of knowledge—Third edition.
project management model has only rel-
Association of Danish Project Newtown Square, PA: Author.
atively few mandatory requirements but
a well-developed governance structure. Management. Räisanen, C., & Linde, A. (2004).
An implication of the study for theo- Blichfeldt, B. S., & Eskerod, P. (2008). Technologizing discourse to stan-
ry is that further research on implemen- Project portfolio management: There’s dardize projects in multi-project
tation of project management models more to it than what management organizations: Hegemony by consen-
must focus on both the human dimen- enacts. International Journal of Project sus? Organization, 11(1), 101–121.
sion and the technical dimension. Management, 26, 357–365. Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2004).
Three limitations of the study can Cooke-Davies, T. J., & Arzymanow, A. Understanding the value of project
be identified: first, it was not possible A. (2003). The maturity of project man- management. Research proposal sub-
for the case companies to determine the agement in different industries: An mitted to the Project Management

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Institute in answer to the 2004 RFP organizational behavior. She has a large interna- she participated in an international research proj-
Quantifying the Value of Project tional network and participates frequently in inter- ect, “Understanding the Value of Project
Management. national conferences and activities. She is an Management,” together with 48 researchers
Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2007). active member of a recently established interna- around the world. She is especially interested in
Understanding the value of project tional network, PMUni, the aim of which is to pro- aspects related to implementation of project
management: First steps on an inter- mote research and teaching in project manage- management models and management of
national investigation in search of ment. In 2006–2008, she participated in the inter- research projects. Her past research has included
value. Project Management Journal, national research project, “Understanding the Value a major study about the use of virtual project
38(3), 74–89. of Project Management.” She is especially interest- rooms in Denmark. She holds an MSc in engineer-
ed in aspects related to project stakeholder man- ing. She is a certified project manager (IPMA level
agement and competence development within the C) and is an assessor for IPMA certification. In
Pernille Eskerod holds a position as professor at project-oriented organization. Further, together addition, she is the managing partner of ACIS Ltd.,
the Project Management Unit, University of with a colleague, Eva Riis, she has started a new a Copenhagen-based consulting firm. For more
Southern Denmark. She has been teaching at the research initiative on managing research projects. than 15 years, she has prepared and managed
university since 1992. She has an MSc (BA) and a reform projects in connection with the enlarge-
PhD in business administration. She teaches and ment of the European Union. Since 2000, she has
conducts research within the fields of Eva Riis is an external lecturer and research fel- been project manager for the development and
project management, the project-oriented low of the Project Management Unit at the implementation of national portfolio management
organization, human resource management, and University of Southern Denmark. In 2006–2008, systems in Hungary, Slovakia, and Bulgaria.

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Project Management Improvement
Efforts—Creating Project
Management Value By Uniqueness
or Mainstream Thinking?
Erling S. Andersen, BI Norwegian School of Management, Oslo, Norway
Anne Live Vaagaasar, BI Norwegian School of Management, Oslo, Norway
T
This paper presents a research study that is part his paper presents three project management case studies for
of the large international Project Management Norwegian enterprises and discusses findings related to recent efforts
Institute (PMI)–sponsored research project the within the enterprises to improve their project management. We look
“Value of Project Management.” Three case stud- at positive and negative effects of the implemented changes to previ-
ies have been conducted on Norwegian enterpris- ous practices, as well as the drivers behind these efforts. We find striking
es. This article focuses on how enterprises similarities among the three enterprises in which these efforts have been
improve project management and presents the conducted. We raise the issue of whether such efforts could be seen as
improvement efforts and the stated reasons unique initiatives within the actual enterprises or if they are part of more
behind them. There are striking similarities as to complex processes within the project management society.
the prioritized ways the enterprises have chosen Our contemporary society is a competence society (Castells, 1996). It
to make improvements: use of a rather standard- seems extremely important for firms to develop their competences to
ized model for project work and internal schooling stay competitive. Because value creation increasingly is organized as proj-
activities. The enterprises all explain their efforts ects, firms continuously need to improve their capacity for managing
as internally driven, even if some consultancy projects (Davies & Brady, 2000). Firms may undertake a number of activities
assistance was used. This article discusses that improve their project management competences.
three drivers behind the improvement efforts: an We look into how three Norwegian enterprises with a reputation of being
economic perspective, a new institutionalism highly competent within project management work to improve their project
perspective, and an innovation perspective. This management competences. What triggers these efforts and how are they per-
article identifies indicators pointing to all drivers ceived in terms of efficiency and effectiveness? Because competence devel-
and helps us understand why and how enterprises opment is salient, yet extremely costly, it is also interesting to explore how it
are improving project management. The impor- is decided which efforts to undertake. Because such improvement efforts are
tance of research on the practice of the most of great value to the project management discipline, it is useful to under-
capable enterprises within the project manage- stand them and the underlying processes. The intention of the presentation
ment field is acknowledged. is primarily to provide a basis for further discussions and research.
KEYWORDS: value of project management;

improvement of project management; standard- The Case Enterprises
ized project management model; project man- Three case studies have been conducted in Norway as part of the Project
agement school; improvement drivers Management Institute (PMI)–sponsored research project “Value of Project
Management” (Thomas & Mullaly, 2007). The three enterprises where the
case studies took place will be spoken of as ORG 1, ORG 2, and ORG 3. ORG
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 19–27 1 and ORG 3 are parts of government institutions, while ORG 2 is a privatized
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute company, which used to be state-owned (the government still owns a sub-
Published online in Wiley InterScience stantial part). We can assume that the organizational culture of all three
(www.interscience.wiley.com) enterprises is affected by close ties to government, even if they are all subject
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20096 to heavy market competition, at least for part of their activities.

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Project Management Improvement Efforts
The education part has also been

ORG 1 is a project-oriented organi- early stages to late in the warranty cov-
important. I estimate that we have
zation in which projects are its only erage period. It has many large, com-
had a couple of thousand participants at
business. It has about 100 projects run- plex building projects, but also a few the courses we have run. It has, of
ning at the same time. The projects are smaller ones. course, been a constantly developing
of two categories, either planning or and maturing process. People have seen
implementation. The planning projects Efforts to Improve Project the usefulness of this. (ORG 2, PM
are prestudies for the implementation Management Management)
projects, but within ORG 1 they are con- An important part of the data collection
sidered projects in their own right. for the case studies consisted of inter- And finally, ORG 3:
Usually the same person is not the proj- views with senior managers, project
ect manager for both the planning and managers, sponsors, and HR manage- . . . a project model. It gives us a uniform
the implementation projects. There can ment (the interviews were supplement- way of doing things and thinking of
be several years between the end of a ed with a questionnaire survey, studies things, description of the stages one
planning project and the start of its of documents, and statistical material). must go through and such. (ORG 3,
Senior Manager)
implementation project. The projects A main element of the interviews was to
It is also important with the ORG 3
are considered to be above average in identify and discuss the most recent
School, where we have courses in proj-
complexity (3–5 on a scale of 1 to 5). efforts to improve project management ect management. It is an excellent and
Some of them are very complex (scoring 5) within the organization. important arena to promote this com-
and involve large sums of money. The We will highlight some typical common understanding of what Project
projects are often of huge interest to the ments from the interviewees on the Management is all about. (ORG 3, Senior
media and the public and have several question of recent project management Manager)
types of stakeholders. improvement efforts.
ORG 2 sells services based on First, from ORG 1: We see from these statements that
advanced technology. Being an old, a standardized project management
Standardized stage gate project model.
previously state-owned company, it is model and internal project manage-
(ORG 1, several interviewees)
rather line-oriented. We learned from The largest improvement is the
ment training and education have
the interviews that were part of the case Project Management School. A system been the ways of improving the project
study that projects are very important for education has been developed, pro- management discipline within the
to the company, but their importance is viding a common communication plat- three studied enterprises. Some other
not fully realized, according to the form for our project managers. This has initiatives were also briefly mentioned,
views of the project management peo- been done to make a common base for but these two (project management
ple. ORG 2 has three kinds of projects communication and concept that should model and project management
that are quite different: product devel- increase project management compe- school) stood out as the dominant
opment, marketing, and internal tences, and make better project man- ways in which improvement efforts
agers. (ORG 1, Senior Manager)
development. Most efforts are focused were carried out.
We have decided that all employees
on product development, which are Some of the interviewees also
shall attend [the Project Management]
more or less IT projects. Being a huge School. We must all understand the trib-
emphasized the close connections
enterprise with a large project portfolio, al language; even those of us in adminis- between the two efforts:
ORG 2 has placed more emphasis on tration and top management that are
which projects to select during the last The project model as a basis for carrying
not included in everyday project opera-
out projects, a large, enormous work
several years. The links between the tions. I have already attended the first
that is still not complete, is very impor-
strategy of the company and the selec- course modules. (ORG 1, HR Manager)
tant. When this is done, we also need
tion of projects have become stronger. something more. We must train people
From ORG 2:
ORG 3 is a project-based organiza- in the execution of this model as well. To
tion. It is responsible for organizing, We have worked hard to achieve a stan-
accomplish this, we now have the ORG 3
planning, and completing building dardized model for project work. The
school on top again. . . . The project
development of project management in
projects within set frameworks of budg- model and the training are closely con-
ORG 2 has been closely connected to
et, time limit, and quality. For example, nected; they are interdependent. (ORG 3,
getting this in place. It covers everything;
the buildings must meet quality Sponsor)
the implementation, anchoring, under-
requirements pertaining to architec- standing the importance of projects, and
ture, functionality, and environmental the realization of project management as We note that all three enterprises
concerns. ORG 3 has a project portfolio a profession equal to other professions. state that their main ways of improving
of about 120 projects ranging from (ORG 2, PM Management) project management practices have

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been to establish a project model It is a genuine wish that the projects The control aspect is also men-
performed in ORG 1 should be excellent.
(rather similar in approach: a sequen- tioned, but not as much as the two pre-
This is mainly a drive from within,
tial model with process descriptions vious arguments:
although the demands from society also
and decision gates) and a project man-
require it. There has been conscientious-
agement school (rather similar in We will look for better control of cost
ness around these themes in ORG 1 from
approach: run internally, but based on numbers and dissemination of experience
the beginning. I see now that with external
in the early stages, which will give better
cooperation with a consultancy firm to quality checks, there has been increased
control and quality on deliveries of techni-
help out with teaching as well as a col- pressure from the government as well as
cal products in the process. We can’t live
laboration with a regional college to from society to make a systematic assess-
with the idea that we can’t predict the
obtain academic credit). Before we dis- ment of projects and to have systematized
market, even though it changes rapidly.
cuss how this can be explained, we control of projects. This didn’t happen
We need control of costs, and internal pro-
would like to look at the arguments before. (ORG 1, Project Manager)
fessional control with technical solutions.
Things are much more complex now
from the enterprises for choosing these These processes need improvement.
than 20 years ago. We are evaluated all
paths to improvement. (ORG 1, Senior Manager)
the time; we must do better than just
Both control and performance are
Positive and Negative Effects keep within budget and time limits.
important as well as project transparen-
of Project Models (ORG 3, Senior Manager)
cy. The monthly reporting has become
The use of standardized project man- incredibly better; this has been like night
agement models has been heavily dis- Second, a common and more struc- and day. (ORG 3, Senior Manager)
cussed, and their advantages and tured approach to project work is cited
disadvantages are well known (see, by many of the interviewees: The most common critique in the
for instance, Engwall, 2003; Eskerod & But we see that our projects increase in
literature seems to be that a standard-
Östergren, 2000; Hodgson, 2002; Morris, complexity. This makes demands on us, ized model restricts the action space of
Crawford, Hodgson, Shepherd, & that we must handle things differently, the project and the team members.
Thomas, 2006). The positive aspects are even more structured than before. (ORG Some of the interviewees do not see
that it secures a common approach to 2, Project Manager) this as a serious problem:
project work, makes it easier to control From my point of view, the structure
progress, and makes progress less that we now have reflects that the organ- There are larger structures and more
dependent on specific individuals. The ization is large and complex. That was administration, yes, and one can be
negative part is that the model does not not as important when the organization restricted in what one can do. I don’t expe-
was smaller, the surroundings were rience this as a negative, although it can
fit all projects; it is often linear and
simpler, and we were in the process of be a bit too bureaucratic from time to
sequential and presupposes that all
building up. Now we operate across time in such an organization, but then
knowledge is available at the start of the companies, across countries. If we had things are not always optimal. (ORG 2,
project. run our projects in the same manner as Project Manager)
Let us take a closer look at some of when our world was small, everything I have many experiences with a very
the arguments for a standardized proj- would have collapsed. The complex rigid regime, with all different kinds of
ect model as they were expressed by the structure is a necessity in order to man- checklists, phases and stages, and such.
interviewees. First, we find a strong age the projects in the world in which we My opinion on this is that a rigid regime
belief that the model will improve the operate today. It is important to manage is not a problem unless you have prob-
quality of project work: all sides of the projects, to handle the lems answering the questions. Then you
complexity in order to get to the finish have a problem anyway. This regime
The project model . . . was the result of us line. (ORG 2, Project Manager) helps you answer the questions you
acknowledging that we needed to What I have seen after many years have to answer anyhow; this will never
improve the results of our projects. We working in the field is the value of having be a hindrance in executing a project
weren’t good enough on our projects. a method in the company that is com- well. This is one reflection I have on how
We were supposed to be professional on mon across divisions. There is something we perform project management, in
project management, but we did not you recognize, even though you have dif- contrast to a more laissez-faire, easygo-
achieve the desired results. The image ferent people on the different projects. ing attitude. (ORG 2, Project Manager)
became important, not to gain one, but This is a great benefit. (ORG 2, Project
we needed better quality in our project Manager)
management. The management control . . . a project model. It gives us a uni- Of course there are objections to
was not good enough. We needed to be form way of doing things and thinking of the standard imposed on project work.
best again, we were not good enough. things, a description of the stages one But first of all we have to be aware that
This became a reputation problem for us must go through and such. (ORG 3, not all of the projects actually follow the
internally. (ORG 1, PM Management) Senior Manager) implemented standard:

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We have the procedures in place, but drawbacks when designing a tool that Better project performance and bet-
these are not always followed. . . . There should apply to all kinds of projects and ter project control were something we
are still some that do not follow the all kinds of employees. There is room for wished to accomplish. There is also
processes properly. This can also have to interpretations all the way. It could be something about the culture that is
do with the fact that not all steering argued that such models can be a hin- about to settle now based on this: a
committees are very well acquainted drance towards creativity, but in the pro- strong, general wish for better project
with the methods, and make demands cedures and routines this model depicts control. These are the main points here I
that are appropriate but difficult to fol- it really does not need much creativity. think. (ORG 1, Project Manager)
low up. (ORG 2, Project Manager) There is room within the procedures to It has a positive effect on the organ-
It is important to have a project be creative, but if one has to choose, I ization—this focus on project manage-
model. ORG 2 has developed its own think one would choose less creativity. ment. It will give us a broader base for
model, but it is not implemented in the (ORG 3, PM Management) recruiting people to the different proj-
same way in all parts of the organization. The drawback is the extensive ects. (ORG 1, Project Manager)
(ORG 2, Project Manager) reporting demands. Whether it is neces- It is a bit early to measure this yet,
I believe that the largest projects sary to do this every month. . . . I feel that but I see results in terms of employee
have come furthest in utilizing this proj- we often have too many meetings, that satisfaction. I get feedback that people
ect management model and internaliz- these monthly reports come instead of feel the work has become more profes-
ing it. The largest projects need this actually going to the site and seeing the sional, one feels prouder to work here;
model more, but it may be easier to building yourself. (ORG 3, Project we have better competencies and com-
accomplish it in the smaller projects. I Manager) petence development. (ORG 1, Senior
have a feeling that the larger projects are Bad aspects are that it has become Manager)
more formalized. . . . My project, and more bureaucratic for even the smaller I believe we get more learning in the
other large ones, are often used as role projects; this is unnecessary. Another organization. The school has become so
models for the smaller ones, to depict problem is that the tools make it too easy popular that even our staff that are not
how things should be done. (ORG 1, to give fast, and often too easy, answers. directly involved in projects also attend
Project Manager) When it comes to reality, it is not that easy the first modules of the course. We gain
after all. We say that e-mails are not legally much knowledge in the organization,
The objections to the models run binding documents, but they will still be more effective communication because
along familiar lines: too bureaucratic, there and be used. (ORG 3, Project we use the same concepts. Resource
too extensive, and too much reporting Manager) efficiency is perhaps not as important,
but we gain a better project manage-
and control.
ment, control, and follow-up by the fact
The road one should take is very clear Positive and Negative Effects that we have a more holistic view. We
concerning which processes one must of Project Management Schools also hope performance goes up. (ORG 1,
do. I sometimes feel that in relation to the There are, of course, many positive Senior Manager)
size of the project, the processes may be responses from the interviewees about The rationale behind the education
too complex. One should be more flexi- the company-internal project manage- we have was to get a more commonly
ble in some cases; if it is a small project, agreed-upon way of doing projects, have
ment schools. They are increasing the
we could do this rapidly and easily; we as little deviation as possible from the
knowledge of project management
don’t have to do absolutely everything as plans. Keep to schedules, cost, and such.
within the organization. This could also (ORG 3, HR Management)
prescribed or as complete as with a larg-
er project. I don’t have anything else neg-
have been achieved by sending the staff This has also to do with keeping the
ative to say. (ORG 1, Project Manager) members to external courses and semi- staff here; to make sure they have
The project model is very general by nars; the specific advantage of the the opportunities to develop themselves
design; it should apply to small as well as internal approach is that the school cre- and take study for academic credit so
large projects. But projects are not like ates a common culture and under- they can document their knowledge. It is
each other; they are quite special. The standing of what project management also important for them to have the
special projects have problems, when is to their specific organization. A few opportunity for the international certifi-
managers are supposed to manage by comments, which focus both on the cation as well. (ORG 3, HR Management)
this model. Suddenly they must think knowledge and cultural aspects, are as
for themselves on the subjects covered in There are few negative comments
follows:
the model. This can be frustrating. about the school activities, but some
People must realize that it is not neces- I think we now have a more profound experience a conflict between working
sarily a problem to deviate a little from consciousness in a larger part of the on projects and spending time on proj-
the model; not all things can be captured organization. We have, through this ect management education.
in such a model. When this realization school, established a common tribal
sinks in, the frustration level gets more language about the subject of project It’s a fight over resources. When we put
manageable as well. There will always be management. (ORG 1, Project Manager) so much into the schooling activities,

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we put strain on the organization. We • result in resource efficiency due to a discussed here were initiated by top
might increase conflict levels a bit
more holistic view (ORG 1). management. Still, we can also read
when it comes to allocation of person-
from these comments that there was a
nel. (ORG 1, Senior Manager) External Pressure or Internal lot of external pressure from govern-
I cannot find any negative aspects. It Drive? ment as well as other actors leading
does take time, but I see this as an invest- We have now seen that two kinds of
ment. We have much to do; the school them in the chosen direction. In sum-
efforts (implementation of project mod-
must be done in addition to everything mary, phrases and reasons mentioned
els and project schools) were the basis
else, but we all benefit from it, so this is in the citations as triggers for the devel-
for improving project management in
not to be considered as something nega- opment efforts are as follows:
the three cases studied. An interesting
tive. (ORG 1, Project Manager) • necessary to improve the results of the
question is whether these efforts were
projects (ORG 1);
based on the enterprises’ own initia-
The Value of Improvement Efforts • image is important (ORG 1);
tives or if they were forced upon them
to Project Management • an internal drive to improve quality
or led by external sources. The inter-
We have now seen the effects of the on our project management, need to
view questions asked in particular for
most recent improvement efforts in be the best, need to perform excel-
the role of external consultants.
the case enterprises. This research is, as lently (ORG 1);
This question is not as easy to answer
stated, part of a research program con- • control was not good enough (ORG 1);
as you might think. Even if the enterpris-
cerned with studying the value of project • a reputation problem internally
es themselves may feel that they played a
management. It is therefore of interest (ORG 1);
lead or dominant role in choosing and
to summarize how the interviewees • pressure from government (ORG 1);
executing the improvement efforts,
perceive the positive effects of the • a larger pressure from the public
unconscious influences from the envi-
improvement efforts. The efforts are (ORG 1);
ronment may have had a great effect
said to: • increasing complexity (ORG 1, ORG 2);
without being fully recognized.
• provide a common base for communi- • increasingly evaluated (ORG 1);
The responses by interviewees are not
cation and introduce common concepts • call for more structure (ORG 2); and
completely in agreement. Many say that
(the tribal language) (ORG 1); • call for increased transparency (ORG 3).
they do not have a clear picture of how it
• raise the competencies on project
all happened. But the ones who have an
management (ORG 1);
opinion say that the enterprises them-
Explaining the Motives Behind
• create a shared understanding of proj-
selves were in charge or in the driver’s seat
Improvement Efforts
ect management throughout the We have seen that all three Norwegian
while consultants may have been there to
organization, including administra- enterprises in our case studies have cho-
provide some needed expertise. Some
tion and top management (ORG 1), as sen similar, major efforts to improve
typical remarks include the following:
well as across divisions (ORG 2); their project management practice. The
• help you answer the questions you This has been initiated by top manage- empirical material gathered indicates a
have to answer (ORG 2); ment. This has been a genuine wish sense of common agency acting among
• create an understanding of the impor- from top management, but they have the three in selecting and developing
tance of projects and project manage- been aided by a consultancy firm. It improvement efforts.
ment as a profession equal to other gathered competencies from the out- How can this situation be
side, but the initiative was internal.
professions (ORG 2); explained? The discussion could give us
(ORG 1, Project Manager)
• introduce a uniform way of doing and insight into what is driving improvement
Management and initiation are
thinking of things (ORG 1, ORG 3); work within project management. Such
internal, from our Project Office. But the
• bring about a positive culture devel- efforts are supported by the use of con- knowledge would be of great value if we
opment (ORG 1); sultants. (ORG 2, Project Manager) want to influence future development
• establish a broader base to recruit We have used a consultancy firm, in this area.
people for different projects— but we have made all the decisions, and A number of perspectives within
improved resource allocation (ORG 1); we have been running things. The con- organizational science could be applied
• contribute to employee satisfaction— sultants have run the processes, been to understand the approaches taken by
employees feel professional (ORG 1); secretaries to us, and helped us keep to the enterprises studied. We use the fol-
• make employees feel prouder (ORG 1); deadlines and such. The content lowing three that we believe are espe-
belongs to us; that has been crucial for
• make employees feel and actually be cially pertinent.
us. (ORG 3, Senior Manager)
more competent (ORG 1); • An economic perspective: The choice
• contribute to more learning in the So, ORG 1, ORG 2, and ORG 3 all of effort is based on the profitability of
organization (ORG 1); and indicate that the improvement efforts the potential efforts.

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• A new institutionalism perspective: a certain effort. The economic motive is large enterprises on the Norwegian
Existing assumptions, beliefs, and certainly an underlying factor, but scene, they are heavily approached by
expectations in society help deter- because it is rather difficult to identify consultancy firms that offer their main-
mine what should be the proper and quantify all costs and benefits, it is stream products and services to them.
effort. not played out explicitly by the decision All three case enterprises are conse-
• An innovation perspective: The choice makers. quently, to a large degree, exposed to
of improvement efforts is based on These observations seem reason- the pressure of dominant thinking.
availability and attractiveness of inno- able because competence development The main responses from the inter-
vations and new ideas. is costly, especially such efforts as viewees on the question of external
Next we discuss how to interpret the implementing an in-house school. influences were that performance impro-
improvement efforts in the framework Because managers are expected to act vement efforts are initiated and led inter-
of the three perspectives. as rational individuals (Spender, 2008), nally and that consultancy firms play
their decisions need to be followed by only a supporting role. Their acknowl-
Economic Perspective considerations regarding the cost bene- edgment of progress being driven by
Is the choice of efforts to improve proj- fit of their activities. However, because mainstream societal thinking and that
ect performance based on economic, this is difficult to measure, such consid- the company is copying what others are
and, in particular, cost/benefit considerations will always imply perceptions doing seems limited. They could, howev-
erations? about the situation, and considerations er, be affected by external influences
Traditional economic theory as pre- might take the form of loosely coupled without being aware of it. Assumptions
sented in most elementary textbooks rationality arguments. that we take for granted can affect us.
(e.g., Mankiw, 2007) emphasizes that Reality is made up of socially construct-
the enterprise makes its decision based New Institutionalism Perspective ed beliefs (Berger & Luckmann, 1967).
on its own situation and what is in its Is the choice of efforts to improve proj- Over time, social constructions become
own best interest. It would then see an ect performance explicitly or implicitly embedded in everyday life as institution-
improvement effort as an investment, based on dominant thoughts in society? alized beliefs that we take for granted
which initially bears some costs, but This question can be illuminated by (Berger & Luckmann). It is just the way it
later harvests benefits. The economist applying a new institutionalism per- is. This means that organizations may
will analyze the desirability of the given spective. This perspective is based on enact ideas from broader discourses, yet
investment (the improvement effort) by the salient work of Berger and hold the perception that they developed
comparing costs and benefits. The Luckmann (1967) and is, for example, them or encouraged their adoption
aim of the analysis is to determine its represented by DiMaggio and Powell themselves.
profitability. Constructing plausible (1983), Meyer and Rowan (1977), and We have seen that ORGs 1, 2, and 3
measures of the costs and benefits of a Perrow (1986). New institutionalists maintained that they initiated activities
specific improvement effort is often dif- will argue that there are patterns of to tackle the challenges they faced.
ficult; we return to that next. thoughts and taken-for-granted assump- They are indicating conscious adapta-
We see from the previous quotations tions in society concerning, for instance, tion to experienced challenges—a form
and we heard several more examples management practices that will deter- of the learning from experience view.
from our case interviewees that deci- mine how companies are organized and They feel they are finding themselves
sions were influenced by the size and managed (DiMaggio & Powell, 1983). facing challenges and taking action—
importance of the benefits of the cho- The organization corresponds to insti- freely—to cope with them. We know,
sen action. A standardized project tutionalized expectations and achieves however, that well-established institu-
model is developed because it enhances the legitimacy awarded to it by follow- tions are not likely to rapidly recognize
and benefits performance. Project ing anticipated practices. random changes in their environments
management schooling with academic All three enterprises are prominent (Olsen & Peters, 1996). Decisions are
credits is offered because it improves members of the Norwegian project influenced by the fact that they are tak-
performance and makes it easier to management community and are cer- ing place within pre-established pat-
keep the professionals and reduces tainly strongly influenced by the domi- terns of moral and causal beliefs,
costs of rehiring. nant thinking within this community. behavioral routines, structural capabil-
The cost/benefit thinking is present They are all internationally oriented ities, and resources. We found several
among decision makers, but there is no and very much aware of the models and reflections on the importance of keeping
sign that the enterprises actually con- works of international associations like to the accepted ways of doing things to
duct a formal investment analysis or PMI and the International Project avoid criticism. Selected comments
a cost/benefit analysis before choosing Management Association. Being rather from one enterprise are listed here:

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The openness to accept new ideas is not their willingness to be at the forefront The empirical material indicates
very great. It becomes important in an
methodologically. that decision makers—at least when
administration not to do anything
We find utterances similar to the talking about drivers of competence
wrong, and not to end up in the media’s
objectives for the project management development—emphasize the cost/ben-
scrutiny, or set the Government in a bad
light. This is perhaps more important discipline within the enterprise: efit line of thinking. It is, however, diffi-
than taking a risk in order to improve cult to say what the driving forces of
Be among the best. (ORG 2, Project
anything. These I believe affect us Manager)
certain activities of competence devel-
some; it is more important to protect Become the best project managers opment are. Decision makers make
ourselves from doing the wrong things in the Nordic countries! (ORG 2, Project decisions under uncertain conditions.
rather than be innovative. (ORG 1, Manager) Environments are changing and rela-
Senior Manager) tionships are unclear. Although reality
Such statements have conse- may be ambiguous, we tend to con-
Based on the new institutionalism quences, and we see them in particular struct meaning to impose order (Weick,
perspective, we suggest that enterprises in the emphasis on the implementation 1969). We make interpretations.
seem to have a path-dependent “free” of the project management schools. Interpretations may improve under-
choice of action to cope with the chal- Our data are restricted to three enter- standing but they may equally be used
lenges the enterprises face. The path prises, but based on our general knowl- to legitimize actions and occurrences.
is contingent on the membership in edge of the Norwegian project manage- Trying to cope with challenges through
a broader discursive community of ment scene, we may say that these three making reforms, such as altering proj-
professional project-based companies. have been more eager to pursue new ect management models and compe-
approaches to project management than tences, the construction of meaning,
Innovation Perspective the average Norwegian company. In this and the justification of action patterns
Is the choice of efforts to improve proj- sense, the innovation perspective is pres- are important aspects of transforma-
ect performance a consequence of a ent. (All three enterprises are members tion processes (March & Olsen, 1983).
wish to be in front of work methods of the Norwegian Centre of Project We see that the size of the benefits
(i.e., are the efforts based on a desire to Management, which is a national meet- of the improvement efforts plays a sig-
introduce methodological or techno- ing place for the exchange of experiences nificant role, even if no formal calcula-
logical innovations to project work at in research and network building. The tions are carried out. We believe that
an early stage?). Centre is an institutionalized collabo- there are strong influences from other
An innovation perspective explains ration between three academic institu- institutions and sentiments in the proj-
how enterprises take into use new ideas tions and about 25 enterprises from ect management society. We experience
and technologies. According to the theo- Norwegian industry and the public sec- how mainstream thinking affects the
ry on diffusion of innovations, enterpris- tor. An affiliation with the Centre indi- choice of improvement efforts. Even
es differ in their openness to accept new cates that an enterprise has taken a more experimental learning is influenced by
ways of working. An idea or innovation than average interest in the field of proj- pre-established patterns of moral and
is diffused over time in a certain pattern; ect management, and this may also lead causal beliefs, behavioral routines,
some companies accept them rather to an easier acceptance of new ideas.) structural capabilities, and resources
quickly, some more slowly. This is illus- (Olsen & Peters, 1996). Yet, at the same
trated by the famous S-curve. At a cer- Discussion time, there is very little acceptance
tain time, most enterprises would have The empirical material revealed great from the firms that their own efforts are
accepted the innovation as an accept- similarities among the three enterprises externally driven. As the firms embrace
able way of working (Rogers, 1962). in what they prioritized as project man- trends, these trends seem to be embed-
We have presented quotations agement improvement efforts. We have ded in and fitted to the organization. In
showing that enterprises, which are presented three perspectives to try to this customization process, the firm
subject to media scrutiny, are reluctant understand the development tenden- seems to develop a feeling of the cus-
to implement untried measures. Some cies indicated by the empirical materi- tomized trend as their own specific ini-
of the interviewees also recognize that al. The emergence and selections of tiative. This might be necessary for the
offshore projects have been more pro- efforts to improve project competences implemented ideas to gain the aimed
gressive in taking on more complex seem to have drivers identified in all influence and effect on organizational
methods. However, all three case enter- three perspectives. The question is, behavior. Adopting ideas at the concept
prises are large and important compa- however, whether one of these perspec- level and adopting them as implement-
nies on the Norwegian scene and have tives holds a better explanatory power ed practices are two different things.
high ambition. This would clearly affect than the others. For ideas to move from being “only a

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concept” to becoming implemented Knowing in action provides a sense dards and guidelines, but at the same
practices, they need to be translated. of mastery and control. It implies that time avoid rules and regulations that
This means making the ideas fit the an agent can act and make decisions destroy creativity and individuality.
organization and may be understood in from a repertoire of possibilities This study of three distinguished
terms of sense making. For an organi- dependent on the individual’s percep- Norwegian enterprises has been part of
zation to make sense of ideas implies tion of what might be an adequate a large international research project.
the activity of “assembling interde- response in a given situation. This dif- We believe that the results of this proj-
pendent ongoing actions into sensible fers from the quite common view of ect and similar projects will enhance
sequences that generate sensible out- learning and competence development the field of project management. The
comes” (Weick, 1969, p. 3). The organi- as mere adaptations to environmental better knowledge and acceptance of
zation enacts the idea and combines it changes (for example, the new institu- best practices of the advanced compa-
with an assembly of various knowledge, tionalism perspective). Lately, there has nies in the field will affect the behavior
skills, and experiences. Often this is been a call for more focus on agency of other companies and their choice of
driven by a felt need for the application when discussing these matters future improvement efforts (the new
of new strategies to cope with perceived (Spender, 2008). It is said that “we institutionalism perspective). The dis-
challenges. This means temporarily should be looking at theories of agency cussions that followed the presentation
placing portions of reality in a frame- and agentic practice rather than theo- of the research results will generate new
work of time and space connections, ries of passive learning for indications ideas and innovate thinking, which will
even though they are temporally and of knowledge management’s future” motivate companies to change (the inno-
spatially dispersed (Weick). This makes (Spender, 2008, p. 169). Our case studies vation perspective). And as some compa-
the adoption of ideas and knowledge indicate that the feeling of agency is nies increase their performances, there
in the organization contingent upon strong among the decision makers would be economic pressure on others to
the challenges that the organization working with project management change (the economic perspective).
faces. improvement efforts.
New ideas are not useful unless they We have indicated that all three per-
Future Improvement Efforts
What will be next on the agenda? Could
result in altered practices. The diffusion spectives hold explanatory power.
we use our insights from this article to
of knowledge and ideas has, however, Combining them provides us with a
predict which improvement efforts will
proven difficult. Discussed from a framework for analyzing project man-
be in focus during the coming years?
knowledge perspective, it has been agement improvement efforts. They
All three enterprises had concen-
pointed out how the idea of what help us understand how improvement
trated their improvement efforts on
knowledge itself is might provide a efforts are selected, how they are imple-
more or less standardized project mod-
major barrier to organizational enact- mented, and how they are legitimized.
els and project management schooling.
ment of knowledge and ideas. The idea We see that societal trends influence the
Looking forward, next on their agenda
of knowledge appears to be that knowl- choice of project management improve-
appears to be increased emphasis on
edge is an entity. When knowledge is an ment efforts. How the improvement
experience transfer, both between proj-
entity, it can be captured and trans- efforts are implemented, however,
ects and between projects and the base
ferred (Tsoukas, 1996) and it can be seems to be a matter of local transla-
organization. This is well illustrated by
possessed (Blackler, 1995; Tsoukas). tions of the more general trends. The act
the following quote from a senior man-
Critics of this knowledge (Lam, 2000; of implementation is legitimized by a
ager in ORG 3.
Tsoukas) view stress that knowledge cost/benefit-driven argument.
should be understood as an ongoing To the project management com- Experience transfer is still a challenge;
process, rather than something that munity and to all companies applying everyone is talking about it but no one
someone possesses. It means that knowl- project work, improvements to the proj- accomplishes it. It seems so simple—to
edge needs to be fitted to practice and ect management discipline are of great create arenas for sharing. I really want to
practiced. While being practiced, it interest. Further study to reveal how participate in developing this. This is an
becomes part of us—our actions and efforts to improve the discipline are pri- issue we have talked about during my
entire career. We have tried a data bank,
beliefs (Lave & Wenger, 1991). In this oritized and actually carried out would
but it was not used. There is something of
way, it is also easier to understand that be of significant interest. The challenge
a challenge to the culture; to dare to say
the individuals of an organization feel to the project management society is to that “this I handled quite poorly and this
that the decisions and actions are theirs imagine what it would like the discipline is what you can learn from it.” We need to
and not just an application of others’ to be. We would like to increase the be more open with each other and dare
knowledge. It is not about knowledge as competencies of its practitioners and to learn from each other’s errors. We are
an entity—but knowing in action. companies. We would like to see stan- not good enough at experience transfer

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in ORG 3; it is not systematized, but coming in complex product systems: Olsen, J. P., & Peters, G. B. (Eds.).
pletely random. If you happen to know a Towards repeatable solutions. Research (1996). Lessons from experiences:
person who worked on the same prob- Policy, 29, 931–953. Experimental learning in administra-
lem, then maybe something happens—it tive reforms in eight democracies. Oslo:
is very informal. (ORG 3, Senior Manager) DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1983).
Scandinavian University Press.
The iron cage revisited: Institutional
This focus on experience transfer isomorphism and collective rationality Perrow, C. (1986). Complex organiza-
appears to be part of a trend within the in organizational fields. American tions: A critical essay (3rd ed.). New
Norwegian project community. All three Sociological Review, 48(2), 147–160. York: McGraw-Hill.
enterprises express a great interest for Engwall, M. (2003). Mysteriet med den Rogers, E. M. (1962). Diffusion of inno-
this. The benefits seem to be great. The orimliga modellen: Om utveck- vations. New York: Free Press.
organizations seem to acknowledge that lingsmodeller, kunskap och kontroll
databases are not the way to go—there Spender, J.-C. (2008). Organizational
[The mystery of the absurd model:
is a need for new ideas and new ways. learning and knowledge management:
About development models, knowl-
In ORG 1 and ORG 3, this interest has Whence or whither? Management
edge and control]. Nordiske
materialized as participation in a Learning, 39(2), 159–176.
Organisasjonsstudier, 5(4), 28–53.
research project trying out different Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2007).
methods to transfer experience in the Eskerod, P., & Östergren, K. (2000). Understanding the value of project man-
organizations. Experience transfer is Why do companies standardize project agement: First steps on an international
not just about tools and reports, but work? Project Management, 6(1), 34–39. investigation in search of value. Project
developing a culture for sharing. Hodgson, D. (2002). Disciplining the Management Journal, 38(3), 74–89.
We might find that economic consid- professional: The case of project man- Tsoukas, H. (1996). The firm as a dis-
erations (great benefits), societal trends agement. Journal of Management tributed knowledge system: A con-
(everybody is talking about it), and new Studies, 39, 803–821. structionist approach. Strategic
ideas (results from research projects and Lam, A. (2000). Tacit knowledge, orga- Management Journal, 17(Winter
new understanding of what matters) nizational learning and societal institu- Special Issue), 11–25.
again are combined to drive project tions: An integrated framework. Weick, K. E. (1969). The social psychol-
management improvement efforts. Organization Studies, 21, 487–513. ogy of organizing. Reading, MA:
Acknowledgments Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated Addison-Wesley.
The authors wish to acknowledge the learning: Legitimate peripheral partici-
financial support of PMI. We would also pation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Erling S. Andersen is a professor of project man-
like to thank the three Norwegian University Press. agement at the BI Norwegian School of
enterprises and their staff for sharing
Mankiw, N. G. (2007). Principles of eco- Management, Oslo, Norway. He has published
their experiences and thinking with us.
nomics (4th ed.). Mason, OH: several books and articles on information tech-
We thank our good colleagues Janice
Thomson/South-Western. nology, systems development, project manage-
Thomas and Mark Mullaly for all their
March, J. G., & Olsen, J. P. (1983). ment, and management in general. His book
efforts in managing the research team
Organizing political life: What adminis- Goal Directed Project Management has been
and for arranging stimulating and
translated into nine languages. His most recent
exciting seminars. ■ trative reorganization tells us about
government. American Political Science book, Project Management—An Organizational
References Review, 77, 281–286. Perspective, was published in 2008.
Berger, P. L., & Luckmann, T. (1967).
The social construction of reality. A Meyer, J. W., & Rowan, B. (1977).
treatise in the sociology of knowledge. Institutionalized organizations: Formal Anne Live Vaagaasar is an associate professor
New York: Anchor Books. structure as myth and ceremony. and senior lecturer at the BI Norwegian School
American Journal of Sociology, 83, of Management. Her research interests are
Blackler, F. (1995). Knowledge, knowl- 340–363.
edge work and organisations: An mainly within learning and innovation process-
overview and interpretation. Morris, P. W. G., Crawford, L., Hodgson, es related to project work. She has published
Organization Studies, 16, 1021–1046. D., Shepherd, M. M., & Thomas, J. L. several papers on these issues, as well as con-
(2006). Exploring the role of formal tributed to two books. She has received several
Castells, M. (1996). The rise of the net- bodies of knowledge in defining a awards for her papers, among others the award
work society. Oxford, UK: Blackwell. profession—The case of project for best paper (innovation stream) at the
Davies, A., & Brady, T. (2000). management. International Journal of International Research Network on Organizing
Organisational capabilities and learn- Project Management, 24, 710–721. by Projects (IRNOP) 2007 conference.

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PAPERS
The Value of Project Management
to Organizations in Canada and
Germany, or Do Values Add Value?
Five Case Studies
Thomas Mengel, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Kathy Cowan-Sahadath, Hydor One Networks Inc., Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Friedbert Follert, Follert Consulting, Guxhagen, Germany
ABSTRACT ■ Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.

Albert Einstein
Five case studies have been conducted: four in INTRODUCTION ■

Canada and one in Germany. The authors of this
article were particularly interested in under-
T
standing the value of values and meaning in the he research findings presented in this study have been harvested by
context of project management implementation one of the research teams within the framework of the comprehensive
and project environments. The article first sum- Project Management Institute (PMI)-funded research project
marizes the authors’ particular approach. It described earlier in this issue. We will first summarize the particular
then discusses the five case studies and their research interest and methodological approach of this case-study team. We
findings. These findings will be grouped around will then present and discuss the five case studies and their findings. Finally,
the concepts of value of project management we will conclude with a comparative analysis of the project management
and meaningful work. In conclusion, the find-
elements and systems implemented, of the various levels of value of project
ings of this study will be summarized across all
management as implemented, and of the discovered value of values and of
five case studies and based on a comparative
content analysis. elements of meaningful engagement in one’s work environment.
The Concepts of Values and Meaning in Project Environments

KEYWORDS: value; values; meaning; Our research team was particularly interested in the following question:
project management; organization; Germany; how would personal and organizational values as well as meaningful work
Canada and project environments influence the interplay between the constructs
of project management implementation, organizational context, and value
constructs, and how might they contribute to added value for the organi-
zation?
Values have been found to be “essential for encouraging cooperation,
inspiring commitment, nurturing creativity and innovation, and energizing
the organization’s members around a positive self-image” (Paine, 2003, p. 12).
They appear to significantly contribute to a compelling sense of purpose
beyond making money.
For project environments in particular, the importance of an attractive
vision and a shared set of values and beliefs have been stressed (Keegan &
Den Hartog, 2004; Kendra & Taplin, 2004). It has been identified as a signifi-
cant project success factor and contributor to business outcomes (Briner,
Hastings, & Geddes, 1996; Christenson & Walker, 2004; Norrie & Walker,
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 28–41 2004). In addition, cooperation and commitment among teams of people
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute “are significant drivers to high project performance. . . . [They] are greatly
Published online in Wiley InterScience enhanced when project leaders foster a work environment where people see
(www.interscience.wiley.com) the purpose and significance of their projects” (Thamhain, 2004, p. 45).
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20097 Creating “a more powerfully committed team . . . [with] a deep sense of

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purpose and vision” has even been • In which aspects of project work (cre- ect management–related observations.
argued to be “the essence of good proj- ative, experiential, and attitudinal), Finally, each organization provided
ect leadership” (Norrie & Walker, 2004). and how and to what extent do proj- project-related data on particular proj-
These findings seem to support ect stakeholders discover and actual- ects, as well as organizational data.
Viktor Frankl’s research on the impor- ize meaning in project environments? The first cycle of open coding of the
tance of values and meaning (Frankl, • To what extent and how does a mean- transcribed interviews resulted in vari-
1946–1991, 1997) and its translation ingful project management context ous themes (e.g., improvement, bene-
into work and project environments (meaningful work, experiences, and fit, accountability, PMO, and impact, as
(Boeckmann, 1980; Covey, 1989; Martin, attitudes) contribute to increased well as satisfaction, purpose, culture,
2000; Mengel, 2004, 2005, 2008; Mengel project or organizational perfor- communication, training, and positive
& Thomas, 2004; Pattakos, 2004; Terez, mance? feeling) that have been conceptualized
2000; Thomas & Mengel, 2007). How- as “value of project management” and
Methodology
ever, foundational research on the sig- “meaningful work,” respectively.
Five case studies were conducted: three
nificance of discovering meaning in Finally, a content analysis was
in Canadian government organizations
project environments for the organiza- conducted, comparing individual quo-
(an information systems department
tional context has still been missing. tations on the value of project manage-
within a provincial regional health
This research project and this article ment within the context of the five case
authority, an information technology
will contribute to filling that gap. studies.
department within a federal bureau,
Additional Research Questions

and a national research institute); one Case Study 1: Canadian Regional
Our particular perspective focuses on
in a business unit of a Canadian private Health Authority (Ca_ITHealth)
company in the energy industry; and
studying the connection and correla- Description of the Case
one in a private German information
tion between project and organization- Our first case is the information sys-
technology service organization. To
al performance on one side and the tems (IS) department of a Canadian
enrich our overall case study, we have
level of support for the discovery of provincial Regional Health Authority
adopted the approach of coding and
meaning in the various dimensions (CRH). IS caters traditional information
deriving at categories from grounded
of working environments, as well as the technology (IT) services as well as proj-
theory methodology when analyzing
level of meaning actually discovered ect management and business analysis
our case data (Strauss & Corbin, 1994,
and actualized, on the other. Based on services to the CRH. IS is headed by the
1998). Furthermore, a comparative con-
Frankl’s categories of meaning and the chief information officer (CIO), who
tent analysis (Krippendorf, 2004; Weber,
actualization of values—creational, reports to the vice president of opera-
1990) using the Leximancer software
experiential, and attitudinal values tions, and is home to the 12 project
(Smith, 2007) has been applied to the
(Frankl, 1988)—we have collected and management and project management
quotations on the value of project man-
interpreted data in pursuit of the fol- office staff who service both IS and the
agement within the interview tran-
lowing questions: CRH.
scripts. This comparative analysis will
• Which areas and elements of the proj- Project management implementa-
be presented following the discussion of
ect management context (e.g., infra- tion started several years ago with the
the individual case studies.
structure and tools, practices, people, introduction of some very basic
training) support the discovery and Description of Data Collection processes and templates. Major trig-
actualization of meaning, and in which and Data gers were the increasing complexity
of the following manners do they do so? Forty-eight semistructured interviews and number of projects, as well as the
• In the creative aspects of work in and were conducted with sponsors and emergence of best practices. The major
around projects (e.g., creating prod- managers at various levels, managers of objectives were to improve project per-
ucts, services, and processes that are the project management offices formance, to accelerate project delivery,
perceived as being meaningful)? (PMOs), project managers, and project to increase organizational credibility, to
• In the experiential aspects of project team members. Forty online surveys align with external expectations or
work (e.g., experiencing relationships were completed by project managers, commitments, and to adhere to recog-
with others that are perceived as ful- employees, customers, and suppliers. nized standards.
filling)? In addition, the researchers inspected In January 2006, a PMO was created
• In the attitudinal aspects within proj- the process and project documentation within the IS department. The objective
ect environments (e.g., mastering on-site, attended several project was first to implement methods, tools,
challenges by reframing one’s per- (management)–related meetings, and and processes comprehensively within
spectives)? captured the results of project and proj- the IS department and for projects

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PAPERS
Value of Project Management to Organizations
conducted by or with the help of IS proj- highlighted clearly documented, easy- organization, its purpose, and its suc-
ect managers. Second, the PMO was to to-understand, and applicable project cessful operation.
serve as a center of excellence within IS management practices and policies as Providing and improving adequate
and beyond. Third, the PMO provided particularly important outcomes of tools, policies, and guidelines contri-
project management assessment as project management implementation. bute to the ease of doing what needs to
well as coaching and development for Aligned use of practices are reported be done and to the sense of compe-
project managers and team members. and demonstrated on a high level. tence in doing so. Project management
Finally, the PMO formalized project Projects adhere well to guidelines and implementation is perceived to have
reporting and delivery. The PMO man- consistently deliver on objectives, as had a major impact on increasing the
ager, a former IS project manager, was well as on schedule—but less so on out- effectiveness of the work environment.
part of the IS management team and comes and on budget. This is clearly Being able to focus more efficiently on
participated in the project selection and perceived as an improvement resulting service within the overall context of
prioritization process of projects man- from project management implemen- health allows many to utilize their own
aged through IS. tation in general and from the creation motivation to help others and to clearly
of the PMO in particular. discover purpose and meaning in what
Analysis and Interpretation of Data
Process outcomes reported as major they do.
Collection
benefits of the project management This focus has repeatedly been
The majority of projects conducted by
implementation are better project per- expressed in the various interviews.
IS are internal to the department.
formance, client satisfaction, improved Furthermore, people and care have
However, other departments increas-
project control, more effective commu- emerged as primary, highly weighted
ingly require project and project man-
nication, knowledge management, concepts in the content analysis of the
agement support from IS because of
improvement in the organizational cul- interviews and appear to be at the cen-
the growing recognition of IS’s project
ture, and greater project transparency. ter of this organization’s meaningful
management expertise and project
These benefits also are demonstrated work environment.
success.
by documentary evidence. Experiential Aspects—Experiencing
The organization currently has
A business outcome resulting from Meaningful Relationships and
implemented 29 integrated project
project management implementation Sense Making
management procedures that are
is the increased “business” that the
based on A Guide to the Project Man- Close and successful cooperation with
PMO receives based on its growing
agement Body of Knowledge (PMBOK ® competent others and the resulting sat-
recognition within the organization.
Guide)(PMI, 2004) and 41 different isfaction of customers and patients, as
Furthermore, customer satisfaction is a
templates in use by roughly 75% of the expressed by employees on all levels,
consistently high-scoring key perfor-
projects within IS. These processes and clearly provide ample opportunities
mance indicator measured by the organ-
templates comprehensively span all for meaningfully relating to others.
ization.
PMBOK ® Guide Process Groups and Providing training opportunities and
Return on investment is difficult to
Knowledge Areas. supporting the respective efforts of
account for within this provincial
Overall, the culture is primarily employees help create communities of
organization. Financial accounting for
customer-focused and innovative, yet learning and offer professional net-
project management implementation
is to some degree conservative and working. Finally, the clarity of roles and
has not been considered a high priority.
risk-averse. Customers are the patients associated responsibilities and authori-
Hence, accurate and reliable financial
seeking care in the hospital, as well as ties as experienced at CRH help create
numbers for both expenses and returns
the departments providing this service. the transparency that makes communi-
are lacking.
These customers may not be put at risk, cation and cooperation more efficient
and medical services need to have pri- The Value of Values and Meaningful and effective.
ority. Hence, customer service has clear Work Attitudinal Aspects—Sense Making,
priority over cost-efficiency in the orga- Creative Aspects—Producing Meaningful Framing, and Reframing
nization’s business model. “Results” The experience of putting people first,
The Value of Project Management— As a health service organization, the of being valued, of being in control,
Five Levels CRH in general, as well as IS, demon- and of making progress provides time
The satisfaction of stakeholders with the strate a high customer and patient and opportunity for making sense of chal-
management of projects and with proj- focus. Successful delivery of projects in lenges and changes. It helps employees
ect management implementation is this context gives employees satisfac- to trust in the process or even to delay
consistently rated high. Employees tion and connects them to the overall the sense making if developing the new

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frameworks takes time. The context of the management of information tech- organization. Furthermore, the content
providing health services may help sus- nology projects has been introduced. analysis of the interview transcripts has
tain the trust and continuous joint The PMO’s role is to establish and identified projects, people, department,
sense making of employees. maintain the implementation of this and work as the most important con-
framework. cepts. That clearly demonstrates the
Case Study 2: Canadian Federal The Value of Project Management—
importance of people and projects in
Bureau (Ca_ITFed) Five Levels
the work of the department and the
employees’ perception of their depart-
Description of the Case The satisfaction with management of
ment as a meaningful work environ-
Our second case is the IT division of a projects and project management
ment. In addition, employees have
Canadian Federal Bureau (CFB). This implementation is high but slightly
often expressed their pride in con-
division of approximately 120 people is lower than in our first case study.
tributing to the “national effort” of the
a planning, consultation, and applica- However, interviewees confirmed the
Canadian government. Finally, the exis-
tion services organization, including existence of a positive project manage-
tence of adequate tools and templates
the PMO. The division is headed by a ment culture.
also has contributed to this perception.
deputy chief information officer, who Aligned use of practices is reported
reports to the chief information officer. to be on a satisfactory level. The imple- Experiential Aspects—Experiencing
After having started tracking statis- mentation of the PMO has consistently Meaningful Relationships and
tics on information technology proj- been discussed as a crucial and valu- Sense Making
ects, the government recognized that able step. However, there are mixed Improved cooperation and communi-
improvements were required with messages about the consistent delivery cation with colleagues and other
regard to project performance and of projects regarding objectives, sched- departments facilitated particularly by
project management processes. In ule, budget, and a business case. the implementation of the PMO have
2001, the government acted on the Process outcomes reported as major clearly reduced the employees’ percep-
identified shortcomings to achieve benefits of the project management tion of working in an IT silo and
better alignment of departmental implementation and demonstrated by increased their feeling of connected-
resources in support of business objec- documentary evidence are client satis- ness to the bigger picture of the nation-
tives and program delivery. A PMO was faction, greater project transparency, al cause. Their increased pride in the
established to develop and implement better project performance, improved joint efforts and improvements, as well
an enhanced framework for the man- project control, improvement of orga- as in the resulting increased customer
agement of IT projects. As a result, proj- nizational culture, and more effective satisfaction—internal to the govern-
ect managers meet regularly to provide communication. ment organization—is almost tangible
advice and review proposals and docu- Business outcomes are difficult to and is being mutually reinforced.
ments from the PMO. Furthermore, the identify. However, interviewees clearly Attitudinal Aspects—Sense Making,
PMO consults with departments, other indicated that multiproject coordina- Framing, and Reframing
governments, and the private sector to tion has direct links to company strate-
The support of the corporate values as
identify successful practices that could gy and operating plans.
expressed by the participants can be
be adapted for use in the federal gov- Return on investment is difficult to
expected to help reframing and making
ernment. account for in regard to this federal
new sense in light of necessary changes
organization.
Analysis and Interpretation within the organization.
of Data Collection
The PMO promotes good project man-
The Value of Values and Meaningful Case Study 3: Canadian
agement practices and facilitates proj-
Work Federal Research Institute
ect portfolio management. It also Creative Aspects—Producing (Ca_ResearchFed)
ensures that departments continuously Meaningful “Results” Description of the Case
track and control their projects. Finally, Interviewees indicated that project This Canadian research organization is
the PMO serves as a single source of management implementation has mandated by the federal government
information on project and service data increased satisfaction within the work and has several sites in various Canadian
across the enterprise, linking the exec- environment. The existing project cul- cities in different provinces. The institute
utive vision and the operational work, ture demonstrates the participants’ employs several hundred people (mostly
and facilitating constructive collabora- positive attitudes toward the employ- highly educated researchers, technology
tion and overall risk management. A ment of project management practices relations officers, and other support staff,
comprehensive project framework for and improved performance of the administrational staff, and management).

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As a research institute, it is competing tance. Because the recent steps are very rated differently depending on the site
with other research organizations across fundamental and are not yet well location and hierarchical level of the
the globe as well as on a national level; understood nor consistently applied, people interviewed and surveyed; in
federal funding will be distributed among the level of maturity is still rather low. general, managers in all locations and
the various research areas and organiza- A common project (management) employees in the “younger” locations
tions based on how well each institute language is not yet spoken within the demonstrate higher satisfaction
can demonstrate effective management organization and the role of projects is (although it is still not actually high!)
in generating high economic and social not yet clearly and consistently under- than the researchers overall, whereas in
impact on Canadian society. Highly edu- stood. There appears to be a (cultural) the “older” location in particular emp-
cated and well-experienced researchers difference between various sites and loyees demonstrate high dissatisfaction.
consider their work to be very meaning- their interpretation and application of Managers indicate the increased linkage
ful (in terms of research work and the newly introduced project manage- between business strategy and projects
results), and the majority of the people ment processes. In general, project as the major bonus of the recent proj-
surveyed and interviewed enjoy working management work is very much dis- ect management implementation; re-
for this organization; (research) projects liked (particularly by researchers), searchers can see the need for increased
are the bread and butter of this organiza- while they take pride in their work as documentation based on the increased
tion. However, the increasingly competi- researchers. Researchers feel that they need for external accountability, but
tive environment also requires a change spend an excessive amount of time they appear to question the level of doc-
of culture from a more or less “free” clarifying project objectives with man- umentation required as being mean-
research environment for “independent” agement staff and obtaining their sig- ingful in the organization’s context
researchers to an organization that natures. Yet, researchers also feel that (research) and to perceive the increased
strategically focuses its efforts on areas of all important aspects of projects are planning requirements to be distracting
greatest impact. monitored and controlled. from their core work (research). Pro-
A major trigger for the recent project Due to the stepwise introduction of fessional pride is clearly linked to the
management implementation—the major project management elements, research work rather than to the project
introduction of a project proposal particularly around project initiation, management aspects of their work. Both
template as a first step of a more com- there obviously is not yet a well-devel- management and researchers agree on
prehensive project management and oped integration of various processes. the need to balance the amount of plan-
portfolio process, as well as the hiring of Particularly, the mismatch of annual ning and documentation required with
a well-trained project manager—was budgeting as applied within the insti- the expected and perceived value of
the need to be better able to align tute and the needs of major projects this; however, the way to best find and
research projects with the institute’s that require a multiple-year time frame implement that balance has yet to be
business plan and to account for and and financial commitment has been discovered.
control research projects; this was par- mentioned as a shortcoming by project Aligned use of practices are reported
ticularly triggered by the Auditor leaders repeatedly. and demonstrated on a very basic and
General’s report in 2004. One of the Management has already identified inconsistent level. Again, the difference
objectives is to successfully implement the need to revise the current level of between locations is significant.
a system that will help the organization project management implementation Significant process and business
to secure further funding successfully and to adjust the level of required doc- outcomes cannot yet be substantiated
beyond 2010. umentation based on a better balance by conclusive evidence based on the
between the needs of external account- early stage of project management
Analysis and Interpretation ability and internal value. Furthermore, implementation; however, manage-
of Data Collection the need to explain further and better ment (including group leaders) and, to
The primary objectives of implement- the new approach of project man- some extent, researchers report higher
ing the recent steps were to increase agement in general and of project initi- alignment of projects with the business
organizational credibility, to improve ation in particular to researchers and strategy, better focus on strategically
business-case realization, and to gain a group leaders has also been identified. important projects, and better access to
competitive advantage (“internally” resources.
within the cluster of various federal The Value of Project Management— Return on investment is difficult to
research institutions, as well as on a Five Levels account for within this federal research
global level). On the other hand, accel- The satisfaction of stakeholders with the organization. Financial accounting for
erating project delivery and reducing management of projects and with proj- PM implementation has not been
project costs were of very minor impor- ect management implementation is considered a high priority. Therefore,

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accurate and reliable financial numbers meaningfully relating to others and corporation focusing on energy infra-
for both expenses and returns are lack- experiencing the thrill of research; how- structure and power generation with
ing. Furthermore, cost-efficiency of proj- ever, based on the individualistic nature more than 3,500 employees. E&O devel-
ects is not a major concern at this point. of some researchers and their research ops and operates components and sys-
However, managers and project staff projects, that satisfaction is sometimes tems within the corporate strategic
alike expect competitive advantages based more on the fascination with the areas, covering projects including any-
(internally and externally) that are based topic and related challenges (and the thrill thing from small infrastructure to very
on the better strategic alignment of proj- of respective problem solving) than on large power generation endeavors. This
ects as well as on the more effective and the collaboration with others. unit includes a recently set-up project
efficient project reporting to be integral Attitudinal Aspects—Sense Making, management services and metrics
parts of organizational management. Framing, and Reframing (PMS&M; equivalent to PMO) small
team (one manager, one project man-
At this point, the change of culture from
The Value of Values and Meaningful ager, and two administrative assistants),
a free-floating research organization to
Work primarily to serve as a center of excel-
a strategically oriented and publicly
Creative Aspects—Producing lence promoting methodology and pro-
accountable research institute that has to
Meaningful “Results” viding tool support to the organization
face significantly increased internal and
as well as project oversight. In 2006, var-
As a research organization of high cal- external competition is to many a chal-
ious well-accepted project area–specific
iber and recognition, the institute pro- lenge that has yet to be mastered and
“playbooks” have been replaced by a
vides researchers and managers with experienced in a meaningful way. Some
comprehensive and unified methodolo-
ample opportunities to engage in excit- further explaining of what is happening
gy based on the PMBOK ® Guide, pre-
ing and meaningful research projects and why and how it might positively
sented as a binder and consisting of a
that have a significant impact on impact the work of all involved has yet to
rigorous stage-gate approach, process
Canadian people and society and happen. Although the project manage-
descriptions, and templates.
beyond. The various awards that the ment implementation—based on some
The organization has gone through
organization has won on different levels first signs reported particularly by
various mergers and acquisitions, and
over the last couple of years clearly con- management—may very well contribute
thus was and still is challenged with
tribute to the pride of researchers and to successfully mastering the needed
having to integrate various organiza-
managers to be part of this organiza- organizational change (it is too early to
tional cultures. Most of its employees,
tion. However, this pride and excite- substantiate that perception with clear
however, have a long-standing experi-
ment, particularly that of researchers, is evidence at this point), the value of this
ence with one of the merged organiza-
clearly attributed to the research (and management approach in its current
tions with higher education (mostly
business/customer) aspects of the insti- implementation is not (yet) obvious
university [79% of all employees]) and
tute rather than to the (project) man- to many within the organization. While
some formal project management edu-
agement side of the operation; to a large management and more business-
cation. Most employees also have con-
extent, researchers perceive the level of oriented employees can already detect
siderable experience in projects as well
project management requirements that the positive impact of project manage-
as in project management; although
they need to follow to be fairly discour- ment on making better sense of what
this is very obvious in the more tradi-
aging and frustrating. Although man- the institute is doing as well as on creat-
tional and less complex infrastructure
agers appear to thrive on the challenges ing a bigger and better impact in a more
projects, the organization is slowly
of increased competitiveness and mar- effective and efficient way (which is the
developing competence in the more
ket orientation, some researchers feel reason why management has driven
demanding and complex power gener-
limited and restricted in pursuing their the project management implementa-
ation projects.
research interests, and others are frus- tion in the first place), many researchers
trated by the business strategy–based have yet to be convinced of this value.
Analysis and Interpretation of Data
discontinuation of their projects.
Collection
Experiential Aspects—Experiencing Case Study 4: Canadian Private As of 2001, project management meth-
Meaningful Relationships and Sense Company in Energy Industry odologies have been increasingly imple-
Making (Ca_EngEnergy) mented. This was primarily triggered
Engaging in exciting research projects Description of the Case by increasing project complexity, ini-
with others as expressed by some This case study has researched the engi- tially within the infrastructure market
researchers and all managers clearly neering and operations (E&O) unit of and then, more recently, in the power
provides ample opportunities for a major publicly traded Canadian generation business area. Secondary

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motifs were the growing number of project work and the benefit of proj- Isolating business outcomes as a
projects and increasing market and ect management implementation are result of project management imple-
competitive pressures. As a conse- rather ambiguous; by and large, the mentation is rather difficult, given the
quence, the major objectives of project assessment of components of project data that could be collected; however,
management implementation were to management (implementation) by the considering the importance of project
improve transparency, particularly in mostly better-educated project man- work and respective project manage-
the early phases of projects, in order to agers working primarily in more ment processes, the successful growth
be able to raise the level of success in demanding and complex infrastructure of key performance indicators of the
business-case realization through proj- or power-generation projects is signifi- organizations speak to the value of
ects. Furthermore, increased invest- cantly more positive than comparable the implementation and further devel-
ment in project management was statements by their colleagues in tradi- opment of well-integrated project man-
meant to accelerate project delivery tional and more routine infrastructure agement processes and procedures.
and to gain a competitive advantage or projects. Similarly, return on investment can-
at least to increase organizational cred- not be calculated based on the data
ibility and to align with expectations The Value of Project Management— provided.
of business partners. The intended Five Levels
The Value of Values and Meaningful
change from more traditional infra- The satisfaction of stakeholders with
Work
structure development and operation the management of projects and with
to more complex and risky power- project management implementation Creative Aspects—Producing
generation projects is a major driver for is consistently rated average or low. Meaningful “Results”
operational strategy development. Stakeholders highlighted the value of In their responses to the interview
While other organizational process- increased transparency and control, questions, project managers highlight-
es (e.g., accounting, strategic planning, particularly early on in the process; this ed the importance of the delivery of
annual planning) do connect to project appears to allow for early detection of results and doing so on schedule and
management processes, there is no candidates for successful business budget, as well as contributing to pro-
comprehensive formal integration; cases as well as for issues that needed cess and organizational improvements,
rather, integration is done “manually” by to be addressed early. Furthermore, risk as satisfying experiences. Adequate
management decision-making process- and security management have been processes and guidelines as well as suf-
es. However, a highly customized PM identified as crucial. Finally, the future ficient support and help are experi-
methodology, including a proprietary value of current investment in project enced as significant prerequisites for
stage-gate framework with clear mile- management methodology is clearly success in project tasks. Finally, the
stones, is being used rather consistently recognized. project management discipline as
for about 80% of the projects; project Aligned use of practices is not yet introduced, the associated structures,
managers of the more traditional and reported and demonstrated to be on a and developed skills provide project
“smaller” infrastructure projects in par- high level. Gaining more consistency in managers and their team members
ticular would prefer more flexibility in the use and enforcement of guidelines with a satisfying sense of autonomy.
this regard. Similarly, the presentation are indicated to be areas of further Based on the operational aspects of the
and monitoring of a business case is improvement; furthermore, the need to business unit investigated as well as on
mandatory for most projects. adjust with more flexibility to various the technical and engineering back-
Project planning is managed rather degrees of complexity, particularly in ground of the employees working in
formally for key processes, with a major the two main areas of business (tradi- that area, project team members and
objective of identifying “keepers” and tional infrastructure vs. complex infra- project managers gain a great deal of
“losers” early on in the process. To the structure and power generation), is their satisfaction from creating infra-
same extent and with the same objec- repeatedly identified as an issue that structure or more complex solutions
tive, projects are also formally execut- needs to be addressed. for their clients.
ed, tracked, and controlled with a Process outcomes reported as major However, project managers who are
rather high degree of senior manage- benefits of the project management more involved in the traditional infra-
ment involvement. implementation, particularly for senior structure projects are particularly more
The overall organizational culture is and program management, are multi- likely to experience the current intro-
competitive as well as rather entrepre- project coordination, greater project duction of a more comprehensive proj-
neurial and customer-focused, yet cau- transparency, improved project con- ect management methodology and the
tious and risk-averse. The signals from trol, better project performance, and required documentation as an “overkill”
employees on the perceived value of more effective communication. for their rather straightforward projects,

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which they tend to feel could be more more than 2,000 external customers. agement is a highly valued skill within
efficiently managed using the previous It was outsourced in 2002 but main- the organization, and employees par-
project management “playbooks.” tained its links to the corporate center ticularly like project management work.
• Experiential aspects—experiencing through single ownership. Currently, Organizational processes and struc-
meaningful relationships and sense about 65 employees (plus 30 to 40 con- tures are clear and consistently applied;
making. Project leaders have a signifi- tractors) focus on IT product develop- project management procedures are
cant interest in the people they work ment as well as on process and project highly integrated as well as formally
with and in engaging teams in con- management. and consistently applied in most of the
tributing to the bigger picture of The organization is rather young and projects (80%) and throughout the var-
the whole operation. Furthermore, also has young employees (two-thirds of ious project phases. Project outcome
project managers have explicitly the employees are 39 years old or measurement and control of value real-
expressed drawing from their pride in younger) with higher education (mostly ization is done formally, mostly for
the engineering profession, from university [88% of all employees]) and individual projects based on the earlier
working with and for customers, and some formal project management edu- established baseline and a respective
from the recognition and trust that cation. Yet most employees have consid- business case.
they experience and that help them erable experience in projects as well as in Customers are consistently and
engage in meaningful communica- project management with rather short continuously involved in project deci-
tion and cooperation processes. projects of moderate complexity. sion making throughout the projects.
• Attitudinal aspects—sense making, One of the senior managers was Highly customized and integrated proj-
framing, and reframing. The degree to originally called in to the corporate ect management tools are consistently
which project managers and team center as consultant prior to the birth used within all projects; collaboration,
members are included in more com- of the new organization to help intro- risk management, and portfolio man-
plex projects and in the discussions duce and implement a systematic agement software is used by the major-
around and the development of the approach to IT software and service ity of projects. Project management
big picture does also significantly development, and particularly to training is offered on all levels exten-
affect the comfort level with the ongo- improve the benefits and reduce the sively. Teamwork culture, trust, deliver-
ing change processes. As a conse- costs of IT-related projects. He became ing high quality, and a unified sense of
quence, project managers who are a senior manager of the young sub- direction and common purpose play
already involved in the more complex sidiary and now is one of the major pro- major roles as organizational values and
projects around energy generation ponents of project management. The are well supported and modeled by
and supply are more likely to adapt existing project management support leaders. The major objectives of project
to and even actively facilitate the change group (equivalent to PMO) primarily management implementation were to
processes than are project managers serves as center of excellence promot- increase transparency, particularly with
involved in the more traditional and ing methodology and providing tool the coordination of and work on multi-
less complex infrastructure projects. support to the organization and report- ple projects. Although project manage-
Project managers of the first group ing directly to the board. The organiza- ment is acknowledged as requiring
explicitly mentioned the unified sense tion is considered by its employees to more effort, the benefits of (implement-
of direction and common purpose as have a high project management stan- ing) project management have clearly
well as the consistency in implement- dard with clearly documented project been perceived to be worthwhile.
ing the new processes as helpful to management policies and practices.
guiding their personal as well as orga- The organization can be characterized The Value of Project Management—
nizational learning processes. as primarily innovative, competitive, Five Levels
and customer-focused. Its business The satisfaction of stakeholders with
Case Study 5: German IT and model is characterized by product lead- the management of projects and with
Financial Service Organization ership and market dominance. project management implementation
(De_ITFinance) is consistently rated high. Employees
Description of the Case Analysis and Interpretation of Data highlighted clearly documented, easy-
This successful subsidiary of a major Collection to-understand, and applicable project
German financial institution offers Projects and project management is management practices and policies as
mostly IT-related services and solu- perceived to be key to the organiza- particularly important outcomes of
tions particularly accounting and pay- tion’s strategic success; roughly 50% of project management implementation.
ment processing services and products the employees’ work effort is put into Furthermore, pride about being a proj-
to its corporate center as well as to its project work. As a result, project man- ect manager and high satisfaction with

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project management as a career, as well sign of the direct benefit of project man- employees alike clearly help make sense
as the highly valued professional devel- agement implementation. of things that change; the focus on sup-
opment and high support received Similarly, return on investment may porting individual employees and on
from the organization demonstrate sig- not be easily conveyed by a single num- caring for their well-being is crucial in
nificant attitudes toward project man- ber; however, in a heavily project-based developing an atmosphere that is con-
agement within this organization. organization where project manage- ducive to coping jointly with the chal-
Aligned use of practices are reported ment is considered crucial for business lenges that the organization is facing.
and demonstrated on a high level. success, direct project management
Projects adhere well to guidelines and costs of €400,000 per annum can
consistently deliver on objectives as directly be related to the annual profit
Comparative Content Analysis
well as on schedule. This is clearly per- of €1,000,000. Description of the Approach
ceived as an improvement resulting In order to triangulate the results of the
The Value of Values and Meaningful
from project management implemen- qualitative analysis of the interview
Work
tation. The introduction of consistent data and the documentary evidence as
processes is perceived as a crucial and Creative Aspects—Producing well as the researcher observations, a
valuable step. Meaningful “Results” content analysis (Krippendorf, 2004;
Process outcomes reported as major Successful delivery of projects and thus Weber, 1990) using the Leximancer
benefits of project management imple- contributing to the success of the software (Smith, 2007) has been
mentation are high transparency, avoi- organization have been mentioned applied to the quotations coded as
dance of wrong developments, optimal over and over by project managers and relating to the value of project manage-
deployment of existing resources, and team members as important motiva- ment within the interview transcripts.
achieving defined results at the defined tors for their daily work. Furthermore, In the process of the computer-
points of time. creating and documenting processes assisted content analysis, the defaults of
In addition, the specific benefits and structures in a clear, flexible, and the Leximancer software (Smith, 2007)
valued most were client satisfaction, useful way have been identified as cru- have been applied as much as possible to
effective communication, project trans- cial prerequisites for achieving the reduce the risk of researcher bias. Steps
parency, knowledge management, effi- aforementioned results and successes. were taken in order to reduce redundan-
ciency, and project control. Readily Finally, suitable education and training, cy in the resulting concepts and to
accessible information for a quick sufficient work experience, and valued achieve a meaningful set of concepts in
overview and high transparency of proj- skills help employees and managers in the context of this study. Namely, first
ects and project management processes exercising adequate responsibilities some automatically identified concepts
were consistently mentioned as existing and latitude and in understanding not of similar semantics have been merged
evidence for the benefit discussed; fur- only the work they do but also its (e.g., “project” and “projects” or “man-
thermore, consistently high project per- impact on the organization, the mar- agement” and “managers”). Second, con-
formance also supports the perception ket, and customer satisfaction. cepts of irrelevant semantics within the
of project management effectiveness. Experiential Aspects—Experiencing context of this study have been deleted
Isolating business outcomes resulting Meaningful Relationships and Sense (e.g., “important” and “think;” the con-
from project management implementa- Making cepts of “project” and “management”
tion is rather difficult; however, given the have finally also been deleted because
The organizational culture of close
importance of project work and respec- the resulting dominance and centrality of
cooperation, communication, and
tive project management processes, the these concepts would to some extent
mutual feedback, characterized by an
successful growth of business over overshadow the significance of other
exemplary leadership and a high level
the first five years of the organization’s concepts and also because the signifi-
of trust and latitude, encourages indi-
existence can usually be attributed to the cance of “project” and “management” is
vidual as well as organizational learn-
implementation and further develop- consistent with the context-related
ing and taking responsibility.
ment of well-integrated project man- expectations of a study investigating the
agement processes and procedures. Attitudinal Aspects—Sense Making, value of “project management”). In order
Furthermore, the increasing recognition Framing, and Reframing to achieve concept stability, the analysis
of the organization’s competency in The unified sense of direction as well as has gone through some iterations (3,000)
-project management by its corporate the clarity of objectives and expecta- of concept learning (automated adapta-
center—demonstrated by the growth of tions, the transparency of processes, tion of the thesaurus to achieve stability)
relevant business volume from the cor- and the strategic value of projects and when locating concept occurrences and
porate financial institution—is another project work as seen by managers and co-occurrences.

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dashed circle around the respective

concepts and tags);
TG_CA_RESEARCHFED_TG 2. the set of the concept of “control”
and related entities (captured by the
oval around the respective concepts
and tags);
People
3. the set of concepts that are related to
CA_ITFED (captured by the dotted
Organization Work
line around the respective tag and
Result concepts); and
Time
Planning 4. the centrality of the concept “process.”
Process TG_CA_ITHEALTH_TG
TG_CA_ENGENERY_TG The first set has been selected for

TG_CA_ITFED_TG
the importance of the “people” con-
cept, the second set for the significant
peripheral location of the concept on
TG_DE_ITFINANCE_TG
Money the map, and the third set for its excep-
tional position in relation to the most
Multy-project frequent concept of “people;” the sig-
nificance of the central concept
Control “process” is obvious.
Interpretation of the Results

Concept “people” and related entities The concept of people is obviously of
Concept “control” and related entities great importance to four of the five case
CA_ITFED: Related concepts studies investigated. When “people” are
mentioned in the corresponding pieces
Figure 1: Graphical map of concepts using Leximancer software. of text, they are referred to as carriers of
emotions and needs who may feel inter-
ested, trusted, and/or motivated and
Description of the Results a concept circle is related to its fre-
thus may become agents of change, or
The computer-assisted analysis results quency and thus its significance (i.e.,
they may feel demotivated and frustrat-
are presented in a graphical map of the larger the concept circle, the more
ed. In general, “people” are recognized
concepts and related entities for all tags often it appears in the text). Nearness in
as (the most) important entity, who
(case identifiers) depicted in Figure 1. the map indicates that two concepts
need to be addressed in terms of their
The graphical map presents the appear in similar conceptual contexts
emotions and motivations and who can
five cases of this study (identified by (i.e., they co-occur with similar con-
substantially contribute to the success
tags—e.g., TG_CA_RESEARCHFED_TG) cepts).
of the organization through their level
in a distance relationship to other
Analysis of the Results of motivation and their strategic
concepts. For example, for the
Although “people” is the most fre- deployment. This notion is supported
CA_RESEARCHFED case study, the
quent concept (except in the case of by the co-occurrence of the concepts
concept of “people” would be of parti-
CA_ITFED, where “money” is the most “planning,” “process,” “work,” “organi-
cular importance (close-distance
frequent concept), “process” is the zation,” “result,” “time,” and “money” (the
relationship), whereas the concept of
most central one (co-occurring latter interestingly being the concept
“control” would be of least significance
almost equally with all other concepts most distant from “people”): obviously
(far-distance relationship). Each con-
and tags). While a variety of further people are associated with planning,
cept and tag1 is represented by the
and more detailed observations might process, and work in an organization
respective letter string (e.g., “people” or
be captured from the results, our and what they do or don’t affect results,
“TAG_CA_RESEARCHFED_TAG”) as
analysis within the context of this time, and money.
well as by a circle. The diameter of
study has zoomed in on the following It should be noted that the concept
1 The software treats tags and concepts in basically the
phenomena: of control is not correlated with “people.”
same way, although the software recognizes tags as such 1. the set of the concept of “people” and This seems to support the notion that
and identifies them as proper names. related entities (captured by the people can be motivated and frustrated

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but not controlled. “Control” strongly ies investigated. All organizations stud- 3. Meeting project objectives comes
co-occurs with “multiproject,” an indi- ied are process-oriented and—given first as driving project priority.
cation that “control” might play an the close relationship between “pro- 4. Some initial project management
important role in the context of a “mul- cess” and “result”—also results-orient- processes and structures have been
tiproject” reality. Note that all other ed. In consideration of the proximity of introduced in an earlier phase; how-
concepts co-occurring with “control” CA_ITHEALTH to the central concept of ever, the PMO implementation result-
overlap with the concepts co-occurring “process,” it may be fair to say that this ed in a huge leap forward within the
with “people”: a potential indication particular case study is the most bal- organizations by providing structure,
that we may control the (multi-) project anced one in terms of process orientation by coordinating projects and project
aspects of process, planning, work, and with regard to the other important control, and by initiating integrated
organization, results, time, and money, concepts highlighted in this analysis. program and/or portfolio manage-
but not the people aspects of the same ment; the lack of project management
entities. These two perspectives of the
Conclusion support and rationale to project
Five case studies have been conducted;
same realities need to be clearly differ- leaders who want to focus on their
four in Canada and one in Germany. As a
entiated! What is most distant to subject-matter expertise may slow
result of these case studies—supported
“people”—namely, “money”—is most down the process of successful proj-
by a content analysis of the value
closely related to “multiproject” and ect management implementation.
statements—similar themes have e-
“control.” The studied organizations 5. The integration of various elements
merged. These themes have been
appear to be aware that they may con- and dimensions (e.g., strategic and
grouped around the concepts of project
trol the money side of their operation operational processes, internal hori-
management implementation, value of
but need to motivate the people side of zontal and vertical structures, stake-
project management, and meaningful
it. Finally, the concept of “control” is holders in general, and clients in
work.
most important to CA_ENGENERGY particular) appears to have been a
and to DE_ITFINANCE; those two case Project Management Implementation major result of the PMO implemen-
studies being the private enterprises All case-study organizations have, to tation and the resulting creation,
within our set of case studies suggests various degrees, acted on identified coordination, and support of pro-
that “control”—particularly of the shortcomings within their project envi- cesses. The adaptation of generic
“money” side of its operation—is of ronments and achieved substantial processes and templates to the spe-
utter importance to business opera- improvements. Furthermore, four of cific needs of the organizations and
tions. It may also suggest that business the five organizations have practiced a their employees, and to the nature of
organizations in particular need to be people-oriented approach, and all of major categories of projects con-
careful about not confusing the people the case studies have demonstrated a ducted (including the balance
and control aspects of their operations. values-oriented approach. Finally, some between too much and too little doc-
The case of CA_ITFED is of particu- fundamental characteristics around umentation) has proved to be of
lar interest because it does not with any project management implementation paramount importance.
significant frequency refer to the con- have emerged that are shared by most 6. The integration, the necessary adap-
cept of “people” that appears to be of organizations: tation, and finding the right balance
importance to all other case studies. 1. Experienced project managers cater of formal structures and documenta-
Interestingly, this IT department within project management services to their tion appear to have significant posi-
the Canadian federal government respective departments and beyond; tive impact on the business and
appears particularly concerned with if not enough experienced person- process outcomes in all cases.
“money,” followed by the concepts of power is available to support the 7. Although elements of control may be
“result” and “process.” The related implementation of project manage- particularly conducive to a multipro-
pieces of text highlight the emphasis of ment, these new processes appear to ject environment, these need to be
this case-study organization at the time face more resistance. carefully differentiated from ele-
of data collection on the need to justify 2. Project management contributes to the ments that may motivate or demoti-
investment in any given area. “Result” departmental culture and to the larger vate people engaged in project man-
in relationship to “money” invested culture of the overall organization; if agement.
into any given “process” appears to be project management is not well adjust-
of dominant importance for CA_ITFED ed to the organizational culture and/or Value of Project Management
at this time. to the various degrees of complexity of With regard to the five levels of project
The concept of process is central to the projects to be conducted, it is again management value, the results of the
all other concepts and to all case stud- likely to be faced with resistance. five cases can be summarized:

028-041PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:35 PM Page 39
1. People in project environments are around values and meaning have 4. The experience of being valued and
satisfied or dissatisfied to various resulted in the following findings: of contributing to a greater and/or
degrees with the project manage- 1. A variety of elements that allow for personally fascinating cause—health
ment implementation within their the discovery of meaning are report- (case study 1), national effort (case
organization. People’s sense of satis- ed and demonstrated to be put in study 2), research (case study 3),
faction (and dissatisfaction) is a cru- place by the organizations and their solving challenging and complex
cial factor when it comes to the (per- employees within the context of proj- engineering and business problems
ceived) value of project management ect management implementation. (case studies 4 and 5)—appear to be
to organizations. 2. Engaging in professional activities in significant prerequisites for indi-
2. A significantly increased level of one’s chosen field—whether it be viduals and teams in making sense
process alignment was reported, pri- public service, engineering, busi- of challenges to the status quo, of
marily as a result of the implementa- ness, or research—providing service dynamically evolving contexts, and
tion of a PMO or similar support to others and to the overall improve- of continuously and sometimes dras-
structures. The (perceived) lack of ment of the organization, and doing so tically changing work environments.
adaptation and fit to the (alleged) with adequate competency and with As long as pride in one’s work and the
needs of the given organization and the help of supporting tools and ability to solve challenging problems,
its projects, particularly in the early processes, appear to be creative val- as well as a sense of accomplishment
phases of project management imple- ues of particular importance to in contributing to a greater cause are
mentation, can negatively impact employees. Being able to do this in a valued and nourished by the organi-
and/or slow down process alignment. work environment that is perceived zation and its leadership processes—
3. Client satisfaction, greater project as supportive and providing ade- including its project management
transparency, better project per- quate processes and tools can signif- processes—people in project envi-
formance, and improved project icantly enhance the feeling that one ronments appear to continue their
control have been identified as the is doing something of value; whereas commitment beyond duty and their
most important process outcomes; the perception of too much bureau- engagement in joint sense-making
this could be substantiated by docu- cracy may to some degree reduce the efforts, even in light of substantial
mentary evidence. joy of professional engagement, it challenges and changes from within
4. Major business outcomes were the cannot totally eliminate the satisfac- and outside the organization.
growing and repeat business based tion that comes with creating mean-
on increased customer satisfaction, ingful results, which is inherent in The results of this particular research
more strategic focus on important participation in a chosen profession- approach and perspective contribute to
initiatives, and multiproject control al community. a better understanding of commitment
allowing initiatives to be managed in 3. Putting people first and being able to and motivation of people working in
a strategically and an integrated way cooperate and communicate effec- project environments and of the impor-
with direct impact on the business tively across internal and external tance of values and meaning as key con-
strategy. boundaries based on a joint project cepts of project leadership. These results
5. Given that several case-study organi- management approach and on suffi- also contribute to more precisely placing
zations are government organiza- ciently shared values have proven to these factors within the various value
tions, identifying a return of invest- be important components of actualiz- levels and to better understanding their
ment has proven to be difficult. ing experiential values. Experiencing interplay with project management
However, for one private business a sense of belonging (e.g., even to a implementation in particular organiza-
organization (DE_ITFINANCE), cal- small community of like-minded col- tional contexts. Finally, the results of this
culating a return on investment leagues) will be more important than research may contribute to framing fur-
appears to be within reach, while for perceiving friction between one’s own ther research necessary to help leaders
the other (CA_ENGENERGY), the group and others. Most importantly, and managers understand how and
emphasis on risk management in people need to feel recognized as when to integrate personal and organi-
complex energy generation projects human beings with emotions and zational values into their leadership
accounts for the lack of relevant data they want to be addressed as such. approach as well as organizational strat-
to engage in ROI calculations. While control may be a valid approach egy development and implementation.
for managing nonhuman resources,
What Does It All Mean? leadership needs to be concerned Acknowledgments
Our particular research questions and with humans, their emotions, and These case studies could not have been
the chosen methodological approaches their motivations. conducted without the substantial sup-

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PAPERS
port of the five organizations contribut- Kendra, K., & Taplin, L. J. (2004). body of knowledge—Third edition.
ing to this study. We are very grateful to Project success: A cultural framework. Newtown Square, PA: Author
these organizations and their employ- Project Management Journal, 35(1), Smith, A. E. (2007). Leximancer
ees, who offered their time, effort, and 30–45. (Version 2.25) [Computer software].
wisdom. Furthermore, we thankfully Krippendorf, K. (2004). Content analysis: St. Lucia, Brisbane, Australia:
acknowledge the funding of this An introduction to its methodology Leximancer Pty Ltd. (http://www.
research through the Project Manage- (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. leximancer.com).
ment Institute. Finally, we would like to Martin, M. W. (2000). Meaningful Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1994).
thank our colleagues within this collab- work: Rethinking professional ethics. Grounded theory methodology: An
orative research project, who continu- New York: Oxford University Press. overview. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S.
ously engaged in fruitful discussions, Mengel, T. (2004). From responsibility Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of qualitative
posed stimulating questions, and to values-oriented leadership—6 theses research (pp. 273–285). Thousand
helped find some of the answers. on meaning and values in personal life Oaks, CA: Sage.
An earlier version of this paper was and work environments. International Strauss, A. L., & Corbin, J. M. (1998).
presented at the PMI Biannual Research Network on Personal Meaning. Positive Basics of qualitative research:
Conference in Warsaw in July 2008. ■ Living E-Zine. Retrieved August 11, Techniques and procedures for develop-
2004, from http://www.meaning.ca/ ing grounded theory (2nd ed.).
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Franz Deuticke.
balanced scorecard approach to University of New Brunswick, Canada. Before
Frankl, V. E. (1988). The will to mean- joining academia full-time, he had served in
project management leadership.
ing: Foundations and applications of various management and leadership positions
Project Management Journal, 35(4),
logotherapy (Expanded edited ed.). in different European business organizations.
47–56.
New York: Meridian, Penguin Group. Subsequently, he has worked as a project man-
Frankl, V. E. (1997). Man’s search for Paine, L. S. (2003). Value shift: Why
agement and leadership consultant and coach
ultimate meaning. New York: Insight companies must merge social and
in Canadian and European settings with global
Books. financial imperatives to achieve
technology and service organizations to help
superior performance. New York:
Keegan, A. E., & Den Hartog, D. N. develop senior project managers and leaders.
McGraw-Hill.
(2004). Transformational leadership in He also serves as a member of the Academic
a project-based environment: A Pattakos, A. (2004). Prisoners of our Teaching Faculty for the Center for Innovative
comparative study of the leadership thoughts: Viktor Frankl’s principles at Management, MBA in Project Management
styles of project managers and line work. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler. Program, University of Athabasca. In addition
managers. International Journal Project Management Institute. (2004). to his graduate degrees in computer science
of Project Management, 22, 609–617. A guide to the project management and adult education, he has a PhD in theology

028-041PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:35 PM Page 41
and an MA in history. He is particularly inter- extensive experience in leadership consulting, finishing his computer science degree at the
ested in leadership and project management organizational performance, human resources University of Bonn, he has spent 2 years as
education in practice and theory as well as in and change management strategies. Her career research associate at Cornell University in
their historical development and philosophical spans 25 years with Hydro. Her education started Ithaca, NY. Over 25 years in various leadership
underpinnings. In his current research, he is with an honours degree in psychology, followed positions in systems development, consulting,
exploring the theory and practice of leadership by advanced human resources and strategic and training within various German business
and project management education. change management courses from the University organizations have prepared him well for his
of Toronto, and a master's of business administra- current work as self-employed consultant and
Kathy Cowan-Sahadath is a program manager at tion degree in project management from Athabasca professional trainer in the fields of project
Hydro One Networks Inc., Ontario, Canada. She has University. She is currently a PhD student at management, process management, and strat-
played a key role in business transformation ini- Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA. egy development. He has worked successfully
tiatives that involved managing changes with with many organizations of different sizes and
business systems, people, tools and operating Friedbert Follert is the owner and president of industries, particularly in Europe and North
process change and new technology. She has Follert Consulting in Guxhagen, Germany. After America.

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PAPERS
Exploring the Role of Steering
Committees in Realizing Value
From Project Management
Thomas G. Lechler, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, USA
Martin Cohen, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, USA
P
roject steering committees are acknowledged as important structur-
The impact of steering committees on project
performance and their role in creating value al elements in project implementation, and are widely discussed in
from project management capabilities is not well the practitioner literature (Englund & Bucero, 2006). However, a sub-
understood. A case study analysis was chosen stantial literature search revealed a surprising research gap in this
to analyze the configurations and specific structural component of project management and does not yet reflect the
functions of project steering committees. A importance steering committees might play in the building and sustaining
measurement model for steering committee of an organization’s project management capability. If value can be derived
configurations was developed to enable further from the fit between the project management infrastructure and the organ-
survey-based studies. One of the major insights ization, then linking mechanisms (such as steering committees) will be
resulting from the authors’ interviews with proj- instrumental to an organization’s ability to capture value from its project
ect managers and senior managers was that
management–related investments. Better understanding of the linkages
they perceived the existence of a project steer-
between structural elements like steering committees may lead to a better
ing committee only when the context was
defined and clarified. Furthermore, a large vari- understanding of how the value of project management systems is actually
ety of committee involvements was identified, attained.
concluding that steering committees per se are In particular, steering committees could enfold many positive influences
very rare. On the project level, the cases clearly on project success. In involving the senior management in project decisions
demonstrate that committees with project steer- they are a structural component in compensating for low project manager
ing functions play an important role in the selec- authority. Additionally, committees could support coordination between dif-
tion, initiation, definition, and control of projects. ferent functional units in an organization. Steering committees might also
On the organizational level, they are important be instrumental in implementing and sustaining project management stan-
to implement and maintain project management dards, structures, and policies. So far, empirical studies have focused on
standards. Finally, the results clearly indicate
information technology (IT) departments and empirically linked the role of
that steering committees directly support proj-
steering committees with the creation of organizational effectiveness (Gupta &
ect success and are instrumental for attaining
value from an organization’s investments in its Raghunathan, 1989; Karimi, Bhattacherjee, Gupta, & Somers, 2000).
project management system. Other than their positive effects, committees could also impose negative
effects on project performance by delaying important implementation deci-
KEYWORDS: project performance; decision sions as well as instigating organizational conflict. These influences could be
processes; configuration; business-unit derived from the general discussion centered on the dysfunctionality of
committee; executive committee; steering management boards (DeVries & Miller, 1984). Although it is potentially
committee important, actual research has not addressed possible board dysfunctions
and their negative consequences for project implementation.
Another gap in the research makes it worthwhile to study the effects of
steering committees in more detail. So far, prior research has focused on
how steering committees influence the level of management sophistication
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 42–54 at the strategic planning level (planning, control, organization, and integra-
©2009 by the Project Management Institute tion) rather than how they exert their influence on the project implementa-
Published online in Wiley InterScience tion processes that are designed to implement the organization’s strategy.
(www.interscience.wiley.com) The level of research should include individual projects to better understand
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20094 the impact steering committees have in achieving project success. We believe

042-054PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:37 PM Page 43
this is a missing link and that an exam- number of references we expected to their influence on: (1) IT planning (Doll
ination of steering committee influ- find addressing the role of steering & Torkzadah, 1987; Venkatraman &
ences on individual projects will lead to committees in project implementation. Ramanujam, 1987), (2) control; (3) organ-
a better understanding of the value We extended the search to the “project ization; and (4) integration. Karimi
contributions of structural elements in governance” literature. Again, very few et al. (2000) analyzed different func-
managing projects. articles were found, and we still did not tions of committees and their relevance
Hence, in this article we seek to find many references to steering com- to the implementation of projects. They
address the following research ques- mittees in terms of their configuration demonstrated a positive influence on
tions to shed light on the role of steer- or their impact on project implementa- the performance of IT organizations “in
ing committees in establishing project tion processes. at least eight ways”:
management standards and imple- The majority of articles that we 1. by providing strategic operational
menting projects that will enable an could identify focused on the role of IT direction;
organization to attain value from its committees in defining and implement- 2. by providing leadership in exploiting
project management investments: ing IT-related strategies (e.g., Doll & and managing IT;
1. What are the various configurations Torkzadah, 1987, Karimi et al., 2000). 3. by resolving resource allocation deci-
and responsibilities of project steer- The references these articles referred to sions;
ing committees? also did not lead to publications specif- 4. by helping top management main-
2. Which project decisions are made by ically dealing with project steering tain control over IT activities;
committees? committees. All references identified 5. by providing top management sup-
3. How are committees organized, and fall within the IT domain and are not port for IT activities;
what form do their decision process- directly related to project management 6. by providing visibility of IT initia-
es take? research efforts. This leads us to con- tives;
4. Do steering committees influence clude that relatively little scholarly 7. by deciding which IT activities are of
project performance and increase work has been conducted analyzing strategic importance to the organiza-
project management value? one of the main structural elements of tion; and
project management employed in 8. by centralizing or decentralizing the
To address these questions we con- many organizations. IT function.
ducted in-depth case studies of four One reason that research on this
organizations as a part of a larger topic may be difficult to locate is the None of these functions are directly
research project funded by the Project variety of terminologies used to describe related to project performance or the
Management Institute (PMI) on the different organizational structures per- value project management delivers to
Value of Project Management (Thomas forming oversight functions. Earl (1989) organizations. Gupta and Raghunathan
& Mullaly, 2007). The results of this proposed the following three types of (1989) analyzed the influence of infor-
research will improve our understand- IT steering committees, differentiating mation systems (IS) steering commit-
ing of the conditions under which com- them by their functions and responsi- tees on IS planning. Their results
mittees add value to the process of bilities: steering groups, policy commit- accentuate the value of steering com-
project implementation, which project- tees, and IT boards. It is also mentioned mittees in avoiding system redundancy
related decisions are made by commit- that their roles would not be mutually and their “substantial influence on
tees, and how steering committees exclusive (i.e., they might overlap in the achievement of planning goals.”
help organizations in realizing value responsibilities). We observed this These authors recognized that “the ulti-
from both projects and investment in phenomenon firsthand in our initial mate success of systems planning
project management. The case studies case study, in which business units depends on the success of the individ-
will also offer some methodological described their committees using dif- ual projects covered by the plan,”
direction and generate research ques- ferent terminologies, and only after although, their analysis indicates “. . .
tions to further explore the impact of being provided a definition of possible that steering committees have relative-
project steering committees on project committee functions did they perceive ly little impact on the level of detail of
performance. the presence of a project steering project plans” (Gupta & Raghunathan,
committee. 1989, p. 786). This suggests that IT
Prior Research The identified research on steering steering committees are created to set
A thorough literature search on several committees (Doll, 1985; Drury, 1984; the strategy but do not generally inter-
reference databases (including ABI/ Nolan, 1982) focused on the role fere by directly managing the projects.
INFORM, Business Source Premier, and of standing committees composed of In summary, prior research has focu-
First Search) did not result in the critical business units and IT executives and sed on the role of steering committees

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PAPERS
Exploring the Role of Steering Committees
in the organizationwide coordination the level of control a steering commit- Characterizations of

of IT disciplines. Despite their IT focus, tee exerts over projects and project Participating Organizations
these studies also indirectly suggest an managers. The basic characteristics of the four
important role for steering committees • Organization: How do steering com- organizations analyzed demonstrate a
in the success of individual projects mittees organize their work processes? variety of industries and maturity levels
and, therefore, in obtaining value from This component describes committee in project management standards. The
project management for the organiza- permanence (ad hoc vs. permanent) competitive position of these organiza-
tion. and regularity of meetings. tions depends on the successful man-
• Committee Process: How are steer- agement of many projects. Some
Research Method and ing committees involved in the descriptive information was left out to
Instruments project implementation process? maintain the confidentiality of the par-
Projects are usually undertaken in This component refers both to ticipating organizations. Their sizes
a multiproject environment (i.e., in a internal committee dynamics and range from small to large; for further
larger organization many projects are the extent to which the committee information, see Table 1.
executed simultaneously). When sever- controls the project decision- All four organizations maintain dif-
al units must compete for scarce making process. ferent levels of formality in their project
resources, the benefits from company- management methodology. Organiza-
wide coordination of resource alloca- A multilevel research design was tion #1, Organization #2, and Organiz-
tion are likely to be large. Steering chosen to analyze the nature of steer- ation #3 significantly changed their
committees are adopted to coordinate ing committees at the organizational project management standards over
and monitor multiple projects, to set level and their direct impact at the the last decade, and two out of the four
priorities, and to allocate resources. project level. At the organizational organizations (Organization #1 and
They serve as supervising entities, usu- level, we were interested in the general Organization #2) went through several
ally consisting of senior managers role and function of steering commit- steps to increase their maturity levels of
nominated by top management. Ste- tees within an organization. We inter- project management standards.
ering committees should have the back- viewed seven senior managers from Organization #1 is a medium-sized
ing of top management and be headed four organizations who are involved in service organization providing a wide
by senior managers (Doll, 1985). the implementation of project man- range of information to the insurance,
Steering committees help to integrate agement. At the project level, we were banking, and medical communities. The
the projects into the functional organi- interested in specific influences a organization has 3,000 employees and
zation and are an important structural steering committee had on the imple- $600M in revenues. From a project man-
component used to ensure and to mentation of a specific project. Based agement standpoint, they are in the soft-
coordinate the involvement of senior on the five descriptive components, a ware development business. Most IT
managers in the process of project questionnaire was developed to gather projects are internal, and half of them
implementation. data from project managers. The proj- are for product development purposes.
Following our literature analysis, we ect managers were asked to refer to a Project managers from the IT organiza-
identified five distinctive components specific project and how it was affected tion work with more than five major
to describe steering committees: by a specific steering committee. This business units organized along industry
• Configuration: Who is represented in allowed us to explore the impact of and product lines into 13 subdivisions.
the steering committee? This compo- committees on the project implemen- The firm has implemented advanced
nent describes a steering committee’s tation process. The questionnaire project management techniques, like
constituency in terms of management consists of 45 questions in total; 34 Critical Chain, and is currently operat-
seniority and functional diversity. questions have answer categories ing at Level 2 of the Capability Maturity
• Responsibility: Which responsibilities ranging from 1 to 7 describing the level Model Integration (CMMI) maturity
do steering committees have in the of agreement. The remaining 11 model. A large number of IT managers
implementation process of projects? questions are multiple choice or open- and staff left the organization during the
This component describes the level of ended questions that provide an orga- period of transition, with a total reduc-
committee involvement in defining nizational overview on the role of tion in IT staff from 600 to 380. Although
project scope and objectives and in committees within the organization, as Organization #1 maintains a project
cross-functional coordination. well as a case project description. In management office (PMO), influence
• Decision Authority: Which project total, we conducted 25 interviews with over project management practice
decisions are made by the steering 18 project managers and 7 senior seems to be limited to process compli-
committee? This component refers to managers. ance (e.g., quality assurance).

042-054PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:37 PM Page 45
Attributes Organization #1 Organization #2 Organization #3 Organization #4

Project Categories Software development Defense system New product Product development
development development
Average Number of 50 700 200 30
Projects Per Year
Average Project Size $90K– $4M $3M– $75M $3M– $35M $1– $3M
Average Project Duration 6–60 months 18–48 months 18–36 months 4–18 months
Percentage of Projects 100% top 5% top 10% top 20%
Following Formal Project
Management Methodology
CMMI Maturity Level Level 2 Level 5 Level 1 Level 1
Project Management Moderately formal with Moderately formal Relatively informal Relatively informal
Methodology high adherence with medium adherence documentation (a work in progress)
Table 1: Descriptive information of participating organizations.
Organization #1 has captured the ranging from project management of against private military contractors. A
value of project management at all lev- internal and external resources to PMO was created to provide guidance
els. Since formal project management professional services and facilities and project management documenta-
has been instituted, more projects have provider for externally managed proj- tion to project leaders throughout
been completed with better results and ects. The organization is currently gen- the organization. One division of the
a smaller IT staff. According to organi- erating over $850M per year in revenue. organization has achieved CMMI
zational records, 90% of the 50 projects Seventy-five percent of the projects are Level 5. In the view of senior manage-
started in the past year were completed individual armament deliverables; ment, project management has deliv-
on time and on budget. In the view of 25% are integrated weapons systems. ered value to the organization in sever-
project managers, value has been deliv- This agency both competes directly al forms:
ered to the organization in many forms: with and collaborates with private mili- • Internal and external customers are
Internal customers are more satisfied tary contractors. In some cases, their happier with deliverables.
with deliverables. project management is done by outside • More development projects are tran-
• Portfolio management is more effec- entities; in others, they provide re- sitioning to external customers.
tive. sources to projects managed by outside • The organization’s reputation for on-
• Time and budget constraints are organizations. time delivery has been enhanced ver-
being met in over 90% of the projects. While more than 700 projects sus private industry.
• Specifications are being met in over employ more than 3,000 agency pro-
90% of projects, as compared with fessionals, we focused our attention on Current efforts to improve project
50% before the changes. the largest projects, those involving management practices are focused on a
• Process improvements are producing multiple technologies and managed by large group of secondary projects.
less rework. agency professionals. These “Level 1 Organization #3 was founded in
projects” are reviewed by the senior 1999 and represents a 50/50 joint ven-
Current process improvements organizational leadership, which ture between two major oil companies.
efforts include a move to CMMI Level 3 serves as a project steering committee. The firm is a manufacturer for lubricant
and the use of quality function deploy- The “filter thresholds” for steering additives used primarily in automotive,
ment (QFD) for software development. committee oversight include project heavy-duty diesel, and marine engines,
Organization #2 is a vertically and budget, duration, risk, number of com- along with additives for fuels and
horizontally integrated research and petencies (e.g., technologies), and visi- refineries. Some 350 scientists and
development agency servicing the U.S. bility. In 2003, the organization was engineers are employed worldwide.
Department of Defense. This organiza- reorganized from 22 business units to Approximately 200 projects are cur-
tion interfaces with the private-sector five in order to better service existing rently in the development pipeline.
defense industry in a variety of scenarios, clients and compete more effectively Projects at this organization take the

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PAPERS
form of pure research, applied research managers hold management positions product development committee, sen-
(for specific customers), and third- in the organization, one as VP of prod- ior leadership board, stakeholder teams,
party testing. uct development and one as director of market development teams, and finan-
While still a strong functional manufacturing. cial projects committee; see Table 2).
organization, project-centric behavior Projects varied in size from $1M The variety of committee titles and
is encouraged through special team to $3M, with team sizes ranging from 9 to responsibilities supports our initial
recognition awards of up to 10% of a 30. Approximately ten projects in four suspicion that the concept of a steering
person’s salary. “Shareholder” teams major programs are currently in the committee is neither clearly defined
select the reward recipients in addition development pipeline. Most projects nor perceived in industry.
to playing a steering committee role in fall within new product development. Committees are used in every
large projects. The “filter thresholds” for steering com- organization to initiate and monitor
Senior management indicated that mittee oversight include project budget projects, but in two organizations only
the firm has succeeded in incorporat- and perceived importance to the for the largest projects (see Table 2).
ing the best practices of both parent organization. The “filter thresholds” in getting steer-
organizations; 65% of projects are now It is really too early to place this ing committees involved in project
on budget/schedule versus 50% at the organization at a process maturity oversight include project budget, dura-
firm’s inception. Reasons cited for con- level. There is only limited project man- tion, risk, number of competencies
tinuing cost/schedule overruns include agement documentation. All of the (technologies), and visibility. In
the following: managers and project managers Organization #4, because of its precari-
1. a lack of project planning experience, we interviewed at this organization ous financial position, every project is
including risk and contingency plan- have more than 20 years’ industry and important, and, therefore, is coordinat-
ning; project management experience. All ed by the senior management team. In
2. research uncertainties; project managers hold functional man- general, we identified two types of
3. market vagaries; and agement responsibilities. committees that were involved in the
4. inadequate portfolio planning—too The value of project management management of projects: executive
many projects in the pipeline. to this start-up organization is one of committees and business-unit com-
survival. Missing development or per- mittees (i.e., committees within func-
It should be pointed out that our formance deadlines could permanently tional groups).
interviews were restricted to the damage the firm’s reputation in the
research portion of the organization. industry and cause a cutoff in venture Executive Committees
Had we interviewed personnel in man- capital funding. While the level of proj- In all organizations, the executive
ufacturing, data processing, and other ect management documentation is steering committees consist of senior
divisions, it is possible the results modest, the understanding of its criti- executives (see Table 2). In Organiza-
would have been different. cality is universally understood among tion #1, there is little involvement by
Organization #4 is a start-up virtual managers, customers, and investors. All the executive committee during project
semiconductor manufacturer based in project/senior managers believe that execution after a project is approved.
Silicon Valley, California. The firm has project management practice, even in Moreover, not all projects in Organi-
developed an integrated circuit its infancy, has enhanced client satis- zation #1 are even approved by the
replacement for the electronic timing faction, communication, efficiency, executive steering committee, (i.e.,
devices used in circuit boards. The and overall performance. business-unit heads are often given
organization currently has 30 employ- budgetary authority over spending
ees worldwide, along with eight con- Organization-Level Findings allocations). In Organization #2, the
tract employees, and has been funded Most interviewed managers perceived involvement of executive committees
for three years. Although it is not yet the existence of project steering com- painted a very different and more varied
revenue-generating, it already has a mittees only when the context was picture. While the senior management
substantial backlog of customer orders. defined and clarified in terms of what it review board has limited influence over
From a project management stand- meant to be a steering committee (e.g., project selection, they play a more
point, this organization is in the forma- the expression “steering committee” is proactive role in some projects. Orga-
tive stages of methodology development. not necessarily a standard descriptor nization #3 also utilizes an executive
Two project managers and one senior for committees with project oversight committee consisting of top functional
manager reported on their project responsibilities). Committees with managers for project oversight, but
management experience with the exec- these functions were described differ- only for the largest, cross-functional
utive steering committee. Both project ently in the four organizations (e.g., projects. In Organization #4, some

042-054PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:37 PM Page 47
Attributes Organization #1 Organization #2 Organization #3 Organization #4

Steering Committee Most projects Largest projects only Largest projects only Most projects
Usage (Overall)
Executive Committee Executive committee Executive leadership Senior functional Executive committee
Constituency members managers members
Executive Committee Project selection Ongoing project Ongoing project Project selection,
Involvement only decisions decisions ongoing project decisions,
ongoing performance
review
Executive Committee No specific schedule At least quarterly At least quarterly Weekly
Meeting Frequency
Business-Unit Business-unit Market development Project steering None
Committee advisory teams committees
Constituency committees
Business-Unit Detailed review of Ensure market Technical oversight Not applicable
Committee project deliverables acceptance of on large projects
Involvement deliverables
Business-Unit Weekly Not reported Not reported Not applicable
Committee Meeting
Frequency
Table 2: Qualitative summary of steering committees.
members of the executive committee executive-level committees, and they projects ranging from one month up to
serve as project managers and are also serve to ensure customer involve- 75 months, with an average project dura-
thereby directly responsible for current ment in deliverable validation. tion of 28 months. Overall, 13 respond-
projects. We could identify committees on ing project managers are reporting to
different hierarchical levels that are one committee, eight are reporting
Business-Unit Committees involved in the implementation of to two committees, and one project
Business-unit committees were more projects, but we did not find a commit- manager reported to three different
diverse and include managers at differ- tee with sole project steering func- committees. In the latter case, the proj-
ent levels of the organization, based on tions. The functions of the involved ect manager reported to a program
their expertise. Some 73% of the project committees vary across the hierarchi- committee in addition to executive and
managers interviewed reported work- cal levels as well as across the analyzed business-unit committees. In the fol-
ing with business-unit committees and organizations. Also, the frequency of lowing analyses, we differentiated the
27% did not. Business-unit committees committee meetings varied greatly results between executive and business-
do not exist in Organization #4. The use across the organizations and the com- unit committees.
of business-unit committees depends mittee types. A fundamental question is whether
on the size of the organization and the the involvement of committees improves
necessity of coordinating projects Project-Level Influences of project performance, and thus con-
between functions. The business-unit Steering Committees tributes overall to the value generation
committees in Organization #1 consist In this section, we analyze how com- of project management. Across all four
of the six business-unit heads and their mittees are directly influencing the organizations, 75% of the project man-
direct reports. In the other two organi- implementation and the performance of agers perceived a positive influence on
zations, members are drawn from mul- projects. The project managers were project success by the committees they
tiple functional areas. asked to answer our questions for a are working with. Although some proj-
Given the frequency of interaction specific project and the primary com- ect managers saw negative influences
(weekly), business-unit committees mittee that they are working with. on their projects, these answers were
play a more interactive role than do The respondents were responsible for not related to a specific organization

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PAPERS
type)—rather, they are involved in deci-

Executive Business-Unit
sions that require the coordination
Committee Committee
between functional units on either the
Questions (n 13) (n 12)
organizational or business-unit level
Only upper management was represented 93% 75% (project prioritizing, budget increases)
in committee or in exceptional decisions like go/
Clients or sponsors were fully represented 85% 83% no-go decisions. Further investigation
in committee will need to address the frequency of
specific decisions. From our interviews
All functional project areas were 100% 64% we got the impression that go/no-go
represented in committee
decisions are not made at all. This is
Project manager was committee member 30% 100% surprising, as projects are supposed to
with full voting rights face uncertainties, and it would, there-
Table 3: Steering committee configurations. fore, be natural to terminate projects.
Most committees have the authority to
increase the budget, but we do not have
or committee type, but rather were ing that the project leadership function
information about the degree to which
equally distributed across all four is an integral part of the business-unit
they are authorized.
organizations and committees. It is leadership. The nature of functional
interesting that ten project managers business units is focused so that they Committee Project Responsibilities
saw negative effects on efficiency and are more likely limited in covering all The responsibilities of committees
effectiveness, while only four of the ten different functional areas a project describe which project responsibilities
project managers perceived negative might need to integrate. Independent of are related to the committee level (see
effects on customer satisfaction. Seven the committee type is the participation Table 5).
perceived negative effects on the cre- of the clients who were represented in The results show that committees
ation of shareholder value. over 80% of all committees. could have varying responsibilities, but
if they were responsible for project
Committee Configurations
Committee Project Authority goals, they were also responsible for
The configuration of the committees
The authority of the committees des- budget, schedule, and scope. Although,
describes which hierarchical levels and
cribes which project decisions are made it seems that on the business-unit level,
functional areas are represented in the
at the committee level (see Table 4). committees clearly have budgetary
committee (see Table 3).
The authority committees have responsibility. Naturally, business-unit
The configurations of committees
over project decisions does not differ committees are not responsible for
with project steering functions depend
between committee types or organiza- cross-functional coordination. But the
on the committee types and do not vary
tions. The authority of committees over relatively low percentages we obtained
across organizations. Project managers
project decisions is surprisingly consis- for the responsibility of cross-functional
with voting rights in the executive com-
tent. Committees are not involved in coordination are surprising, and pose
mittees were in fact senior managers
day-to-day decisions (only one of each the question as to who is responsible for
who were responsible for the imple-
mentation of a specific project (e.g.,
Organizations #2 and #4). This result Executive Business-Unit
is consistent with the first question Committee Committee
concerning the senior management Questions (n 13) (n 12)
representation. In only one case, other
All projects are prioritized/authorized 70% 77%
members of the organization who were by committee
specialists (Organization #2) were rep-
resented in the executive committee. All important project decisions are made 7% 8%
The latter also reflects the specific by committee
functional complexities of the project Committee authorized to increase budget, 85% 92%
environment. This is in contrast to the schedule, or scope
business-unit committees in which
Committee authorized to make go/no-go 85% 100%
project managers have full voting rights. decision
Project managers were members of the
business-unit committees, demonstrat- Table 4: Steering committee authorities.

042-054PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:37 PM Page 49
Most committees are institutional-

Executive Business-Unit
ized and meet on a regular basis, with
Committee Committee
one exception. Organization #2 was
Questions (n 13) (n 12)
the exception and has several ad-hoc
Committee was responsible for establishing 54% 59% committees on the executive level that
project goals met regularly once they were estab-
Committee was responsible for budget approval 54% 92% lished. This specific situation could
be associated with the matrix struc-
Committee was responsible for schedule approval 54% 57% ture implemented. In Organization #4,
Committee was responsible for scope approval 62% 50% the executive steering committee con-
ducts weekly implementation reviews
Committee was responsible for cross-functional 47% 17%
as part of an extensive stage-gate pro-
coordination
cess that starts as soon as each project
Table 5: Steering committee project responsibilities. is authorized.
Discussion
In-depth case studies were employed to
Executive Business-Unit answer the four posed research ques-
Committee Committee tions on the role and the impact of proj-
Questions (n 13) (n 12) ect steering committees:
1. What are the various configura-
Decisions were made collectively 85% 68%
tions and responsibilities of project
Decisions were frequently delayed 7% 8% steering committees?
Decisions were frequently reversed 0% 8% Our analysis reveals a wide variety
of committee configurations, with five
Committee supported the project manager 85% 73% different committee descriptors in
Frequent conflicts in committee 15% 32% just four different organizations. The
appearance and role of project steering
Table 6: Committee decision processes.
committees is not clear-cut. We obser-
ved a wide range of project-related
this important integrative function could also be related to the different tasks among the committees identified.
within an organization. project types that are coordinated by These tasks vary mainly by committee
committees. Organization #1 coordi- type, and not consistently across the
Committee Decision Processes
nates most projects via steering com- organizations investigated. In general,
The committee decision processes
mittees. In Organization #2, only the we could identify two fundamental cat-
describe how project-related decisions
“Level 1 projects” are reviewed by egories of committees—executive and
were made within the committee (see
the senior organizational leadership. business-unit committees. The differ-
Table 6).
ences between these two categories
The project managers indicated
Committee Organization need to be addressed in further
strong support from committees in
The committee organization describes research.
project-related decisions. Less than
whether committees are permanent Many committees are not formed
10% of the project managers perceived
structural elements of the organization solely for project oversight. The results
decisions as being delayed or reversed
and whether they meet regularly (see suggest that “pure” steering committees
by the committees involved, even though
Table 7). solely responsible for the implementation
conflicts occur within some executive
committees (15%) and business-unit
committees (32%). Conflicts do not Executive Business-Unit
necessarily turn into process delays or Committee Committee
decision reversals. In most committees, Questions (n 13) (n 12)
project-related decisions are made col-
Committee was permanent (vs. ad hoc) 47% 92%
lectively. The decision processes are
perceived to be the same between exec- Committee meetings were held regularly 85% 100%
utive committees and business-unit
Table 7: Committee organization.
committees. Some of the differences

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of projects do not widely exist. In fact, committees in Organization #1 had with project steering responsibility do
we identified only one committee that the power to terminate a project and not appear to challenge the authority of
could be called a “true” project steer- the authority to modify the budget or the project manager or project team,
ing committee. Project oversight is scope, it was not clear how often they although it did occur with some proj-
more a function of committees with needed to exercise that power. We also ects in Organization #2.
many responsibilities beyond project do not have information about the 4. Do steering committees influence
implementation that are exercised at decision criteria that are used by the project performance and increase proj-
different levels of an organization. The committees to make those decisions. ect management value?
cases suggest that committees with The decision authority of the commit- Based on reported dysfunctional
project steering responsibility institu- tees was also driven by the external processes of management boards
tionalize project management stan- context of the organizations. In (DeVries & Miller, 1984), it could, theo-
dards, a function that was often Organization #2, executive committee retically, be suggested that committees
reserved for the PMO. In this function, power was sometimes usurped by con- do not always have positive influences
committees represent an important gressional legislation or the U.S. on project implementation. In fact,
instrument for the introduction and Department of Defense. they could create barriers to the execu-
establishment of company-wide proj- 3. How are committees organized, tion process, and important project
ect standards and policies (for other and what form do their decision decisions could be delayed. In general,
instruments, see Eskerod and Riis processes take? however, our interviews revealed posi-
[2009]). Several of the committees identi- tive influences on project performance.
2. Which project decisions are made fied were formed specifically to moni- Committees with project steering
at the committee level? tor high-visibility projects like those in responsibility do not, in general, appear
From the four company cases, clear Organizations #2 and #3. This indicates to complicate or delay project-related
patterns have emerged as to which the particular role committees play in decisions, nor do they interfere with
decisions are made by executive and project-driven or -dominated organiza- day-to-day decision making at the proj-
business-unit level committees, respec- tional structures. Once the committees ect level. Only in very few cases did
tively. An interesting finding in Organi- are in place, they meet regularly. This some committees have a perceived
zation #1 was that the executive-level supports the idea that they are a stabi- negative effect on project performance.
committee does not necessarily influ- lizing element in the more flexible The observations suggest that commit-
ence the decision-making process of matrix structures. Despite some minor tees tend to more negatively affect the
business-unit committees, and their differences between organizations and efficiency of project implementation
roles may not significantly overlap (i.e., steering committee types, the decision processes, but they clearly integrate the
executive committees may make initial processes appear to be predictable and customer’s perspective to achieve high
resource allocation decisions, with document a generally stable relation- customer satisfaction. Most project
business-unit committees playing a ship between the committees and the managers were reporting about a very
coordinating role). In some cases, busi- projects. These results also indicate supportive function committees play in
ness-unit committees were responsi- that committees are less likely to be a the implementation of their projects.
ble for the initiation and funding of barrier to project implementation than Overall, there is clear evidence in our
projects within their budgetary limits we initially expected and support the cases to suggest a positive role of com-
as well. While the business-unit com- positive effects of committee involve- mittees in implementing projects.
mittees (in the case of Organization #1) ment on project success. Only a few Besides the direct influence of commit-
generally had a strong influence over cases were reported of dysfunctional tees on the project level, they also help
project selection, the influence of the decision making with negative effects to establish project standards and
executive committee varied from on the project implementation. This refine the project management pro-
strong to moderate. The reason for this clear result is interesting, since most cesses to maximize the value from
may have been the level of autonomy committees exercise a collective deci- implemented project management sys-
given to business-unit managers over sion process that represents a high tems. The effects of committees on
budget allocation. A surprising finding potential for conflict between stake- project performance could be summa-
was that business-unit committees holders. This could be also related to rized in two main categories: a direct
with project steering functions are the fact that committees do not inter- effect on the implementation of proj-
more widespread, and in some cases fere with the day-to-day project deci- ects and an indirect effect on project
can have a more profound influence sions and only act in exceptional performance by creating and shaping
on project delivery than executive circumstances. This assertion is sup- the context of the project implementa-
committees. While both types of ported in that, in general, committees tion processes.

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Conclusions and Outlook PMO (Kaufman & Korrapati, 2007). An management of projects as well, as they
It was surprising to find a general lack interesting research direction would be are instrumental for the implementa-
of research on the role of committees in to analyze the relationship between the tion of specific projects. Recognizing
the implementation of projects. Our in- adherence to project management this, we developed a conceptual frame-
depth case analyses are a first step in standards and the use of steering com- work and questionnaire that will be
closing this gap and clearly highlight mittees within an organization. We helpful for ongoing research in this
the importance and the positive effects found that adherence was very high for area.
of committee involvement in project large projects that are monitored by Our results demonstrate the wide
execution and the need for further steering committees but very low for variety of committee configurations
research. the majority of smaller projects. These and highlight the need to better under-
The variety of committees identi- contextual effects of steering commit- stand the role they play as a structural
fied demonstrates that committees tees seem to be equally important to element of project and program man-
with “project steering functions” exist understand their role in realizing value agement. Understanding this role will
in many different forms. Possible from project management. Future help organizations better understand
research questions derived from this research designs will have to acknowl- the integrative structural elements that
conclusion may explore committee edge these multilevel effects and need to be in place to gain full value
types and their interactions in greater should develop approaches that can from their investment in project man-
detail. cope with this complexity. agement processes.
Few of the committees identified The hierarchical relationship and
are involved in daily project decisions, interaction of executive and business-
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to acknowledge the
but they are clearly involved on an unit committees within an organiza-
financial support of PMI, the donation
exceptional basis. Unfortunately, we do tion may be another area of research
in kind support of the organizations that
not have data about the frequency and for better understanding how project
participated, and the intellectual stimu-
magnitude of those exceptional project management processes are strength-
lation of all the Value Project team mem-
decisions. It would be interesting to ened or weakened by the interaction
bers in the preparation of this article. ■
know which specific criteria commit- between different committee types.
tees use to make those decisions. Are The question of how politics and References
these decisions biased toward specific behavioral factors reinforced by specif- DeVries, K. M. F. R., & Miller, D. (1984).
project characteristics? ic committee configurations and their Neurotic style and organizational
Our results indicate that the proba- relations between each other are affect- pathology. Strategic Management
bility of project success or failure can- ing the value of project management Journal, 5, 35–55.
not be predicted exclusively from the points to yet another potentially rich Doll, W. J. (1985). Avenues for top man-
presence or absence of a steering com- research area. agement involvement in successful
mittee. But they reveal the need for dif- In many cases, the committees we MIS development. MIS Quarterly, 9(1),
ferentiated performance analyses. identified in our study included clients 17–35.
Hypotheses about the impact of com- who came from within the organization Doll, W. J., & Torkzadah, G. (1987). The
mittees on project performance should as well as from outside. This factor is relationship of MIS steering commit-
be more specific and should consider a important for the analysis of stakehold- tees to size of firm and formalization
specific aspect of project performance er involvement during project imple- of MIS planning. Communications of
(e.g., efficiency, effectiveness, etc.). For mentation. Committees with project the ACM, 30, 972–978.
example, one would hypothesize that steering functionality are coordinating
Drury, D. H. (1984, December). Data
the presence of business-unit-level multiple stakeholder perspectives.
processing steering committees. MIS
steering committees would improve Further research will be needed to
Quarterly, 8, 257–265.
customer support and communication understand how the involvement of
and increase the likelihood of customer committees supports the integration Earl, M. J. (1989). Management strate-
satisfaction with project deliverables of conflicting stakeholder expectations. gies for information technology.
but could have a negative effect on The complex and diverse nature of Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
project efficiency. project steering committees requires a Englund, R. L., & Bucero, A. (2006).
The role of committees in enforcing multilevel research approach. It is not Project sponsorship, achieving manage-
project management standards has sufficient to analyze the impact of ment commitment for project success.
generally been ignored. Project man- steering committees exclusively at New York: Wiley.
agement practitioners generally associ- the project or organizational level. Eskerod, P. & Riis, E. (2009). Project
ate this function with the role of the Committees define the context for the management models as value creators.

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Project Management Journal, 40(1), Academy of Information and through innovation. He has published articles
4–18. Management Sciences, 11(1), 1–7. in leading international journals, including Small
Gupta, Y. P., & Raghunathan, T. S. Nolan, R. L. (1982). Managing informa- Business Economics, Research Policy, R&D
(1989, Fall). Impact of information sys- tion systems by committee. Harvard Management, and others and has authored
tems (IS) steering committees on IS Business Review, 60(4), 72–79. books in the fields of project management
planning. Decision Sciences, 20, Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2007). Value and entrepreneurship. He was a NASA
777–793. of project management. Newtown research fellow in project management from
Karimi, J., Bhattacherjee, A., Gupta, Square, PA: Project Management 2003–2005.
Y. P., & Somers, T. M. (2000). The Institute.
effects of MIS steering committees on Venkatraman, N., & Ramanujam, V.
information technology management (1987). Planning system success: A Martin Cohen is an adjunct professor and PhD
sophistication. Journal of Manage- conceptualization and an operational candidate at the Howe School, Stevens Institute
ment Information Systems, 17(2), model. Management Science, 33, of Technology, and serves as an adjunct associ-
207–230. 687–705. ate professor at Pace University. He holds an
Kaufman, C., & Korrapati, R. B. (2007). MBA degree from the Harvard Business School.
A project management office (PMO) His research focuses on how firms utilize proj-
framework for successful implementa- Thomas G. Lechler is an associate professor at ects to improve organizational effectiveness. He
tion of information technology proj- the Howe School, Stevens Institute of Technology. has held management and project management
ects. Proceedings of the Allied He holds a PhD from the University of Karlsruhe, positions in the financial services and manufac-
Academies International Conference, Germany. His research focuses on value creation turing areas.

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Appendix
Project Steering Committee Questionnaire
Organization-Level Questions
1. Do different committees exist in your business unit that set the priorities or oversee the progress of projects?
___ yes___ no How many_______?
2. How are these committees described in your business unit, e.g. ___ project steering committee, ___ project oversight board,
___ project control group, ___ executive committee, other ______________________________
3. Are these committees operating ___ unit-wide, ___ program-wide, ____ functional level, or____ project-specific?
4. What are the criteria for creating steering committees? ____$$ size of project, ____project scope, ____organization span,
other__________________________
(in order of importance)
5. What is the name of the committee you worked with, if any, on your chosen project?
Project-Level Questions
Decision Authority
1. All projects in this business unit are authorized/prioritized by this steering committee.
2. All important project decisions were reviewed by a project control/steering committee.
3. All important project decisions were approved by a project control/steering committee.
4. All important project decisions were made by a project control/steering committee.
5. All important project decisions were made by the project manager.
6. The project control/steering committee set the priorities for the project.
7. The project control/steering committee supported necessary changes to the budget, schedule, or specifications.
8. The project steering committee was authorized to increase the project budget or scope.
9. The committee was authorized to make go/no-go decisions.
10. The committee was authorized to terminate a project.
Configuration
1. The project control/steering committee consisted only of upper management.

2. The client or sponsor was fully represented on the project control/steering committee.
3. The members of the project control/steering committee were drawn from different hierarchical levels in the organization.
4. All of the functional areas of the project were represented by committee members.
5. Project manager is a committee member with full voting powers.
Organization
1. The project control/steering committee was:

(a) temporary (ad-hoc)
(b) institutionalized (permanent)
2. The committee held meetings on this project on a regular schedule.
3. The committee held meetings on this project beyond the regular schedule.
(Continued)

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Responsibility
1. The project steering committee was responsible for establishing the project goals.
2. The project steering committee was responsible for approving the project schedule.
3. The project steering committee was responsible for approving the project scope.
4. The project steering committee was responsible for approving the project budget.
5. The project steering committee was responsible for cross-functional coordination.
Committee Process
1. All project decisions in the steering committee were made collectively by the project control/steering committee.
2. Important project decisions were frequently delayed by the project control/steering committee.
3. Important project decisions were frequently reversed by the project control/steering committee.
4. The project control/steering committee supported the project manager in critical project decisions.
5. The committee follows specific control processes like the stage-gate model?
6. Conflicts occurred frequently between the committee members.
Project Success
1. Did the project achieve maximum efficiency?

2. Did the project achieve all the desired outcomes?
3. Did the project achieve total client satisfaction?
4. Did the project achieve maximum economic value?

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Building Value Through Sustainable
Project Management Offices
Mimi Hurt, MI 2 Consulting, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Janice L. Thomas, Athabasca University, Athabasca, Alberta, Canada
I
n the 1990s, as organizations began to recognize that their strategies and
Organizations’ attempts to implement and gain initiatives were essentially achieved via projects, their recognition of
value from investments in project management project management as a critical competency took shape. As an out-
have resulted in the rapid growth and, in some growth of this recognition, formal development of an organizational
cases, demise of project management offices project office (typically referred to as a project management office, or
(PMOs). The recent research literature on PMOs PMO)—charged with developing and/or maintaining organizational project
provides an ambiguous picture of the value management competency—began to take off in the 1990s and continues as
case for PMOs and suggests the tenuous nature a major area of interest for both practitioners and researchers (see, for
of their current position in many organizations. example, Crawford, 2006; Hill, 2004; Hobbs & Aubry, 2007). The Project
In studying project management implementa- Management Institute (PMI) has also taken a major interest in this emerging
tions for the Value of Project Management proj- functional group (see, for example, the release of OPM3 in 2003).
ect, we chose to use three detailed cases and Although PMOs have been around since the mid- to late 1990s, Kerzner
comparisons with the remaining 62 organiza- observed that the vast majority of PMOs have either been recently created or
tions in the value project to study how PMOs are restructured (2003, p. 79). This, coupled with several studies that show
connected to value realization for organizations inconclusive results regarding the value of PMOs to the organization (see, for
investing in project management. Specifically, example, Dai & Wells, 2004; Martin, Pearson, & Furumo, 2007), suggests that
we sought to understand how PMOs deliver sus- the sustainability of PMOs and project management competency is a tenu-
tained value to organizations. Using the theo- ous issue.
ries of Jim Collins (Collins, 2001; Collins & In this article, we set out to explore how and why PMOs create sustain-
Porras, 1994) as an interpretive framework, we able value in some instances and fail to maintain their value contributions in
explore these cases to understand how to cre- others. Drawing on the work of Jim Collins and his research team, as
ate and sustain project management value described in Good to Great (2001) and Built to Last (Collins & Porras, 1994),
through investment in PMOs. as well as previous research into PMOs and project managers, we suggest
ways to help develop a sustainable project management competency and
KEYWORDS: project management; project
PMO. We illustrate these suggestions with observations from three in-depth
management offices; value; sustainability;
case studies and reference to other findings from the PMI–sponsored study,
success; leadership
“Researching the Value of Project Management.”
The Concept of PMOs

While some organizations rely on the functional manager, senior manage-
ment, or professional project managers to fulfill the responsibilities of devel-
oping, maintaining, and managing project management competencies,
others have developed a specialized group to take on some or all of these
activities. A PMO can take many forms, ranging from simply providing
administrative support for projects to providing coaching (e.g., as a center of
excellence, on project management practices, tools, etc.) to acting as a full-
blown execution function whose mandate is to formally manage and deliver
projects for the organization. See Table 1 for a review of previous research on
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 55–72 PMOs.
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute Many authors have described the basic functions of a PMO (see, for
Published online in Wiley InterScience example, Hill, 2001). However, Hobbs and Aubry’s (2007) empirical research
(www.interscience.wiley.com) provides the most grounded exploration of the functions PMOs perform
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20095 in organizations today. Working from a comprehensive list of functions

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Building Value Through Sustainable Project Management Offices
Authors Focus of Paper Key Findings/Observations

Dai & Wells (2004) • Empirical study on • Majority of PMOs established mid-1990s to 2000
establishment and use of PMO for different motivating factors; top two motivators:
• Likert-type questionnaire improve all elements of project management and
• Two samples of 234 (targeted sample) achieve common project management approach
and 96 (random sample) • Wide range of PMO mission statements, some
• Identified different functions and services business-related (strategic), others project-related
of PMOs (tactical)
• Assessed these against project performance • Proportion of budget devoted to PMO was estimated
for both samples as 2% for approx 60% of companies in sample
• Statistical analyses showed:
• Project standards and methods had highest
correlation to project performance
• Use of project historical archives next significant
correlation to project performance for targeted sample
• Reported project performance is higher in
organizations with a PMO, but difference is not
statistically significant; however, these results
were different between the two samples
• Those organizations with a PMO did more in
promoting PMO standards, historical archives,
training, and mentoring than those without a PMO
Hill (2004) Describes continuum of PMO competency • Five stages of increasing competency: project
oversight, process control, process support,
business maturity,center of excellence
• Higher stage has achieved competencies of lower stage
• Stage 3 adequate for most organizations
Desouza & • Outlines nature and characteristics • Roles of PMO fall into three levels: strategic, tactical,
Evaristo (2006) of PMOs operational
• Blends project management and knowledge • PMO archetypes = supporter, information manager,
management concepts knowledge manager, and coaches
• Classifies PMO archetypes with respect • Archetype reflects degree of authority
to administrative vs. knowledge-intensive • CSF:
dimensions • Understand how PMO will fit into corporate culture
• Identifies critical success factors for PMOs and pick appropriate archetype
• Interviews with senior managers and • Understand drivers for creating PMO
directors of PMOs in 32 IT organizations • Match type of project with project manager who has
appropriate skill sets for nature of project
• Have clearly identified roles, responsibilities, and
accountability
• Have a PMO charter, PMO policy, and PMO methodology
methodology
• Create and regularly monitor/report PMO
metrics that measure PMO performance
related to policy objectives
Martin, Pearson, & • Use of formal project management practices • IS project size had significant and inverse influence
Furumo (2007) on information systems (IS) projects on project quality and budget
• Identification of which specific project • Organizations without a PMO were just as likely to
management practices, including PMOs, utilize standard project management practices as
provide most value for IS projects those with a PMO (most likely due to PMI sample
• Survey responses from 129 IS project bias)
managers drawn from PMI
Table 1: Summary of recent research on PMOs.
(Continues on next page)

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Authors Focus of Paper Key Findings/Observations

• Having a PMO did not influence project schedule
or project quality
• PMO presence significantly related to meeting
project budget
• Organizations should establish measures of
effectiveness of PMO in order to calculate its
worth
Hobbs & • Three-phase research program to better • Could not identify small number of definitive PMO
Aubry (2007) understand PMOs and their perceived value configurations
• Descriptive survey of 500 PMOs • Most PMOs are young and have a small staff
• Development of classification typology (2007, p. 78)
• In-depth study of four PMOs through • 27 PMO functions grouped into five factors
11 transformations (see Table 2)
• Confirmatory study to validate findings • PMOs are viewed as overhead expenses
(forthcoming) • PMOs are frequently reconfigured every
couple of years
• PMOs need to adapt their functions to the
organizational and strategic context
• Lack of consensus in the project management
community regarding the value for money and
contribution of the PMO to project/program
performance
• “Practitioners and organizations would be well
advised not to implement a PMO under naïve
assumptions of value for money or because
PMOs are popular” (2007, p. 85)
Hobbs, Aubry, & • In-depth qualitative and quantitative • Organizational tensions are primary drivers
Thuillier, (2008) analysis of four PMOs, whose life spans behind implementation and reconfiguration
were 4, 8, 10, and 12 years of PMOs
• Each organization reconfigured its PMO • Organizational politics play an important role
every 3–4 years, resulting in underlying these tensions
11 organizational transformations • The structure of PMOs coevolve with that of the
organization
• Because of the inherent historical instability of
PMOs, it is hard to determine if they are truly a
valuable innovation
developed from the literature and a A PMO’s effectiveness and success, and implement only what is needed by
previous phase of the research project, according to Hill (2004), depends on the specific organization at a specific
their research proceeded through a choosing which functions to imple- time is a major finding of the Value of
multistep process of refinement. The ment, and adapting and adjusting them Project Management research as well
500 respondents covered a variety of to fit the organization’s needs, which is (Thomas & Mullaly, 2007, 2008).
roles, but most were project managers also an observation from Hobbs and Kerzner (2003) stated that project
or within the PMO. Respondents Aubry (2007, p. 84): “[the relative differ- management competency represents
ranked the importance of each PMO ences in importance of various individ- important intellectual property for the
function on scale of 1 to 5, with 1 not ual functions] reinforces the need to company, and therefore must be man-
at all important to 5 very important. adapt to the organizational and strate- aged wisely. He argued that this respon-
Ultimately, the study identified 27 func- gic context when deciding which func- sibility is most appropriately that of the
tions that PMOs can perform. Factor tions to include within the mandate of a PMO. Kerzner reviewed the roles and
analyses grouped these into five dis- particular PMO.” This need to contextu- benefits of the project office over sever-
tinct groups as reflected in Table 2. alize the practice of project management al decades. Table 3 lists the benefits of a

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1. Monitoring and Controlling 2. Development of Project 3. Multiproject Management

Project Performance Management Competencies and • Coordinate between projects
• Report project status to upper Methodologies • Identify, select, and prioritize new projects
management • Develop and implement a standard • Manage one or more portfolios
• Monitor and control of project methodology • Manage one or more programs
performance • Promote project management within • Allocate resources between projects
• Implement and operate a proj- organization
ect information system • Develop competency of personnel,
• Develop and maintain a project including training
scoreboard • Provide mentoring for project man-
agers
• Provide a set of tools without an
effort to standardize
5. Organization Learning Other Functions (Not in Any Group):

4. Strategic Management • Monitor and control performance of • Execute specialized tasks for project
• Provide advice to upper manage- managers
PMO
ment • Manage customer interfaces
• Manage archives of project docu-
• Participate in strategic planning • Recruit, select, evaluate, and determine
mentation
• Benefits management salaries for project managers
• Conduct postproject reviews
• Network and environmental • Conduct project audits
scanning • Implement and manage database of
lessons learned
• Implement and manage risk data-
base
Table 2: Importance of 27 PMO functions grouped into factors (n 500, Hobbs & Aubry [2007, pp. 82–83]).
1990–2000 2001–present
• Accomplishing more work in less time with fewer resources and • Standardization of operations
without any sacrifice in quality • Company rather than silo decision making
• An increase in profitability • Better capacity planning
• Better control of scope changes • Quicker access to higher-quality information
• More efficient and effective operations • Elimination or reduction of company silos
• Better customer relations • More efficient and effective operations
• Better risk identification and problem solving • Less need for restructuring
• An increase in quality • Fewer meetings that rob executives of valuable time
• A reduction in power struggles • More realistic prioritization of work
• Better company decision making • Development of future general managers
• An increase in business and becoming more competitive
Table 3: Benefits of a project management office (Kerzner, 2003).
PMO in the 1990s and 2000s. Clearly, (Thomas & Mullaly, 2007, 2008). A part attempts to implement and gain value
the purpose of the PMO appears to be of the framework underpinning value is from investment in project manage-
shifting over the course of its lifetime. described in Figure 1. ment have resulted in the rapid growth
The literature just reviewed serves and, in some cases, the demise of
The Concept of Value to highlight the ambiguity of the value PMOs. Our question then is how is a
The idea of value has been discussed at case for PMOs and the tenuous nature PMO connected to value realization for
length in the work of the “Researching the of their current position in many organ- organizations investing in project man-
Value of Project Management” project izations. We see that an organization’s agement? Specifically, we sought to

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Different Values of Project Management

Level 1—Satisfaction: Do the key stakeholders perceive that the project management initiatives provided value? This is measured
through perceptions/self-report satisfaction levels as well as through the use of objective measures (such as repeat customers)
wherever possible.
Level 2—Aligned Use of Practices: Did the project management implementation result in the desired processes? Do they do what
they say they do? Do project people know what they are supposed to do? This is assessed through a comparison of practices, poli-
cies, and procedures with what actually happens on projects.
Level 3—Process Outcomes: What project process improvements have been reaped from the project management implementation?
How effective is the project management process? This is evidenced by changes over time in things such as numbers of change
requests, budget performance, learning from past projects, and reliability of delivery.
Level 4—Business Outcomes: What business outcomes are related to these process improvements (e.g., improve customer satis-
faction and retention; the organization's ability to attract new customers through reputation effects, word of mouth, etc.; increased
ability to achieve strategic goals)?
Level 5— Return on Investment: For every dollar invested in the project management initiative, what return in terms of cost sav-
ings, revenue, etc., can be attributed to it?
Figure 1: Value framework (adapted from Phillips in Thomas & Mullaly, 2007).
understand how PMOs deliver sus- surveys. Tables 4 and 5 provide an growing. It relies on contract workers,
tained value to organizations. overview of the case organizations and especially within project management,
In order to explore the creation and their project management implemen- to support its rapid growth. Projects are
sustainability of organizational value tations. viewed as a way to get things done with-
through a PMO, we turn to the theories Each case study was examined in in the company, and effective project
of Jim Collins as expressed in his books two different ways. First, each case management is viewed as critical to pur-
Built to Last (Collins & Porras, 1994) organization’s PMO implementation suing its strategic objectives.
and Good to Great (2001). Collins sug- was examined for similarities and dif- After a merger in the late 1990s, the
gests fundamental activities necessary ferences between the key events and culture of the company represents an
to create and sustain value in organiza- players in the three organizations. interesting blend between the results
tions. The concepts in Good to Great lay Stages in the implementation were orientation of one company and the
the groundwork to get the flywheel turn- identified, as well as fundamentally process orientation of the other. In gen-
ing to create exceptional value, while important characteristics of each eral, adherence to process and proce-
the concepts in Built to Last outline implementation. Second, each case dure is a secondary concern as long as
concepts to keep it turning (i.e., to sus- was studied for evidence of meeting or desired results are obtained. It is also
tain value). The concepts from these failing to meet the constructs as Collins viewed as a very collaborative organiza-
two books are summarized in the describes them (see the Appendix). The tion, with many people consulted
Appendix. interplay between examining the cases before doing anything. Consequently,
for key events and then comparing and some (e.g., contract project managers)
Methodology contrasting these with the concepts perceive AlphaGas as very slow-moving.
In-depth detailed case studies were outlined by Collins provides significant The culture thus creates an interesting
conducted in three organizations as insight into these three PMO imple- context for project management, where
part of a larger PMI study to analyze the mentations. “cowboy” project managers who don’t
value contribution of project manage- necessarily follow all processes appear
ment (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008).
Organization Descriptions rewarded for results; yet clients, senior
The three organizations are summa-
Semistructured interviews were held management, and other project man-
rized and compared in Tables 4 and 5.
with various stakeholders, including agers express great appreciation for
Because AlphaGas has the longer-
senior management, project managers, having a strong project management
running PMO, its history is described in
members of the PMO, and project methodology with detailed processes
greater detail.
sponsors. Data was also collected via and procedures.
online surveys and document reviews. AlphaGas AlphaGas began building its IT
In total, 46 interviews were conducted, AlphaGas is relatively conservative, views project management competency in
and 41 respondents completed online itself as a fast follower, and is rapidly 1999 after several large projects went

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Attributes AlphaGas BetaGas ITM Consulting

Ownership Publicly traded Publicly traded Private
corporation income trust
Industry Pipeline and energy Pipeline and energy IT consulting
Size Very large Large Medium
Organization Operational Operational Strong matrix
Competitive Regulated and deregulated Regulated and deregulated Many small competitors, 1–2
Environment industries industries larger ones operating
Fast-paced, with rapid growth in Fast-paced, with rapid growth in in this space
some sectors some sectors
Competitors are often partners Competitors are often partners
and/or customers and/or customers
Strategy Growth in all areas; build/acquire Double in size in 3–5 years Strategy grow by 30% a year
Focus on build rather than buy in
order to increase size
Culture Fast follower; conservative Hard-working, results-oriented; tight Professional, open, careful
Conflict between results- vs. control from top; fast-moving screening of employees and
process-oriented subcultures clients for fit with values
and culture
Table 4: Organization attributes.
off the rails. There was also a pent-up proper project initiation and plann- 2008, these metrics—while still high—
demand for new projects, as well as a ing procedures. These were quickly have been trending downward.
need to replace or upgrade many legacy followed by other project manage- After the founder of the PMO
applications and infrastructure. A ment processes. He created com- retired in 2004, an internal senior proj-
trusted senior project manager, with a prehensive documentation for the ect manager was put in charge of the
strong process background, was tasked complete project management metho- PMO. All project managers were trans-
with improving project performance. dology, as well as developed and deliv- ferred to the PMO, making it both a
Based on the belief that the company ered detailed training materials and coaching- and executing-type PMO.
would be unable to hire sufficient num- seminars. In 2008, there were approxi- The move was to help ensure adher-
bers of expert project managers, he mately 50 project management proce- ence to process and procedures and
developed a comprehensive project dures, 50 job aids, 20 checklists, and 30 provide better oversight of projects as
management methodology based on templates accessible via the company their numbers significantly increased.
the Project Management Body of intranet—which had changed very lit- In 2006, the director of the PMO was
Knowledge (PMBOK) and industry tle since the PMO founder’s retirement transferred to a senior executive posi-
“best practices” to provide a consistent in 2004. tion across the country in another busi-
structure for junior and contract proj- Both tangible and intangible value ness unit; after several months’ search,
ect managers. He felt that such a was quickly realized, as measured by a new director was brought in from the
methodology would improve project standard on-budget, on-schedule, and banking industry in the second quarter
performance and provide better con- satisfaction metrics as well as anecdot- of 2007. While never acting in a formal
trols, especially around project costs. al data. Senior management and project manager position, she had
He invested significant time training project sponsors expressed great confi- experience with several large IT proj-
project managers and senior executives dence and satisfaction around IT’s ects in the bank and had been manager
on the methodology and provided improved ability to reliably and effi- of client relations.
extensive coaching and mentoring. His ciently get projects completed. In 2005, As mentioned, over the next few
first priority was getting proper status the company received a PMI award for years, the number of projects managed
reports established; next, he focused on project management excellence. For per year increased dramatically (from
project closure, followed by establishing the last few quarters leading up to Q2 12–20 to 60–70 projects). The types

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AlphaGas BetaGas ITM Consulting

Length of Time of Project Approximately 8 years 2 12 years 2 12 years
Management Capability
Reasons for Creating • Projects failing • Projects failing • Projects failing
Project Management • Wanted better control of costs • Wanted better control of costs • Wanted better control/predictability
• Projects getting bigger, more • Projects getting bigger, more of project-related costs
numerous, more complex numerous, more complex • Improve quality of projects,
• Fundamental belief that • Fundamental belief that reduce rework
competence in project competence in project • Wanted better confidence/
management is critical to management is critical to satisfaction around ability to
strategic success strategic success execute projects
• Wanted better confidence/ • Wanted better confidence/ • Projects getting bigger, more
satisfaction around ability satisfaction around ability numerous, more complex
to execute projects to execute projects • Larger partners asking for project
manager
Types of Projects • IT infrastructure • IT infrastructure • IT infrastructure
• Software development • Vendor configurations • IT consulting
(Buy, not build)
Number of Projects 60–70 13 200
in Pipeline
Previous Approach to Informal, ad hoc, varied by project Contract project managers “Cowboy” project managers
Project Management manager; internal and contracted hired for ability to deliver usually were technical leads
project managers projects; each brought own
project management
approach
Project Management Very formal with medium Moderately formal with Moderately formal with high
Methodology adherence medium adherence adherence
What Implemented • Adapted from PMBOK/best • Adapted from PMBOK/best • Adapted from PMBOK/best
practices to fit needs of company practices to fit needs of practices to fit needs of company
• Comprehensive methodology company • Basic processes, tools, and
and supporting tools/ • 13 basic processes, a few templates
documentation templates for reporting, • Portal to access project
• Portal to access all project-related charter management documentation
material, including project archives • Various tools/techniques and project archives
• Initially, lots of training/coaching • Ongoing training/coaching • Initially, lots of training/coaching
of project managers, senior execs, of project managers, senior of project managers, senior execs,
IT personnel execs, IT personnel IT personnel
• Initially, close monitoring/follow-up • Close monitoring/follow-up • Close monitoring/follow-up of
of project managers of junior project managers junior project managers, weekly
• Monthly project management • Program managers project management meetings on
meetings around projects projects and project management
• Program managers • Program managers
• Resource management
Project Manager 88% have 1–4 years 83% have 10–20 years 57% have 1–9 years
Experience
Table 5: Comparison of project management implementations.
of projects went from primarily development projects. In 2008, approx- managers were added to the PMO;
infrastructure- and telecommunications- imately 70% of the 300 IT PMO project however, each operated in a different
type projects to include vendor appli- managers and staff were contract way. Some acted as true program man-
cation configurations and software employees. In 2005–2006, program agers, and others simply oversaw a

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Year Milestone Key Accomplishments

1999 Experienced project manager tasked • Focus on costs, status reporting, and formal change
with improving project management in IT process
• Introduction of project management as a discipline
• Began development of project management methodology
2000–2002 Continued development of project • Began work on closure phase: getting projects
management methodology completed
• Initiation phase focused on next, followed by
turnover and change control processes
• Extensive coaching, mentoring, training
2003 New CIO • Established strong foundation for project management
Project center of excellence created • Implemented changes to methodology once a year,
followed by extensive training
2004 New director of PMO • CIO edict: PMO would run all big IT projects
• Transfer of project managers to PMO
• Increase in number of projects (12–20)
• Increase in number of contract project managers and
PMO staff
2005 Won PMI Award for Project Excellence • Continued increase in number of projects (60)
• Program managers introduced
2006 Director of PMO transferred • More project managers hired/contracted (little or no
orientation or on-boarding done—directed to project
management documentation on website)
2007 New director of PMO hired • Begin refresh of project management methodology,
develop vision and strategy for PMO
• Reposition most of existing program managers, hire
new ones
• Begin to develop resourcing strategy
2008 Previous director of PMO appointed as CIO • Continue work on refresh of PMO
Table 6: Critical project management events—AlphaGas.
large portfolio of diverse projects. At BetaGas there was a heavy reliance on external
the time of the case study, it did not As with AlphaGas, project manage- project managers.
appear that the role of the program ment was introduced at BetaGas by the In 2006, an experienced project
manager was clearly documented or chief information officer (CIO) to pro- manager was brought in to manage
integrated with the project manage- vide a formal structure for managing several projects and develop a basic
ment methodology. Currently, a refresh projects with standardized, repeatable project management methodology. She
and refocusing of the PMO and project processes, as well as clear metrics for had seen project managers who were
management methodology are being tracking status and costs. His underly- familiar with its fundamental princi-
done to improve the management, ing vision was to use formal project ples use the project management
accountability, and effectiveness of the management methodologies and tools methodology and provided thorough
PMO, project managers, and stakehold- on IT projects as a prototype for how training on it to anyone who had any-
ers. A long-term strategy and resourc- projects should be run in the rest of the thing to do with projects, including
ing strategy is also being developed. organization. Similar to AlphaGas, project managers, senior executives,
Table 6 recaps the critical project there were numerous IT projects that technical resources, and business staff.
management events in AlphaGas’s his- needed to be done to acquire or upgrade Initially, she focused on providing sim-
tory. infrastructure and applications, and ple, regular project status reports to

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2005 Experienced project manager, with strong • Focus on status reports and standard project reporting
PMBOK background hired to improve • Introduction of project management as a discipline
project management in IT • Demonstrated value of formal project management
practices
2006–2007 Formal IT PMO established • Monthly overall project status report to senior executive
Continued development of project committee
management methodology • Extensive coaching, mentoring, and training of project
managers, executives, and other stakeholders
• Hiring new project managers
• Project sponsors begin writing project charters
2008 Introduce portfolio management • Introduce role of program managers
• Senior executives begin to take portfolio approach to
project prioritization and selection
Table 7: Critical project management events—BetaGas.
senior executives. Then she focused on and customer satisfaction are equally one time, they were on the verge of dis-
getting proper charters written to initi- as important as profitability on its bal- continuing their relationship with ITM
ate projects. anced scorecard. It currently has Consulting. After experiencing the
The results quickly demonstrated approximately 135 employees. Its proj- results of ITM’s formal project man-
value to senior management, and ect management methodology was agement methodology, they now not
quickly improved resource manage- introduced in much the same fashion only gladly pay for project manage-
ment. In interviews, senior executives as at AlphaGas and BetaGas, using an ment fees, but also write letters of ref-
strongly endorsed the use of formal experienced project manager to devel- erence for ITM Consulting. ITM
project management practices, and the op its project management methodolo- Consulting feels that its project man-
chief operating officer (COO) advocated gy, using experienced project managers agement practices deliver such consis-
the use of formal project management to quickly demonstrate its value, and tency and reliability that they are mov-
practices on other types of projects in providing thorough training on the ing toward offering fixed-price con-
the organization (e.g., major capital project management methodology to tracts for some types of projects.
projects, acquisitions, and organiza- everyone, especially junior project Table 8 recaps the critical project
tional change projects). Within the IT managers. management events in ITM Consulting’s
PMO, the role of program manager is ITM Consulting knows that it has history.
being introduced due to an increasing received significant value for its
number of projects being undertaken. approximate $500K investment in Perceptions of Value
Table 7 recaps the critical project developing its project management In all three organizations, senior man-
management events in BetaGas’s his- office and project management com- agement, project managers, project
tory. petency. Costs are better under con- sponsors, and customers reported ben-
trol, and customer and employee efits and satisfaction with the project
ITM Consulting satisfactions have improved. There is management implementation. These
ITM Consulting is a small-to-medium, significantly less rework on delivered were categorized into tangible and
regionally focused IT consulting com- projects and fewer disputes over intangible benefits by the researchers,
pany, delivering infrastructure-type invoices. They also bill clients for proj- with different types of value observed.
projects, managed services, and devel- ect management fees, which repre- These are reported in Table 9.
oping security, business continuity sents an additional revenue stream. Using the specific types of value
management/disaster recovery (BCM/ They feel they are more professional described previously in Figure 1 (from
DR), and IT strategies for small-to- and have greater credibility in the mar- Thomas & Mullaly, 2008), Table 10 rep-
medium-sized companies. Revenues of ket. They are getting larger, more com- resents the researchers’ perceptions of
$20M are split 40/60% between proj- plex projects based on their success specific types of value that each of the
ects and managed services. Employee record. One client indicated that, at three organizations have received from

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2006 Q1—Formal project launched to develop • Charter written—Q2
project management methodology, • Methodology, templates created, piloted
created by experienced project managers • Approved by senior management—Q3
• Rolled out, with training to relevant employees—Q4
2007 Implement continuous improvement • Continuous improvement of processes, tools
• Hired several more project managers as number of
projects increased
2008 Develop PM-Lite • Created PM-Lite for smaller projects
• Introduced program management
• Created resource manager position within PMO
Table 8: Critical project management events—ITM Consulting.
AlphaGas BetaGas ITM Consulting

Focus of Project Within IT Within IT Organization-wide
Management/PMO
Organizational High Very high High
Commitment to Project
Management
Tangible Benefits • Cost savings in time • Revenue increases (through • Cost savings
• Reduced write-offs and rework support of acquisitions) • Revenue increases
• Reduced write-offs/rework • Reduced write-offs/rework
• Customer retention
• Increased customer share
• Greater market share
• Improved competitiveness
Intangible Benefits • Attainment of strategic • Strategic alignment • Attainment of strategic objectives
objectives • More effective human resources • New product/service streams
• More effective human resources • Improved general use of resources • Strategic alignment
• Improved reputation • Better project decision making • More effective human resources
• Improved regulatory compliance • Improved regulatory compliance • Improved reputation
Perceptions of Value • High • Significant • High
of Project Management • Spreading project management • Planning on spreading project • Increased revenues
principles to other types of management principles to other • Decreased costs for similar
projects types of projects projects
• Moving towards fixed-price
contracts
• Taking on bigger, more
complex projects
Table 9: Benefits of project management implementation.
Satisfaction Aligned Use Process Outcomes Business Outcomes ROI

AlphaGas
BetaGas Q Q Q Q
ITM Consulting Q Q Q Q Q
Table 10: Specific types of value from project management implementation.

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Understanding the Dimensions of Value
A company's hedgehog concept is at the intersection of three circles:

• what they are deeply passionate about,
• what drives their economic engine, and
• what they can be better at than anyone else in the world.
=====
• Project managers are deeply passionate about delivering projects that meet requirements.
• Efficiently managing costs and effectively managing resources to meet on-time, on-budget requirements drive their economic engine.
• Project managers and PMOs should be better than anyone in the organization at managing projects.
their project management implemen- focus from a coaching-focused PMO • Staff the PMO carefully.
tation since its inception. to an executing one? Is it the heavy • Create a culture of discipline.
As can be seen, all organizations reliance on external project man- • Confront the brutal facts, but keep the
received significant value from their agers? We began to ponder the sus- faith.
investment in formal project manage- tainability of project management
Build a Core Ideology for the
ment practices, especially in the early value. Is there a point of inflection, as
Long Term
years. There was an apparent shown in Figure 2, where value levels
Collins’s (2001) recommended strategy
deterioration of value in AlphaGas— off or even decreases?
for building an organization that can
the organization with the longest project Exploring the diagram in Figure 2
endure and adapt through multiple
management implementation. They with the other case study teams in a
organizational life cycles and leaders
still report significant value and satis- research workshop, we realized that
suggests that the key is to start with a
faction from project management and other researchers were observing simi-
long-term focus and vision and then
would never discontinue following a lar issues with the PMOs in their case
put in place the values and frameworks
formal project management methodol- study organizations. Clearly, a question
that will support this vision. Applying
ogy. In fact, they are looking at transfer- of major importance is “How do organ-
this to PMOs and project management
ring the project management method- izations increase or sustain the value
competency means that both must sur-
ology to other types of projects outside received from investments in project
vive transitions in leadership of both
of IT. However, according to their own management and, more specifically for
the organization and the PMO, and
analyses, if the downward trend contin- us, in PMOs?”
adapt to changes in the needs of the
ues, they will not meet their on-budget,
on-schedule target levels.
Discussion organization. Drawing on several of
In all three cases, the mechanism for Collins’s concepts, a PMO’s core ideolo-
What caused this deterioration?
managing the investment in project gy should be based on a clear vision
Was it the rapid growth in numbers
management was through the estab- and focus, guided by a frame of refer-
of projects? Was it a change in type of
lishment of a PMO. Also, all three cases ence, which comes from its hedgehog
projects? Was it simply a lack of adher-
began in a very similar fashion and concept (see sidebar), and the “genius
ence to processes? Was it the change
quickly realized similar benefits and of AND”1 as it applies to project man-
in leadership? Was it the change of
value, but the oldest PMO—AlphaGas— agement.
has struggled to sustain these contribu- In essence, the PMO’s core ideology
tions. In this section, we discuss the influ- should be based on the notion that:
ences on the value and sustainability of • No one else in the organization is
PMOs by applying a lens of value cre- more passionate or knows more
ation and sustainability adapted from about how to manage/deliver projects
Value
Collins (2001) to our case studies and more efficiently or effectively.

focus on the insights this lens reveals. • Flexibility AND a standard methodol-
The insights are identified in the follow- ogy are compatible concepts, as is the
ing themes:
Time • Build a core ideology for the long 1 The “genius of AND” refers to being able to embrace both
term. ends of a continuum as feasibly possible rather than view-
Figure 2: Value sustainability.
• Pick the right PMO leadership. ing the ends as “either/or” options.

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ability to be both a competent leader ect managers is so necessary. Investing Pick the Right PMO Leadership
AND manager, have both a people AND in proper on-boarding allows the com- Collins (2001, p. 20) reviewed qualities
a task focus, and manage internal pany to explain its adaptation of key of leaders that headed up long-lasting
AND external relationships. processes, identifies those artifacts that successful companies. The three PMO
• It is better at supporting, managing, are mandatory, and reinforces why it is founders we studied all exemplified
and developing project managers important to do certain tasks. Second, Collins’s successful leadership charac-
than anyone else in the organization. PMOs should not get distracted from teristics (also see the Appendix for the
their primary focus, their hedgehog leadership model) of successful, value-
This core ideology should be principles, by taking on other responsi- sustaining companies.
reflected in the PMO’s project manage- bilities like benefits realization or addi- • They were passionate, focused, and
ment methodology. Furthermore, as tional governance functions. determined about what constituted
others have shown, organizational staff In order to continue to add value to effective project management.
and project managers must be involved the organization, PMOs must stay • Each founder had a low-key, patient,
in developing their project manage- focused on managing projects; however, but confident personality. Given they
ment methodology, even if from the this does not mean stagnating or were dealing with senior executives,
outside it seems like only minor adap- neglecting core principles. As Collins engineers, IT personnel, or clients/
tations from best practices (see the (2001, p. 108) observed, “If you success- businesspeople, a more forceful, direct,
Andersen and Vaagaasar; Eskerod and fully apply these ideas, but then stop or aggressive personality would have
Riis; and Mengel, Cowan-Sahadath, doing them, you will slide backward . . . quickly met with resistance from the
and Follert papers in this issue). The the only way to remain great is to keep folks they were trying to persuade to
process of development and adapta- applying the fundamental principles adopt new behaviors and methods.
tion increases a sense of ownership and that made you great.” As discussed in • Each focused on quickly demonstrat-
commitment to the methodology. It later sections, we think that AlphaGas, ing the proof and value of what they
becomes the organization’s way of somewhere in rapidly expanding were advocating with quick, simple
managing projects, not the PMBOK’s the number of projects it took on, the wins. For example, the senior execu-
or anyone else (i.e., “This is the way we number of project managers it hired, tives quickly came to appreciate regu-
do things around here.”). This lack of and the changes in PMO leadership, lar, consistent, simple status reports.
perceived ownership may provide neglected to apply the fundamental The project management founder in
explanations for some of the uncer- principles that provided value. AlphaGas took this a step further,
tainty of value found in the full set of “Stimulate progress” can relate to sev- illustrating how much money could
case studies when organizations eral PMO-related issues, including be saved in labor-hours by adopting
attempted or were forced to imple- developing project managers by having this standard procedure. Getting sen-
ment a new project management them take on more challenging roles or ior management on board provided
methodology that had been developed different types of projects, periodically the project management founder
elsewhere (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). updating or refreshing the project man- additional support for persuading
In all three case studies, the PMO agement methodology, or adding new others (e.g., project managers) to fol-
founder clearly created a core ideology functions to the PMO that enhance its low standardized procedures.
around managing projects, into which ability to manage projects on the orga-
they indoctrinated relevant stake- nization’s behalf (see Hobbs and It is important to note, however, that
holders through training, mentoring, Aubry’s 27 PMO functions in Table 2). it is not just the organization the PMO
coaching, and rejection of noncompli- The key considerations are that all founder has to convince. He or she
ant work. One could argue that these changes should be based in preserving also must convince, persuade, or dic-
activities are fundamentally why formal core features of the original hedgehog tate to the project managers to follow
project management methodologies principle—embodied in the company’s new practices. If the PMO is simply a
and PMOs add value to organizations. project management methodology— support or coaching role, then the PMO
Collins (2001) suggested that sus- while stimulating progress via modifying does not necessarily have the authority
taining the value generated from orga- and changing it around the periphery. to enforce compliance or accountabili-
nizational investments requires both Any attempt to disrupt the core, for ty of project managers, and must draw
“preserving the core” and “stimulating example, a drastic change of the core heavily on personality, soft skills, and
progress.” “Preserve the core” has two project management methodology higher leadership qualities to persuade
important implications. First, it such as when a new PMO leader comes compliance and create discipline.
explains why appropriate on-boarding on scene, will be dangerous and should Kellerman (2008) stated that “increas-
of even experienced and contract proj- be approached with great care. ingly, followers think of themselves as

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free agents, not as dependent under- that project management practices cre- strategic perspective and vision are
lings,” and thus their management and ate value, which in turn reinforces the unimportant and even detrimental in
leadership is more challenging. In the need for disciplined action and adher- project managers (2007, p. 31). The
world of North American knowledge ence to standards. leadership aspect of projects is the area
workers and contract project man- In the AlphaGas case, when replac- of skill that may be lacking for many
agers, this self-perception of free ing the PMO founder, the organization project managers” (Gehring, 2007, p. 50).
agency is predominant. An in-depth took the position that the visionary, Clearly the controversy over a project
discussion of the nature of project commitment gaining, and setting up manager’s need for leadership and
managers as followers is beyond the part of the PMO was “done” and all that strategic capabilities rages on.
scope of this article; however, accord- was needed in the replacement was a Given the greater need for the PMO
ing to Goffee and Jones (2006), follow- transactional manager to be the keeper to take an organizational focus, man-
ers want authenticity, significance, of the methodology and processes. This age a broad range of stakeholders, and
excitement, and the sense of being part is similar to other cases in the global act more like a functional department
of a community from their leaders. value project where consultants were than a project, and taking Collins’s
In the realm of project managers, hired to set up the PMO and then a advice for building sustainable value
they want their leaders to be genuine caretaker manager was put in place. In into account, we believe managing and
and have credibility as project man- these cases, the methodology stag- leading the PMO requires strong trans-
agers; they want to feel recognized for nates, as there is no one working to formational and people-oriented lead-
their success as project managers and engage the periphery and adapt the ership skills and behaviors—that is,
made to feel important. Project man- methodology to changing environments. Level 4-type leaders. Given that the
agers want their leader to engender Not any project manager can aspire research suggests that these skills are
excitement around project manage- to lead the PMO. In Collins’s hierarchy, not typically required or used by proj-
ment “through their passionate com- successful project managers are most ect managers to a significant extent, the
mitment to clearly articulated personal likely to be at a Level 3 (competent PMO should ensure that evaluating and
values and to a vision” (Goffee & Jones, managers). Research on project man- developing such competencies is part
2006, pp. 194–195). Interestingly, Keegan agers’ leadership styles tends to be of its career advancement strategies for
and Den Hartog found no correlation mixed. While many project managers those project managers that want to
between project managers’ leadership can be people- or relationship-focused move into PMO leadership roles.
styles and the project team’s motivation (Mäkilouko, 2004; Lee-Kelley & Leong,
and commitment, although they did 2003, as reported in Turner and Müller, Carefully Staff the PMO
find a significant correlation between a 2005), others have found that project In Collins’s (2001, p. 63) terms, one
line manager’s leadership style and managers prefer task-oriented leader- should “get the right people on the bus,
employees’ commitment, motivation, ship styles (Turner & Müller, 2005, the wrong people off, get the right peo-
and stress (Keegan & Den Hartog, 2004, p. 57) and tend to use transactional ple in the right seats THEN figure out
in Neuhauser, 2007, p. 23). In the three more than transformational-style lead- where to drive it.” Like Collins acknowl-
PMOs we studied, each of the founders ership behaviors (Neuhauser, 2007). edged, one doesn’t always have this lux-
exhibited these qualities and abilities, as This was especially true for project ury in project management and in the
reflected in comments from both senior managers who came from a technical PMO. As pointed out by Graham and
and junior project managers. In background. However, Neuhauser Englund (1997, in Gehring, 2007), “For
AlphaGas, even though the founder had (2007, p. 23) stated “general leadership most organizations, the most natural
retired 3 years previously, his passion, research has found that transforma- thing to do is to draft a technician or
values, and vision for project manage- tional leadership is correlated with administrator with a good reputation
ment were still talked about and referred more satisfied employees and a posi- within the organization to lead the
to with great respect and frequency. tive effect on productivity and financial project. . . . Accidental project man-
Effective ongoing leadership is nec- results.” Moreover, Müller and Turner agers typically have strong skills for
essary, especially with respect to main- (2007, p. 31) reported “. . . we do see understanding the technical aspects of
taining a clear and compelling vision of that vision in the project manager can the project. However, the technical
what project management competency be detrimental to project performance part of a project is often the smallest
means to the organization and how this [especially for engineering, informa- and easiest part.” Walker and Peterson
competency should be managed, tion systems, and organizational and (1999) stated that “in order to create a
developed, and maintained. Both sen- business projects], and vision is a key mutually successful corporate environ-
ior managers and project managers component of the transformational ment, it is important to create an envi-
require regular, consistent reminding leadership style.” They concluded that ronment for success by putting people

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into positions to succeed. Not everyone contract employees. Thus, in a world and RACI charts for each project).
is destined to become a project leader, dominated by contract project man- These actions reinforced responsibility
any more than everyone is destined to agers, good hiring and screening mech- and accountability.
become the CEO” (p. 5). anisms need to be developed to ensure After his departure, an experienced
Recognizing that not all people are good contract hiring. In addition, effort project manager with senior manage-
suited to managing projects, it is must be expended to ensure that the ment experience was put in charge of the
incumbent upon the PMO leader to PMO’s culture is strong enough to pull PMO. The successor reaped the benefit
develop an understanding of the skill these contract staff into its realm and of inheriting disciplined people who had
sets and competencies that are preva- indoctrinate them appropriately into disciplined thoughts and actions.
lent within the organization and among their core ideology through good on- Because they successfully executed proj-
its project managers. This is critical to boarding mechanisms. ects, the number of projects began to
building something that will be able increase. Larger projects, more complex
to add value to the organization. Create a Culture of Discipline projects, and different types of projects
The “right people in the right seats” The notion of discipline around project were launched. The growth in projects
concept also relates to what role project management is profoundly important. and project managers caused the new
management support staff should play According to Collins, success and sus- PMO leader to introduce the role of pro-
and what their respective competencies tainability require disciplined people, gram managers. One can assume he del-
should be. Developing role/job descrip- disciplined thought, and disciplined egated much of the coaching and moni-
tions, competency profiles (including action—in that order. toring activities to them. Although most
competency profiles for specific types Key elements in a culture of disci- of the program managers had worked in
of projects), and RACI2 charts are ways pline are disciplined people and disci- a project environment, some were new
of addressing these issues. A corollary to plined action. This relates to accounta- or contract hires (and conceivably un-
developing competency profiles is that bility and responsibility. In all three indoctrinated to the PMO’s core ideolo-
one needs to develop effective, accurate organizations, professional managers gy) and/or had little true project man-
evaluation processes of such compe- in all business areas welcomed clear agement experience. (It is unclear if they
tencies. Developing these profiles and delineation of roles and responsibili- would be classified as competent man-
evaluation processes, as well as follow- ties, and actively fulfilled them. agers or effective team members in
ing and managing them, typically falls Furthermore, as mentioned, each PMO Collins’s leadership hierarchy.) The pro-
within the realm of the PMO. Lastly, founder closely monitored, coached, gram managers who were interviewed
related to the PMO leadership concept, and mentored project managers in ful- acknowledged that coaching and moni-
clear career paths and professional filling their responsibilities, thereby toring compliance was part of their role;
development should be provided to enforcing disciplined action while they however, the project managers reported
those who want to advance into PMO developed inexperienced project man- that coaching, training, and discipline
leadership roles. agers to have self-enforcing disciplined around accountability and delivery
According to Collins, time and pro- thought and action. dropped off. Concerns around cumber-
moting from within are ways to pre- In AlphaGas, despite having no some or inconsistent adherence to proj-
serve the core and achieve sustained direct authority, the PMO founder cul- ect management processes were not
value. This is supported by the Value tivated a significant amount of disci- heard, much less addressed. Project man-
Project, which found that organizations pline around following the project agers began to lose faith in the project
relying heavily on contract project man- management methodology and appro- management processes and became
agers do not realize improvements in priately applying its artifacts. He close- resistant to following them. As noted in
project metrics (Thomas & Mullaly, ly monitored status reports, change Collins (2001, p. 121), increased bureau-
2008). An organization that relies heavi- requests, and so forth. He required cracy—which creates greater overhead
ly on contract project managers is more project managers to redo them if he felt costs—usually takes place in the absence
focused on immediate project needs they weren’t adequate—and provided of disciplined people, thought, and action.
(time telling, in Collins’s terms) rather hours of coaching on why these tools These increased costs can contribute to
than organizational competency devel- were important and how to do them decreased perceptions of PMO value.
opment (clock building). Organizations properly. He diligently followed up to
risk losing valuable insights, learning, see if corrective actions were imple- Confront the Brutal Facts
and knowledge through dependence on mented, and that all relevant parties Collins (2001) explained that it is vitally
properly fulfilled their roles and important for organizations to always
2 RACI charts identify who is Responsible, who is
responsibilities (which were detailed in understand the brutal facts of its envi-
Accountable, who needs to be Consulted, and who needs
to be Informed about an activity. project management documentation ronment, its reality, its problems, and

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so forth, but never lose faith in the board. (This CIO left shortly before this team member or sponsor held to
organization’s ability to win out in study was done.) The CIO launched a account for each time rework didn’t
the long run. Recent research suggest- strategy to rein in spending and get the happen on a project, each time a
ing best organizational practices for IT budget under control. Several hun- client/sponsor and project team satis-
project management similarly suggests dred IT positions were eliminated. faction report came out, and each time
that the best way to improve project Growth was slowly restarted, with a project celebration was held—started
management is to have the “difficult more projects being launched. We turning the flywheel. By many different
conversations” necessary to keep proj- heard project managers comment on a measures and various stakeholder per-
ects healthy (Grenny, Maxfield, & “reign of terror” and how bearers of spectives, each PMO can be seen to have
Shimberg, 2007). bad news tended to get beat up in lead- effectively developed a project manage-
PMOs, as well as the project manag- ership meetings. Not surprisingly, bru- ment competency that delivers value to
er, need to ensure that the brutal facts tal facts started to be downplayed or its organization. And when, in the case
associated with a project are recognized hidden or budget/schedule/scope of AlphaGas, attention was not paid to
and addressed in an effective, timely changes were approved, causing the maintaining and continuing these
manner, as these are warning signs that yellow/red flags to disappear. Although nudges, value started to fade away.
things aren’t going the way they should. formal change processes were fol-
These issues are compounded in multi- lowed, these did not necessarily Conclusion
project environments. The PMO is typi- address the causes of the original yel- There are many articles, blogs, and
cally responsible for facilitating the low/red flags. A root cause analysis of books on PMOs that cover the different
handling of issues and ensuring people project failures over a several-year peri- roles and responsibilities that the PMO
feel safe to act on concerns. More od revealed that a similar set of prob- can fulfill, its benefits and challenges,
importantly, the brutal facts must be lems consistently caused problems and how to go about establishing one.
responded to; otherwise, project man- from project to project. So while brutal Research has shown that PMOs are rel-
agers and other project team members facts may have been surfacing, nothing atively new creations in the organiza-
will quickly come to view the proce- was done to address them. tional milieu and undergo frequent
dures as simply bureaucratic red tape. While an individual project manag- changes in relatively short periods
One of the first tasks undertaken in er must not lose faith that a project will (Hobbs, Aubry, & Thuillier, 2008). Our
each of the three PMOs was the imple- be completed, the PMO must not lose discussion adds to this knowledge base
mentation of regular, consistent, clear faith that the company’s best interests by examining the start-up of three
status reports presented to project are paramount, even if that means can- PMOs, their success, and their sustain-
stakeholders. They each followed the celling or stopping a project. A project ability. All three PMOs experienced sig-
simple green-yellow-red indicator for manager who has developed the ability nificant initial success, but after 9 years
key metrics. The PMO ensured a con- to doggedly pursue a project until its and several changes, one PMO started
sistent, standardized report across all end might not have the ability to recog- to exhibit cracks in its effectiveness.
projects and project managers, includ- nize brutal facts that indicate a project Using concepts from Good to Great
ing external contract project managers. should be stopped. This is where a (Collins, 2001) and Built to Last (Collins
In each organization, senior manage- strong, strategic-oriented PMO leader & Porras, 1994), we examined reasons
ment and project sponsors quickly must step in. The prolonged absence of for this success and decline. Given the
came to appreciate these; it was one of such a person in AlphaGas potentially research suggesting the short lifespan
the tangible products that led them to affected its ability to effectively surface of many PMOs, we believe that explor-
recognize the value in formal project and address project-related brutal ing these cases in detail provides useful
management methodologies. Problems facts. insights for both practice and research.
were quickly surfaced and addressed. Space limits discussion of technolo- Hobbs et al. (2008) reported that
In BetaGas, senior managers soon real- gy enablers and the flywheel concepts. PMOs have a short life span before they
ized that red flags associated with their One can see, however, how each are restructured or refocused. They
projects were not good, as the CEO and founder in AlphaGas, BetaGas, and ITM imply that this is a negative finding and
peers put pressure on them for correc- Consulting unconsciously incorporat- speculate it is a reflection that PMOs
tive action during monthly project ed and applied the Good to Great con- ultimately add little sustainable value
review meetings. Consequently, project cepts in developing their respective to an organization. We disagree with
sponsors took quick action when yel- project management competencies. this notion. We think effective PMOs
low flags surfaced. Each nudge—each status report filed, continue to add value specifically by
In AlphaGas, just before the PMO each coaching instance, each monitor- changing and reinventing themselves—
founder retired, a new CIO came on ing and control effort enacted, each as long as they stay focused on the

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principle of improving project manage- you want to become stronger, faster, or Desouza, K. C., & Evaristo, J. R. (2006).
ment in the organization. PMOs are improve another aspect of your fitness, Project management offices: A case of
typically formed to address a specific in other words, to increase the value knowledge-based archetypes.
set of problems (e.g., help get project you’ve gained—not just maintain it— International Journal of Information
costs under control). When those prob- then you need to develop a new vision Management, 26, 414–423.
lems are addressed, effective PMOs and goal (e.g., improve your endurance), Gehring, D. (2007). Applying traits the-
identify new goals and objectives for identify new strategies and procedures ory of leadership to project manage-
themselves (e.g., ensure adherence to to get you there, and invest even more ment. Project Management Journal,
processes or manage a broader span of than what it takes to simply maintain 38(1), 44–54.
projects). These new goals may require the current state and value. (In many Goffee, R. & Jones, G. (2006). Authentic
a new structure and new processes for respects, the PMO plays the role of per- followership. In R. Goffee & G. Jones,
the PMO, but as long as they preserve sonal trainer.) Building a project man- Why should anyone be led by you?
the core project management ideology agement competency and an effective What it takes to be an authentic leader
and focus, they will continue to provide PMO function that continues to deliver (pp. 189–201). Boston: Harvard
and add value to the organization. value is not a one-time effort, nor an Business School Press.
Building a good PMO doesn’t nec- overnight one—it is an ongoing, con-
Graham, R., & Englund, R. (1997).
essarily guarantee the sustainability of tinuously evolving investment that
Creating an environment for successful
project management competency needs to be managed by qualified,
projects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
or project management value. Certain visionary, effective leaders.
elements need to be put in place, as Grenny, J., Maxfield, D., & Shimberg, A.
well as certain activities regularly carried
Acknowledgments (2007). How project leaders can over-
We would like to thank all the research come the crisis of silence. Sloan
out, in order to facilitate the sustain-
participants—both organizational and Management Review, 48(4), 46–52.
ability of a value-adding PMO and the
individual—who made this project
sustainability of project management Hill, G. M. (2001). The complete project
possible. In addition, PMI deserves
competency. The qualifications and management office handbook. New
recognition for the financial and other
competencies necessary to build and York: Auerbach Publications.
support provided to the Researching
sustain a project management compe- Hill, G. M. (2004). Evolving the project
the Value of Project Management proj-
tency are not necessarily the same ones management office: A competency
ect that made this study possible.
that make for a good project manager. continuum. Information Systems
Finally, our fellow researchers in the
In other words, a good project manager Management, 21(4), 45–51.
value project contributed to our under-
will not necessarily make a good PMO
standing of value and project manage- Hobbs, B., & Aubry, M. (2007). A multi-
manager/director; consequently, it
ment in so many ways—we gratefully phase research program investigating
should not be assumed that a project
acknowledge their insights on this topic project management offices (PMOs):
manager’s career path naturally lies
that are embedded in this article. ■ The results of phase 1. Project
within a PMO.
Management Journal, 38(1), 74–86.
Developing an organizational proj-
ect management competency that pro-
References Hobbs, B., Aubry, M., & Thuillier, D.
Collins, J. (2001). Good to great: Why (2008). The project management office
vides sustainable value is like getting
some companies make the leap and as an organisational innovation.
physically fit. It takes vision, will, per-
others don’t. New York: HarperCollins. International Journal of Project
sistence, discipline, and many, many
nudges to reach one’s goal. You have to Collins, J., & Porras, J. (1994). Built to Management, 26, 547–555.
confront the brutal facts of your current last: Successful habits of visionary com- Keegan, A. E., & Den Hartog, D. N.
unfit state, your slow progress, and panies. New York: HarperCollins. (2004). Transformational leadership
your constraints and setbacks, while Crawford, L. (2006). Developing orga- in a project-based environment: A
never losing faith that you will attain nizational project management capa- comparative study of the leadership
your goal. But simply achieving your bility: Theory and practice. Project styles of project managers and line
goal and becoming fit isn’t the end. Management Journal, 37(3), 74–86. managers. International Journal
This is your inflection point of value. As Dai, C. X., & Wells, W. G. (2004). An of Project Management, 228,
with any other sustainability initiative, exploration of project management 609–618.
continuous effort and focus must be office features and their relationship to Kellerman, B. (2008). Followership:
expended to simply maintain your new project performance. International How followers are creating change and
level. If you stop exercising, if you lose Journal of Project Management, 22, changing leaders. Boston: Harvard
focus, you will become unfit again. If 523–532. Business Press.

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Kerzner, H. (2003). Strategic planning Turner, J. R., & Müller, R. (2005). The program director for the Executive MBA in
for a project office. Project project manager’s leadership style as a Project Management program. She is also a
Management Journal, 34(2), 13–25. success factor on projects: A literature visiting professor with the University of
Lee-Kelley, L., & Leong, K. L. (2003). review. Project Management Journal, Technology, Sydney, and Bond University,
Turner’s five functions of project-based 36(2), 49–61. Australia, where she supervises master’s and
management and situational leader- Walker, C., & Peterson, A. (1999). Are PhD research students. She is well known in
ship in IT services projects. you a project manager/leader or just the international project management commu-
International Journal of Project managing projects? Proceedings of the nity, both from serving on the PMI Research
Management, 21, 583–591. 30th Annual PMI Seminars and Member Advisory Group and in an editorial
Mäkilouko, M. (2004). Coping with Symposiums. Newtown Square, PA: capacity for journals such as the Project
multi-cultural projects: The leadership Project Management Insitute. Management Journal, International Journal of
style of Finnish project managers, Project Management, IEEE Transactions on
International Journal of Project Engineering Management, and the
Management, 22, 387–396. Mimi Hurt holds a PhD in management from the International Journal of Business Performance
Martin, N. L., Pearson, J. M., & University of Texas at Austin. Her broad consult- and Management, and through her involve-
Furumo, K. (2007). IS project manage- ing and research background includes issues ment with collaborative research such as the
ment: Size, practices and the project such as management and delivery of informa- Researching the Value of Project Management
management office. Journal of Computer tion services (IS), IS-user relationships (both project and Rethinking Project Management
Information Systems, 47(4), 52–60. internally and externally based ones), user sat- (funded by the United Kingdom’s National
isfaction, IS service quality, and managing the Science Research Council). She has led a num-
Müller, R., & Turner, J. R. (2007).
next generation of IS professionals. Her current ber of PMI-sponsored research projects includ-
Matching the project manager’s lead-
research focuses on project management and ing the recently completed Researching the
ership style to project type.
project management leadership. Her clients Value of Project Management global study. Her
International Journal of Project
include many large global companies, as well as research interests include organizational
Management, 25(1), 21–32.
municipal and state-level government agencies. change, project management, team building
Neuhauser, C. (2007). Project manager Her academic experience includes over 20 years and leadership, complexity theory in relation to
leadership behaviors and frequency of of developing and teaching a variety of informa- organizations, and the professionalization of
use by female project managers. Project tion systems and e-business courses at the knowledge workers. Ultimately, all of her
Management Journal, 38(1), 21–31. graduate and undergraduate levels at Athabasca research is aimed at understanding and com-
Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2007). University, the University of Calgary, and the municating how the practice of project man-
Understanding the value of project University of Texas. agement in organizations can be improved.
management: First steps on an inter- Prior to becoming an academic, she spent 10
national investigation in search of years as a project manager in the fields of
value. Project Management Journal, Janice L. Thomas is an associate professor in information technology and organizational
38(3), 74–89. the Centre for Innovative Management (CIM). change. In addition to research and teaching,
Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2008). Over her almost 10 years with CIM, she has she maintains close ties to the practical reali-
Researching the value of project man- worked to build links with external organizations ties of project management in organizations
agement. Newtown Square, PA: Project such as PMI and the International Project through consulting and membership in profes-
Management Institute. Management Association. She is currently the sional associations.

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Appendix
Good to Great (Collins, 2001) Built to Last (Collins & Porras, 1994)
Leadership (summarized on pp. 39–40) Clock Building, Not Time Telling
Fully developed Level 5 leaders (executives) at the top who Build an organization that can endure and adapt through
have a combination of professional will and personal multiple generations of leaders and multiple product life
humility (p. 21). cycles (2001, p. 197).
Level 4 leaders (effective leaders) catalyze commitment to This concept of putting in place values, frameworks, and/or
a compelling vision (p. 21). procedures with a long-term focus, rather than an immediate
Level 3 leaders (competent managers) organize resources to or short-term focus, is relevant for other elements in the
an effective and efficient pursuit of objectives (p. 21). framework.
A contributing team member (Level 2 leaders) works
independently to contribute to the goals of the group (p. 21).
Highly competent individuals (Level 1) make valuable
contributions through talent, skills, knowledge, and good
work habits (p. 21).
In Collins’s hierarchy of leadership, higher levels of leadership
embody the traits and abilities of lower leaders—that is,
they have the traits and abilities listed for lower levels (p. 21).
A high-profile, charismatic leader is not necessary to
successfully create a visionary company (p. 32).
First Who, Then What (summarized on pp. 63–64) Genius of AND
Get the right people on the bus, the wrong people off; Embrace both extremes on a number of dimensions
get the right people in the right seats THEN figure out at the same time (2001, p. 198), rather than thinking
where to drive it (p. 41). in limiting “either/or” ways.
The “genius model with a thousand helpers” is not likely
to be successful when the genius leaves (p. 46).
Confront the Brutal Facts, But Never Lose Faith Core Ideology
(pp. 88–89) Instill core values and a core purpose as principles to guide
Create and consciously maintain an atmosphere where decisions and inspire people throughout the organization
“brutal facts” will be heard, but never doubt that you can over a long period of time (2001, p. 198).
and will reach you goal.
The Hedgehog Concept (pp. 118–119) Preserve the Core/Stimulate Progress
Develop a simple, but deeply insightful frame of reference Preserve the core ideology as an anchor while at the same time
for all decisions. stimulating change, improvement, innovation, and renewal
Simplicity within the intersection of three circles: (2001, p. 198).
Circle 1—What you are deeply passionate about
Circle 2—What you can be best in the world at
Circle 3—What drives your economic engine
If you successfully apply these ideas, but then stop doing
them, you will slide backward . . . the only way to remain
great is to keep applying the fundamental principles that
made you great.
A Culture of Discipline (pp. 142–143)
Success and sustainability require disciplined people,
disciplined thought, and disciplined action.
Build a culture around freedom and responsibility
within a framework (p. 124).
Technology Is [Only] an Enabler (2001, p. 160)
Technology is an accelerator of greatness, not a creator of it.
Technology by itself is never a primary root cause of either
greatness or decline.
Become a pioneer in carefully selected technologies that
clearly fit the hedgehog concept.
The Flywheel and the Doom Loop (pp. 162–163)
Many small, persistent, continuous pushes in one direction
are necessary to get a flywheel turning; no single grand
push or initiative is sufficient.

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Government and Governance:
The Value of Project Management
in the Public Sector
Lynn H. Crawford, Bond University, Sydney, Australia; ESC Lille, France; Human Systems
Asia Pacific Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia
Jane Helm, Human Systems Asia Pacific Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia
Governance is an emerging theme that has
D
emonstrable ability to deliver results is an increasing challenge for
been associated in the public sector with a real
both public- and private-sector organizations. In the private sector,
political need to satisfy stakeholders by demon-
regulation of corporate governance following numerous high-profile
strating accountability and transparency while
corporate collapses has heightened shareholder demands for
effectively implementing policy. Many initia-
accountability, transparency, and ability to implement strategy. The public
tives relating to governance are generated by a
sector, after two decades of public-sector reform and concern with perfor-
need for improvement of organizational per-
mance improvement (Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Develop-
formance and ability to implement and adapt to
ment [OECD], 2004), is under similar pressure to satisfy stakeholders by
change. These generally take the form of proj-
demonstrating accountability and transparency while effectively implement-
ects and programs encouraging a variety of
ing policy and adapting to change (Edwards & Clough, 2005; Forbes & Lynn,
project management implementations in the
2005). Whether it is strategy or policies that must be implemented, the vehi-
public sector. This article reports on examina-
cles for delivery generally take the form of projects and programs, and effec-
tion of the expectations and realization of value
tive project management is promoted as improving the ability to achieve
from investment in project management in four
outcomes while providing traceability, transparency, and accountability.
Australian public-sector organizations with par-
Developing and maintaining governance and delivery capability through
ticular reference to the government context, the
projects and programs requires investment, and those responsible for proj-
perspective of public value management (PVM),
ect management implementation in organizations are regularly called upon
and the support that project management pro-
to justify this investment leading to significant interest in providing “evi-
vides in meeting the demands of public-sector
dence of the value organizations recognize when project management is
governance.
appropriately implemented” (Thomas & Mullaly, 2007, p. 74). As Thomas
KEYWORDS: public sector; governance; and Mullaly explained, the value of investment in project management
value; project management capability will be dependent upon fit between the nature of the project man-
agement implementation and its context.
The government context is characterized by “uncertainty, ambiguity, and
stakeholder management issues that are multifaceted and complex”
(Crawford, Costello, Pollack, & Bentley, 2003, p. 443) and is subject to political
pressures, and issues of public scrutiny and accountability that provide
points of differentiation from the private sector and place specific emphasis
upon governance. This article draws on the findings of four case studies of
government organizations in Australia, conducted as part of a major interna-
tional research project designed to provide insight into the value of project
management. The specific aim of this article is to examine expectations and
realization of value of project management in the government context with
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 73–87 particular reference to meeting the demands of public-sector governance.
Published online in Wiley InterScience Project Management in the Public Sector
(www.interscience.wiley.com) The importance of project and program management capability in the public
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20107 sector has been recognized in government initiatives in various countries in

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The Value of Project Management in the Public Sector
most cases associated with increasing culture and to increase their overall the Queensland government to recom-
public scrutiny and a need for assurance capacity to deliver change. mend widespread adoption of the OGC’s
of value from public expenditure. The In Australia, effective use of re- PRINCE2 and MSP methodologies in the
U.S. government has invested signifi- sources, timely delivery, and mainte- interests of more effective governance
cantly in project and program manage- nance of public confidence were key and risk management (Service Delivery
ment, notably in Defense acquisition, drivers behind a review of problems and Performance Commission, 2006);
the Department of Energy, and NASA associated with major Defense acquisi- and extensive provision of project
(NASA, 2008). In the United Kingdom, tion projects (Kinnaird, Early, & Schofield, management resources by various state
the Office of Government Commerce 2003). Responding to this review and to governments, notably those of the
(OGC), was established to “help Govern- considerable political pressure to mini- Tasmanian government (Inter Agency
ment deliver best value from its spend- mize adverse publicity and demon- Policy and Projects Unit, 2008).
ing” including the “delivery of projects strate delivery capability, the CEO of The significant initiatives of gov-
to time, quality and cost, realizing bene- the restructured Defence Materiel ernments around the world to provide
fits” (Office of Government Commerce, Organisation (DMO) stated an aim of encouragement and support for
2008a). The OGC works with public- making the DMO “the premier project improved project management indi-
sector organizations to help them management and engineering services cate expectation of value in the public
improve their efficiency, gain better organization in the country” (Fitch, sector. The stated expectation of the
value for money from their commercial 2005). value of project management to gov-
activities, and deliver improved success Responsible utilization of public ernment is in contribution to effective
from programs and projects. They pro- funds in implementing policy and governance including transparency
vide considerable support for manage- delivering services and infrastructure and accountability, efficiency and
ment of projects and programs, including across the whole of government is sub- effective use of resources, improved
well-known and widely used methodolo- ject to media attention, which can be implementation of policy and change,
gies and guides such as PRINCE2 (Office politically damaging. Reflecting this, in and maintenance of public confidence.
of Government Commerce, 2007b) and October 2003, the Commonwealth
Managing Successful Programmes (Office Government of Australia established Governance in the Public Sector
of Government Commerce, 2007a). the Cabinet Implementation Unit As the Australian National Audit Office
Governance is an overt theme (CIU), within the Department of the (2003, p. iii) argues: “good public sector
throughout the OGC’s guidance for proj- Prime Minister and Cabinet. The aim of governance is important to provide
ect and program management, as evi- the CIU was to encourage earlier and adequate accountability to its many
denced by the OGC Gateway process, more effective planning for implemen- stakeholders, including taxpayers, and
which provides an external review of tation of public policy decisions through to encourage performance improve-
programs and projects to examine pro- greater utilization of good project ment while satisfying control and com-
gress and likelihood of successful deliv- management principles and practices pliance requirements.” The term gover-
ery (Office of Government Commerce, (Department of Prime Minister and nance is essentially associated with
2008b). Encouragement and support for Cabinet, 2005). The Australian Federal accountability and responsibilities; it
improved project management is evi- Government has also established a describes how an organization is
dent at various levels of the U.K. gov- Gateway Review Process, modeled on directed and controlled and pays par-
ernment, including the National Audit that of the OGC, with the aim of ticular attention to organizational
Office, which reports on the economy, improving the “on-time and on-budget structure, management and policies
efficiency, and effectiveness of public delivery of major projects” (Australian (OGC, 2008c). Considine and Lewis
spending (National Audit Office, 2008) Government, 2008). Other examples of (2003) offered a useful framework of
and initiatives such as that of the initiatives in the Australian public sec- types of governance that correspond
Communities and Local Government tor that support good governance and broadly to phases in the development
(CLG) and the Local Government improved implementation through of public administration and manage-
Association (LGA), which, as part of a project management are the Victorian ment in OECD countries (see Table 1).
Capacity Building Programme (Commu- government’s Gateway Review Process Under the traditional public-sector
nities and Local Government, 2008), aimed at improving infrastructure and management model, public-sector gov-
has developed considerable support to ICT project delivery and ensuring best ernance was centered on procedural
encourage local authorities and other value for money in achieving strategic governance. The public-sector shift to
public-sector organizations to establish objectives of business and government new public management (NPM), from
a project and program organizational (The Gateway Unit, 2008); a decision by the early 1980s to the early 2000s, was

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Traditional Public New Public Management Public Value Management

Management (NPM) (PVM)
Mode of Operation Planning and policy Management and contracts Knowledge fields
Theoretical Focus Policy studies Management and economics Governance philosophy
Model of Governance Procedural Corporate Network
Performance Objective Managing inputs Managing inputs and outputs Multiple objectives: service
outputs; satisfaction; outcomes;
trust and legitimacy
Goal of Managers Respond to political Meet agreed performance Respond to citizen preferences,
direction targets renew mandate and trust
through quality services
Accountability Upwards through Upwards through performance Multiple: citizens as overseers
departments to politicians contracts; sometimes outward of government; customers as
to parliament to customers through market users of services; taxpayers
mechanisms
Role of Community Little community Increased consultation Community enablement and
involvement involvement
Note. Adapted from Smith and Weller (2000), Hess and Adams (2002), and Kelly and Muers (2002), as cited in Smith (2004) and Considine and Lewis (2003).
Table 1: Approaches to public administration and public management.
accompanied by a shift in public-sector From the early 1980s, common remains strong, but the corporate and
governance heavily toward corporate themes emerged in the responses by market focus of NPM has more recently
and, to a much lesser extent, market national public sectors to the need for been seen as having overlooked com-
governance due to their consistency change, including (Peters & Savoie, plexities in governance and expec-
with the market-based values of NPM. 1998): tations of the public sector that are
Public-sector interest in project man- • emphasis on strategic management not applicable to the private sector
agement can be seen as very strongly and planning; (Wettenhall, 2005, cited in Howard &
associated with NPM (Crawford et al., • increased public consultation in Seth-Purdie, 2005, among others).
2003), which responded to a focus on design and execution of policy; Marsh (2002) believes that globaliza-
“reducing expenditures while at the • introduction of performance measure- tion, changes in information technolo-
same time improving government ments associated with emphasis on gy, and more active citizenship and
operations” (Caiden, 1998). According and accountability for results; interest groups are leading public-
to the OECD (1995), catalysts for • attempts to replace the “tradition of sector governance away from the cor-
change included: predictability and regularity that was porate governance framework. Citing
• need for increased efficiency and the trademark of old public adminis- the increasing amalgamation of admin-
cost-effectiveness to control and tration” (p. 35) with adaptability and istration and politics, he demonstrates
reduce public spending; flexibility; and a shift in public-sector administration
• reduction in national differences in • efforts to increase service quality and to what Considine and Lewis (2003)
public sectors and increasing desire to become more responsive through would term “network governance.”
enhance competitiveness of national “debureaucratization,” allowing initia- Network governance is “a particular
economies as a result of globalization; tives such as integrated service delivery framing of collective decision making
• rising service quality expectations (Aucoin, 1998, pp. 311–312; Caiden, 1998, that is characterized by a trend for a
from individuals and business need to p. 265; Rockman, 1998, p. 37). wider range of participants to be seen as
respond flexibly and strategically to legitimate members of the decision-
external changes; and The influence of corporate gover- making process in the context of consider-
• opportunities offered by new infor- nance and NPM on project manageable uncertainty and complexity” (Stoker,
mation technologies. ment implementations in government 2006, p. 41) and is associated with a new

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approach to challenges in the public effective use of resources; improving fore be used as a basis for analysis of
sector, beyond NPM, referred to as pub- implementation of policy and change; the value of project management in the
lic value management (PVM; Moore, maintaining public confidence; and public sector.
1995), which “bases its practice in the facilitating the delivery of public value. Accountability and transparency
systems of dialogue and exchange that Specific drivers of value in the gov- are understandably dominant themes
characterize networked governance” ernment context are as follows: and are associated with providing evi-
(Stoker, 2006, p. 41). In comparison to • need to satisfy multiple stakeholders dence to multiple stakeholders of con-
NPM, which placed technical efficiency by demonstrating accountability and trol, compliance, risk management,
and fiscal considerations (“value for transparency while effectively: consistent ability to implement policy
money”) as the overwhelming objective,
PVM extends the concept of value to
° implementing policy,
utilizing resources, and
and change, and commitment to per-
formance improvement. Delivering
encompass objectives of democracy and
° delivering services. value for money is associated with effi-
citizen participation (Stoker) with
°
• focus on improvement of organiza- ciency and effectiveness, as well as the
increasing amalgamation of administrational performance and ability to NPM-related goal of expenditure reduc-
tion and politics (Considine & Lewis, implement and adapt to change tion. Efficiency and effectiveness are
2003). In NPV, politics, which in tradi- (Edwards & Clough, 2005; Forbes & considered important in terms of deliv-
tional public administration and NPM Lynn, 2005). ery of public value and maintaining
are ideally restricted to initial input and public confidence. Engagement with
final judgment, are seen as central to the Politics are a significant factor in the stakeholders including public consul-
whole process, facilitating concepts of operating environment of the govern- tation, responsiveness to political pres-
value that go beyond market forces and ment sector, which is subject to minis- sures, a desire to minimize adverse
providing flexibility to deal with uncer- terial appointment processes with a publicity, and associated aspects of risk
tainty, ambiguity, and change. From the resulting impact in the form of changes management are themes indicative of
NPV perspective, the legitimacy of a in government and political direction. the trend toward NPV. A further theme
wider range of stakeholders is recog- Ministers act as highly influential is the need for flexibility to respond to
nized, there is commitment to a public and often unpredictable stakeholders environmental complexity and uncer-
service ethos, and an adaptable, learn- and sponsors to whom it is necessary to tainty.
ing-based approach to public service respond as a priority. This requires the
delivery (Stoker). flexibility as well as a degree of redun- Research Methodology
As project management implemen- dancy to be able to provide instant turn- Thomas and Mullaly (2007, p. 81) sug-
tations in government are so closely around in response to requests. gested that “investing in a particular
aligned with governance, it may be There are many levels of account- form of project management provides a
expected that the trend from NPM and ability, including accountability to specific type of benefit in a specific con-
corporate governance toward NPV and parliament, to taxpayers, to the com- text.” The government sector can be
network governance will be reflected munity, and to business. In the light of seen as a specific context with distinc-
in changing expectations and realization public accountability, the community tive characteristics that might be expect-
of the value of project management in and voting public are significant stake- ed to seek and derive specific types of
the government sector. While the NPM holders and the activities of govern- benefit from investment in project
related importance of value for money, ment are subject to intense media management. Therefore, the aim of this
efficiency, and effectiveness may be scrutiny. Government operations are article is to provide insight into expecta-
expected to prevail, a trend toward conducted within complex legal and tions and realization of the value of proj-
public participation and consultation, legislative frameworks and subject to ect management in the public-sector
political responsiveness, and flexibility significant compliance issues. context, with particular reference to
may be expected. alignment with the demands of public-
The Value of Project Management sector governance.
The Government Context in the Government Context To address the research aim, four
Value is contingent upon context and The foregoing review of the literature case studies of Australian government
will be delivered on a number of levels. reveals a number of issues in public- agencies were analyzed. The data for
As previously outlined, in the public sec- sector governance and management these case studies were collected as part
tor, investment in project management that project management has been of a major international research project
has been closely aligned with gover- implemented to address and that char- supported by the Project Management
nance, with the aims of achieving trans- acterize the government context. These Institute and led by Dr. Janice Thomas
parency, accountability, efficiency, and issues, as summarized next, will there- and Mark Mullaly, investigating the

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value of project management. Data- 1. Accountability and transparency; agency, and parallel asset services to a
collection methods were consistent with 2. Control and compliance; small base of clients external to the
those of the wider study and included a 3. Risk management; agency, managing assets utilized for
variety of methods and instruments 4. Consistency in delivery; social and special needs accommoda-
such as document analysis, interviews, 5. Ensuring value for money; and tion.
and questionnaires (described in detail 6. Stakeholder engagement. Substantial change is characteristic
in Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). For the of the industry reflecting the housing
study reported here, the nature of the For each of the four cases, the needs of the socially and financially
project management implementation in agency context, the history, and current disadvantaged. As a service agency
each agency was examined, and a total status of project implementation, chal- delivering programs, projects, and
of 39 interviews were conducted, com- lenges, and specific issues are de- services defined by others, Case A
prising a minimum of nine interviews scribed. This is followed by discussion needs to anticipate change, be adapt-
within each of the four case-study of the results of the analysis against the able, and add value to its parent organi-
organizations. These interviews were six themes previously identified. zation’s pursuit of solutions. It has to
conducted with representatives of sen- “plan to be responsive,” as it cannot
ior management, managers of project
Case Descriptions self-determine the work it will under-
management, human resource man- Case A: Context take. Its major competitors are another
agers, sponsors, and project managers Case A is an internal service agency of government agency and the consultant
(see Table 2). one of the largest social housing agen- industry, including major project man-
From these interviews, the strategy, cies in the world. As the housing agement firms. In the past the parent
purpose, and specific context of each agency’s internal service provider, Case organization has outsourced part of its
agency, and a history of project man- A’s primary client base is the agency’s work to test Case A’s competitiveness.
agement initiatives and implementa- five public and community housing Case A has always performed well in
tions, were abstracted and the perceived divisions, which account for the major- these comparisons.
value of project management identi- ity of Case A’s work and revenue. Case
fied. Using the following themes, drawn A’s core business is the provision of asset Case A: History and Current Status of
from the preceding literature review, solutions through project management. Project Management Implementation
the text of the interviews was analyzed It performs roughly 2,500 projects a Case A was created in the early 1990s as
to provide insights into the nature of year, 90% of which are construction part of an organizational restructure,
the context and specific expectation projects, with the remaining 10% deal- replacing functional units with a proj-
and realization of project management ing with business systems and strategy. ect management organization based
value from a public-sector governance Case A also provides services to other on a commercial model, funded only
perspective: asset-related stakeholders within the by the fees it could earn by selling its
Case Studies
C
Planning, design,
B construction, and D
A Accommodation maintenance Delivery of
Social housing and services for services for public major transport
Interviews solutions disabled people infrastructure infrastructure Totals
Senior Management 1 1 2 1 5
PM Management 1 1 1 1 4
Human Resources 1 0 1 1 3
Sponsors 1 1 0 1 3
Project Managers 5 9 5 5 24
Total 9 12 9 9 39
Table 2: Summary of cases and interviews conducted in each agency.

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services. This new project-based orga- internally to address the specific chal- financial sustainability of social hous-
nization represented a dramatic shift lenges of managing multiple small ing has been threatened. Through reap-
from previous ways of doing work, and projects and has delivered the tangible praisal of its approach, Case A has
the new management was advised that benefit of all projects being managed encouraged clients to review outcomes
they had to develop their project man- consistently across the organization. against objectives and increased the abil-
agement capability. Subsequently, a ity to deliver high-quality client-focused
Case A: Perceived Value of the
stable management team has consis- projects in a competitive environment.
Organization’s Project Management
tently pursued a project management This has led to increased business and
Implementation
approach, developing and continuous- improved staff morale. Overall, the dra-
Case A, as a service agency, provides
ly improving their systems and the matic improvement in quality of project
project management to projects deter-
capability of their personnel in an envi- process and product and the validation
mined by its clients. Project management
ronment characterized by significant of this through benchmarking with
is therefore central to the organization’s
social, political, commercial, and struc- other organizations has confirmed that
functionality; it is its reason for being.
tural change. Case A is “heading in the right direction”
As demonstration of commitment The consistent driver for all the improve- and had a very positive impact on staff
to development and maintenance of ment efforts is the need to have a high satisfaction.
delivery capability and continuous quality of project management service, While demand is high, resources are
improvement, Case A has for the last because that is our business. The quali- scarce, and this has been a driver for
ty of the service is as important as the
ten years been a member of a project development of robust project manage-
outcome because they’re the client’s
management benchmarking network. ment methodologies and approaches.
projects. (Senior Management, Case A)
They have actively benchmarked them- Working to very specific social issues in
selves against and sought support of The current project management providing public housing to the under-
other organizations in both the public approach was implemented in privileged and those in need means that
and private sectors, especially when response to a period of enormous project management approaches need
they are embarking on new initiatives growth in the organization, and all to be flexible, and soft skills are espe-
such as establishing a project manage- interviewees saw the value to the cially critical when dealing with clients
ment support office or investigating organization and to themselves in and stakeholders in the wider commu-
new project management systems. responding to this growth with a rigor- nity. Flexibility is also required to cope
They have made long-term invest- ous, integrated project management with the impact of ministerial requests
ments in career development of their approach. While senior management on their work.
professional staff, including tailored considers the structure, rigor, and con-
subjects in degree programs, signifi- sistency now applied to all projects as Case B: Context
cant training, and development of a necessary for management of project Case B is a state-based government
specialized assessment center. delivery and transparency of projects, a human service organization. The orga-
With the change in demography small number of project managers nization is the second-largest provider
since the postwar years, smaller house- think there is “too much bureaucracy of accommodation and services for dis-
holds and a different type of communi- and too much unnecessary reporting” abled people within the state. In its role
ty, the parent agency has embarked on for very small projects, and they recog- as purchaser, it funds A$600 million of
a massive program of replacing assets: nize that it “is part of the nature of a service providers. It delivers around 150
selling, buying, redeveloping, and government organization” (Project projects a year, with many projects tak-
building. This has resulted in a vast Manager, Case A). ing at least three years to complete. Its
increase in projects for Case A. While rigor and consistency are projects vary considerably, covering
The most recent project manage- important, Case A also needs to be agile process development, software devel-
ment initiatives have been in partial and provide innovative service solu- opment, and organizational change, as
response to this situation, an attempt to tions in response to client needs well as an increased number of con-
increase capability and process consis- and significant change. Demographic struction and engineering projects fol-
tency by replacing a suite of information changes and refocusing from generic lowing greater government investment
technology (IT) tools with a single proj- housing needs to the complex needs of in infrastructure. In existence in its cur-
ect management system that integrates those in most extreme circumstances rent form for only four years, the
timesheeting, access to the financial sys- calls for major change, remapping the department operates in a complex
tem, job authorization, project schedul- asset portfolio to the client needs pro- environment characterized by high lev-
ing, and resource allocation. This inte- file. At the same time, public funding for els of change. The department works in
grated management tool was developed housing has steadily declined and the disability sector within the services

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industry, the final safety net for a group templates and a panel of external valuable in planning and scoping for
of extremely disempowered stakehold- providers for training and certification. complex stakeholder management.
ers, and as such has no real competi- While the level of project management Project management is now consid-
tors. Project staff work in conjunction skill still varies across the organization, ered “a way of life in the central part of
with other government departments senior management expects an inte- our organization” and is “utilized to an
and nongovernment organizations to grated project management approach increasing level,” but there is a degree
meet the needs of their stakeholders. to be consistently deployed. of tension between the human services
work being carried out and the require-
Case B: History and Current Status of Case B: Perceived Value of the ment to use project management
Project Management Implementation Organization’s Project Management approaches:
Historically, this organization has had a Implementation
People who work at this organization
very limited project management As this is a human services organiza- value the human services work they do
capacity. The organization was formed tion where outcomes are often intangi- more than project management, but the
by the amalgamation of several differ- ble, project management is providing work we do tends to be framed as proj-
ent agencies, and as a result approaches the organization with an accountable ect management. Staff are attracted by
to project management and other orga- methodology and approach that hasn’t the intrinsic nature of the work rather
nizational practices differed according always existed. This is particularly than project management (Project
to which agency project staff came from. important, as a recent injection of Manager, Case B).
To counteract this, a portfolio office was government funds has brought with it
As “people tend not to have a proj-
established, and a highly qualified team increased levels of accountability.
ect management background . . . there
is now leading the improvement of proj- Provision of an integrated tool set for
is a greater need for project manage-
ect management across the depart- project staff has streamlined the report-
ment guidance” (Project Manager,
ment. There is now a growing awareness ing processes, improving the quality of
Case B).
of the need to continue developing the project reporting while reducing dupli-
Some project management staff
organization’s project management cation of effort in data collection. There
have adopted project management
approach. The portfolio office provides is evidence that the increased con-
fully, while some see project manage-
advice and mentoring on project man- sistency of the approach to projects
ment as extra paperwork:
agement best practice; is developing a across the organization has improved
community of best practice; and is the success rate of projects: “A tangible In the human services area we’ve needed
encouraging a performance culture business improvement has resulted; to dilute this ( PRINCE2-based methodol-
around an emerging project manage- projects have become measurably ogy); otherwise people will be very reluc-
ment capability. more efficient” (PM Management, tant to use it. That’s a reflection of the
current capability and understanding
Project management implementa- Case B).
of project management. Some see it as
tion, when initiated four years ago, The business environment in which
corporate overhead. (PM Management,
used simple templates based on the the organization operates today is con- Case B)
PMBOK® Guide (PMI, 2004). Regular sidered measurably more complex than
improvement initiatives have been it was ten years ago, and the depart- A significant challenge for the
conducted since then, and more sophis- ment itself is characterized by high lev- organization is a very limited pool of
ticated tools are now in use. Largely to els of change in structure, direction, resources.
align with a whole government approach and emphasis. An aspect of project
Project management gives us a meas-
to project management, Case B’s proj- management that has had the most sig- ured approach but can’t solve the actual
ect management approach has moved nificant impact on project performance problem of lack of staff. (Senior Manage-
toward the OGC’s PRINCE2 and Manag- is an increased capacity to support ment, Case B)
ing Successful Programmes methodo- change in a methodical way. Project
logies. The most recent improvement management allows the organization Variation in skill and experience of
effort was a response to increasing to demonstrate outcomes clearly, man- existing project staff and the diversity
complexity and increased levels of risk, age the investment of government of the work undertaken present further
including the risk of embarrassment funding, and manage the expectations challenges. Staff are employed from
to the Minister. Its objectives were of the Treasury. Project management very different backgrounds and organi-
around increasing project and program has facilitated the increasing involve- zational cultures, with a resulting
management capability and quality ment of stakeholders who are often impact on the current organization’s
assurance. This effort has resulted in disabled and have significant commu- culture and project management
increased accessibility of tools and nication problems and has proved deployment:

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Project management is not an ingrained department has had to reassess its agement module. As the organization is
part of the culture yet. There is no com- client base. There is no longer a man- project-based, this provides a very
mon language yet. There is such a date for Case C to deliver government close alignment of business and project
diverse group of people involved and it’s projects, so it has become necessary for systems.
such a big organization. Two distinct
them to compete for these projects Due to the nature and history of the
cultures exist—social work, involving
with the private sector. organization, there is a predominance
case work, and information systems.
Sometimes they talk very different lan-
of staff qualified in project-based disci-
guages. (Project Manager, Case B) Case C: History and Current Status of plines. They have a well-developed
Project Management Implementation graduate trainee scheme, and project
However, despite the reservations Case C has a long-standing role in proj- management training forms part of
of some staff about the process require- ect delivery on behalf of the state gov- their induction process. However, the
ments and perhaps as a result of the ernment, which has continued in the organization is currently dealing with
varying levels in project management face of the many changes in name, significant levels of competition for
experience, the introduction of a project structure, and focus that are typical of staff. As a government organization not
portfolio office where project manage- the government context. It has tradi- driven by profit, it cannot offer its staff
ment knowledge, advice, and mentor- tionally had a professional engineering, equivalent private-sector salaries.
ing are available, combined with the design, and construction basis and cul- There has been a major infrastructure
improvement in tools and support, has ture and attempts to move this toward a boom in resourcing, further exacerbat-
resulted in a demonstrable improve- more integrated project management ing the level of difficulty in recruiting
ment in morale. focus that began in the 1980s. Delivery and retaining quality project staff.
Project management has proved of services extends across a number of
valuable in the planning and scoping regional offices. Case C: Perceived Value of the
for complex stakeholder management In 1999, Case C also joined a project Organization’s Project Management
and has facilitated the increasing management benchmarking network Implementation
involvement of stakeholders who are and has remained involved in this net- The majority of those who work in the
often disabled and have significant work, periodically benchmarking its project management branch of Case C
communication problems. project management capability and believe that their organization has
drawing upon the resources of the net- received a high degree of value from
Case C: Context work of public- and private-sector their implementation of project man-
Case C is a major division of a large organizations to support the continu- agement. The organizational culture
state-based department with 900 staff ous improvement of its capability. emphasizes training and career devel-
that provides a range of services pri- In 2002, the Project Support Centre opment, and these were cited as areas
marily to government, and few com- was established, which defined a set of value by several project staff mem-
petitive organizations of this scale exist methodology for management of proj- bers. The department believes it pro-
in the state. The organization delivers ects through an intranet accessible vides consistent project management
around 10,000 projects a year primarily road-map process defining project processes that deliver high-quality
on behalf of government clients. Many methodology through four phases: initi- projects with clarity and consistency.
are large projects of around a billion ation, development, implementation, As supporting evidence for this
dollars each, the majority of which are and finalization. It also describes gover- belief, the department is one of only four
construction and engineering projects. nance and training. The aim was government agencies accredited for pro-
The overall market in state infrastruc- improved consistency and the stream- curement. The Project Support Centre
ture is about A$2.5 billion, with about lining of project processes across the performs regular statewide audits of the
20% of its business in local govern- geographically distributed organization. organization’s compliance with project
ment. It also has a role in providing pol- Dissemination and adoption of the management procedures and develops
icy to guide industry and government processes have been both encouraged responses to any gaps in compliance,
agencies in conducting such functions and audited for compliance. A sustained regularly updating procedures. Monthly
as construction, procurement, and period of senior management stability meetings of the Project Support Centre
asset management. has been beneficial for the continuous determine issues within the manage-
A recent change in procurement improvement of their project management system and present internal solu-
has resulted in a fundamental shift in ment capability. A recent initiative was tions, thus ensuring the department’s
the competitive landscape. Increasing the implementation of an enterprise project management approach is con-
numbers of projects procured through resource planning (ERP) system with stantly evolving and responding to new
private partnerships mean that the extensive utilization of the project man- challenges.

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As there is no longer a mandate for has also had a positive impact on staff record and higher turnover in younger
Case C to deliver government projects, morale and confidence. employees lost to private enterprise.
it has become necessary for them to The organization’s project manage-
Case D: History and Current Status of
compete for these projects with the ment approach was implemented in
Project Management Implementation
private sector, and the level of competi- response to changing market pressures,
Case D, although a project-based orga-
tion is increasing. Their major competi- focusing on streamlining and standard-
nization, has a traditional, engineering
tors are private-sector consultants and izing project procedures and improving
culture. There was a low-level revolution
specialist private consultancies and the client satisfaction. Their approach is
in the organization’s attitude toward and
mining boom, and an increasing num- adaptable and continually evolving;
awareness of project management
ber of water infrastructure projects in while there are potential areas of im-
methodologies in the 1990s when they
the state have prompted the establish- provement that are currently being
developed and implemented their own
ment of more of these private companies. addressed, the organization’s project
internal project management method-
Demonstrably good project manage- management implementation allows the
ology, based on the PMBOK® Guide.
ment is of value in attracting and organization to stay current and survive
Prior to that, projects existed but were
retaining clients: in a challenging competitive situation.
not always formally recognized as such
We don’t have a captive client base and were managed using traditional
Case D: Context
any more. But some clients come to us engineering approaches:
Case D is a large, project-based organiza-
on a regular basis anyway. Clients don’t There’s been an ad hoc history. I think
tion that delivers major infrastructure
have to come to us, so if they do it we actually weren’t particularly con-
projects to a widely dispersed state pop-
means they are happy. We have to keep scious of what we were doing when we
improving though and continually
ulation that has undergone a rapid
increase in recent years. It is a large used to manage projects. We became a
monitor our performance. Our salaries lot more conscious of it a few years ago
are paid by clients. (Project Manager, regionally dispersed organization with
and put more effort into it and things
Case C) over 4,000 employees and a multibillion-
started to improve. (Sponsor, Case D)
dollar infrastructure development pro-
A 2005 benchmarking exercise gram to be implemented over the next In an extremely challenging, resource-
measured the department’s perfor- five years. The projects managed and scarce and competitive environment,
mance with other major organizations delivered range between hundreds of Case D is attempting to implement con-
and found it to be highly successful in thousands and hundreds of millions sistent project management processes
its project management capability. This of dollars, and between several months characterized by clarity and transparency.
result was supported by the interviews and several years in duration, the vast However, it appears that project man-
and document analysis conducted majority of which are construction and agement has been only partially imple-
as part of this study. The recent ERP engineering projects. There is consider- mented across the organization; gaps in
implementation is regarded within the able variation in the quality of the project project histories suggest that the depart-
organization and beyond as extremely management implementation across the ment has a number of very highly skilled,
successful and has made project man- regions. As one interviewee said, “It’s committed project managers who man-
agement demonstrably more efficient such a big organization it would be diffi- age large, complex projects without the
across the entire organization. As one cult to summarize the culture. There’s a benefit of fully integrated reporting
project manager said, “Evidence is wide spectrum, and there’s much varia- practices and consistent deployment of
the lack of evidence of problems. There tion” (Project Manager, Case D). the project management methodology.
have been no issues of note with the The wider community, who uses Although almost a decade has passed
system since (it was implemented)” the infrastructure and the responsible since they introduced their custom-built,
(Project Manager, Case C). government minister, functions as both methodology based on the PMBOK®
The fully integrated set of project the organization’s customers and its Guide, an ongoing commitment to project
management tools, covering planning, stakeholders, and aspects of the stake- management training and engagement
communication, risk, stakeholder man- holder relationship are seen as impact- with other organizations in a project
agement, and other functions for every ing on project success. The organization management benchmarking network,
stage of the life cycle, has been seen to regularly liaises with major infrastruc- internal benchmarking reveals consider-
vastly improve levels of consistency and ture user groups. able variation in deployment across the
transparency, simplifying project tasks A significant concern for Case D is many parts of the organization.
and increasing staff satisfaction. The employee turnover, which falls into two Some attribute the inconsistency in
positive feedback from benchmarking distinct groups: lower turnover in older deployment of the project manage-
of their project management capability employees with a 20- to 30-year track ment approach to increased demand

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for infrastructure in the state as a result Case D). The problem is exacerbated by backgrounds and are familiar with proj-
of increasing population. Others con- the shortage of resources: ect management approaches. For these
sidered that this has combined with a organizations, project management is a
There are different resourcing levels at
statewide staff shortage to produce less different parts of the state, and if you
given, although the geographically dis-
than adequate project deployment in don’t have enough people to manage persed nature of the organization, a
some areas. The staff shortage has been projects, the demand to deliver projects shortage of skilled staff, and an engi-
partially attributed to low government- on time means that some things give. neering-based culture that is resistant
level salaries losing potential employ- (Project Manager, Case D) to change present a challenge in terms
ees to private enterprise. of consistent implementation for Case
Overall, staff value their project
A high level of competition exists D. Case B, as a human services agency,
work highly and find it very satisfying,
for resources, both staff and materials. has a workforce for whom project man-
and some staff are highly supportive of
The organization is in competition for agement is largely a new concept and
the project management implementa-
these resources with the private sector; one that is seen as less important than
tion, while senior management consid-
its major competitors are consultants his/her substantive roles. This has
ers it to be essential and worth the
and contractors. Competition for proj- resulted in a different and in many ways
ongoing effort to increase its consistent
ects is less marked. Unlike Case C, Case more flexible and gradual approach to
adoption across their operations. They
D is not required to compete with the project management implementation,
continue to invest project management
private sector for project work. although it is highly valued as providing
development of their people and
Communication with politicians an accountable methodology and
processes while addressing the chal-
is a further area of challenge. Several approach and basis for reporting that
lenge of “an organization that’s been
interviewees said that the incidence hasn’t always existed within the organi-
resistant to change.”
of projects delivering over budget zation. Leadership has been particularly
was sometimes directly attributable important in affecting the project man-
to pressure on senior executives or Comparing the Four Cases agement implementation, as it requires
project managers to give politicians a significant change in the way of doing
Context
a budget estimate without time for things.
There are both differences and similar-
adequate supporting research, and
ities in the specifics of the context for
the project being locked into that esti- Common Issues
the four organizations and of the
mate and falling short in the final Staff shortages are a challenge for all
expectation and realization of the value
budget. The organization is currently four organizations. The impact of this
of project management.
attempting to find a solution to this is greatest for Case D, which is an
For instance, two of the organiza-
issue. engineering-based organization and is
tions (Cases A and C) are required to
suffering from a systemic shortage of
compete with the private sector for
Case D: Perceived Value of the engineers at a time when there is increased
project work. These two organizations
Organization’s Project Management demand, largely driven by an infrastruc-
see demonstrably good project man-
Implementation ture and mining boom, and competition
agement capability as a core compe-
The inconsistency of deployment of the for engineers who are being attracted to
tence essential to their survival in a
project management implementation the private sector both locally and over-
competitive environment. This is espe-
across the widely dispersed operations seas. However, even Case B, which is not
cially so for Case C:
of Case D reflects a diversity of opinion so highly dependent upon people with
about its value. Some staff are resistant We don’t have a captive client base any engineering and construction qualifica-
to the organizational project manage- more. But some clients come to us on a tions, has insufficient resources:
ment approach, and this is associated regular basis anyway. Clients don’t have
with the older staff and the strength of to come to us, so if they do it means they Project management gives us a meas-
are happy. We have to keep improving ured approach but can’t solve the actual
the engineering culture. “There’s been a
though and continually monitor our problem of lack of staff. (Senior Manage-
focus on doing rather than planning.
performance. Our salaries are paid by ment, Case B)
Often managers don’t see developing a clients. (Project Manager C)
business case as real work” and although None of the organizations, being in
a “lot of staff do recognize the value of Three of the organizations (A, C, and the public sector, have the budgets or
project management” there is “difficul- D) are essentially project-based and flexibility of employment conditions to
ty in making those activities the norm, have a long tradition of project work attract and retain staff in competition
so in a crisis they abandon the processes and a workforce, many of whom are with the private sector. An interesting
and just scramble” (PM Management, from engineering and construction finding, however, is the degree of

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dedication of many of the staff who are (The organization) has a very strong analyzed to provide insights into the
attracted by and committed to the pub- ethos of going the extra mile for clients nature of the context and specific
lic service ethos. Another difficulty in in delivering their projects, particularly expectation and realization of project
long term as an organization, it’s a fun-
terms of resources, shared by all organi- management value from a public-sec-
damental part of our culture to take
zations, but particularly A, C, and D, is tor governance perspective:
pride in our work. (Project Manager,
an aging workforce with a large gap 1. Accountability and transparency
Case C)
between older and more experienced Sound processes and systems that
staff approaching retirement and high Both Case A and Case B have imple- support and enhance accountability
turnover of less experienced staff in their mented portfolio management. Case A are critical for good governance with-
20s. This is a challenge facing the public claims that they are using it to effective- in the public sector, which operates
sector throughout Australia that is ly manage their overall investment in under scrutiny from a diversity of
shared with their counterparts through- projects across the organization in order stakeholders with complex and often
out the world. to maximize benefits delivered and conflicting interests. All four organi-
All four organizations operate in maintain alignment to strategy. Case B zations had a strong awareness of the
complex multistakeholder environ- has implemented a project portfolio need for effective accountability and
ments requiring effective communica- office and is simultaneously addressing reporting mechanisms. This was a
tion, consultation, and responsiveness project, program, and portfolio manage- predominant theme throughout the
to the wider community, users, clients ment. They consider that this is having a interviews.
and customers, other government “significant, although not yet fully meas-
In the area of project governance, we
agencies, regulatory bodies, politicians, urable, impact on the organizational have a much better transparent report-
the press, industry, and others, many of culture” (PM Management, Case B). ing regime than we’ve had in place over
whom have competing objectives, Cases A, B, and D refer to application the last couple of years. This helps
interests, and demands. of program management. As they are to put the finger on where there might
All organizations operate in the government organizations, this may be be problems developing. (Sponsor,
political arena and are subject to the a result of the influence of the OGC’s Case D)
impact of ministerial requests on proj- Managing Successful Programmes
Audits and reviews are prevalent
ect work: (2007a). Case A, which does large num-
in government in order to ensure
bers of small projects for clients, claims
Things change quickly on a minister’s accountability for utilization of pub-
efficiency benefits from program man-
whim. If a new minister comes in with a lic funds, and project management
agement such as the use of shared
new agenda, your successful project may is seen as assisting in providing
get shelved. (Project Manager, Case B)
resources across multiple projects. Case
organizations with the processes
B, which operates in the human services
and documentation necessary to
The attitude of responsiveness to field with a requirement to deliver ser-
satisfy auditors.
political agendas, and facilitation of pub- vices and implement change, considers
Senior management sponsorship
lic participation, is consistent with con- that program management locates proj-
of projects is a fundamental aspect of
cepts of NPM and network governance. ects within their environment and helps
governance (Crawford et al., 2008) in
to ensure that they are embedded. Case
terms of accountability and trans-
Common Themes D delivers large infrastructure projects
parency of process, and this was
As mentioned earlier, a surprising and claims that program management
understood in the organizations:
common theme evident in all organi- enables them to group and manage col-
zations, despite staff shortages, was lections of projects more formally and If the senior management isn’t show-
the commitment and dedication of effectively than in the past. ing an interest in this stuff, you’ll find
staff to their work and to a public serv- it won’t happen. And that’s not an
ice ethos: Public-Sector Governance autocratic thing, it’s just that the
and the Value of Project senior management uses the whole
. . . employees tend to be very commit- project management approach to dis-
Management
ted and devoted professionals. They cuss the projects with their project
These four case studies provide an
have the freedom to perform to very managers, with the project team, they
interesting spectrum for considering
high standards. Because this is a state- use the schedule, they check against
owned department project managers
the value of project management processes and those sorts of things,
are allowed to be very good instead of through a lens of public-sector gover- ask questions, show effort, all those
focusing exclusively on profit at the nance. Using the following themes, good things. And they make it visible
expense of excellence. (Project Manager, drawn from the preceding literature at a higher level. (Project Manager,
Case A) review, the text of the interviews was Case D)

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2. Control and compliance we do, so it’s not worth it. (Senior ery of public value than on reducing
Project Manager, Case C)
Allied with accountability are control expenditure per se. For instance:
and compliance. All these government
This reference to risk of media We build to a budget, but we also work
organizations are under constant to special social needs; by definition,
exposure and political embarrass-
scrutiny from the Treasury, politicians, these can be in opposition. The budget
ment is a recurring theme for all four
the public, and the media and need to cannot be our single point of reference.
organizations:
be able to exercise and demonstrate (Project Manager, Case A)
control over their projects in order . . . improved reporting and trans-
to manage and meet expectations. parency is . . . designed in part to min- Although costs must be justified at
Monitoring of performance extends imize the potential risk of unwanted the outset and controlled within
beyond time and cost expectations to media attention causing embarrass- budgets, for all organizations delivery
ment to the [Minister] by enabling the
encompass delivery of services, deliv- of benefits is the driver, not the cost.
organization to reassure stakeholders
ery of value, and client and user satis- 6. Stakeholder engagement
and the wider community that it can
faction. deliver large complex projects which In the public-sector context, gover-
We undertake thousands of projects meet stakeholder needs on time and nance functions as boundary manage-
each year. We are committed to ensur- cost. (Senior Management, Case D) ment, working at the interface of pub-
ing that we achieve our targets and lic, private, and community sectors to
4. Consistency in delivery
deliver value. . . . On a quarterly basis, facilitate effective relationships and
we have ongoing monitoring of KPIs Evidence of the capability to
help make sense in the face of com-
in terms of how we achieve on the orig- implement policy and change and
plexity. A commitment to the wider
inal budget and timeframe and the commitment to performance im-
client satisfaction survey. (Senior
community and the interests of the
provement are important aspects of
Management, Case C) public emerged in interviews with all
governance for both public- and pri-
organizations and is associated with
vate-sector organizations. This is
Compliance is associated with the strength of the public-sector ethos,
well recognized by all case organiza-
audit and review. Control, when as mentioned earlier. Comments like
tions. Project management is valued
mentioned by the organizations, is the following were typical:
as enhancing the ability to consis-
often associated with managing risk,
tently and predictably deliver results. Sharing the organizational values for
especially of adverse media expo- social justice helps in overcoming
For example:
sure, in the face of increasing com- many obstacles in project delivery.
plexity. A “more rigorous project I believe that these quality processes (Project Manager, Case A)
management practice” is seen as help us tremendously to have consis- The projects that we do are our rea-
providing greater control of projects tency in the delivery of projects. . . . son for being, and the whole reason
and avoiding them going “off the There is an increasing emphasis on that we’re here doing this job is to do
customer service, including delivery something that matters . . . the projects
rails” as they had done in the past
on time and within budget. There is that we build are things that make the
(PM Management, Case B). Another
attention, because of the global energy lives of [people] better. So to me, those
interviewee commented, “We have crisis, on more energy efficiency con- projects matter. And I think a lot of
better governance and better construction and housing. The PM culture people that work in my area feel the
trol” (Sponsor, Case D). is changing all the time, and kept in same way, that the work that we do is
3. Risk management line by internal processes.” (Project the real work of the government, and
Manager, Case A) so to us the stuff that we do, our proj-
Strongly linked to interface man-
agement, risk management was an 5. Ensuring value for money ects, are most important stuff. So we
feel very privileged to be doing the stuff
important governance issue facing This is a strong theme in the
that really matters. (Project Manager,
each of the four organizations. The espoused rationales for project man-
Case D)
following is a typical comment agement in the public sector (e.g.,
across all four cases: OGC) and is fundamental to respon- Each organization that took part in
sible management of public funds. the research cited its complex rela-
Government organizations tend to be
more risk averse. We’re limited in how
However, in line with the trend away tionship with government ministers
many risks we can take. . . . because the from NPM and corporate gover- as a significant governance issue.
government is dealing with the public’s nance approaches toward NPV and Each government organization is
money we have to be much more care- network governance, the focus in accountable to a minister of
ful. We can’t waste it or take major risks these case studies is more on man- Parliament; it appears from the inter-
with it, and the media will pull us up if agement of expectations and deliv- views that this relationship varies

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according to the style of the individ- with project management methodolo- politics are increasingly permeable,
ual minister. An effective governance gies too time-consuming and bureau- requiring the organizations to be flexible
framework is necessary to allow the cratic, particularly for small projects, and responsive to ministerial direction
organization to successfully manage human services projects, and where and public consultation throughout
this relationship. However, it became staff shortages and increased demand their projects. This requires the ability to
clear that all four organizations impacted their workload. Nevertheless, deal with uncertainty, ambiguity, and
found challenges with this: the project management methodolo- change while continuing to exercise
gies, systems, and support were seen as control, manage risk, and demonstrate
My customer is the director general
who is a representative of the minister.
streamlining processes and assisting accountability and transparency. This
(HR Manager, Case D) time-constrained staff in doing their was mentioned on a number of occa-
I could see our director general work, and in all cases there was recog- sions in a number of ways.
being risk adverse due to the attitude nition, however reluctant, of the While responsible and accountable
of our minister at the moment. (Project accountability and transparency that management of public funds and ensur-
Manager, Case D) the systems provided were a require- ing value for money were fundamental
ment of government. for all four organizations, there was a
An external focus on service user
Dealing with political issues and common understanding that while cost
and public needs through improved
using project management to mitigate expectations must be managed, delivery
accountability and risk management
the risk of adverse media coverage were of benefits is of primary importance.
is critical in order to produce greater
characteristics of context and value Recognition of concepts of value beyond
ownership among stakeholders.
specific to the public sector and shared market forces, characteristic of PVM
by these four organizations. approaches, was clearly evident.
Conclusions There were many similarities but Also evident was the public service
The findings of this study support the also some differences in both context ethos, reflected in the dedication of
proposition by Thomas and Mullaly and expected and realized value. Those staff, their professionalism, and their
(2007, p. 81) that “investing in a par- organizations that manage projects on commitment to serving the public
ticular form of project management behalf of clients and are required to interest and making a difference.
provides a specific type of benefit in a compete for project work see specific Despite staff shortages and other diffi-
specific context.” As government orga- value in project management as a com- culties, there is a high level of satisfac-
nizations, the four case-study organiza- petitive differentiator benefiting the tion just because of the essential nature
tions share many contextual issues and relationship with their clients and cus- of the work, and staff value project
concerns, and the project management tomers and securing repeat business. management when it helps them pro-
implementations in which they have While all organizations are experienc- vide better service to the public. An
invested all draw on the same sources, ing shortages of skilled staff, those that adaptable, learning-based approach to
primarily the PMBOK® Guide, and the are not essentially project-based and both public-service delivery and proj-
OGC’s PRINCE2 and Managing Suc- do not have a critical mass of profes- ect management implementation is
cessful Programmes. Expectation and sionally qualified staff experienced in also evident. Project, program, and
realization of value is similar, as all four project work need to account for this by portfolio management in all four
organizations report that project man- adapting their methodologies and pro- organizations is evolving, and even
agement has provided benefits of viding appropriate support. where deployment is variable, and in
enhanced accountability, transparency, The results of the study not only some cases resisted, there are parts of
reporting, risk management, and con- demonstrated that project management the organization and the project man-
sistency of delivery; increased control supports public-sector governance but agement community that remain com-
and support for compliance, including also provided evidence of the trend mitted to continuous improvement
effectiveness and efficiency in manage- toward public value management and and see value in project management.
ment of public funds and ensuring network governance proposed in the An obvious opportunity for further
value for money; and a framework for public administration literature reviewed research arising from this study is the
enhanced stakeholder engagement. earlier in this article. All organizations comparison of results across all public-
There was evidence in all organiza- are increasingly working in complex and sector case studies developed in the
tions that their project management shifting networks that span organiza- course of research into the value of
implementations had been beneficial for tional and sector boundaries and project management led by Dr. Janice
staff morale and satisfaction even though involve legitimacy of a wider range of Thomas and Mark Mullaly with the
in some cases project managers consid- stakeholders than in the past. The financial support of the Project Manage-
ered the requirements of compliance boundaries between administration and ment Institute.

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Acknowledgments Considine, M., & Lewis, J. M. (2003). ment. Retrieved November 23, 2008,
The authors wish to acknowledge the Bureaucracy, network, or enterprise? from http://www.egovernment.tas.gov.
financial support of the Project Comparing models of governance in au/themes/project_management
Management Institute, and of the four Australia, Britain, the Netherlands, and Kelly, G., & Muers, K. (2002). Creating
Australian organizations that took part New Zealand. Public Administration public value. London: Strategy Unit,
in this study. They also wish to acknowl- Review, 63(2), 131–140. Cabinet Office.
edge the donation in kind support of Crawford, L., Costello, K., Pollack, J., & Kinnaird, M., Early, L., & Schofield, B.
all the organizations that participated in Bentley, L. (2003). Managing soft (2003). Defence Procurement Review
the whole set of value case studies, and change projects in the public sector. 2003. Retrieved November 23, 2008,
the intellectual stimulation of all the International Journal of Project from http://www.defence.gov.au/
Value Project team members involved Management, 21, 443–448. publications/dpr180903.pdf
in the wider study. They particularly Crawford, L. H., Cooke-Davies, T. J., Marsh, I. (2002). Governance in
wish to acknowledge the leadership of Hobbs, J. B., Labuschagne, L., Australia: Emerging issues and choices.
Dr. Janice Thomas and Mark Mullaly Remington, K., & Chen, P. (2008). Australian Journal of Public
who coordinated a global team of Situational sponsorship of projects and Administration, 61(2), 3–9.
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Newtown Square, PA: Project
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Management Institute.
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Understanding the Adoption of
Project Management in Serbian
Organizations: Insights From
an Exploratory Study
Svetlana Cicmil, Bristol Business School, University of the West of England, Bristol,
United Kingdom
Zoran Dord ević, YU Build Consulting, Belgrade, Serbia
Sasa Zivanovic, Delta Generali Osiguranje, Belgrade, Serbia
T
The article contributes to our understanding of his article presents insights from the analysis of a subset of data col-
the drivers behind, and the nature of, project lected for the Project Management Institute–sponsored study
management implementation in the complex “Understanding the Value of Project Management” (a/k/a “Value
context of a transitional economy. Relevant Project,” Thomas & Mullaly, 2007). It draws on four in-depth case
insights are generated through an integrated studies conducted by the authors in Serbia1 between May 2007 and May
and dynamic analysis of interviews and sec- 2008. Governed by the research objectives of the overall Value Project, the
ondary data from a sample of local organiza- investigation into Serbian organizations focused on generating insights into
tions, based on a conceptual model of strategic the role, application, significance, and value of project management con-
transformation. The analysis concludes with cepts and methodologies in a transforming economy of the Balkans. Given a
propositions about how both adoption of and high prominence of project-based work and a noticeable demand for edu-
resistance to project management implementa- cation and training in project management across the national borders, and
tion in the region could be understood from a an intensified activity of Western training providers in Eastern and Southern
strategic point of view, taking into account com- Europe since the 1990s (Cicmil & Upchurch, 2006; Kelemen & Kostera, 2002),
plex and dissonant circumstances of transition, this study is believed to be timely and beneficial.
history, cultural tradition, embedded social val- This article focuses specifically on the strategic drivers behind the adop-
ues, and identities of individual organizational tion and implementation of project management in local organizations as
members. part of the overall process of economic, political, institutional, and social
transformation in the region. The primary aim is to analyze more systematically
KEYWORDS: project management adop- the present attitudes toward adoption and acceptance of project management
tion; Serbian organizations; strategic transfor- in the local context and to understand their antecedents. The secondary aim is
mation and development; value of project to shed some light on the nature of perceived “value” that these organizations
management gain through the implemented project management concepts, procedures,
tools, and/or techniques against the backdrop of transitional dissonance. In
achieving the two aims, we draw on a rich set of qualitative data that includes
researcher observations and interview accounts with participants on the
ground, using a careful choice of broader theoretical concepts as an interpre-
tative framework. As this is a unique study addressing an underresearched
area, it was important not to get trapped into a premature closure by imposing
strict theoretical lens. In this article, we use Pettigrew and Whipp’s (1993)
dynamic concept of “dimensions of strategic transformation” as an underlying
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 88–98 analytical framework to interpret the data and propose possible explanations
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute of the strategic role of project management in enabling organizations to
Published online in Wiley InterScience
1Serbiais located in the region of Southern Europe known as the Balkans and is one of several independent
(www.interscience.wiley.com) countries formed upon the collapse of SFR Yugoslavia since the 1990s (for basic demographic data, see Cicmil,
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20093 Djordjevic, and Zivanovic, 2008).

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respond to a turbulent environment. • perceptions of identifiable value that given organization and its competitive-
The analysis is kept at a rather high level, has emanated from the organization’s ness), subjective learning (individual and
but the article concludes by sign-posting approach to project management. collective behavior), and the political and
possible trajectories for further analysis, Ensuring a buy-in of the Value social dimensions of organizational per-
theorizing, and interpretation of under- Project’s aims by significant local indi- formance (culture and politics).
lying and conflicting rationalities related viduals was crucial in order to gain the For that reason, we have adapted
to project management implementation access to respondents, documentation, Pettigrew and Whipp’s (1993) tried and
as a response to external pressures and and evidence. Respondents’ collabora- tested conceptual model of “dimen-
factors. Any detailed assessment of the tion was forthcoming, reflecting a com- sions of strategic transformation” into a
value of project management in quanti- mon interest in project management dynamic framework (Figure 1) to facili-
tative or qualitative terms is outside the among the local community of practi- tate the organization, presentation, and
scope of this article. tioners, enhanced by the following: discussion of data from the fieldwork.
• the fact that this was a PMI-sponsored The framework encourages the consid-
About the Fieldwork project conducted by a group of inter- erations of the context, content, and
Four case study organizations in the nationally recognized practitioner process of a strategic initiative—in our
region were selected for an in-depth researchers. case, project management implemen-
investigation within the overall Value • the participants’ pride in their proj- tation—and the dynamic interplay
Project (see Cicmil, Djordjevic, & ects (e.g., reconstruction, infrastruc- between these three aspects.
Zivanovic, 2008). The profiles of the par- ture, humanitarian) and in taking part In our analysis, we have endeavored
ticipating organizations are summarized in an international study at a time to maintain a required level of sensitivity
in Table 1. In addition, the study enabled when the region was just coming out to dynamics, emergence, and complexity
the research team to record a rich body of of turbulence, sanctions, exposure to of the researched phenomena. As a result,
observations, information, insights, and less favorable media reports about we have looked at our data about project
data from several other companies con- local situation, and shaking off the management implementation and its
nected to the four core cases. These data international “pariah” status of the characteristics in terms of the dynamics
have been used wherever appropriate to former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia of three motions (Kanter, Stein, & Jick,
support, illustrate, and strengthen con- (Pridham, 2001; Vujadinovic, 2004). 1992, cited in Egan, 1995, p. 116): (1) the
clusions and propositions resulting from motion of the organization as a whole as
this field research. The fieldwork was We will now explain in more detail it relates to motion in its environment—
conducted according to the comprehen- the conceptual framework before macro-evolutionary (identity) change,
sive data-collection protocol and instru- embarking on the analysis of data historical and typically related to clusters
ments developed for use across all Value toward enhancing our understanding and whole industries; (2) the motion of
Project case studies. This article builds on of the role and implications of project parts in the organization in relation to
the interviews and secondary data within management in this economic and one another as the organization develops
the database pertaining to the following national context. through its life cycle—micro-evolution-
set of issues, which are commensurable ary change, developmental and typically
with the above-stated aims: Conceptualization and Analysis resulting in coordination issues; and (3)
• an historical overview of decision Our approach has been a holistic-proces- the motion resulting from jockeying for
making and operational processes sual one: in order to comprehend what position (power and control struggle
in relation to project management goes on under the label “project manage- driven by dominant coalition interests)
implementation in the given organi- ment implementation” in Serbian organ- among individual members and groups
zational context including the level of, izations, it is necessary to take a holistic in the organization—this change focuses
and reasons for, acceptance of project perspective and to look at the historical, on political dimensions and involves rev-
management methodologies; organizational, and economical circum- olutionary issues.
• internal and external stakeholders’ stances from which this phenomenon It has also been recognized in the lit-
(sponsors, customers, project man- has emerged and in which it is located. A erature on strategic management,
agers, higher management) perceptions holistic-processual perspective allows for change, and transformation that, in
of the effectiveness and significance of considerations of external and internal most cases, managers and employees
the implemented or adopted project forces that have affected the process of view strategic transformation differently
management approach and problems project management implementation (Cicmil, 1999; Cicmil & Kekäle, 1997;
associated with it and the expectations over time, such as objective decision Strebel, 1996). One of the reasons quot-
from adopting a disciplined approach making (in relation to strategic signifi- ed is that although senior managers
to managing projects; and cance of project management for the might see the new strategic initiative as

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Understanding the Adoption of Project Management in Serbian Organizations
Organization Sector/Industry/Business Type of Projects Project Management Implementation Status

JKP-DIOT A department within a local Projects are mainly • Project management as a methodology for
(public sector) authority directorate responsible infrastructure building managing externally funded projects has been
for the construction, operation, and maintenance, implemented and developed since 2001.
and maintenance of municipal funded by external • The key driver is the EU donors’ requirement for
infrastructure. donors and supported a structured project management methodology
by other services/ to be in place as a condition for award of the grant.
departments of the • We note a dynamic interplay between the
LA Directorate (JKP). political context and culture in public-sector
organizations and the benefits emanating
from the adoption and implementation of
project management.
YU Build A small professional consultancy Projects are either • Project management is adopted as both a
(small business specializing in performed for external business concept and a methodology
enterprise) construction and general clients/customers or for managing projects.
management development. are of an internal nature • Project management is considered as a pillar
(strategic change of the company’s culture; driven by the
implementation, founder/owner’s strong belief in its value.
business development, • Management of projects is customized to
etc.) local culture but relies on worldwide best
practice recommendations.
Insurance Insurance company founded Capital investments • Project management was introduced in
(insurance) in 1998 as a member of a projects 2005 as an element of organizational
holding corporation; 2,000 New insurance product structure to fulfill a requirement for
employees; biggest private development “modernization.”
insurance in the country, IS system implementation • Initially, it was just a title on the books, not
overall ranked as third in the seriously utilized or integrated with everyday
market; market share is 15%. operations and management of projects.
• Since 2006, it has gradually gained prominence
as individual project managers and senior
managers started realizing its potential and
benefits at project and business level; still
sporadic.
• Benefits are recognized verbally by top
management but no formal authority or
recognition is given to project managers
and their work.
VMS A small professional firm in Consultancy projects • Project management is considered only in the
(small family construction design, engineering, for external customers context of the customers’ business and needs.
business) and management, offering: • Internally, no need for project management has
• Consultancy services in been recognized at present.
construction project
management for developers
and the government (ensuring
compliance with international
norms).
• Professional services in
structural design for
developers.
Table 1: Case study organizations (Serbia).

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in Table 1). The data illuminate a variety

Content of perceptions about the value of project
• Approaches to formulation • Purpose of existence and types of projects management by organizational mem-
and implementation of • Objectives of the project management
project management bers. In order to understand these differ-
implementation (patterns and models of
• Strategic leadership and what is being implemented in the name of ences better, we first explore in more
implementation management project management) and assumptions about detail the shared historical, cultural,
• Attention to motivation, project management
economical, and political dimensions
culture change processes; • Performance targets and evaluation of success,
forms of resistance key performance indicators, values, and attitudes of the external environment, which
• Reshaping personal seem to have directly impacted on the
commitments and behaviors Internal Context approach to project management ado-
Resources
Capabilities pted in the studied companies. Follow-
Exernal Culture
Economical; Politics
ing from there, we embark on analyzing
Business sector–specific; in more detail the interplay of content
Political, and process characteristics in each case
Process Social,
Historical and how they relate to the perceived
value of project management.
Figure 1: A dynamic multilevel framework for an integrated analysis of project management
implementation (adapted from Pettigrew and Whipp [1993] and Egan [1995]). The Contextual Dimension
(Economical, Business Sector–Specific,
Political, Social, Historical)
an opportunity to achieve objectives of unbounded and indeterministic envi-
Although the Balkans region has obvious
higher performance and quality and ronment. We will make reference to the
similarities with most of the Central
also to take on new personal challenges concept “personal compacts” (Table 2)
and Eastern European (CEE) countries,
and risks, for many employees, change coined by Strebel (1996) in the conclud-
including its Slavic cultural tradition, it
can be a disturbing and distracting factor. ing parts of our analysis.
is, at the same time, a volatile and very
This does not mean that quite the oppo- The conceptualizations outlined in
specific region, with its dynamic recent
site is not possible. The scale of change this section have formed a lens through
history, and unique social, cultural, and
associated with the implementation of a which a unique perspective on project
educational characteristics. The eco-
new initiative interferes with the ways the management implementation can be
nomical and social structure of the
things have been done to the present date generated by focusing simultaneously on
process of transformation in Yugoslavia
and attacks individual power positions, the single-case analysis and cross-case
included many features of the former
security, and competence. In short, it integrative analysis and to illuminate
communist states, but also exhibited some
upsets the perceived equilibrium of the the key characteristics of the investigat-
features that were unique to Yugoslavia
organization’s routines. ed project management implementa-
and make the former Yugoslavia an
Empirical data from our case organ- tion practices in the Serbian context.
exceptional case in the transformation
izations demonstrate the importance of
process (Hadzic, 2002; Ristic, 2004;
understanding these relationship ten- Key Insights From Serbian Cases Stanojevic, 2003; Upchurch & Cicmil, 2004).
sions and conflicting perceptions and The cases demonstrate different orga-
Compared with other CEE countries, its
handling them at different operational nizational experiences with project
economy had been much more open to
and structural levels in an increasingly management implementation (indicated
the Western markets; consequently, its
workforce had indirect and direct oppor-
tunities to acquire cutting-edge techni-
Dimensions of Issues Affecting the Implementation
cal and business skills; companies had
Personal Compact of Strategic Initiative
generated significant experience with
Formal Task and performance requirements; allocation of authority operating in the open market; and
and resources needed their productivity was much closer to
Psychological Mutual trust, expectations, interdependence among that of EU members in the early 1990s.
individuals; nonfinancial recognition During the civil war (1992–1995) and
the disintegration of Yugoslavia, the
Social Culture, shared values, ethos, and attitudes; perception economic blockade imposed over Serbia
of balance between the organization’s mission and
caused a drastic fall in Serbian GDP and
management behavior
destroyed much of its economic capacity.
Table 2: Aspects of “personal compacts” between employees and the organization (Strebel, 1996). As a consequence, the advanced business

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and management practices and tech- It is not surprising, therefore, that internationally accepted project man-
nologies, including project manage- the notion of “management of projects” agement principles. The reliance on
ment, were being much less utilized. This has long been firmly and exclusively an “intuitive, experiential gut feel” of
decline continued for another five years associated with the construction activi- experienced engineers turned into acci-
until democratic changes in October ty (complex infrastructure building and dental project managers supported by
2000. In any event, the revolution of residential development) and with the project management software packages
October 2000 resparked a process of profession of civil engineers. Good only became insufficient in an increas-
transformation that had begun more project management is seen as an addi- ingly unpredictable environment.
than a decade earlier in the economies of tional skill within an experienced engi-
International Donors and Investors
the CEE. neer’s portfolio of knowledge focused
Since the late 1990s, a noticeable inter-
In this complex context, two obser- on science and technicalities of project
est in project management outside
vations are important for the aims of planning, monitoring, and control. As
Serbian construction industry has been
this article: (1) understanding the sig- other industrial sectors did not have the
associated with the EU and other inter-
nificance of the construction industry same (nor anywhere near the same)
national establishments offering large
for economic development of the coun- prominence and reputation as serious
grants for post–civil war recovery, regen-
try since the 1960s and (2) the rise in exporters of products and services, nor
eration, and development of the affected
popularity of Western management did they execute their work through
Balkan countries. Among the key sectors
tools and techniques in the last ten projects, construction remained the
targeted by the grantors were housing,
years connected to the intensified only sector in the region that practiced
infrastructure, and industrial facilities.
involvement of external donors. The project management in their everyday
Major donors, including the World Bank
following insights from our investiga- operations in the early 1990s.
and European Development Funds,
tion shed light on the antecedents to Upon the collapse of SFR Yugoslavia
insisted on the need for a disciplined
the current attitudes toward project and the introduction of the economic
and transparent management of proj-
management in local organizations. blockade by the United Nations in the
ects under the approved contract
early 1990s, a significant portion of
awards. Inevitably, competences in proj-
The Construction Industry—The the “local” and international market
ect management emerged as a sine qua
Management of Construction Projects was lost. The remaining construction
non in these funding agreements,
In the context of the former activity was reduced to the level of bare
including the commitment to a struc-
Yugoslavia, construction was one of survival. In the course of the following
tured project management methodolo-
the leading industries that had con- ten years with little and haphazard
gy. Nongovernmental organizations
tributed extensively to the develop- engagement, the construction capacity
(NGOs) and local authorities interested
ment of the national economy until kept deteriorating, particularly in the
in receiving the reconstruction funds
the 1970s. As the civil engineering and area of the management of large com-
and other international donations for
construction experience and capacity plex projects. Since the beginning of the
local humanitarian and development
were created and accumulated over new millennium, the construction sec-
initiatives were “forced” to deploy and
the years, the state government’s tor of Serbia has been experiencing a
demonstrate the use of a systematic,
strategic orientation was to deploy renaissance. Domestic investment into
documented, and disciplined manage-
them on projects in the third-world construction projects has rapidly
ment approach according to donors’
countries with which Tito’s Yugoslavia increased, paralleled by a similar situa-
preferred project management stan-
had had firm and close political relation in the countries of the former Soviet
dards and methodologies. The Project
tionships. As a consequence of such a Union. The international funders, spon-
Cycle Management (PCM) Systems, a
strategic orientation over a period of sors, and investors started dominating
version of the EU project management
time, the Yugoslavian construction the construction scene and requesting
standard, became particularly popular
sector had gained a reputation as the the highest level of best practice in the
and prominent.
leading national industrial branch, a management of their projects. FIDIC2
major employer, and the key pillar of emerged as the default international Management Education
the country’s international trade and standard for construction contracting Paralleling all these developments,
export activity. Construction projects in such circumstances and its imple- management education including proj-
were the focus of public attention, mentation had to be supported by the ect management training has become
with Serbian major construction con- increasingly prominent since the mid-
tractors carrying out landmark capital 2FIDIC
1990s. One of the core subject areas of
(The International Federation of Consulting
projects in the Third World, particular- Engineers): Standard forms and conditions of contract for
the new private universities Serbia-
ly during Tito’s reign. works on construction projects. wide is business and management.

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Training has been provided by both then internalized it over time to suit the • The need for a business philosophy
local and international experts. The local circumstances of infrastructure and management process appropriate
project management education market building and reconstruction projects for ensuring the success of emerging
has flourished in recent years, too. At run by the Department (DIOT). It is entrepreneurial ventures and small
the moment, EU and other internation- particularly interesting to note that, enterprises in a fast-changing turbu-
al donors are focusing on funding due to pressures from sponsors and lent economy, which would simulta-
capacity development for local author- the lack of internal expertise in project neously provide for organizational
ities in Serbia, and are investing in the management at the time, external flexibility necessary for entrepreneur-
project management training locally, “professional” project managers were ship and competitiveness, and for
which is, in turn, largely biased toward initially parachuted in, to manage and standardization of practice necessary
the PCM System/EU standard. As inter- oversee the first couple of projects. It to ensure stability, discipline, and ade-
national construction projects involv- quickly became apparent, through quacy of the working environment for
ing Serbian companies are governed by daily interactions with the local project employees. In our fieldwork, YU Build
the aforementioned international FIDIC team members, the managers of JKP- provided an excellent example of the
system, there has been an increased DIOT, and other project stakeholders, process of project management
demand for adequate training in these that these imported project managers adoption in a new, brave entrepre-
standards (which is frequently consid- lacked broader social sensitivity nec- neurial professional consultancy. It is a
ered as project management training). essary to successfully manage projects small, ambitious consulting business,
Construction companies see FIDIC as of this type in the local cultural and led by a well-educated (PhD in civil
the key competitive factor in winning a political context with specific kinds of engineering) cosmopolitan individual
portion of project work in the global critical success factors, challenges, and whose recruitment strategy also
market, so they are prepared to invest complexity (postwar reconstruction, reflects project management orienta-
in training of their key staff. humanitarian, socially sensitive). This tion and culture. From our observa-
was mostly related to the external proj- tions and field study, YU Build has one
The Content Dimension ect managers’ lack of local knowledge of the most effective implementations
The content (see Figure 1) of project (essential to effectively performing the of project management in small com-
management implementation in each project management duty) and their panies in the Serbian market. From the
of the four organizations can now be nonparticipative style of project con- start, project management has been
seen as a reflection of the turbulent and trol based on selective communication considered as a pillar of the company
unique external environment, which with project stakeholders (that is, culture, whereas project orientation
provides both opportunities and threats exclusively and only with the represen- and management of projects are cus-
for organizational survival. The data tatives of donors), while neglecting or tomized to local culture, but rely on
from the four case studies enable us to marginalizing views and voices of the worldwide best practice recommenda-
propose a set of typical key reasons local project participants. This was tions. It is rather organic and evolving;
underpinning the objectives of project ultimately resulting in poor control the team culture is highly developed,
management implementation initia- and risks of project failure. Conse- with the key performance indicators
tives in the region while reflecting quently, JKP management and senior being professionalism, up-to-date-
respective internal contexts. These are staff decided to look into the require- knowledge in the field of expertise,
as follows: ment for a structured project manage- customer satisfaction, and individual
• Engagement of the company in ment methodology to understand (employee) development. These val-
development and reconstruction what kind of capability (development) ues are shared. Evidence of a high level
projects with an international donor, this would require and to invest in of collaborative learning and ambition
where implementation of a project project management training internal- is observable; trust and cooperation
management methodology is a quali- ly. Over time, JKP-DIOT staff took over are part of the cultural milieu and
fying requirement for obtaining the the project management responsibility carefully considered from the recruit-
grant. This is illustrated in the case of on these development projects. The ment process onward, governed by
the local authority directorate for content of the documented project charismatic leadership of the owner.
infrastructure building and mainte- management methodology is a mix- Procedures for management of proj-
nance (JKP-DIOT, see also Table 1). ture of formal (internationally adopt- ects are documented, transparent, and
The organization initially adopted a ed) project management procedures accessible, but flexible enough to allow
project management model pre- and local practices; that is, local expe- project managers and project team
scribed by the external donors from riences modified by market conditions members to respond creatively to cus-
the EU funding establishments and and requirements. tomers’ needs.

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• Internationalization of the construc- the work of insurance companies. NBS the studied organizations (Table 1) and the
tion market in the region and beyond, dictated the creation of a specific job level of perceived value:
and revived international activity profile titled “project management” • Coherence between strategic and
of local construction companies. and provision of associated training in operational change in response to
International sponsors and investors order to ensure that these companies the external forces inducing the need
who dominate the EU and world con- comply with good HRM practices for project management implemen-
struction scene are requesting the established in the international insur- tation. In our sample, the level of
highest level of international best ance service industry. So, project man- coherence varies along the whole
practice and compliance to interna- agement was not introduced nor spectrum. According to a much wider
tionally recognized standards for man- implemented as a recognized need for set of formal and informal observa-
aging construction contracts on their the firm’s development through better- tions, conversations, and sources of
projects. Local companies have had to managed and more successful proj- information consulted during the
bring themselves up-to-date with this ects, but as a forced framework fieldwork, the situation is representa-
kind of knowledge and expertise. This that goes with modern trends. tive for the region. In some cases, the
increased the awareness of the impor- Consequently, top management does introduction and implementation of
tance of the concept and methods of not pay any further attention, nor project management was a pure
project management and its imple- does it encourage project manage- administrative exercise without any
mentation among local management ment implementation beyond putting serious engagement of strategic deci-
consultancies that recognized a com- the procedural documentation in sion makers (e.g., insurance). In oth-
mercial value and potential in provid- place. The descriptions of status, role, ers, it was seen as an operational
ing this kind of advice and service to and competencies of a project manag- issue—proceduralizing the way the
the clients. Our VMS case study is an er are rather clearly presented in inter- work is done in the company accord-
illustration of this phenomenon, but nal company documents but are not ing to a set of imposed rules and pro-
also an interesting example of the used in practice. In recent years, cedures ( JKP-DIOT and, to some
resistance toward recognizing poten- though, “designated” project man- extent, VMS). In the YU Build case, it
tial benefits of project management agers have realized through their own has become an organic part of the
implementation internally (i.e., adopt- individual initiatives that project man- business culture, structure, and
ing a project management methodology agement has a significant value and strategic vision in addition to being a
for managing their own consultancy potential for improving not only the key guiding working procedure.
project work). performance of their (increasingly • Leadership of the implementation
• Project management as “a label” information technology/information initiative. As suggested by Pettigrew
desirable to have “on the books.” systems–related) projects (new service and Whipp’s (1993) framework of orga-
Paying lip service to project manage- or product development), but also nizational transformation, one of the
ment by introducing it “on paper” their business performance in general, important aspects defining the success
(extensive documentation, role and and have been driving the initiative to of a strategic initiative is the nature of
methodology descriptions, structural further exploit the benefits of the the leadership process deployed.
positioning as a sine qua non in keep- documented project management Through our fieldwork in Serbia, we
ing up with the Western management methodology through its wider and have identified not only different lead-
fashions) with no further effort (nor appropriate implementation. They ership styles but also different levels
interest by senior managers) toward have been joined in this mission by and loci of leadership associated with
utilizing it and embedding it as a some like-minded senior managers, project management implementation:
strategic intervention or management but still, in essence the organization from top management, CEOs, or
innovation. This is exemplified in a remains indifferent, if not resistant, to business owners (YU Build) to individ-
case study of an insurance company considering the true benefits of project ual project managers and professional
(see Table 1) where project manage- management implementation. project members (Insurance). It is also
ment was introduced mechanistically interesting to observe the positions
by inserting a new department into The Process Dimension and mechanisms of power and control
the organizational chart, represented From the data collected through our used to support (or hinder) the imple-
only by one person with the official job fieldwork, and closely connected to the mentation initiatives and how these
description of “project manager.” This previously stated analysis and discussion are interwoven with the stated
was in response to the request from of context and content, the following goals and content of a specific project
the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) processes appear to be significant for management implementation, and the
when it became a governing body for project management implementation in immediate and historic circumstances

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of the given organization. If, like in the associated with this aspect in relation among others) even in the same exter-
JKP-DIOT case, a structured project to project management acceptance nal environment (cf. Clark & Soulsby,
management methodology has not and implementation include the 1998). What is interesting here is to
been understood, appreciated, adopted, issues of “faith” in the concept; the position the common perceptions of
and implemented at all important levels level of deliberation, action, and col- value emanating from project manage-
of the organizational establishment, laborative learning among organiza- ment implementations with the nature
then this, in practice, causes tensions tional members in relation to the past of the process in an integrative and
between the project level (where project experiences, present situation, and dynamic manner implied by the con-
management is being implemented) future possibilities. The facilitating ceptual framework (see the section on
and the governance body (the municipal processes that have been found as rel- “Conceptualization and Analysis”).
administration who are project manage- evant are training (in modern manage- The empirical research indicates
ment unaware and/or unsupportive). ment techniques), top management that the value of implemented project
• Approach to changing organizational support, and formation of project management potentially relates to (a)
members’ behaviors to ensure a bal- management communities of prac- paving a path for the company’s strate-
anced fit between the organization’s tice, among others. This element of gic transformation (thus contributing
internal design (structure/culture) and collaborative strategizing is intrinsi- to current business performance and
its strategic transformation. We have cally linked to all of the previously future improvements) or (b) more
observed a dynamic interplay between identified elements. effective management of projects (con-
the acceptance of project management tributing to improved project results),
principles, concepts or methodologies, Value of Project Management or (c) internal harmonization of cul-
and organizational cultures, individual in Serbian Organizations—A ture and processes (process alignment
ambitions, and formal and psychologi- Discussion and satisfaction, hope for prosperity),
cal contracts between the relevant The processes of project management or some combination of these. In Table
employees and the organization. In implementations vary from organiza- 3 we summarize statements about the
many ways, this aspect of the project tion to organization. This is not unex- perceived value of project manage-
management implementation reveals pected given the different internal ment implementation in the studied
the sources of motivation and pride as organizational contexts (resources, organizations around these key types
well as resistance. capabilities, culture, structure, working of values.
• Strategizing about the present and practices and embedded operating pro- Potentially high levels of perceived
future opportunities. The processes cedures, and organizational politics, value emanating from the chosen
Representative Statements and Levels of Value Comments

“Enables the development of staff beyond their Interpretation of the value statements in the light of our conceptual
professional expertise” framework has enabled us to capture some subtle insights and
(Process alignment and satisfaction) meanings associated with the perceptions expressed in the interview
accounts from Serbian organizations:
“Project management procedures and methodology • Knowledge of project management methodologies and experience
bring in more structure in the process of communication” with project management is seen as a value-added skill that
(Project performance/process alignment) enhances the profile of an expert in any professional field.
“More effective problem solving and quality of work • Adoption of project management helps reduce the risk of chaotic,
among the project team” unstructured flow of information among diverse and dispersed
(Project performance/improved outcomes and benefits) project team members by encouraging them to communicate
in a way that is effective and contributes to a successful
“Better communication among project stakeholders, accomplishment of the task at hand.
cooperation, motivation” • Systematic approach to project management is seen as an
(Project performance/improved outcomes and benefits) advanced step toward “catching up” with the rest of the world
“Better and more effective business dealings, better and joining modern business developments in the global market.
connection of the employees, strengthening of • Project management introduces an aspect of much-needed
teamwork” rationality and systematization into an otherwise chaotic and
(Business performance/potential for future irrational local business culture.
improvements and progress)
Table 3: A summary of perceived value of project management.

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approach to project management organization’s strategy, its internal • recognizing specific embedded forms
have been identified in organizational design (structure and culture), and the of rationality not easily amendable to
environments where the project man- dynamics of its environment (Egan, capitalist logic that require a “path-
agement concept, methodology, and 1995; Pettigrew & Whipp, 1993), some dependent” perspective on transition:
tools are spontaneously adopted seem to generate a longer-term value for example, a “We are different” atti-
and organically embedded into the (YU Build) and some just a short-term tude toward importation of manage-
“work atmosphere” from general busi- benefit (JKP-DIOT and, to an extent, ment knowledge from the West, which
ness philosophy and company mis- VMS)—and some almost no benefit, as implies rigorous questioning of the
sion through to routine daily operat- project management is outside of the proposed (“not invented here”) meth-
ing procedures. This adoption of proj- company’s strategic considerations odologies before they are accepted in
ect management as a useful, helpful, (Insurance). the local environment.
and sensible management process is, The project management imple-
in cases of high perceived value, visi- mentation ownership is in most cases This has been addressed in the liter-
ble at multiple levels of the organiza- established only through a “creative” ature. Kostera and Kozminski (2001),
tion where individuals really care adjustment of imposed procedures and for example, argue for a holistic and
about, or critically think of, the bene- standards to the local circumstances inclusive view of Eastern Europe
fits of project management. (culture, locally dominant views, and and East European managers, a view
preferred operating procedures). The that recognizes their historical context
Emerging Insights Into Tensions, analysis presented earlier in this article and takes them as partners “in the
Motivators, Tradition, and Local provides a holistic background against European discourse, not least in
Social Values which the facts about project manage- the one on management education.”
In the specific Serbian context, repre- ment implementation as well as per- There is a strong political aspect to the
sentative not only of an economy in ceived value (Table 3) could be further authors’ argument, which attempts to
transition but also of the new global era understood. A serious consideration of unravel the invasion of Western man-
that is becoming increasingly unpre- culture and identity at multiple levels agement literature of the intellectual
dictable, the implementation of project seems unavoidable (Hollinshead & and social space in the economies in
management appears to be not only a Maclean, 2007). In accordance with transition, and the unquestioned or
procedural operational exercise but also Strebel’s (1996) concept of “personal taken-for-granted agenda of converting
a result of deliberate strategic choice, compacts,” the research could be use- the Eastern Europeans to market values
available to the organization’s decision fully broadened to explore how the fol- (Mestrovic, 1994). The proposition is to
makers, in order to survive in the fast- lowing aspects of the societal values actively include the experiences and
changing external environment and and tradition impact on the adoption knowledge of local managers and work-
respond to a prolonged pressure for of project management at a micro- ers into designing the content of
strategic transformation. Characteristics, level: management education as well as in
changes, and turbulence of the external • tensions between the traditional role defining locally acceptable processes of
environment (national and European of technical knowledge in education adoption and implementation of the
economic situation and markets) have and career building, and the urge for Western-style best practices.
induced a variety of strategic responses capitalist modernization and change; As introduced earlier in Table 2,
among organizations (represented by • individual responses to professional- Strebel’s (1996) concept of “personal
our four case studies), putting to test ization of management in a society in compacts” could be usefully invoked in
local management capabilities (see also which elitist attitudes toward techni- future research to illuminate and study
Whitley, 1995). In this context, project cal and scientific disciplines exist as how multiple forces of irrationality,
management implementation can be an indicator of the ability and stamina complexity, and power operate and
interpreted as an intervention aimed, of those graduating in these fields; mobilize a variety of stakeholder
ideally, at handling the twin demands • a specific attitude toward teamwork groups—both central and marginalized
for continuity and change. with a motto—”we are stronger ones—in adopting project manage-
Organizations that, in a way, follow together”—where like-minded peo- ment. These relationship tensions at dif-
the environmental patterns defining ple, often bound by mutual respect for ferent operational and structural levels
the need for project management, their potential and achievement, nat- imply the need to understand the
seem to generate the value and urally rely on “teamwork” as a weapon dynamics of reciprocal obligations and
benefits. But, depending on how their in combating competition of any kind mutual commitments, both stated and
project management implementation (spontaneous, self-organizing proces- implied, between employees and organ-
facilitates the overall fit between the ses); and izations (Hollinshead & Maclean, 2007).

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Conclusions correlated to the level to which proj- Therefore, the value and benefits
The adaptation of Pettigrew and ects are seen as strategically important accrued from the adoption and imple-
Whipp’s seminal model (Figure 1) has for the given company. mentation of project management in a
provided a dynamic and holistic per- • Project management implementation transitional economy have a lot to do
spective on the interplay and connect- does not work as a stand-alone initia- with bounded rationality in decision
edness between the perceived value tive, an imported fashionable item making (in predicting and interpreting
and benefits of project management that is self-explanatory in its own the dynamics of the environment, risks);
implementation in light of the organi- right; it should be approached as an with the level of controllability and
zation’s strategic direction and/or com- enabler of a dynamic fit between instability of people and environment
petitive aspirations; its resources; and internal organizational design of the (alignment, adaptation, culture, behav-
its management capabilities in a specific, organization and its strategic direc- ior, tasks/ profession); sensitivity to con-
complex, and radically changing envi- tion in an uncertain dissonant envi- text; social responsibility of decision
ronment in Serbia. We conclude with a ronment of transition. makers (accountability, transparency);
summary of findings with respect to the • It is important to achieve a balance and mechanisms of power operating in
two aims of this article stated in the between the quality of leadership in the given organizational context. These
introduction. introducing project management and are the areas where further study and
Political, social, and economical the impositions of procedures that theorizing is needed. Our research indi-
factors seem to have a significant influ- underpin the adopted project man- cates that further study into implemen-
ence on both why project management agement methodology: tation and perceived value of project
is being adopted and how value is per- ° Individual project managers should management in a transitional economy
ceived within the case studies. In the be “allowed” and supported to carry could center on the concept of personal
four Serbian cases, located in a unique and “live” their projects. compacts (Table 2) in order to deepen
cultural and economic environment, ° Individual ability and personality of our understanding of the role of a social
the adoption of project management project managers are closely corre- and cultural heritage of the given locali-
requires one of the following external lated with perceived values of proj- ty, which often gets forgotten in the
drivers: ect management even in large and current movement of uncritical global-
• engagement of the company in devel- bureaucratic environments. ization.
opment and reconstruction projects • The project management methodology
with an international donor; is seen as useful and helpful in intro-
Acknowledgments
• the need for business philosophy and ducing some order into the complex
financial support of PMI, the donation
management processes appropriate dynamics of relationships and joint
in kind support of the organizations
for ensuring success of emerging action of multiple participants, but the
that participated, and the intellectual
entrepreneurial ventures and small respondents (especially in JKP-DIOT)
stimulation of all the Value Project
enterprises; have emphasized political forces,
team members in the preparation of
• internationalization of construction power, culture, and historical influ-
this article. ■
market in the region and beyond, and ences associated with every project in
revived international activity of local their environment, which require
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Kanter, R. M., Stein, B., & Jick, T. (1992). spectives on European integration. successfully combined academic and business
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How companies experience it and lead- Development and Transition, 8, ing the introduction and successful application
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Routledge. research unit focusing on innovative strategies for Peace and Development. Previously, he was
Pettigrew, A., & Whipp, R. (1993). for managing complex projects and sustainable head of the board of directors for a local insur-
Managing change for competitive suc- operations in the global economy. She has ance company, Prizma Insurance. Prior to that
cess. Blackwell: Oxford. extensive experience in international teaching, and upon completing his degree in veterinary
Pridham, G. (2001). Uneasy democra- consultancy, and industry in the fields of project medicine at the University of Belgrade in 2000,
tizations—Pariah regimes, political management, quality, sustainability, and risk he practiced veterinary surgery for 4 years. He
conditionality and reborn transitions and has published widely in the areas of com- has been one of the key members of the Serbian
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Democratization, 8(4), 65–94. work, project management education, and the of Project Management study.

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Understanding the Value of Project
Management From a Stakeholder’s
Perspective: Case Study of Mega-
Project Management
Li Zhai, School of Management, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Yanfei Xin, School of Management, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Chaosheng Cheng, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Electric Power Engineering Co. Ltd., Shanghai, China
P
roject management is more and more widely used in various organ-
Project management can generate significant izations, and the value of project management gradually attracts the
value for organizations (Thomas & Mullaly, interest of organizations. We try to better understand how the value
2007). However, the value of project manage-
of project management is embodied in the organizations. Only if
ment varies depending on the different size and
organizations are fully aware of the value of project management will they
complexity of projects managed. Focusing on
mega-projects, this study explores the value of make further efforts to improve their project management. We believe that,
project management from the stakeholders’ in diverse organizations and for different projects, such as projects of differ-
perspective, thereby creating a value frame- ent scales and complexity, project management will bring out distinct val-
work. In the case of SHRBC Company, it analyzes ues. Given that project management is maturely and widely applied in
the company’s project management practice China’s construction industry and that mega-projects receive larger invest-
and the value of project management, and con- ment, have greater complexity, more stakeholders, and more extensive influ-
sequently certifies the applicability of this ences compared with normal projects, this study focuses on mega-projects
value framework through empirical study. and explores the multidimensional value of project management.
The size of the project is always defined in terms of such variables as the
KEYWORDS: mega-project; project
scale of investment, the number of project staff, the social impact of the proj-
management; value; stakeholder
ect, and the complexity of the project. Currently there is no formal defini-
tion of mega-projects in academia. The Federal Highway Administration
of the United States (2007) defines mega-projects as major infrastructure
projects that cost more than US $500 million, or as projects of a significant
cost that attract a high level of public attention or political interest because
of substantial direct and indirect impacts on the community, environment,
and budgets. Kovaka (2005) held that a mega-project is “a construction proj-
ect, or aggregate of such projects, characterized by: magnified cost, extreme
complexity, increased risk, lofty ideals, and high visibility, in a combination
that represents a significant challenge to the stakeholders, a significant
impact to the community, and pushes the limits of construction experi-
ence.” Flyvbjerg, Bruzelius, and Rothengatter (2003) suggested that projects
of investment of more than US $22 million can be called mega-projects, and
Flyvbjerg (2007) pointed out that “‘mega’ also implies the size of the task
involved in developing, planning, and managing projects of this magni-
tude.” In this article, mega-projects are defined as construction projects
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 99–109 that have a large investment of more than 1 billion yuan (about US $140
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute million), extreme complexity, substantial risks, long duration, a large num-
Published online in Wiley InterScience ber of participants and extensive impacts on the community, economy,
(www.interscience.wiley.com) technological development, and environment of the region or even the
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20099 whole country.

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Case Study of Mega-Project Management
The definition of mega-projects • It is multidimensional. Different types The value of a project is realized via
indicates that project management in of stakeholders are involved in a proj- project management. Project stake-
mega-projects faces tremendous chal- ect. Leung, Chong, Ng, and Cheung holders claim their value expectations
lenges. Flyvbjerg (2007) notes: “Cost (2004) pointed out that not all project or requirements, and the project man-
overruns of 50% are common, overruns participants would have agreed upon ager is required to then balance all of
of 100% not uncommon. Similarly, goals in terms of time, cost, and qual- those value expectations and draw out
substantial benefit shortfalls trouble ity, and conflicts between stakehold- a balanced value objective system.
many mega-projects. Finally, regional ers may arise in some circumstances. Under the guidance of this objective
development effects and environ- Therefore, the value of a project has system, project management is imple-
mental impacts often turn out very multiple dimensions, which are coor- mented so as to realize all kinds of
differently from what proponents dinated and integrated among the value of the objective system.
promised.” Hence, there is a great need value demands of multistakeholders.
of scientific and efficient project man- • It is dynamic. Not all of the needs of Review on the Value of Project
agement in mega-projects to help project stakeholders are revealed at Management
decentralize risks and smoothly realize the same time, but rather change as the Although project management has
the value of the project at the lowest time passes and reveal differently been widely applied across organiza-
cost. under the different project context. In tions, “the actual value resulting from
Apparently, project management is the process of project implementa- investments in project management
of enormous value to the success of tion, some stakeholders may change has been hard to define” (Thomas &
mega-projects. However, we still have their original requirements or increase Mullaly, 2007, p. 74). According to
no clear sense in what context and to new requirements based on the origi- Thomas and Mullaly (2007), the existing
what extent this value is reflected. nal. At the same time, some potential conceptual approaches to the “value”
These issues require an in-depth study. stakeholders may find that their bene- question can be categorized as: return
In order to better understand and eval- fits could be affected, and therefore on investment (ROI) approaches; bal-
uate this value of project management, claim their expectations toward the anced scorecard metrics; and organiza-
we created a value framework for proj- project. The project manager will then tional competency approaches.
ect management in mega-projects from have to balance more value demands We can simply categorize the existing
a stakeholder’s perspective and probe as the project progresses. value measurement into a single-
deeply into the case of SHRBC Company dimensional approach and a multidimen-
to comprehensively explore the value Referring to the value of project sional approach. The single-dimensional
of project management in mega- management, we need to look back into approach is mainly a financial approach,
projects. the definition of project management which tries to measure the financial
first. The project management is “the ratio such as cost/benefit ratio and ROI
Literature Review and application of knowledge, skills, tools, (Knutson, 1999; Kwak & Ibbs, 2000) to
Theoretical Framework and techniques to project activities to indicate the value of project manage-
Value of a Project Versus Value of meet the project requirements” (Project ment. It is reasonable to use financial
Project Management Management Institute [PMI], 2004, ratios to measure the value of project
In order to understand the value of p. 23). According to the definition, we management in the sense that financial
project management, we need to clari- can find that the objective of project results are important for all organiza-
fy the difference between the value of a management is to realize the value of tions and related data is more available
project and the value of project man- a project, which is to meet the proj- and measurable than other data. However,
agement. ect requirements. The value of project only considering the monetary return of
The “value of a project” refers to management includes two dimensions. project management is obviously not
the explicit and implicit functions of the On the one hand, project management enough, since project management
project, which can satisfy the explicit turns resources into the project outputs, also brings intangible benefits to corpo-
and implicit needs of stakeholders. thereby realizing the value of a project. rate culture, organization efficiency,
These functions exist in the goals of On the other hand, value of project and the satisfaction of clients, and so on
projects such as goals of time, cost, management also comprises the sum of (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008; also see
quality, commercial interests, social incremental values for all of the stake- Andersen & Vaagaasar; Eskerod & Riis;
benefits, and technological develop- holders, including cost saving, perfor- and Mengel, Cowan-Sahadath, & Follert
ment in the industry and environmen- mance improvement, and other interests in this issue).
tal protection. The value of a project through the process of value realization The multidimensional approach
has two main characteristics: of the project. tries to include not only the tangible

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benefits that could be measured in The value framework is formed as a operates”. Vested interest here refers to
financial ratios, but also intangible clear and comprehensive system, and the possession of one or more of the
benefits related to knowledge, such as aimed at application in mega-con- stakeholder’s attributes of power, legiti-
the learning and growth of organiza- struction projects. macy, or urgency.
tions, and customer satisfaction,
among others. Bryde (2003) built the Review on Project Stakeholders Value Framework From the
Project Management Performance The concept of stakeholders was first Perspectives of Project Stakeholders
Assessment Model to evaluate the performed in a memo of the Stanford Based on the literature review, we pro-
formance of project management and Research Institute in 1963 (Olander, pose a multidimensional framework
can indirectly reveal the value of project 2007) and has been widely used in describing the value of project manage-
management. But one of the limita- enterprise management. Freeman ment for mega-projects. We consider
tions of this model is the failure to (1984) developed the original concept. that the effective implementation of
connect the metrics to the organiza- He considered the stakeholders as any project management can influence
tional strategy. group or individual who can affect, or is project success, and further realize the
Jugdev and Thomas (2002) are ded- affected by, the achievement of the value of a project. Therefore, understand-
icated to evaluating project manage- firm’s objectives and who may be either ing project success and the success
ment capability to generate long-term primary or secondary. criteria may impact our understanding
competitive advantage. The major limi- The Project Management Institute of the value of project management.
tation of this perspective is that it is (PMI) (2004) has essentially adopted The criteria for success are much
hard to measure the organizational Freeman’s (1984) idea and states that wider, incorporating the views of all
competencies effectively, and therefore project stakeholders are “persons and stakeholders in the project. Each stake-
the approach is not easy to implement organizations such as customers, holder will have their own viewpoint of
in practice. sponsors, performing organization success, depending on their needs and
Thomas and Mullaly (2007) present and the public, that are actively how well these needs are satisfied by
a five-level organizational value con- involved in the project, or whose inter- the project. Stakeholder satisfaction
struct. The value of project manage- ests may be positively or negatively has been accepted as one of the criteria
ment is measured in five levels as follows: affected by execution or completion of of project success (Atkinson, 1999;
(1) satisfaction (of key stakeholders), the project. They may also exert influ- Baccarini, 1999; Lim & Mohamed, 1999;
(2) aligned use of practices, (3) process ence over the project and its deliver- Wateridge, 1998). Different project suc-
outcome, (4) business outcome, and ables” (p. 376). This definition appears cess dimensions mean different things
(5) ROI. This construct links stakehold- to have the same defect as Freeman’s to different stakeholders at different
ers to the value of project management, definition. times and for different projects (Shenhar,
and the value range covers both the However, Mitchell, Bradley, and 2001). The main difficulty in consider-
process results and business out- Wood (1997) considered Freeman’s def- ing the stakeholders’ perspective on
comes, from tangible financial returns inition to be too broad. In fact, accord- project success is how to consider all of
to intangible organizational benefits. ing to this definition, anyone may affect these stakeholders’ needs for success.
Thus, it is a more comprehensive mul- or be affected by an organization, and Should they be treated equally or does
tidimensional approach. However, there become a stakeholder. As a result, such there exist some trade-off? As Baccarini
is still room left for improvement. First, a definition becomes valueless in prac- (1999, p. 30) notes, “Attention must be
some content overlaps or correlates tice. Therefore, Mitchell et al. (1997) focused on important stakeholders if
exist between the five value levels, tried to settle this problem. They con- project success is to be accomplished.”
especially Level One correlates with cluded that a comprehensive definition This different stakeholders’ perspective
other levels. Second, given the diverse of stakeholder should include the to project success remind us to think
characteristics of projects in different power to influence and the legitimacy about the value of project management
industries, it may not be easy to deploy of stakeholder relationship as core from the different stakeholders’ per-
the construct in all cases of project attributes, and added the urgency of spective.
management. demand as a dynamic attribute. Based Compared with general projects,
Building on the organizational on the conclusion of Mitchell et al. mega-projects have more types of stake-
value constructs of Thomas and (1997), Olander (2007, p. 278) defined holders, such as sponsor, customer, per-
Mullaly (2007), in this article, we try the project stakeholder as “a person or forming organization, subcontractors,
to build up a value framework from group of people who has a vested inter- suppliers, the public, investors, and so
the stakeholders’ perspectives to meas- est in the success of a project and the on. For mega-projects, when we con-
ure the value of project management. environment within which the project sider the value of project management,

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the comprehensive effects (including A key issue facing stakeholder analyze the value of project manage-
economic, social, and environmental management is the identification of ment from their perspectives so as to
influence) are much more important. So which stakeholders are most impor- clearly exhibit the abundance and
we need a multidimensional framework tant. Grounded in the definitions of multidimensionality of the value of
and long-term thinking. At the same time, Mitchell et al. (1997) and Olander project management in mega-projects.
in the process of project management (2007), we sort out the key stakehold- Following this principle, we construct a
implementation, the project perfor- ers of mega-projects, including the value framework of project manage-
mance and the results can be transmit- enterprise itself, the customers, the ment in mega-projects. The value of
ted to a great many stakeholders, which subcontractors/suppliers, and the com- project management is generated in
can reflect a “spillover effect” of the munity, since these four groups of four dimensions: the enterprise, cus-
value of project management. Examin- stakeholders have the strongest power, tomers, subcontractors/suppliers, and
ing different stakeholders’ perspectives greatest legitimacy, and most urgent the community. The specific indicators
can help us to build the multidimen- demand on the mega-project imple- of each value dimension are delineated
sional framework. mentation and results. We then try to in Figure 1.
Improve the project Increase revenue

performance - Increase the project income
- Save cost - Broaden the business
- Shorten duration opportunities
- Improve quality Cultivate the personnel
- Realize commercial goals - Clearer career path
Improve the competencies - Better motivation and training
of the enterprise Improve customer relationship
- Enhance project management management
capability in mega-projects - Better customer communication
and project portfolio management - Greater customer satisfaction
- Enhance knowledge management - Stronger customer loyalty
- Improve technology innovation - Attract new customers Realize the value of project
- Smooth organization transformation
Cultivate favorable Save project investment
corporate culture Better collaboration experiences
Enterprise
Customers
Value of project
management in
mega-projects
Subcontractors/ Community
Suppliers
Improve the technical and management capabilities Avoid conflicts with the community within the
project implementation
Build up long-term strategic cooperative partnership
Promote the economic and social development
Foster a large number of talents in construction
project management
Improve the technical standards and
management mechanisms in the industry
Protect the environment
Figure 1: Value framework of project management in mega-projects.

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Research Methodology and Data project offices and one of the project the construction “headquarters,” a
Collection sites. temporary organization specially
We use a sample case study to exempli- undertaking the construction of the
fy how the theoretical value framework
Case Study of SHRBC Company large-size river-crossing facilities in
built above can be used to analyze the Company Background order to construct the first bridge
value of project management for mega- Located in Shanghai, China, SHRBC across the Huangpu River. During this
project management. Company is one of the three largest period, the organization managed
The case study commenced in April construction agents of municipal infra- the project mainly by the experience
2007 and lasted 2 months. Four structure projects in the city. Con- of individuals. As time went by, peo-
researchers jointly undertook the struction agents are organizations that ple in the organization began to gain
research and collected data firsthand take the whole responsibility of project insights into project management
via in-depth interviews, question- management for the project owners and tried to improve their manage-
naires, document review, and observa- through the entire construction process ment system.
tions. from project initiation to completion, • Phase 2 (1998–2000): The formal
• Interviews: Ten people related to proj- and until project results are smoothly project management system was
ect management were interviewed, transferred to the owners. They are formed. In 1998, the temporary
including one vice president of the professional organizations in project organization was transformed into a
company, one HR director, one proj- management, and play the role of con- corporation. Under industrial regula-
ect sponsor, six project managers, struction consulting firms to some tion, the project management system
and one staff member from the gen- extent. in the company was becoming more
eral administration office. Each inter- SHRBC is a typical project-driven and more mature. By 2000, SHRBC
view lasted for about one-and-a-half company. Ever since 1988, it has announced a formal project manage-
hours. Tape records and the interview implemented project management in ment system.
summaries were made after each mega-infrastructure projects for clients • Phase 3 (2000 and after): The project-
interview. The corresponding re- (primarily the government) and accu- contract system was built up. The
searcher perception data collection mulated a wealth of practical experi- project management organization
form was filled, too. ences in project management. Moreover, (PMO) consists of three levels and
• Questionnaires: Twenty-eight ques- more than 90% of its revenue is from four functions. The three levels
tionnaires were sent out. The respon- income generated by project manage- include: senior manager, project man-
dents were six project managers, ment. Between 1988 and 2006, SHRBC ager, and general staff. The four func-
five project employees, six suppliers, implemented project management for tions include: technology and design,
five subcontractors, and five cus- 23 mega-infrastructure projects. The daily management of the project,
tomers. The response rate and effec- average investment of those projects is investment and cost control, and gen-
tive response rate both are as high as 1.688 billion yuan, among which the eral administration. The company is
100% because of the strong support largest is 7 billion yuan and the smallest still working on continuous improve-
from the top management of the is 66 million yuan. Some projects were ment in project management.
company. once the projects of the largest con-
• Organizational and project data struction scale or the most extreme According to our value framework
collection: One organizational data technical difficulty in China (or even in of project management (Figure 1), in
collection form and ten project data col- the world) and have had some far- the following section we explore the
lection forms were filled. The project reaching impacts on the community value created by project management
data collection forms were filled and economy of Shanghai. in SHRBC based on the four dimensions
according to the ten projects with There are 140 employees in SHRBC, of value for the four key stakeholder
great strategic significance for the 123 of whom are project managers and groups: the enterprise, customers, sup-
company since it was founded. project employees. Of the total number pliers/subcontractors, and the commu-
• Document review: The regulation of employees, 60.71% are college- nity, in the following analysis.
documents related to the project educated, and 83.74% are holders of a
Value Created for the Enterprise
management system in the company vocational certificate/job permit.
were reviewed, and the whole set of The history of project management Improve Project Performance
the project files for a typical mega- in the company can be divided into • Save costs. According to the ten proj-
project were also reviewed. three phaases: ect data-collection forms, project
• Observations: We participated in one • Phase 1 (1987–1998): Project manage- management helps the SHRBC effi-
project status meeting and visited the ment by experience. SHRBC was just ciently save the cost and effort of the

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projects. The average cost saving for ity to manage mega-projects and • Smooth organization transformation.
a project is as much as 32 million yuan, project portfolios keeps improving. Through the long-term project man-
accounting for 3.26% of the average • Enhance knowledge management. agement practice, SHRBC has built up
initial project budget. And the aver- The company is working to improve a mature organizational structure
age effort saving is 5,212.7 hours, its knowledge management. Com- within which the project management
accounting for 3.46% of the estimated plete project files have been estab- organization plays a role at the core,
project effort. lished and are open to the project and other functional sections provide
• Shorten duration. Seventy percent of staff. A technical and project manage- support to the project management
the project samples achieved the ment database for completed proj- organization. This structure can offer
duration goal or shortened the dura- ects is being built up. Video records adequate organizational resources to
tion. Thus, project management can for the implementation of major the projects, and ensures that the proj-
help to improve the implementation mega-projects are also being created. ect management is smoothly imple-
efficiency of the project and save the In addition, the company has put mented (Figures 3 and 4).
cost of time. effort into developing “front-end”
Increase Revenue
• Improve quality and realize commer- management software, which stan-
cial goals. The respondents of ques- dardizes the management of the • Increase the actual revenue. Project
tionnaires graded realizing the degree project front-end. In addition, by im- management is the main stimulation
of quality and commercial goals as plementing project management, for the growth of the company’s rev-
high as 4.4 and 4.5, respectively (with this organization now possesses rich enue. The annual revenue of SHRBC
5 being the highest). Further, the ratio resources of databases, professional comes mainly from the management
of project success has been 100% reports, and publications as refer- fee of projects, which accounts for a
ever since the company was set up. ences for the convenience of its staff. fixed percentage of the total project
Therefore, excellent project manage- • Improve technology innovation. investment. Moreover, for some proj-
ment can greatly help to realize the Because the operation of the con- ects, SHRBC could have an agree-
quality and commercial goals. struction project has to strictly abide ment with the owners that guarantees
by the state laws and policies, as well that it can receive an extra bonus,
Improve the Competencies of the
as by the industrial standards and which usually accounts for some per-
Company
norms, generally SHRBC requires its centage of cost savings as a reward for
• Enhance project management capa- employees to strictly follow the estab- their efficient implementation of
bility in mega-projects and project lished procedures rather than encour- project management.
portfolio management. From Figure 2 ages them to experiment with new If we assume that the percentage of
we can see that the annual invest- ideas. However, it does encourage its management fee is 1% of the total
ment scale of the projects that the employees to give their opinions and investment, conservatively we esti-
company manages continues to grow. advice freely, and some of their inno- mate that for SHRBC, the nominal
It indicates that the company can vative proposals could be accepted total annual revenue and the real total
manage projects of larger and larger after formal evaluation by the related annual revenue (at the price of 2006)
scale as time goes by, and its capabil- experts and the top management. as well as the revenue per person all
90000
80000
10 thousand yuan
Investment Unit:
Scale of Project
70000
60000
50000
40000
30000
20000
10000
0
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Year
Figure 2: Annual investments of projects SHRBC managed.

099-109PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:45 PM Page 105
General Manager
Chief Accountant
Chief Economist
Chief Engineer
PM Organization
Support
Quality and Safety Sec.
General Admin. Office

Front-end Supporting
Chief Engineer Office
Personnel Section
Financial Section
Planning Section
Figure 3: Organizational structure of SHRBC.
continue to show constant growth investors, which often gets approved managers keep a keen eye on the
(Figure 5). based on their effective project man- opportunities to broaden the busi-
• Broaden the business opportunities. agement. These “add-on” opportuni- ness scope of the projects and there-
The senior management we inter- ties can apparently increase their by generate greater income from the
viewed mentioned to us a phrase of income. It was mentioned that projects.
“secondary development,” which although the possibility of “secondary
Cultivate the Personnel
means that the project manager finds development” of projects was partly
“add-on” opportunities during the related to the characteristics of each SHRBC invests 800,000 yuan (5,714
process of project implementation project, excellent capabilities of proj- yuan/person) to offer training in proj-
and then presents the proposal to ect management did help project ect management to personnel every
year. To motivate its staff to learn
continuously, the enterprise actively
encourages their participation in the
examination of Project Management
Project Manager
Professional (PMP) or International
Project Management Professional
Vice Project (IPMP) certification, and at the same
Chief Engineer
Manager time covers the cost of their learning
and exams under certain conditions.
The company has developed a clear
Front-end Integrating Plan
Engineer Office Project Office career path for the project personnel.
Supporting Office Office
The employees are provided with the
opportunities to rotate their positions
Figure 4: Project management organization.
related to project management. The

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14000 60
Nominal/Real Annual Total Revenue
Real Total Annual Revenue

12000 50
Nominal Total Annual Revenue
Revenue per Person
10000
Revenue per Person

40
8000
30
6000
20
4000
2000 10
0 0
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Year
Figure 5: Total annual revenue and revenue per person.
highly complex mega-projects that the faction rated as 4.33 (with 5 being the Better Collaboration Experiences
company manages have provided great highest). The standardized process of project
opportunities for their employees to Cultivate Favorable Corporate Culture management improves the communi-
“learn by doing” and to improve their cation efficiency between the project
The interviewees had distinctly differ-
personal capability in technology and management organization and clients,
ent opinions about the corporate cul-
project management. Generally speak- thereby enabling the clients to enjoy a
ture in SHRBC, such as “seriousness,”
ing, a project manager of SHRBC can better cooperation experience with
“honesty and trust first,” “serve the
grow out of a junior project staff posi- SHRBC (Table 2).
community,” “humanism,” “objective
tion in only five years or so.
management,” and “teamwork.” This Value Created for the
Improve Customer Relationship suggests that the company hasn’t yet Subcontractors/Suppliers
Management formed a unified corporate culture. But Improve the Technical and
the interviewees all agreed that project Management Capabilities
According to evidence analyzed by the
management had a positive effect on
research team, their excellent project Some of the project managers that we
forming a cohesive and favorable cor-
management capability helps SHRBC interviewed pointed out that, to be a
porate culture.
to identify and realize the needs of good project manager, he or she is
customers rapidly and accurately. Value Created for the Customers required to have integrative thinking,
Therefore, it wins high client satisfac- Realize the Value of Projects
tion and loyalty and has already built
Excellent project management raises Projects managed by the 4.33
up a long-term cooperative relation-
the possibility of project success, as organization consistently meet
ship with many customers. With very
well as the effectiveness after project all technical specifications.
high credibility and a good brand, the
delivery (Table 1), thereby smoothly
company has easier access to the new The results of projects managed 4.5
realizing the value of projects.
clients and new business opportuni- by the organization represent
ties. The data from the surveys and Save Project Investment an improvement in client
organization collection form indicates As mentioned above, excellent project performance
that the percentage of new customers management capabilities made an The results of projects managed 4.67
of the total in 2006 was about 23%, average cost saving amounting to more by the organization are used by
while no customers were lost and the than 30 million yuan for the sample their intended clients.
company received no complaints from projects, which helped the clients save
Table 1: Application effectiveness of projects.
customers. The average score of satis- substantial project investment.

099-109PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:45 PM Page 107
to the neighborhood as much as possi- management, the company can suc-

We are happy to work with the 4.17 ble. In the long-term practice of project cessfully complete those projects of in-
organization management, SHBRC has accumulated city roads and cross-river bridges and
We used to work with the 4.67 abundant experiences and seldom generate enormous benefit for the wel-
organization causes conflicts with the community fare of the citizens and the economic
related to the resident relocation and development of the city, as well as the
We would be happy to work 4.83
building demolition. Hence, the clients success of the 2010 Shanghai Expo.
with the organization again
often let the company undertake all of Foster a Large Number of Talents in
Table 2: Clients’ appraisal toward the col- the external coordination tasks, such as Construction Project Management
laboration with SHRBC. resident relocation and building demo-
Mega-project management practices
lition, showing their high recognition
accelerate the development of project
toward the company’s ability of exter-
good communication skills, and an managers in SHRBC. At the same time,
nal coordination.
ability to actively cooperate with the SHRBC has fostered a large number of
other project participants in order to Promote the Economic and Social excellent talents in construction proj-
optimize project objectives. Therefore, Development ect management for society. No matter
the company attaches great importance whether talents stay in SHRBC or leave
Most of the projects that SHRBC man-
to communication and cooperation for other organizations, they will con-
aged are construction projects of in-
with the other project participants, tinually make a contribution to the
city roads/cross-river bridges in
including subcontractors and suppliers. fields of construction project manage-
Shanghai. The realization of the time
Furthermore, it fully takes advantage of ment in the community.
and quality objectives in these mega-
its own technical and management Improve the Technical Standards and
projects has remarkable social benefits.
competencies to help the other project Management Mechanisms in the
First, since Shanghai’s social and eco-
participants with the management Industry
nomic development brings along the
and technical problems. The technical
rapid growth of the road traffic, and Since there are strict technical stan-
and management capabilities of sub-
expediting city traffic is a critical foun- dards in the Chinese construction
contractors and suppliers are thus
dation for Shanghai’s rapid and sus- industry, which are set by the govern-
improved.
tainable economic development and ment and industry associations and
Build Up Long-Term Strategic for the welfare of the citizens, the cannot be modified easily, in the case of
Cooperative Partnership mega-projects that SHRBC has under- SHRBC, the effect of improving the
Most of the subcontractors and suppli- taken play an important portion of that technical standards is not so evident.
ers being surveyed had a high satisfac- expedited traffic in the city. Second, Because SHRBC plays a role as one of
tion with the collaboration with SHRBC expediting road traffic is also a prereq- the market leaders in the Shanghai mar-
and looked forward to the future coop- uisite for the 2010 Shanghai Expo. ket of municipal infrastructure projects,
eration in projects (Table 3). According to the forecast, during the many peer enterprises always try to learn
half-year Expo the total number of visi- from its project management practices.
Value Created for the Community
tors will reach 70 to 80 million; the It shows that SHRBC can positively affect
Avoid Conflicts With the Community average number of visitors will be the improvement of the project manage-
Within the Project Implementation 400,000 per day, and even 800,000 per ment within the Shanghai market in the
Mega-municipal construction projects day at the extreme peak. The projects construction industry.
often involve a large scale of resident of in-city roads and cross-river bridges of
Protect the Environment
relocation and building demolition. SHRBC are greatly significant to the
Moreover, in the construction process, 2010 Shanghai Expo. Therefore, with Excellent project management ensures
it is necessary to reduce the interference the scientific and systematic project that when the mega-projects that
We are happy to work We used to work with the We would be happy to work
with the organization organization with the organization again
Subcontractors Suppliers Subcontractors Suppliers Subcontractors Suppliers
4.16 4.4 3.83 4 4 4.4
Table 3: Appraisal of subcontractors and suppliers toward the collaboration with SHRBC.

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SHRBC managed are completed, they mega-project management. As we community were better recognized
can smoothly pass the environmental mentioned before, the value created than the other two dimensions. But this
protection assessment of the govern- by mega-project management is tremen- assumption needs to be empirically
ment. The data suggests a passing rate dous and unique, and thus it is neces- tested.
of 100% in the former mega-projects sary to separate the mega-projects Third, in some dimensions, more
that the company managed. from the small-to-medium-size proj- measurable metrics still need to be
ects and use a unique approach to developed—for example, in the value
Conclusions and Limitations measure the value of mega-project dimension for the community. Also,
Conclusions management. It is also very systematic. we didn’t include the ROI in our value
The quality of project management in Given the many stakeholders that framework. We found that it was quite
mega-projects creates tremendous mega-projects have, in this value difficult to calculate the exact ROI,
value for different stakeholders. The framework we measure the value of because although part of the invest-
value is composed not only of tangible project management from the stake- ment in project management by
benefits, such as increasing revenue, holders’ perspective consistently. SHBRC is tangible, including the staff
saving cost and time, and so on, but Therefore, the dimensions will not training, related software development,
also of intangible benefits, such as overlap with each other, and the frame- and the database and project file system
improving quality, improving corporate work forms a systematic whole. building, the other part of the invest-
competencies, cultivating personnel, Furthermore, the value framework is ment is intangible, including the im-
improving the satisfaction of cus- operable. Most of the value dimensions provement of project management
tomers/suppliers/subcontractors/ in the framework have measurable system and so on. It was difficult to
employees, and protecting the environ- metrics. The data for metric calculation isolate the return from project manage-
ment, among others. Moreover, there is can be quoted from the bottom-line ment and return from other manage-
some unique value that can be generat- data of the company and the question- ment concepts. The ROI measurement
ed only by effective project manage- naires replied to by the stakeholders. for the project management of mega-
ment of mega-projects, such as pro- However, as with any research projects is left to be explored further in
moting the economic and social devel- paper, this study has several limitations the future.
opment and fostering a large number that need to be addressed in further The value framework developed in
of talents in project management for research. First, as a single case, this this article is applicable only for mega-
the construction industry. study cannot fully display the general project management, and in order to
The implementation of profession- applicability of the value framework of explore the specific value of project
al project management in mega-proj- mega-project management. For exam- management in projects with different
ects can greatly enhance the manage- ple, in the dimension of “Improve the scales and complexity, further empiri-
ment capabilities of the organization, Technical Standards and Management cal studies are still needed.
and thus deliver the tremendous value Mechanisms,” the value is not very
of project management to more stake- notable in our case, because SHRBC is
Acknowledgments
holders. In the case of SHRBC, the con- not a nationwide market leader that
financial support of the PMI, the kind
struction agency system is an effective can have more influence on the indus-
support of the organizations that par-
management system for increasing the trial technical standards and manage-
ticipated (especially SHRBC Company),
value of project management. Through ment mechanisms. To analyze this
and the intellectual stimulation of all of
the implementation of professional value dimension more effectively, a
the Value Project team members in the
project management, SHRBC obtains large-sample survey or a more typical
preparation of this article. ■
deeper and more comprehensive in- case study will be needed.
sights into project management and Second, in our case study, we did References
takes the initiative to apply these not make a comparison among the four Atkinson, R. (1999). Project manage-
insights into its projects. Therefore, the value dimensions and across different ment: Cost, time and quality, two best
company quickly improves its abilities levels. It’s still hard to say which benefit guesses and a phenomenon, it’s time
in project management. from project management, for which to accept other success criteria.
The value framework that this arti- stakeholder, is more important among International Journal of Project
cle introduced has its own strengths to these four dimensions. However, from Management, 17, 337–342.
evaluate the value of project manage- our observation and interviews to Baccarini, D. (1999). The logical
ment from a multistakeholder perspec- stakeholders in the case of SHRBC, we framework method for defining project
tive. This value framework has strong can assume that the value dimensions success. Project Management Journal,
pertinence and applicability in the for the enterprise itself and the 30(4), 25–32.

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Bryde, D. J. (2003). Modeling project Leung, M. Y., Chong, A., Ng, S. T., & Wateridge, J. (1998). How can IS/IT
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Federal Highway Administration. Construction Management and
(2007). Retrieved March 22, 2007, from Economics, 22, 701–715. Li Zhai, PhD, is currently an associate professor
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/ Lim, C. S., & Mohamed, M. Z. (1999). in the Department of Management Science at
mega/mpguide.cfm Criteria of project success: An Fudan University, China. She received her MS
Flyvbjerg, B. (2007). What is a mega- exploratory re-examination. and PhD in management science at Fudan
project? Retrieved December 6, 2007, International Journal of Project University. She was also a visiting scholar in the
from http://flyvbjerg.plan.aau.dk/ Management, 17(4), 243–248. Olin Business School, Washington University in
whatisamegaproject.php Mitchell, R. K., Bradley, R. A., & Wood, St. Louis (1998), and in the Sloan School of
Flyvbjerg, B., Bruzelius, N., & D. J. (1997). Toward a theory of stake- Management, MIT (2002). Her major research
Rothengatter, W. (2003). Mega-projects holder identification and salience: interests are project management, new product
and risk: An anatomy of ambition. Defining the principle of who and development management, innovation, and
Boston, MA: Cambridge University what really counts. Academy of technology management. She has been teach-
Press. Management Review, 22, 853–886. ing project management for more than 10 years.
Freeman, R. E. (1984). Strategic man- Olander, S. (2007). Stakeholder impact
agement—A stakeholder approach. analysis in construction project man- Yanfei Xin is a master’s candidate from the
Marshfield, MA: Pitman Publishing. agement. Construction Management School of Management at Fudan University in
Jugdev, K., & Thomas, J. (2002). Project and Economics, 25, 277–287. China. She is currently majoring in technolo-
management maturity models. The sil- Project Management Institute. (2004). gy economics and management. During her
ver bullet of competitive advantage? A guide to the project management undergraduate study, she received a double
Project Management Journal, 33(4), body of knowledge—Third edition. bachelor’s degree in project management and
4–14. Newtown Square, PA: Author. economics from Wuhan University in China.
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Kovaka, M. (2005, April). Defining Understanding the value of project China. He received his EMBA at Fudan University
mega-projects, learning from construc- management: First steps on an inter- and BA in road and traffic engineering at Tongji
tion at the edge of experience. Paper national investigation in search of University in China. He has more than 17 years
Presented at the Construction Research value. Project Management Journal, of construction management working in the
Congress, ASCE, Reston, VA. 38(3), 74–89. construction industry, and as a program manag-
Kwak, Y. H., & Ibbs, C. W. (2000). Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2008). er in charge of eight mega-size infrastructure
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Project Management Systems:
Moving Project Management From an
Operational to a Strategic Discipline
Terence J. Cooke-Davies, Human Systems International Ltd., London, United Kingdom
Lynn H. Crawford, Bond University, Australia; Lille Graduate School of Management, France;
Human Systems International Ltd., Sydney, NSW, Australia
Thomas G. Lechler, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, USA
O
ne of the primary concepts explored in the “Value of Project
This article illustrates one aspect of the concept Management” research project is the extent to which an organiza-
of “fit” between an organization’s implementation managed to establish “a context of project management that is
tion of project management and its organiza- appropriate for them and the types of projects they manage”
tional context by exploring how the underlying
(Thomas & Mullaly, 2008, p. 24). This article explores one aspect of that con-
drivers of an organization’s strategy might
cept: the fit between an organization’s strategy, the project management
influence not only the nature of the projects
that it undertakes, but also the appropriateness system it chooses to implement, and the type of project that it executes in
of the arrangements that it makes to manage implementing its strategy.
those projects. Using a model conceptualized Although project management standards have, by virtue of their nature
from the literature on strategic management, as standards, focused on a generic approach to the management of projects
an analysis of four organizations that have (guided by what is applicable to most projects most of the time), there is a
made significant investments in project man- growing interest in the differences between projects and their contexts
agement over the past 5 years supports the (Crawford, Hobbs, & Turner, 2006; Dvir, Lipovetsky, Shenhar, & Tishler, 1998)
hypothesis that the degree of “fit” between an and how this might influence their management. In line with this, several
organization’s strategic drivers of value and the authors claim that the management of a project should be adapted to its
configuration of its project management sys-
specific characteristics (Balachandra & Friar, 1997; Shenhar & Dvir, 1996;
tem influences the value it obtains from project
Wheelwright & Clark, 1992). The unconditional use of project management
management.
standards is criticized, and a misfit between specific project characteristics
KEYWORDS: project management system; and the chosen management approach is seen as a major source for project
strategic management; value of project failure. The underlying hypothesis of this perspective is that project success
management; organizational context is related to choice of the “right” management approach related to specific
project characteristics.
Another group of authors suggests that the management of projects
could be related to the strategy of the firm. This research stream analyzes the
link between a single project and the strategy of an organization and has
identified the existence of project strategies that are directly connected to a
project’s dynamic environment (e.g., Gunther McGrath & MacMillan, 2000;
Loch, 2000; Pitsis, Clegg, Marosszeky, & Rura-Polley, 2003). According to
these studies, a project is not always subordinate to the strategy of a parent
organization but could in fact influence the organizational strategy. From
this perspective, project success depends on the choice of the “right” strate-
gy under specific contextual conditions.
Three research streams have independently dealt with factors contribut-
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 110–123 ing to the success and failure of projects, each of them relatively independ-
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute ent of the others:
Published online in Wiley InterScience • New product development: The strategic role of new product development
(www.interscience.wiley.com) and innovation (Brown & Eisenhardt, 1997; Hamel & Prahalad, 1994; Takeuchi &
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20106 Nonaka, 1986; Wheelwright & Clark, 1992)

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• Entrepreneurship and innovation: characterized by formulation of “best deliver its strategic portfolio of projects.
The strategic role of entrepreneurial practices” and maturity models Viewed in this light, the perspective of
efforts and innovation (Abernathy & (Cooke-Davies, 2004a, 2004b; Mullaly, main strategic drivers provides a plat-
Clark, 1985; Burgelman, 1983; Dess, 2006). These models and associated form for connecting the three seeming-
Lumpkin, & McGee, 1999; Gann & best practices, like standards for single ly unrelated research fields that discuss
Salter, 2000; Kanter, 1985; van de Ven, projects, take a generic approach, issues of project implementation. From
1986) effectively recommending that an ulti- this perspective, organizational project
• Project management: As an imple- mate goal is set for the implementation management systems, or the project
mentation concept for time- of project management within organi- management model or models chosen
constrained unique and complex tasks zations and for a level of perfection to for implementation, can be considered
(De Meyer, Loch, & Pich, 2002; Hobday, which all should aspire. So, while there more a strategic than an operational
2000; Midler, 1995; Muller & Turner, is a growing interest in the differential concern.
2007) management of projects, and a recog- The ideas presented in this article
nition that projects are commonly used and the data used to support them have
These three research streams coex- as a means of implementing specific been generated in the context of a glob-
ist, and each addresses the implemen- organizational strategy (Morris & ally conducted research project explor-
tation of unique, time-constrained, and Jamieson, 2005), there are pressures ing the value of project management
complex tasks from a different perspec- that drive organizations aspiring to (Thomas & Mullaly, 2007). We have
tive. The common underlying hypothe- “best practice” to adopt similar project drawn on the literature on project
sis is that project success of such tasks management systems regardless of the management and the related areas of
(e.g., projects) is related to a fit between differences between the types of proj- innovation management and entrepre-
either the characteristics of the single ects they manage and their corporate neurship from a strategic perspective
project and the management processes strategies. as a basis for comparing chosen project
or the choice of project strategy and the This article sheds fresh light on management systems with the strategic
project’s context. challenges associated with the man- drivers of organizational value. From
Even though different types of “mis- agement of projects. It explores the this we have developed and will
fit” could cause project failure, the proposition that the challenges are describe a conceptual framework that
research streams only rarely consider caused by the fit or congruence of an we refer to as the Strategic PMS–Value
the influence of a corporate project individual project using the manage- Driver Portfolio model. This model is
management system on projects implement systems at the project level with then used as a framework for analysis
mented within an organization (Payne & the underpinning needs of the enter- of four case studies that demonstrate
Turner, 1999). Projects are often prise to accomplish its chosen strategy. how project management systems con-
embedded in the context of a system of Our basic question is how the configu- tribute to the success (or otherwise) of
management structures, standards, ration of a PMS should fit the strategic the entire population of projects
and procedures—or, as we call it, the requirements that an organization is undertaken within an organization. We
project management system (PMS). imposing. then conclude with a specific set of rec-
However, the existing research streams We propose that the causes for ommendations to design and imple-
tend not to address the possibility that identified “misfits” between the specif- ment a PMS that could better meet the
project managers of failed projects ic project objectives and the manage- specific strategic requirements and that
might have simply followed the specific ment approach lie beyond the level of a maximizes the value to the organiza-
rules set by the organization and that single project (Thomas & Mullaly, tion of projects implemented.
these rules may not “fit” the PMS con- 2007). This proposition allows a con-
text in question. nection of the three independent Strategic Drivers of Project
Within the project management research streams mentioned earlier on Management Systems
field, it has been recognized that factors a different level of abstraction. We Organizations undertake a multitude of
contributing to the success or failure of argue that not only should the main projects to pursue their specific goals.
projects extend beyond the direct con- strategic focus of an organization dic- They define general structures, stan-
trol of the project manager and team, tate the types of project that it under- dards, and regulations in the attempt to
and this has led to the development of takes, or even the way that individual ensure satisfactory governance and
interest in organizational project projects are managed (Srivannaboon & accomplish these projects successfully,
management capability (Crawford, Milosovic, 2006), but it should also and in so doing establish cultural
2006; Project Management Institute determine the configuration of project norms. Taken collectively, the whole of
[PMI], 2004b). This interest has been management systems used to plan and these structures, standards, regulations,

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Moving Project Management From an Operational to a Strategic Discipline
processes, policies, methods, support- differentiation and the degree of Each of the four resulting strategic
ing tools, and their surrounding culture process economics (efficiency). The value driver scenarios defines a quite
are what we refer to as the “project rationale for this choice is that certain unique set of requirements for the
management system.” This recognizes organizations seeking to compete in implementation of a project manage-
that the organization’s strategy not only their markets through product differ- ment system. The requirements are
has consequences for the choice and entiation are likely to derive strategic derived from the organization’s need to
funding of a specific project and the value predominantly through success- manage its projects in a manner that is
definition of its goals, but it also has ful innovation of new products and in harmony with its overall strategic
consequences in terms of what is val- services, whereas organizations seeking drivers. This model, which we have
ued and how outcomes are achieved to compete through offering lower-cost named the Strategic PMS–Value Driver
and reported. Following this line of solutions will derive value predomi- Portfolio Model, can be used to relate
thought, it is the organization’s strategy nantly through improvement of the specific types of projects to a specific
that drives not only its choice of proj- economics of process. This is not to configuration of strategic value drivers
ects, but also the configuration of its suggest that any organization can com- derived from a specific strategy (see
project management system. pete if it ignores one or the other; clearly, Figure 1).
The strategic value drivers consti- every competitive organization must The Strategic PMS–Value Driver
tute the starting point of our analysis. offer desirable products for a price that Portfolio differentiates between the fol-
Because of the extensiveness of the lit- consumers are willing to pay. The point lowing four strategic contexts.
erature on management strategy, it being made is that organizations com-
Context 1: Low Process Economics
would not be possible in the context of peting through a product differentia-
Driver, Low Differentiation Driver
this article to acknowledge all of the dif- tion strategy need to develop systems
This quadrant describes a scenario in
ferent discussions of and contributions for maximizing the value that they
which project management is not rec-
to the topic. An elaborate discussion of derive from investment in product or
ognized as playing an important role.
strategy typologies is also not impor- service innovation, whereas organiza-
The strategy behind it could be
tant for the argument set forward in tions competing on the basis of cost
described as “ad hoc,” since a clear
this article. In a sense, the different must derive maximum value from the
strategic focus for projects is missing.
ways of classifying strategies are imma- efficiency of their manufacturing value
Organizations operating in this quad-
terial to the hypothesis proposed in this chain.
rant are likely to be predominantly
article. Our main purpose is to discuss By connecting these two general
operations based in relatively stable
the extent to which value is created or strategic positions in a matrix, it is pos-
market sectors. Focus is very much on
destroyed depending on the extent of sible to differentiate four strategic value
continuity and business as usual.
“fit” or “misfit” between an organiza- driver scenarios that specify correspon-
Techniques such as Six Sigma are likely
tion’s drivers of strategic value and the ding value drivers of what we might
to yield high returns by making opera-
specific characteristics of its project expect to see reflected in the character-
tional improvements to major business
management system. For our discus- istics of projects that will be undertak-
processes (Hammer, 2002), and proj-
sion, it is sufficient to start with Porter’s en in pursuit of the strategy and the
ects are implemented on an “ad hoc”
widely accepted and discussed classifi- configuration of project management
basis. Projects that are implemented
cation scheme of strategies (Porter, systems. Consideration of whether a
under these conditions are expected to
1985). He has developed a method of particular driver can be classified as
make incremental contributions to the
analyzing competitors in any given “high” or “low” depends on an assess-
organization and are not perceived as
industry by first identifying, and then ment of different factors. For example:
important ROI contributors. There is
mapping, strategic factors that distin- • Vertical axis (degree of product differ-
no strategic need for a rigorous and
guish clusters of firms competing in the entiation)
well-structured PMS, and it is in this
same market, such as increased prod- • Novelty of product/market mix
case more an “ad hoc” concept; for
uct differentiation or vertical integra- • Brevity of window of opportunity
example, some basic standards might
tion to control the value chain (e.g., • Brevity of product life cycle
exist, but projects are implemented on
Porter, 1985). Other authors have sug- • Intensity of innovation-led competi-
a kind of informal basis.
gested different ways of classifying tion
strategies (Miles & Snow, 1978; • Horizontal axis (degree of process Context 2: High Process Economics
Mintzberg, 2007; Mintzberg & McHugh, economic improvement) Driver, Low Differentiation Driver
1985). • Reduction in/pressure on cycle time Large engineering organizations have
Following Porter, we have chosen • Reduction of waste led the way in managing large-scale
for our analysis the degree of product • Minimization of cost complicated projects (Cooke-Davies &

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those of Cleland and King (1988) and

Morris and Pinto (2004).
The processes for managing proj-
ects in this quadrant are well under-
Entrepreneurship, stood. They are, however, usually
Innovation
viewed from the perspective of individ-
High
Intrapreneurship
E.g., New drug discovery,
E.g., New business ventures, ual projects—for example, in broadly
Technology break-through
Major defense programs based standards such as the PMBOK ®
Need for Differentiation
Guide (PMI, 2004a), viewed from the

perspective of the project-based enter-
prise, and built around its ability to
deliver such projects consistently and
well (which is the perspective adopted
by this article). The implications of
such processes for the broader organi-
Ad Hoc Classic project management zational PMS are less well understood.
Projects that have no
Low
E.g., One-off supply chain Turner and Keegan (2001) have demon-
especially clear strategic focus,
management
E.g., ad hoc projects, strated, for example, the need for
Late-stage drug development
Works shut-downs governance structures that reflect the
project-based paradigm.
Context 3: Low Process Economics

Low High Driver, High Differentiation Driver
Innovation-driven organizations (such
as those involved in pharmaceutical
Need to Improve Economics of Process drug development) need a project
management system that is designed to
Figure 1: Strategic PMS–Value Driver Portfolio Model. manage highly uncertain processes.
The differentiation strategy is related to
the need to constantly innovate new
products or services. Projects within
Arzymanow, 2003). These unique and contracts. The Process Economics these organizations contribute to
challenging processes require radical (Cost Leadership) strategy focuses at achieving a competitive advantage best
process learning to improve particular the project level on the following: by creating products or services that are
process efficiencies. This is the field of • Operational excellence novel or at least more innovative than
the “classic” project management repre- • High degree of efficiency those of their competitors. These proj-
sented by A Guide to the Project Manag- ects are mainly focused on generating
ement Body of Knowledge (PMBOK ® This strategic driver requires from the new revenue streams by creating new
Guide)—Third edition (PMI, 2004a). implemented PMS highly efficient proj- markets and satisfying new market
The cost strategy is to constantly ect implementation processes. Projects (customer) needs or increasing rev-
reduce the costs along the value chain in this environment are often imple- enues in existing markets. The differen-
to deliver specific products or services mented under fixed-price contracts for tiation strategy focuses at the project
to customers for the lowest price possi- external project owners. Learning objec- level on the following:
ble consistent with satisfying the cus- tives appear in this environment as relat- • Innovation excellence
tomers’ requirements for quality. ed to increased process efficiencies. • High degree of creativity
Competitive advantage is possible Thus, radical process solutions will create
only if these organizations are able to a competitive advantage. This is precisely the area, however,
offer their outputs faster or at lower Of the four different quadrants, this where the different strands of literature
cost than their competitors. Projects is perhaps the best understood by the reveal a paradox—the conflicting
within these organizations contribute project management community, with requirements for supporting innova-
best by being implemented with high excellent summaries of different elements tion and for managing projects effi-
efficiency. Organizations in this quad- of the necessary project management ciently. On the one hand, studies have
rant are competing for new project model contained in such handbooks as shown that strong project management

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is an essential precondition to the suc- with the same importance. The innovation in both the ends (what) and
cessful management of innovation intrapreneurial/entrepreneurial strate- the means (how) in a way that does not
projects (e.g., Loch, 2000), as is the gy focuses at the project level on the submit readily to the classic paradigm
involvement of customers throughout following: of rational deconstruction on which the
the project (Jouini & Charue-Duboc, • Leadership excellence structures, methods, and tools of tradi-
2007; Loch, 2000). • High degree of entrepreneurial auto- tional project management are based
On the other hand, Turner, Keegan, nomy (Thomas, 2006). It is in this arena that
and Crawford (2002) have demonstrat- the management of projects with a high
ed that, in project-based organizations, Which PMS should such organiza- degree of complexity is found—an area
the very practices of project manage- tions choose? Many organizations just that is crying out for further research
ment that are meant to facilitate inno- manage projects in separate entities, or (Cooke-Davies, Cicmil, Crawford, &
vation tend to stifle it, and this should they manage all projects utilizing a Richardson, 2007; Kim & Wilemon, 2003).
logically hold true for all kinds of organ- PMS that is optimized for one of the In summary, we suggest that differ-
izations. This is particularly true during two strategic drivers. Being efficient ing strategic drivers will lead to differing
the formative stages of the innovative and innovative at the same time seems requirements for PMS to enable a consis-
concept—what has been referred to as to be a paradox. Organizations that are tent and reliable creation of value with
the “fuzzy front end” of the innovative not aware of this paradox fall into a the implementation of projects—for
project (Reid & de Brentani, 2004). PMS value trap of failing to achieve sat- example, it will only be possible to maxi-
A PMS that encourages and sup- isfying results from their projects. mize the value resulting from projects if
ports such discontinuous innovation is Intrapreneurship and entrepreneur- the PMS “fits” the strategic requirements
likely to look very different from the tra- ship behaviors need to be fostered of the organization, as suggested by
ditional models that have been devel- simultaneously so as to provide both Child and Mansfield’s (1972) structure-
oped to deal effectively with Context 2. operational and innovation excellence follows-strategy hypothesis. This leads to
For example, such a PMS is likely to (Kanter, 1985). Project managers need our fit hypothesis: Only a PMS that “fits”
allow considerably greater flexibility to be empowered to act like entrepre- with its strategic drivers is able to
to individuals in the early stages of the neurs by being able to identify and maximize the value contribution of
project, when creativity is at a premium exploit market opportunities. In this projects.
(Jouini & Charue-Duboc, 2007). It is case, project managers are more in the
also likely to be focused on identifying role of business leader and must have Research Method and Data
and then eliminating barriers to inno- these skills to be successful. Collection
vation (Sapsed, Bessant, Partington, This is not simple, as is attested by We analyzed the actual configuration as
Tranfield, & Young, 2007). the literature on intrapreneurship and well as the historical development of a
Projects within this environment are entrepreneurship. One of the dominant PMS and its strategic fit in four organi-
mainly internally funded and based on themes during the 1980s and 1990s was zations. A case-study concept was nec-
internal contracts or cost reimbur- the extent to which outsiders enjoyed essary in order to capture the specifics
sement contracts. These projects are the “attackers advantage” (Christensen also from a historical perspective of a
successful if learning processes allow for & Rosenbloom, 1995; Foster, 1986). PMS and the prevalent value drivers of
loops in the implementation process. More recently, this has given way to a an organization. The data were collected
The innovation management literature more nuanced discussion about the as part of an ongoing study to analyze
discusses many topics about the condi- challenges faced by organizations the value contribution of project man-
tions supporting the success of innova- when confronted by discontinuous agement (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). In
tion processes (e.g., Brown & Eisenhardt, innovation (e.g., Brown & Eisenhardt, accordance with the protocols estab-
1995; Hall & Andriani, 2002; Kanter, 1997) and the need to develop lished for the overall research on the
1985). Learning is focused on identifying what could be referred to as “semi- value of project management (Thomas &
new markets and/or new technical solu- structures.” As Burgelman (1983) has Mullaly, 2007, 2008), document analysis,
tions. To be successful, these need to pointed out, firms need both diversity interviews, and questionnaires were
allow for radical learning processes and structure so that there is an used to collect the data. On average, for
to create innovative outcomes. inevitable tension between individual each of the four case-study organiza-
initiative and corporate attempts to tions, three senior managers, five proj-
Context 4: High Process Economics impose uniformity. ect managers, and three customers
Driver, High Differentiation Driver In this quadrant, the imperative were interviewed. In addition, surveys
Of particular interest are those organi- to deliver results economically com- were used in each organization to col-
zations that face both strategic drivers bines with the need for creativity and lect data from another group of five

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Attributes Organization No. 1 Organization No. 2 Organization No. 3 Organization No. 4

Project categories Software development Defense system New product development Pharmaceutical drug
development development
Average number of 50 700 200 150
projects per year
Average project size US $90,000–US $4M US $3M–US $75M US $3M–US $35M US $5M–US $500M
Average project 6–60 months 18–48 months 18–36 months 3–12 years
duration
Table 1: Project management context.
project managers and from at least issues, particularly how the organiza- made at different levels in the nested
three customers. tion ensures that it has enough people hierarchy of a single organization. For
The data in Table 1 demonstrate a with the right level of expertise to deliv- example, a policy might be decided
high variation of project management er the organization’s project-based upon at the enterprise level; portfolio
applications within and across the par- workload. and program management processes
ticipating organizations. The industry • Industry and project management and practices might be decided upon at
background, the high number of proj- experience of people managing proj- the business-unit level; and the use of
ects, and their significant size suggest ects steering committees might vary at the
that projects are important to these • Expertise and professionalism of proj- project level. This multiplicity of ele-
organizations, and, as a consequence, ect managers ments and levels helps to create the
the development of a PMS is imperative • Project management training potential not only for a lack of coher-
for their competitive position. • Project management career path ence within the PMS itself, but also for
• Project management certification a “misfit” between an organization’s
Attributes of Implemented Structure: This component describes PMS and its strategic drivers of value.
Project Management Systems the organizational structures that link The configurations of the imple-
The basic attributes to describe the the temporary organization (project or mented PMSs show a large variety of
configurations of a PMS (Table 2) were program) to the permanent organi- attributes with differing levels of imple-
derived largely from the early work in zation. mentation across the participating
the “Value of Project Management” • Use of governance and steering com- organizations. When one looks across
study (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). The mittees all organizations, it is clear that none of
components have been grouped for • Project organization the organizations have implemented a
convenience under four elements— • Extent, function, and purposes of PMS that matches all formal attributes.
policy, people, structure, and process— project management offices All PMSs show some strengths but still
that correspond broadly to the 7-S • Means of allocating resources to proj- have room for improvement. Specifically,
model used to describe the configura- ects and programs two organizations have implemented a
tion of management systems (Pascale & Processes: This component describes thorough and rigorous system that sup-
Athos, 1982; Peters & Waterman, 1982). the processes that are followed within ports the implementation of most of
Policy: This component describes sen- the organization’s project-based work- their projects. They use a project man-
ior management’s perception of the load. agement office (PMO) to maintain and
strategic role of project management • Portfolio and program management improve their PMS. One organization
for the organization. processes and practices implemented a PMS with similar char-
• Strategic importance of project man- • Project management methodology acteristics, but only the top 5% of
agement • Breadth and depth of application of the projects are supported by it. On the
• Organizational commitment to proj- the methodology other hand, this organization is the
ect management • Use of standards only one that has a clearly defined
• Overall maturity of organizational career path for project managers and
project management What is significant is the breadth of that uses standardized training. Only
People: This component describes these elements, particularly if decisions one organization maintains an “ad hoc”
project management personnel-related concerning different elements are PMS. Some elements of a PMS are

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Attributes Organization No. 1 Organization No. 2 Organization No. 3 Organization No. 4

PM Policy Attributes
Strategic importance of PM Medium Medium to high Low Medium to high
Organizational commitment Very high Very high Moderate Variable
to project management
CMMI maturity level Level 2 Level 5 Level 1 Level 1
People-Related Attributes
Project management Average 5 years Average 20 years Average 20 years Average 20 years
industry experience
Project management Average 3 years Average 3 years Average 3 years Average 5 years (est.)
experience
Project management No standardized Standardized No standardized Some standardized
training training training training training
Project management No Yes No Embryonic
career path
Project management Less than 10 project 40 project managers 20 project managers Approximately 10%
certification managers certified certified certified project managers
certified
Structural Attributes
Project organization Functional Balanced matrix Functional Matrix
Steering committee use Most projects Largest projects only Largest projects only All projects
PMO Yes Yes No Yes
Resource allocation Centralized within Centralized within No Functional lines
business unit business unit
Process Attributes
Project management Moderately formal Moderately formal Relatively informal Moderately formal
methodology high adherence medium adherence documentation medium adherence
% Projects following 100% Top 5% Top 10% 100% follow some
formal methodology elements
Table 2: Attributes of implemented PMS.
implemented, but overall there is a lack undertook to implement and/or improve product development projects. Organiza-
of cohesiveness and completeness. For their PMS. This allows the initial tion 1 has a very strong market position
our further strategic fit analyses, we position in the Strategic PMS–Value and does not have major competitors.
note that three organizations have an Driver Portfolio Model to be evaluated The recent development of project
explicitly defined PMS and only one and a possible change of a position. management in the organization is set
organization still maintains a system out in Table 3.
that is ad hoc. Organization 1 Organization 1 was positioned in
Organization 1 develops and offers the lower left quadrant (see Figure 1)
Historical Development of databases, expert system software, and in 1997. No strategic drivers were
Project Management Systems risk assessment expertise to clients in defined, and project management was
In this section, we analyze the historical the insurance industry. Most projects not seen as a core competency. That
development steps that the organizations are internal, and half of them are new changed with the hire of a new chief

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Year Milestone Key Accomplishments The recent development of project

management in the organization is
1998 New CIO • Focus on cost and performance of IT projects
• Introduction of project management as a discipline delineated in Table 4.
• Improved strategic alignment of project portfolio Organization 2 was positioned in
the lower left quadrant (see Figure 1)
2002 Implementation • Standardization of project management in 2004. The PMS was ad hoc, even
of PMO methodology though project management was rec-
• Benchmarking with project management
ognized as an essential part of the
best practices
• Creation of project management data repository strategic core competencies. The main
• Postimplementation reviews strategic driver was efficiency and
product quality. The competitive pres-
2003 Introduction of • Achieving organizational efficiencies in resource sure has increased over the past 5 years,
critical chain utilization and project schedule performance leading to a significant reorganization
2004 CMMI maturity • 80% reuse of JAVA code in 2003 (from 22 business units to 5) in
Level 2 • Rapid prototyping order to better serve existing clients
achievement • Improved competitiveness for government contracts and to compete more effectively against
Table 3: Critical project management events of Organization 1. private military contractors. In 2004,
Organization 2 formally introduced
project management by installing a
PMO to provide guidance and project
information officer (CIO) in 1998. One Other current process improvement management documentation to proj-
major strategic objective was to reduce efforts, including the move to CMMI ect leaders throughout the organiza-
significantly the number of employees Level 3 and the use of quality function tion, particularly to those who manage
within the IT department. From this deployment (QFD) for software devel- the top 40 projects. Project manage-
perspective, the strategic focus was opment, are targeted to improve ment standards are followed rigorously
cost containment. After project man- process efficiency and product quality. for the large projects, but the organiza-
agement was formally implemented, tion still has many problems in imple-
its main purpose was to cut project Organization 2 menting the magnitude of small and
costs and increase the project budget. Organization 2 is a governmental medium-sized projects. A standardized
Further concepts to radically increase agency serving the U.S. Department of training for project managers would be
the efficiency were implemented in Defense. This organization interfaces necessary to improve process-focused
following years, with critical chain with the private-sector defense industry learning processes. One division of the
in 2003 and the CMMI maturity Level 2 in a variety of scenarios, ranging from technical organization has achieved
achievement in 2004. project management of internal and Level 5 of the CMMI software maturity
In value terms, the different steps external resources to professional serv- model. SAP software and Microsoft
undertaken to move into the lower ices and facilities provider for externally projects are used for project manage-
right quadrant (see Figure 1) seem to managed projects. The organization ment and financial control.
have paid off. In the view of senior both competes directly and collabo- In value terms, the different steps
management, the following was rates with private military contractors. undertaken to move into the lower
achieved:
• There was a total reduction of the IT
staff from 600 in 1998 to 380 in 2004 Year Milestone Key Accomplishments
without reducing the number of proj-
2004 Formalized • Creation of PMO (project integration office)
ects implemented per year. project • Standardization of project management methodology
• The increased formalized project management • Benchmarking with project management best practices
management procedures led to 90% • Creation of project management data repository
of projects meeting the specifications • Postimplementation reviews
today as compared with 50% before
2006 Demonstrated • CMMI software Level 5
1998.
software
• According to organizational records, development
96% of the 50 projects that were start- excellence
ed in the past year were completed on
time and on budget. Table 4: Critical project management events of Organization 2.

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Year Milestone Key Accomplishments also takes existing medicines and devel-
ops improved applications for them.
2004 Product development Implementation of stage-gate process model
process The recent development of project
management in the organization is
Table 5: Critical project management events of Organization 3. delineated in Table 6.
The drug development industry is
an interesting one in that the strategic
right quadrant seem to have paid off. In PMS before 2004. To improve this situa-
drivers change at a key point in the
the view of senior management, the fol- tion, in 2004 the organization intro-
development process. This point is
lowing has occurred: duced a stage-gate model to improve
known within the industry by terms such
• Internal and external customers are the controlling of projects.
as “proof of concept.” Before this point,
happier with deliverables. In value terms, the implemented stage-
in early-stage development, the task
• More development projects are tran- gate model led to some improvements:
facing the project teams is to demon-
sitioning to external customers. Today, 65% of projects are on budget/
strate that a new medicine is both
• The organization’s reputation for on- schedule compared with 50% that met
effective in treating the target disease
time delivery has been enhanced com- budget/schedule goals before the intro-
and safe to humans at the prescribed
pared with privately held competitors. duction of project management.
dose. Thereafter, in late-stage develop-
• Further improvements such as the In summary, the results point out
ment, the task becomes one of demon-
wider use of steering committees, that a standardized portfolio manage-
strating this to the regulatory authori-
the implementation of an organiza- ment concept is missing. Projects are
ties as comprehensively and inexpen-
tionwide training program for project mainly initiated ad hoc on external
sively as possible.
managers, and the consequent use of demand. Learning processes are not
In effect, this means that the stra-
project management standards for institutionalized. Due to the high expe-
tegic drivers of early development
all projects are planned. rience of the project managers, the
(increased product differentiation,
organization is still able to maintain a
Organization 3 upper left quadrant) switch for the later
relatively satisfying success rate, even
Organization 3 develops petroleum development stages (increased process
though many projects do not meet the
additives for the fuels and lubricants economics, lower right quadrant). The
expectations.
industry. The projects are in many late-development stages include main-
cases internal product development Organization 4 ly the process of obtaining regulatory
projects that are focused to satisfy new Organization 4 is the research and approval, conducting clinical trials,
market needs. The recent development development department of a large production preparation, and so on.
of project management in the organi- pharmaceutical company, operating Between 2003 and 2005, the
zation is set out in Table 5. widely across the globe. It takes output organization enjoyed significant suc-
This organization was basically posi- from the drug-discovery process, in the cess through the effective management
tioned in the lower left quadrant (see form of new molecular entities, and of early-development projects using
Figure 1). It achieved relatively weak develops them into new medicines a combination of portfolio manage-
project results caused by an inconsistent approved for sale in global markets. It ment and project management. As a

2003/2005 Introduced central department for • Development of a cadre of project managers and support
project management in discovery and organization within discovery and early-stage development
early-stage development • Significant success in moving early development projects into
late-stage development
• Improvement in the health of the drug development “pipeline”
2005/2006 Created single department for portfolio • Creation of a single organizational unit responsible for project
and project management management of both early- and late-stage development worldwide
• Aim is to create a professional family
• Implement “state-of-the-art” planning processes and tools
• External certification
Table 6: Critical project management events of Organization 4.

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consequence, it was decided that a

Process Economics
greater coherence to the portfolio and
project management function should Differentiation Low High
be provided by creating a single unit to
High Organization 4 (pre-2006)
be responsible for these functions Organization 4 early
worldwide. The newly formed group development (2007)
sees as its task the creation of a
professional job family for project Low Organization 2 (2004) ---S Organization 2 (2007)
managers, supported by state-of-the-
Organization 1 (1997) ---S Organization 1 (2007)
Organization 4, late development Organization 4, late
art project and portfolio planning
(pre-2007) ---S development (2007)
processes and tools. Organization 3 (2007)
This development allows the fit
between the PMS and the strategic Table 7: PMS positioning in the Value Driver Portfolio Model.
drivers to be improved or not, depend-
ing on the details of the improved PMS
that is eventually implemented. this process into the right lower quad- fit” with the rudimentary PMS. This
Prior to 2006, there was a good fit rant. misfit was the origin for many different
between the PMS and the strategic drivers steps to install a PMS, starting with the
in early development, through the use of Applying the Model and restructuring in 2003. The value drivers
increasingly rigorous portfolio manage- Discussion did not change, and we could still iden-
ment and project management methods In our discussion, we proposed that a tify a gap in 2007 between the strategic
that were flexible enough to allow innova- fit between strategic drivers and the position and the implemented PMS.
tion and creativity from the researchers. It PMS must exist to maximize the value Some of the key attributes of the PMS
was this fit that enabled the organization from projects. After reviewing the data still show significant potential for
to reap the benefits of a significant on the basic characteristics of the PMS improving the efficiency of projects—
improvement in its development pipeline and its historical development, the four for example, 95% of the projects are not
and led senior management to recognize organizations in the value driver port- managed within the PMS. From a his-
the value that can be added through good folio model can be positioned (Table 7). torical perspective, the gap is clearly
project management. The initial positioning of Organiza- closing, and we position the organiza-
On the other hand, there was a poor tion 1 was in the lower left quadrant, tion in the lower right quadrant.
fit between the PMS and strategic driv- because both the prevalent strategy Organization 3 shows the highest
ers in late development, due to the lack was not clearly focusing on specific misfit between its strategic position to
of rigor in the planning process, the strategic value drivers (ad hoc) and a innovate and the implemented PMS.
patchy nature of integration between PMS was nonexistent (ad hoc). This The strategic value drivers are clearly
line functions and project manage- changed dramatically over the past defined as product differentiation, but
ment, and the lack of integrated project decade. One of the main reasons was the PMS (ad hoc) is clearly not posi-
planning and management systems; the hiring of a new CIO. Today the char- tioned to meet the needs of the organ-
thus, the steering committees were acteristics of the PMS match the strate- ization. The organization should be
unable to exercise the right balance gic drivers for a cost containment strat- positioned in the upper left quadrant,
between support and governance. Few egy to implement projects. The case since value could be created only
of the late-development project man- also demonstrates the learning effects with highly innovative products that
agers were trained in project manage- and the continuous improvement of are successful in the market. Still
ment in the traditional industries that project efficiencies resulting in a clear the implemented PMS does not “fit” the
operate in Quadrant (Context) 2. For move from the lower left quadrant to differentiation value driver. The PMS is
this reason, a PMS that fits this quad- the lower right quadrant (see Figure 1) rudimentary and is more based on ad
rant is likely to feel alien to many of the that is characterized by the efficiency hoc approaches that do not clearly
people working in this organization. focus. foster internal learning processes.
By encouraging external certification The positioning of Organization 2 The implementation of the stage-gate
and seeking to implement state-of-the- is not clear-cut. The initial positioning model is a clear indication that the
art planning processes and tools that are was in the lower left quadrant, even management perceives the misfit.
suited to late development, the organi- though the value drivers for process Overall, Organization 3 still remains in
zation is taking steps to improve the fit efficiencies and product quality were the upper left quadrant in terms of
within late development and to move clearly defined. There was a clear “mis- strategic drivers, while its PMS is

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PAPERS
characteristic of the lower left quad- cusses the barriers to innovation. We tation of process standards and
rant. have not yet found an organization that structures enforcing the use of these
The analysis of Organization 4 is could be positioned in the upper right standards. The differentiator position is
interesting, as it in fact suggests two quadrant. Nevertheless, Organization 3 related to less rigorous process imple-
different positions, depending on the may be a candidate for this position, as mentations, but also to structures that
specific development functions. Prior its projects are in many cases entrepre- allow for initiative. These perspectives
to 2006, the positioning of the strategic neurial efforts. In Organization 3, sev- seem to be contradictory and need fur-
drivers was clearly focused on the dif- eral products are developed to create ther exploration. Questions are raised
ferentiation values, and there was a new markets, and the project managers about how projects are or should be
high fit with the installed PMS (upper are both managers and entrepreneurs. implemented if their strategic purpose
left quadrant). Until that time, the late- Under the increasing market pressures, is in conflict with the overall strategic
development processes were not clear- efficiency is becoming as important as direction of the PMS. We see this prob-
ly supported by the PMS (ad hoc) and innovativeness, and significant profit lem arising in Organization 4. Such
no strategic value drivers were defined will be possible only if both value driv- organizations may need different proj-
(ad hoc). This group of activities is ers are met. ect management systems and imple-
therefore positioned in the lower left mentations for different parts of their
quadrant. This changed after 2006. The Conclusions and Further Work businesses. This may be the most
organization identified the need to This article contributes to a discussion appropriate response for mature organ-
improve the late-stage development of the nature of “fit” between the driv- izations with strategic drivers that place
projects and started to modify the PMS ers of an organization’s strategy and the them in these quadrants.
to support these processes effectively. way it chooses to manage those proj- Although this work is embryonic,
We see a relative fit between the second ects by implementing a PMS. A model qualitative, and theoretical in its intent,
set of value drivers and the PMS, and has been developed that allows the ele- it has further strengthened the case for
positioned the post-2007 PMS in the ments of a PMS to be related to an research into project management as a
lower right quadrant. Nothing changed organization’s strategic drivers and to part of the mainstream discourse on
for the early-stage development identify strategic gaps by highlighting management research, through engag-
processes that still are well supported the need for a clear definition of strate- ing in dialogue with the discourses on
by the existing PMS. We left the posi- gic value drivers as well as a clear defi- strategic management, innovation, and
tioning of these activities in the upper nition and implementation of a PMS to entrepreneurship.
left quadrant. maximize the value resulting from proj- For practitioners, the model high-
The risk to changing the existing ects. Strategic drivers influence the lights how decisions taken at different
PMS instead of creating a second PMS nature of value expected from project levels of an organization’s hierarchy
is that if a single PMS becomes the management, and a PMS should be each contribute to the design of that
norm for both early development and adapted to the specific strategic posi- organization’s PMS and thus contribute
late development, the “early good, late tioning of each organization in order to to “fit” between the PMS and the strate-
poor” scenario will be replaced by an deliver maximum value. The cases gic drivers of value only if they are car-
“early poor, late good” one or medioc- we have analyzed demonstrate that ried out in a “joined-up” manner. Such
rity for all processes. From a strategic the effort to close the gap improved the joined-up decision making calls for the
perspective and our discussion of fit, it overall project performance. Further elevation of project management from
is likely that a single PMS approach research is needed to support our find- an operational discipline to a strategic
under the circumstances we have ings and to establish the link between discipline, with the organization exercis-
described will lead to problems in the strategy and PMS. ing coordinated oversight over the way
future. Our discussion has shown that sep- in which the different decisions con-
Conceptually, the value driver port- arate strands of research literature each tribute to a coherent PMS that is consis-
folio model suggests a fourth quadrant illuminate different aspects of this dis- tent with the organization’s strategy.
that we called “entrepreneurial” or cussion, that each has something to Further research on the concept of
“intrapreneurial.” This quadrant sug- contribute in terms of showing how an “fit” between an organization’s imple-
gests that exceptional profits are possi- organization can best manage its proj- mentation of project management and
ble only by meeting both value drivers. ects, and that elements of a PMS are its organizational context is necessary
However, entrepreneurial behavior and likely to differ according to an organiza- and should explore how the underlying
rigidly applied process excellence seem tion’s strategic drivers. We could conclude drivers of an organization’s strategy
to be contradictory. This is also reflect- that the strategic cost containment might influence not only the nature
ed in the innovation literature that dis- position leads to a rigorous implemen- of the projects that it undertakes but

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also the appropriateness of the arrange- Brown, S. L., & Eisenhardt, K. M. of complexity theory, and its relation-
ments that it makes to manage those (1997). The art of continuous change: ship to project management. Project
projects. Literature in each of the Linking complexity theory and time- Management Journal, 38(2), 50–61.
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this article needs to be combed for its organizations. Administrative Science organizational project management
specific implications for elements of a Quarterly, 42(1), 1–34. capability: Theory and practice. Project
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to be refined, both through the defini- entrepreneurship and strategic man- Crawford, L. H., Hobbs, J. B., & Turner,
tion of which elements of the PMS will agement: Insights from a process J. R. (2006). Aligning capability with
vary between which quadrants and also study. Management Science, 29, strategy: Categorizing projects to do
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and alternative strategic “lenses.” Child, J., & Mansfield, R. (1972, Project Management Journal, 37(2),
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Acknowledgments
D. P. Slevin, D. I. Cleland, & J. K. Pinto approach to project success factors.
(Eds.), Innovations—Project manage- Research Policy, 27, 915–935.
financial support of the Project
ment research 2004 (pp. 211–228).
Management Institute, the donation of Foster, R. (1986). Innovation: The
Newtown Square, PA: Project Manage-
“in kind” support of all the organiza- attackers advantage. New York:
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of value case studies, and the intellectual Cooke-Davies, T. J. (2004b). Project
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Journal, 36(4), 5–18. Tranfield, D., & Young, M. (2007). of both general and project management since
Morris, P. W. G., & Pinto, J. K. (2004). Persistent innovation barriers, and how the end of the 1960s and a consultant to blue-
The Wiley guide to managing projects. to breach them with projects. Presented chip organizations for over 20 years. He is the
Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. at IRNOP VIII, Brighton, UK. founder and executive chairman of Human
Mullaly, M. (2006). Longitudinal analy- Shenhar, A. J., & Dvir, D. (1996). Systems, which exists to help organizations
sis of project management maturity. Toward a typological theory of project enhance delivery capability and demonstrated
Project Management Journal, 37(3), management. Research Policy, 25, results. Through Human Systems’ global client
62–74. 607–632. network, he is in close touch with the best proj-
Muller, R., & Turner, R. (2007). The Srivannaboon, S., & Milosevic, D. Z. ect management practices of more than 100
influence of project managers on proj- (2006). A two-way influence between leading organizations. With a PhD in project
ect success criteria and project success business strategy and project manage- management, a bachelor’s degree in theology,
by type of project. European ment. International Journal of Project and qualifications in electrical engineering,
Management Journal, 25, 298–309. Management, 24, 493–505. management accounting, and counseling,

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he has worked alongside senior leaders and University, Australia, and an Honorary Research Results of a previous study have been published
managers in both the public and the private sec- Fellow at University College, London. in a book titled Project Categorization Systems:
tors to ensure the delivery of business critical Aligning Capability with Strategy for Better
change programs and enhance the quality of Results. She has been actively engaged in the
leadership. He is recognized as a “thought Lynn H. Crawford is involved in project manage- development of global standards for project
leader” on the topics of project success and ment practice, education, and research and is a management since the late 1990s and has been
organizational maturity, and has reviewed many professor of project management at both the instrumental in the formation of the Global Alliance
national and international standards (including Lille Graduate School of Management (ESC Lille), for Project Performance Standards (GAPPS).
the Project Management Institute’s OPM3®, and the France, and Bond University, Australia. Through
Office of Government Commerce’s Managing Human Systems, she works with leading corpo- Thomas G. Lechler is an associate professor in the
Successful Programmes and Project rations that are developing organizational project Howe School at the Stevens Institute of Technology.
Management Maturity Model) as a subject-mat- management competence by sharing and devel- He holds a PhD from the University of Karlsruhe,
ter expert. He is very aware of the importance of oping knowledge and best practices as members Germany. His research focuses on the value cre-
leadership and cultural issues (the soft of a global system of project management ation through innovation. He has published articles
aspects) and also systems, processes, and knowledge networks. In addition to her participa- in leading international journals, including Small
practices (the hard aspects) to the delivery of tion in the Value of Project Management research, Business Economics, Research Policy, R&D
successful programs and projects. He is a regu- she has also been involved in two recently com- Management, and others, and authored books in
lar speaker at conferences across the world and pleted research projects—“Exploring the Role the fields of project management and entrepreneur-
is a regular contributor to project management of the Executive Sponsor” and the “Impact of ship and was a NASA research fellow in project
magazines. He is a visiting professor at Bond Complexity Theory on Project Management.” management from 2003 to 2005.

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Exploring the Dynamics of Value and
Fit: Insights From Project Management
Mark Mullaly, Interthink Consulting Inc., Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Janice L. Thomas, Athabasca University, Athabasca, Alberta, Canada
T
The strategic management literature has strug- he concept of “fit” has been present in the strategic management
gled with how to recognize, measure, and even literature for an extended period of time, arising out of contingency
understand the concept of “fit” between strate- theories of management. Contingency theories argue that there is no
gy, structure, and environment. Nevertheless, one best way to manage organizations; that the design of an organi-
the concept of fit was fundamentally important zation and its subsystems must “fit” with the environment; that in effective
from the beginning of the Value of Project organizations there is a proper “fit” between their environment and their
Management project. In this article, we compare subsystems; and that an organization functions more effectively when its
the “fit” construct defined by Miles and Snow design and management style are appropriate to both the tasks undertaken
(1984) with our concerns with value direction and the organization’s environment. Although these theories were highly
(Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). A comparative influential in the 1970s and 1980s, their use declined because it was very dif-
analysis of these two constructs provides ficult to operationalize the ideas in the context of the growing dominance of
insights into how both dimensions improve quantitative approaches to strategy research.
overall organizational understanding. We In the research project “Understanding the Value of Project Management,”
demonstrate that while each of these dimen- “fit” was a central concept from the outset in understanding the degree to
sions independently provides useful informa- which project management implementations aligned with both the strategic
tion, it is their intersection that provides a goals and external environments of the case-study organizations (Thomas &
means of interpreting not just current realities Mullaly, 2004, 2007). The assumption was made early on that measures of sat-
but appropriate future actions. isfaction and alignment could be used as an indicator of the fit between what
an organization had implemented as project management and what they
KEYWORDS: project management; value of needed. What was surprising was how central the idea of fit came to become
project management; strategic fit; organiza- as the results of the research were analyzed.
tional alignment; strategic management This article explores the role and influence of fit in determining effective
organizational approaches to project management that emerged from this
study, and ultimately the influence that project management fit has on orga-
nizational success overall. We start by exploring the dimensions by which fit
has been studied and applied in the literature to date, and by comparing and
contrasting these approaches with insights gained from the results of the
Value of Project Management project. In particular, the construct of value
direction (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008) that articulates the ability of a project
management implementation to continue to deliver value is contrasted with
the dimensions of fit that were proposed by Miles and Snow (1984). A com-
parative analysis of these two perspectives provides insights into how both
dimensions improve overall organizational understanding of the appropri-
ateness and contribution of different forms of project management, given
an organization’s organizational strategies and external environment.
In addition, directions for future research to further explore the concept of
fit in the context of the Value of Project Management project are proposed.
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 124–135 Introducing Fit
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute The idea of “fit” was introduced in the strategic management litera-
Published online in Wiley InterScience ture (Ginsberg & Venkatraman, 1985; Miles, Snow, Meyer, & Coleman, 1978;
(www.interscience.wiley.com) Venkatraman & Camillus, 1984; Waterman, 1982) and has its roots in contingen-
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20104 cy theory (see, for example, Burns & Stalker, 1961; Woodward, 1958). The need

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to explore fit as a concept emerged as a Researching and Evaluating Fit et al. (1978) identified one of the earliest
result of traditional views of strategy In evaluating the concept of fit as it structural perspectives by which fit
research not reflecting and respond- relates to project management imple- could be evaluated—namely, through a
ing to the challenges being faced by mentation and organizational success, typology of strategic types against
organizations (Miles et al., 1978). The or in fact the strategic relevance of any which individual organizations could
contingency approach suggested that endeavor, several matters (as well as be evaluated. Their conclusion was that
different strategies would be relevant for challenges) must be taken into consid- even though there were several different
different organizational structures and eration. These include whether fit is a types, the majority of them (Defenders,
environmental conditions (Ginsberg & static or dynamic concept, differing Analyzers, and Prospectors) were each
Venkatraman, 1985; Venkatraman & dimensions or perspectives of fit, the in their own way valid as a strategic
Camillus, 1984). The essence of contin- association of fit with the realization of approach, while only one of them
gency theory embraced the idea that a value, and the understanding of misfit (Reactors) did not result in the delivery
relationship between two variables or misalignment of practices. of value.
would enable prediction of a third vari- Miles and Snow (1984) further iden-
able (Schoonhoven, 1981). It moved strat-
Fit as Dynamic Versus Static tified degrees to which the fit of an
Venkatraman and Camillus (1984) iden-
egy research away from the perception organizational strategy could be asses-
tified that an issue related to measure-
that there was one grand theory toward sed. This framework identified that there
ment of fit is “whether fit is a static or
an exploration of middle concepts that was a minimal level of fit that must be
dynamic phenomenon, especially when
were responsive and relevant in given present for the organization to be suc-
measuring fit as patterns-of-interaction”
contexts (Ginsberg & Venkatraman, cessful and sustainable in the long
(Venkatraman & Camillus, 1984, p. 521).
1985). Contingency theory abandons the term, and that those organizations that
Henderson and Venkatraman (1993) fur-
search for universally appropriate man- demonstrated the most significant lev-
ther suggested that fit was not an event,
agement styles and recognizes that any els of alignment could be viewed as
but a continuous process of change. This
strategy is only appropriate for a given set having “tight fit.” A further qualification
was further supported by Jelinek and
of competitive conditions (Chorn, 1991). of this alignment was reflected in how
Burstein (1982), who suggested that fit
The concept of fit has been described early and innovative the strategy and
was dynamic and based on appropriate
as a search for a form that is internally or structure of the organization was, with
flexibility and a match between long-
externally consistent (Miles & Snow, those organizations experiencing “early”
term strategy and administrative struc-
1984). It is identified as the ability to cre- fit and moving quickly to the attainment
ture. Chorn (1991) viewed fit as an ideal
ate a strategic fit between the position of of “tight fit” most likely to attain sus-
state that should be continually strived
the organization in the marketplace and tained competitive advantage. This
for but noted that it is rarely achieved,
appropriate internal administrative framework also suggested that those
recognizing that the dynamic nature of
structure (Henderson & Venkatraman, organizations that did not attain a min-
competitive situations meant that the
1993). Fit has been described as the imal level of fit could be considered to
idea of fit was a moving target for most
degree of alignment between competi- be experiencing “fragile fit,” and finally
organizations.
tive situation, strategy, organizational introduced the concept of misfit, or
Given the broad support for fit as
culture, and leadership style (Henderson & lack of appropriate alignment of strate-
being dynamic, or at least needing to
Venkatraman, 1993), and the degree to gy with the external environment and
respond to the dynamics of change in
which there is compatibility and consis- internal structures.
organizations, evaluating fit requires
tency among strategies and their imple- Venkatraman and Camillus (1984)
recognition that implementation and
mentations at corporate, business, and offered a conceptual framework for fit
approach must alter over time (Jelinek &
functional levels (Newport, Dess, & that integrated the different worldviews
Burstein, 1982). Zajac, Kraatz, and
Rasheed, 1991). The importance of fit is and perspectives existing in the contin-
Bresser (2000) further suggested that
underscored by the view that alignment gency literature. This framework out-
because of the dynamic nature of organ-
between external positioning and inter- lined the different conceptualizations
izations and environments, any new per-
nal organization is critical to maximizing (whether strategy is determined based
spective on strategic fit must also
economic performance (Henderson & on content or process) and domains of
embrace the concept of strategic change.
Venkatraman, 1993). Miles and Snow strategy (exploring external, internal, or
(1984, p. 10) note, “Successful organiza- Dimensions of Fit integrated views). An additional frame-
tions achieve strategic fit with their mar- The research of fit has led to the identi- work by which fit could be evaluated was
ket environment and support their fication of a number of different per- offered by Newport et al. (1991) in sug-
strategies with appropriately designed spectives, structures, and frameworks gesting that fit could be evaluated hori-
structures and management processes.” by which fit can be evaluated. Miles zontally (the degree to which there is fit

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Exploring the Dynamics of Value and Fit
between organizations and units) and be of value at one stage in an organiza- appropriateness of the quantitative and
vertically (whether fit is aligned within a tion’s evolution will not be appropriate statistical analysis techniques being
single organizational structure). at an earlier or later stage. applied in assessing and evaluating fit.
While each of these dimensions and This led to the identification of several
perspectives of fit offer value to the
Ability to Prescribe Solutions perspectives and views of fit being
A significant challenge in researching fit
researcher in their own right, the frame- explored, and the identification of
is that while the appropriateness of
work identified by Miles and Snow appropriate techniques to be consid-
strategies can be generalized and dealt
(1984) was viewed as being particularly ered in assessing fit.
with satisfactorily in the abstract, the
useful. The relevance of their model
derives from the discussion regarding
specific considerations and conse- Understanding Misfit or
whether fit is static or dynamic, and that
quences to an individual organization Misalignment
are more problematic. Zajac et al. While attaining fit suggests that there
fit is not Boolean—that is, it can be
(2000) identified the challenge of deter- is alignment between what is being
measured in degrees, where better fit
mining what implementations are implemented and the environment
should deliver greater value. As a result,
appropriate in a particular context, and situation of an organization, or
the identification of specifically defined
indicating that traditionally the identi- the degree to which an organization
categories of fit that measure the degree
fication of fit “requires the researcher to “gets it right,” the opposite possibility
to which a strategy aligns with its inter-
‘go out on a limb’ and develop a norma- must also be allowed for. The idea of
nal structure and external environment
tive framework that will allow for pre- misfit was identified by Miles and col-
is seen as being highly relevant.
dicting (or even prescribing) strategic leagues (1978) in the identification of
Ability to Realize Value fit” (Zajac et al., 2000, p. 430). Further their “Reactor” type, as describing an
As has already been suggested in the problems in prescribing fit are found in organization that operates from a
previous discussion, the idea of fit is the ability to predict the performance reactive stance and mimics the behav-
neither static nor Boolean. Fit is viewed implications and consequences that iors and approaches of other organiza-
as being dynamic or as responding to a result from the adoption of a specific tions while never truly attaining a level
dynamic environment, and the attain- strategy (Zajac et al., 2000). of alignment. This was further expand-
ment of fit can be inferred by different The implications of this specific ed on in the identification of “fragile
degrees. This reinforces that the inabil- challenge are significant in developing fit” and the allowance of “misfits”
ity to realize value is the product of a and conducting relevant research (Miles & Snow, 1984). The implication
lack of alignment or fit (Henderson & regarding fit in that they highlight tem- is that misalignment occurs when the
Venkatraman, 1993) and that a higher poral issues regarding the role of fit in competitive situation, strategy, cul-
level of performance or value would strategy determination. While fit is ture, and leadership style result in a
require the attainment of higher levels inherently rooted in evaluating the reduction of economic performance
of fit (Segev, 1987). present-day capabilities of an organiza- (Chorn, 1991).
In measuring or evaluating fit, there tion and seeks to anticipate what is The reasons for misfit or misalign-
is a strong potential for fit to be both appropriate for that organization in ment are potentially numerous. Miles
temporal and fleeting. Miles and col- moving forward, assessment of value is and colleagues (1978) allowed for three
leagues (1978) suggest that “while fit is instead focused on what has occurred in possible reasons why misalignment
closely associated with organizational the past. A true determination of fit may occur:
success, it is enormously difficult to must be able to support prediction of • Top management may not have clear-
achieve and/or maintain” (Miles et al., what is possible for a given organization ly articulated the strategy of the
1978, p. 12). Given this challenge, in the context of an anticipated change. organization.
“changes that are beneficial at one point • Management does not fully shape the
in time are not necessarily beneficial if The “Fit” of Research Techniques organization’s structures and process-
undertaken much sooner or much later” Apart from engaging in research of fit, es to respond to the strategy.
(Zajac et al., 2000, p. 434). This suggests a Venkatraman has also contributed to a • Management has a tendency to main-
need to explore the sustainability of definition and elaboration of appropri- tain the current strategy and structure
strategic implementations as well as to ate techniques by which fit can be even where there are overwhelming
explore in further detail the change researched. Venkatraman and Camillus changes in environmental conditions.
management strategies associated with (1984) identified a conceptual frame-
these implementations. In the context of work of how different perspectives of fit These potential reasons were fur-
project management, it implies that dif- can be evaluated in a research context, ther expanded upon by Newport et al.
ferent capabilities are required at differ- as noted earlier. This was expanded on (1991), who suggest that misalignment
ent times and that a capability that will by Venkatraman (1989) to examine the may also be a result of:

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• inadequate understanding of the over- Evaluating the Fit of Project organization at one stage of its evolu-
all strategy within the organization; Management tion may not continue to deliver value
• differences in time horizon or time ori- Although fit is generally grounded in in the future.
entation by different players and stake- strategic management, the concept has In the absence of a specialized mar-
holders within the organization; and subsequently been applied to a number ket niche, Jelinek and Burstein (1982)
• failure to develop functional competen- of other disciplines, including adminis- asserted that industry characteristics
cies that are consistent with strategies. trative systems (Jelinek & Burstein, 1982), influence the choice of structures and
information technology (Henderson & implementations within an organi-
Miles and Snow (1984) suggest that Venkatraman, 1993), and marketing zation. Miles and colleagues (1978)
“misfit may occur when organizations strategy (Xu, Cavusgil, & White, 2006). In expanded on this to suggest that orga-
voluntarily change their strategies but developing the strategy for conducting nizational behavior is only partly preor-
fail to follow through with appropriate the research project “Understanding the dained by environmental conditions
structural and managerial adjust- Value of Project Management,” the con- and that the choices that top managers
ments” (p. 23). The challenge in identi- cept of fit was central to the initial make are critical determinants of orga-
fying misalignment, however, is that conceptual research model as illustrated nizational structure and process. As a
the demarcation between minimal fit in Figure 1. result, what an organization chooses to
and misfit is not obvious (Miles & Snow, In designing the Value of Project implement as project management will
1984). Waterman (1982) further notes Management research project, we rec- be influenced by both its environment
that when alignment is not present, the ognized that the assessment of fit need- and its business orientation. Moreover,
company is not yet organized, even if ed to respond to the dynamics of fit and the extent to which “fit” is present can
the structure looks right. This suggests value. This required understanding the be argued as the degree to which the
that organizations may adopt structures, history of the implementation of proj- organization “gets it right;” in the con-
approaches, and capabilities that on ect management within the organiza- ceptual model of the research, we
the surface appear to be reasonable, tion, as well as the contextual factors asserted that fit was the determination
appropriate, and in alignment with and drivers that led to this implementa- of whether the project management
accepted or at least conventional prac- tion. It also led to a research design that implementation was appropriate for
tices, but that these practices are nei- recognized that fit will evolve over time, the context in which an organization
ther appropriate nor value-adding. and that what produces value for an operates.
The degree to which fit is realized by
an organization was seen as a dimen-
sion of demonstrated value in the over-
Project Management all conceptual model, as were the actual
Constructs process and business outcome improve-
ments that could be observed as a
PM result of the project management imple-
Implementation
mentation. These three dimensions col-
lectively represented the overall value
constructs that we sought to observe in
Business Organizational conducting the research project.
Environment
Orientation Context In evaluating fit as reflected in the
conceptual model, we sought to devel-
op a grounded understanding of what
Fit
was being implemented in organiza-
tions as project management in its
Value of broadest sense. As well as including
Process Outcome
Criteria
Project Criteria project management, this sought to
Management understand the full range of techniques
being applied in a project context,
Value Constructs including the dimensions of portfolio
Note. From Thomas and Mullaly (2005). or program management. There was no
specific model, framework, or process
that was imposed on the research proj-
Figure 1: Conceptual research model.
ect, no “universal set of strategic choices”

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(Ginsberg & Venkatraman, 1985, p. 421). satisfied with an implementation, that of the organization as assessed by these
The evaluation of what was implement- does not mean that all stakeholders outside observers.
ed needed to reflect the full set of prac- are equally satisfied. A common point
tices, tools, and capabilities that the of misalignment of satisfaction was Deriving a Different View of Fit
organizations in the study defined as between senior managers and project What emerged from this analysis is that
project management from their per- managers; the executive of the organi- the initial assumption of the research—
spective. In evaluating fit, we sought to zation may view the project manage- that fit could be evaluated through a
understand the integration of external ment approach with some satisfaction combination of satisfaction and align-
domain and internal structure as sug- (because it gives them control, over- ment—was inappropriate and mislead-
gested by Henderson and Venkatraman sight, and a greater degree of certainty ing. Reviewing the analysis and case-
(1993). We also sought to understand of project outcomes), whereas project study results, the project team was able
the full scope of changes that had been managers in the same organization to infer that fit was in fact a derived
implemented within the organization, may express dissatisfaction (because value—that is, it is one that cannot be
recognizing that project management the process is excessive, controlling, directly measured.
was one subsystem among many, and bureaucratic, and limits their freedom Based on the comprehensive num-
that it must be “intimately and inter- and creativity). This disagreement in ber of measures that were in place to
actively fitted with the other adminis- viewpoints was most prevalent in those evaluate the value of project manage-
trative structures of the firm” (Jelinek & case-study organizations that did not ment implementations within the study
Burstein, 1982, p. 242). demonstrate strong levels of value as a (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008), it was agreed
result of their project management that fit could be subjectively assessed
Practical Considerations implementation. from an understanding of satisfaction.
Encountered in Evaluating Fit Alignment proved to be an even It was recognized, however, that this
An Initial Understanding of Project more problematic means of evaluating view was at best a proxy, and even then
Management Fit fit. Although a capability that is consis- was only relevant when all of the stake-
The initial interpretation of fit reflected tently and repeatedly used may be holders associated with an implemen-
the principles outlined by Newport interpreted as being appropriate or as tation expressed a high level of satisfac-
et al. (1991), who asserted that fit was a demonstrating fit, analysis of individual tion with the practice of project man-
reflection of consistency and compati- cases again proved this not to be so. agement (Thomas & Mullaly, 2008).
bility. In the initial stages of analysis, fit There were a number of cases in which Further analysis suggested that the
was taken to reflect an integration of there was a strong degree of alignment only objective means of evaluating fit
two separate dimensions of value: sat- and consistency in adhering to defined was where it was possible to know what
isfaction and alignment. practices, and yet for which the demon- delivers value in a particular context. In
What became clear through the strated value of the project manage- other words, to derive an understanding
analysis of the research results, howev- ment implementation was relatively of the fit of an organization’s implemen-
er, was that while each of these con- low. What emerged in these examples tation, it would be first necessary to
structs measured something unique was that although consistency was understand what implementations of
and distinct, they did not necessarily being enforced (sometimes through project management are associated with
collectively measure the concept of fit. audits and organizational certifications what delivered dimensions of value. For
Satisfaction could be measured to such as ISO 9000), the practices in place any individual implementation, it would
evaluate the degree to which the stake- were not seen as relevant or appropri- then be possible to evaluate fit in
holders were satisfied with the imple- ate for the organization. One case study response to three key questions:
mentation of project management and in particular actually demonstrated a • What values/objectives were associat-
its results. Alignment could be meas- strong level of process alignment only ed with the implementation?
ured to assess whether a consistent ter- in proximity to an ISO 9000 audit being • For the context of the organization,
minology, process, and approach were conducted, while otherwise project what project management capabilities
in place within the organization. The managers in the organizations were align with those values/objectives?
initial assumption had been that if a more likely to adhere to their own prac- • To what extent is the implementation
capability was being consistently used tices or manage informally. within a particular case study reflective
and there was satisfaction with the In addition, we found that both sat- of the capabilities that would deliver
capability, then it must “fit” or be isfaction and alignment could be in on the identified values/objectives?
appropriate for the organization. What place with a particular project manage-
was quickly recognized, however, was ment implementation that did not This approach aligns with an inter-
that while some stakeholders may be appear to researchers to “fit” the needs pretation of Miles and Snow (1984), who

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suggest that “we have regularly found profit, reductions of rework, customer support the attainment of specific
that organizations of different types can retention, and expansion of market share. dimensions of value. The following
be successful provided that their partic- Intangible values included improved analysis expands on the investigations
ular configuration of strategy, structure, reputation, increased competitiveness, presented in the research monograph.
and process is internally and externally improved management practices, better Specifically, we explore the under-
consistent (Miles & Snow, 1984, p. 11). retention of employees, and improved standing of value direction as it applies
While the principles of evaluating fit are delivery of strategic objectives. to constructs of fit that have been pre-
straightforward to define, however, Secondly, the analysis also included sented within the strategic manage-
actually establishing the means by an identification of value direction. This ment literature.
which such determinations can be assessment reflected the degree to One of the constructs that provided
made is far more complex. Zajac et al. which the project management imple- initial insights and understanding of fit
(2000, p. 430) note, “Neither strategic fit mentation associated with the case in conducting the Value of Project
nor strategic change research has study was expected to continue to deliver Management project was value direc-
offered the conceptual or methodologi- value. The results of this analysis identi- tion, as discussed in the previous
cal tools needed to predict and assess fied case studies that were expected to section. This construct endeavored to
whether an organization’s strategy will continue to create value for their organ- evaluate the degree to which the proj-
fit with changing environmental and ization, those for whom value was being ect management implementation
organizational circumstances.” destroyed, and those where continued within an organization was expected to
delivery of value was an open question. continue to deliver value in the future—
Evaluating the Presence of Fit For the latter group of cases, because of or the degree to which the researchers
As has been noted earlier, higher changes in structure, strategy, control, expected the current project manage-
degrees of performance require higher or leadership of the project management implementation to continue to
degrees of fit (Segev, 1987). In order to ment implementation or of the organi- “fit” the needs of the organization going
evaluate the effectiveness of the imple- zation itself, the ability of the project forward. The definitions of each cate-
mentations that were assessed within management to deliver value was an gory of value direction are further
the case studies associated with this open question. Certainly, value had defined in Table 1.
project, it was also necessary to evalu- been delivered by the majority of these In their analysis of the degree of fit
ate the value that was being delivered cases to date, but continued value cre- that was demonstrated within the
and the degree to which better fit ation was uncertain. This reflects a con- strategies of various organizations,
enabled the attainment of better value. tinued challenge associated with the Miles and Snow (1984) outline a frame-
To enable evaluating the effectiveness assessment of fit—namely, the ability to work by which fit can be evaluated.
of implementations, therefore, addi- make predictions about the perfor- They introduce the concept of “mini-
tional constructs were required. These mance consequences for specific organ- mal fit,” reflecting the essential align-
constructs were initially employed in izations (Zajac, Kraatz, & Bresser, 2000). ments of structures and environments
conducting a qualitative analysis of the necessary to continue to deliver value,
case-study results, and later also influ-
Interpreting Fit as well as the more valued—yet more
enced the quantitative analysis in this Articulating the Dimensions elusive—concepts of “early fit” and
mixed-methods study (Thomas & The published results of the research “tight fit.” Reflecting that not all organi-
Mullaly, 2008). project provide an analysis of those zations are in fact able to demonstrate
The first construct was an under- project management implementations fit and alignment, Miles and Snow also
standing of the degree of value being and organizations that contributed to identify the concept of “fragile fit,”
exhibited by a particular organization as the attainment of various dimensions where sustained fit is indeterminate,
a result of its case study. For the purpos- of organizational value (Thomas & and imply the existence of a fifth
es of analysis, the value resulting from Mullaly, 2008). Using exploratory regres- dimension of fit called “misfit,” indicat-
an implementation was divided into sion analysis, we were able to make ing that the strategy and management
tangible (those results that can be quan- some propositions about how contex- structures of the organization are inap-
tified) and intangible (those results that, tual and project management contin- propriate and orthogonal to the envi-
while meaningful and valued by the gencies combined to influence the ronment in which the organization
organization, are less readily quantified value that organizations receive from finds itself. These dimensions of fit are
without resorting to excessive reliance project management implementations. further elaborated in Table 2.
on assumptions, approximations, and In other words, the analysis provides an In principle, the value direction
inferences). Tangible values were impacts initial view of fit by identifying the should overlap with the dimensions of
such as reductions in cost, increases in implementation, and contextual factors fit outlined by Miles and Snow (1984)

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Value involved 65 in-depth case studies of

Direction Definition organizations from around the world.
Collected by 18 teams of researchers,
2 A level of 2 indicates that there is a strong trend toward the organization each case study captured detailed
continuing to be able to realize value from its project management quantitative and qualitative data asso-
implementation. As well as value being evidenced to date within the
ciated with the constructs articulated
implementation, there is a strong and continued emphasis on project
management within the implementation, and the corresponding value in the conceptual model—what was
is also expected to increase at a significant rate or to continue to be implemented as a project management
delivered at a significant level. capability, the organizational context,
the environment of the organization,
1 A level of 1 indicates that there is some increase in value that is continuing
and the value that each organization
to be realized from the project management implementation. The project
management implementation has demonstrated value to date and is realized as a direct result of its imple-
expected to continue to deliver value at a more gradual level. mentation of project management.
As already noted in Thomas and
0 A level of 0 indicates that the value of the project management Mullaly (2008), the identification of the
implementation has either attained a plateau or its continuation may
value direction coding involved a com-
be in question. A value level of 0 indicates a critical juncture for many
of the case-study organizations that were observed. While they have prehensive review of the case reports
realized value in their implementations to date, it is questionable for each completed case report. The
whether further value will be realized. This may be as a result of a value direction was determined by an
lack of continued emphasis and focus, changes in the competitive independent review of each case report
environment or structure of the organization, or a decline in support or by two researchers, followed by a nego-
activity related to the project management implementation. For some tiated determination of the value direc-
organizations, there is a risk that the value will, in fact, decline in the tion results based on the insights and
future. perspectives of each researcher.
–1 A level of –1 indicates that the observed value of the organization is The identification of the fit dimen-
declining, but is doing so at a moderate rate. There may have been sions identified by Miles and Snow was
strong value observed to date, but that level of value is not being conducted by employing a similar
sustained and is expected to continue to gradually decline over time. approach. The case reports of each
–2 At a level of –2, the organization was observing a considerable decline organization participating in the Value of
in value. While value may have been observed previously in the Project Management study were inde-
implementation, the value being observed in the organization had pendently reviewed and assessed against
declined significantly, and in many instances was being actively destroyed. the definitions of fit outlined in Table 1.
Note. From Thomas and Mullaly (2008), p. 237–238
Based on the results of this analysis, a
determination of fit for each organiza-
Table 1: Definition of value direction. tion was assessed and coded. A correla-
tion of the value direction analysis with
that of the identified fit dimensions of
Miles and Snow is presented in Figure 2.
and presented earlier. A working be those that are correlated with a nega-
hypothesis would be that those organi- tive value direction. Exploring the Results
zations with “tight fit” or “early fit” As can be observed in reviewing the
would be associated with positive Defining the Approach analysis plotting fit against value direc-
trends in value direction, while those The comparison of the structure pre- tion, many of the original assumptions
with “minimal fit” would be associated sented by Miles and Snow (1984) with identified earlier are actually reflected
with neutral-to-slightly-positive trends the value direction construct developed and reinforced. In particular, those
in value direction. By contrast, a “fragile within the Value of Project Manage- organizations demonstrating tight fit as
fit” should be exclusively comprised of ment project involved a comprehensive defined by Miles and Snow are all
those organizations that are at an inflec- analysis of the case reports prepared in demonstrating a positive value direction
tion point in their implementation, and conducting the original research. The of “1” or “2,” with one notable exception.
are therefore unsure of their ability to overall process of conducting the research On further analysis, however, the
continue delivering value as they move and an identification of the results are anomalous organization that has a value
forward. Those organizations that have described in detail in Thomas and direction of “0” (case-study organization
a “misfit” implementation, finally, should Mullaly (2008). The research project 36) has a very strong management

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Dimension Attributes
Tight Fit • Sustained excellent performance
• Strong corporate culture
• Strong alignment externally with the environment and internally among strategy, structure, and
management processes
• Basic structure and processes that enable complex organizational and managerial demands to appear simple
• Simplicity that results in widespread understanding and adherence
• Reduction in the need for elaborate coordinating and control mechanisms
• Self-reinforcing association of outstanding performance with the processes that enable it
• Goals and means that are visible and task requirements that are obvious and compelling
Early Fit • New pattern of strategy, structure, and process
• Discovery and articulation of new organizational forms
• Emergent form of organizational structure that is a basis of competitive breakthrough and
enables the creation of advantage over competitors that cannot respond and emulate as rapidly
• Seen as a means of enabling overall excellence, involving innovation to create early fit and rapid movement
to the realization of tight fit
Minimal Fit • Achieving at least minimal fit is closely associated with organizational success
• Level of fit associated with organizational survival
• Strategy, structure, and processes are internally and externally consistent
• The organization is sufficiently differentiated to deal with the complexities of their environment
Fragile Fit • Vulnerability to shifting external conditions or inadvertent internal unravelling
• Unwillingness to adjust to changes in organizational environment and conditions
• Internal structure and process changes are made without concern for long-term impacts
Misfit • The organization may survive in the short term, but ultimately must adjust their behavior or fail
• Organizations identified as “reactors” and, therefore, generally ineffective: those organizations
with a poorly articulated strategy, an inappropriate strategy for their industry, or an organizational
structure and management system that does not support the strategy
• Organizations whose behavior lies outside of the feasible set
Note: Adapted from Miles and Snow (1984).
Table 2: Dimensions of fit.
capability that has delivered strong near future. These circumstances are, in construction and engineering organi-
value to date. This organization has fact, the determining test of the concept zations that are operating in relatively
exhibited both tangible and intangible of “fit.” Although the implementation in emerging economies—one in Russia
benefits as a result of its project man- place fits its current circumstances, the and the other in China. The Chinese
agement implementation, and has a changes in external environment will organization is a construction firm
high level of process maturity (assessed require an adaptation of strategy and/or involved in the development of large-
at a level of 2.5). Overall, the project implementation in order to respond scale hydro-electric projects and was
management capability is both proved appropriately. What is in place fits today, one of the earliest adopters of formal
and effective, and there is arguably a but there is an open question of whether project management principles and
strong degree of fit of the implemented it will continue to fit in the future. practices. These approaches were
capabilities. The reason that this Interestingly, only two organiza- required as a result of conditions asso-
organization has a value direction of “0,” tions are identified as being associated ciated with funding from the World
however, is that the economic and com- with an “early fit.” This is likely not sur- Bank, and they led to one of the first
petitive environment in which the prising, given the relative novelty of formalized adoptions of project man-
organization operates is highly uncer- new forms of organizing associated agement in China. As a result of this
tain. There is a great deal of competition, with the idea of early fit, and the noted implementation, the organization is a
and although the organization has his- challenges associated with the mainte- recognized project management leader
torically been able to strongly compete nance of fit overall that were discussed in China and is the subject of numerous
for business, a precipitous decline in by Miles and Snow (1984). In both case studies. In addition, the organi-
project engagements is expected in the instances, these organizations are large zation is committed to sharing its

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a value direction of “0,” indicating a

Fit vs.Value Direction – All Cases level of uncertainty about the ability of
the implementation to continue deliv-
⫺2 ⫺1 0 1 2
ering value. Each organization in this
18 22 27 33 63 grouping adheres to at least one of the
Tight 36 25 35 44 76 89
71 73 74 following traits:
• relatively low process maturity (asses-
Early 72 87 sed maturity level of either 1 or 1.5);
• relatively low value delivered to date
17 19 20 23 29 (tangible or intangible value to date is
21 24 26 32 43 39 42 45 48 51
Minimal 52 56 57 83
a level of “1,” indicating that only
53 54 61 62 65
some value has been realized thus
67 69 81 90
far); and
28 30 31 34 49 • significant changes to external envi-
Fragile 55 59 64 70 82 ronment or internal strategy resulting
86
in fundamental challenges for the
organization in the near term that will
Misfit 75 47 88 84 require a response.
Finally, those organizations with a

Figure 2: Analysis of fit vs. value direction. category of “misfit” are, with one excep-
tion, indicating a value direction of “–1”
or “–2,” indicating that the organization
experiences and insights with other expected to also continue to deliver today is currently destroying value as a
organizations, in order to improve the value as a result, this rate of growth will result of its project management imple-
practice of project management on a likely continue to be enhanced with mentation. This implies that, without
more widespread basis. By contrast, the continued maturity. an amendment to either strategy or
Russian organization is a relative new Those organizations demonstrating implementation in the near term, the
entrant into the mining sector. It enjoys “minimal fit” are exclusively those who organization is not likely to continue to
strong leadership, however, with the have a value direction of “0” or “1.” The be successful in the future and will very
implementation of project manage- majority of these organizations have a likely fail. The one organization with a
ment being driven by the president of positive value direction, representing value trend of “0” is an engineering
the organization. It is one of the first almost one-third of the represented organization in Brazil, whose implemen-
organizations in its economy to imple- case studies. These organizations reflect tation is relatively new. The implemen-
ment a strong and rigorous approach to an implementation that is embodying tation itself is driven by a manager
project management, and is poised to the necessary capabilities to support without overall senior management
realize significant competitive advan- continued viability moving forward. support, and it is characterized by a
tage as it continues to develop its capa- While some organizations are exhibiting strong control orientation that is at
bilities and develop its mining deposits. a value direction of “0,” indicating that odds with the cultural values associated
While both organizations are identified continued value is an open question, with the organization and the country
as being “early fit” organizations and further exploration of other dimensions as a whole. Given the stage of the
have been able to attain a high level of of the data (defined in Thomas & implementation, it is uncertain as to
overall fit as a result, they are both iden- Mullaly, 2008) reveals that the imple- what degree the implementation will
tified as having a value direction of “1.” mentations themselves have all already deliver value, resulting in the value
For the established engineering organi- provided significant levels of value and direction of “0,” but it is quite clear in
zation in China, this is a result of its are of a relatively high level of maturity the analysis of the results that the
long-standing implementation of proj- (every organization is assessed at a implementation does not align with or
ect management practices over the last maturity level of 1.5 or 2). fit the culture and values of the organi-
20 years; impressively, its implementa- Perhaps most interesting in the zation. Success in delivering value will
tion continues to deliver value to this findings comparing dimension of fit occur only based on the will of senior
day. By contrast, the Russian organiza- with value direction is the fact that all of management to impose expectations
tion is at a comparatively early stage in the organizations that are assessed as and requirements on the organization;
its implementation. Although it is having a “fragile fit” are demonstrating however, while this is theoretically

124-135PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:47 PM Page 133
possible, it is unlikely to be sustainable management implementation. While and/or management processes.” By

in the longer term given the cultural the capabilities in place have delivered understanding both the state of fit
misalignment that is present in this case. significant value to date, and continue today and the direction of value tomor-
to do so during the analysis conducted row, it is more likely that organizations
Conclusions in this project, the ability to continue will not only be able to determine
The results of this analysis as a part of doing so is uncertain. when it is necessary to take action in
the Value of Project Management proj- As noted earlier, the analysis revisiting their implementations, but
ect demonstrate a strong level of corre- reflected in this article has helped to also what actions—or at least what
lation between “fit” as defined by Miles illustrate how the fit dimensions overall strategies—will be most helpful
and Snow (1984) and the construct described by Miles and Snow combine in delivering sustainable organizational
of value direction defined by the Value of with the value direction constructs value.
Project Management project team. This defined in the Value of Project
provides several useful and important Management project to help in under- Research Limitations and
insights. In particular, the analysis standing the dynamics of change in fit Future Directions
demonstrates a level of alignment and and value and the interrelationships To date, the research resulting from the
support for the constructs that were between these two constructs. The real Value of Project Management project
proposed by Miles and Snow and sug- value is demonstrating the value that has provided organizations with useful
gests that they are both meaningful and both constructs have in helping to insights by which to evaluate and vali-
provide a useful dimension of analysis diagnose the effectiveness and contin- date the relevance of their project man-
in exploring the contribution of a par- ued viability of an implementation agement implementations, particularly
ticular implementation in realizing an within an organization. Recognizing in the context of their stated goals. The
organization’s strategic goals. Equally that fit is a dynamic construct rather research monograph resulting from this
importantly, the analysis reinforces the than a static one means that any research has advanced exploratory the-
construct of value direction that was assessment of fit is by definition an ories of specifically which implementa-
derived in conducting the Value of identification of the relevance of prac- tion and context factors lead to which
Project Management project and sug- tices at a particular point in time. objectives of value. While these con-
gests that it is both useful and relevant Although the idea of fit explores how structs specifically align with the expec-
in helping organizations to gauge the relevant and appropriate practices are tations and critiques of contingency
relevance and sustainability of their at that given interval, what cannot be theory (Schoonhoven, 1981), they also
project management implementations. inferred is what is anticipated to occur start to address some of the major con-
What is particularly useful and moving forward. Value direction, how- cerns and criticisms of the literature
helpful in conducting this analysis is ever, starts to provide a leading indica- regarding fit, particularly with respect
the distinction between factors associ- tor of likely future behaviors, or at a to being able to identify and anticipate
ated with internal structures and minimum identifies where significant the impacts that specific changes
processes and changes in the external questions exist. While each of these should have on organizations.
environment in determining relative fit. dimensions independently provides The insights gained from this analy-
The majority of organizations indicat- useful information, it is their intersec- sis are no doubt useful and practically
ing a lack of fit (being identified as hav- tion—and the exploration of the relevant. They provide clear articula-
ing either “fragile fit” or “misfit”) have underlying factors that explain why an tion of the criteria associated with fit,
failed to adapt their project manage- organization has been evaluated the and provide a framework for evaluating
ment implementations to the condi- way that it has—that provides the not just the value associated with fit,
tions that they face, or have failed to essential interpretive context. It is this but also the means of ensuring delivery
recognize when such external or strate- context, moreover, that provides a of value going forward. Moreover, they
gic shifts are occurring. Equally relevant means of interpreting not just current reinforce that fit is truly dynamic and
are the insights of those organizations realities but appropriate future actions. that implementations need to continue
that are identified as “tight fit” or “min- Miles and Snow (1984, p. 22) note, to adapt and evolve in support of evo-
imal fit” today, but that have a value “Environmental factors outside an orga- lutions of strategy and changing exter-
direction of “0.” Most of these organiza- nization’s control are constantly chang- nal environments. To continue to
tions are also facing a change in strate- ing and may require incremental or enhance our understanding of the
gy, structure, or environment that is major strategic adjustment. Strategic influence that project management
leading to potential questions about change, in turn, is likely to require implementation has on the delivery of
the continued viability of their project changes in organization structure organizational value, and particularly

124-135PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:47 PM Page 134
PAPERS
the realization of fit, requires much Jelinek, M., & Burstein, M. C. (1982). Venkatraman, N., & Camillus, J. C.
more comprehensive theory testing The production administrative struc- (1984). Exploring the concept of “fit” in
(Thomas & Mullaly, 2008). In particular, ture: A paradigm for strategic fit. strategic management. Academy of
the recommendations of Venkatraman Academy of Management Review, 7, Management Review, 9, 513–525.
(1989) regarding appropriate strategies 242–252. Waterman, R. H., Jr. (1982). The seven
and techniques for quantitatively eval- Miles, R. E., & Snow, C. C. (1984). Fit, elements of strategic fit. Journal of
uating and demonstrating fit become failure and the hall of fame. California Business Strategy, 2(3), 69–73.
specifically relevant. Moving forward, Management Review, 26(3), 10–28. Woodward, J. (1958). Management and
an expansion of the qualitative analysis Miles, R. E., Snow, C. C., Meyer, A. D., & technology. London: Her Majesty’s
of demonstrated fit against the struc- Coleman, H. J. (1978). Organizational Stationery Office.
tures of Miles and Snow (1984) incorpo- strategy, structure, and process. Xu, S., Cavusgil, S. T., & White, J. C.
rating the quantitative techniques Academy of Management Review, 3, (2006). The impact of strategic fit
posited by Venkatraman (1989) should 546–562. among strategy, structure, and
ideally provide further insights into the Newport, S., Dess, G. G., & Rasheed, A. processes on multinational corpora-
nature and constructs of value and fit, M. A. (1991). Nurturing strategic tion performance: A multimethod
and the implementations and contexts coherency. Planning Review, 19(6), assessment. Journal of International
that make them possible. 18–22, 26–27, 47. Marketing 14(2), 1–31.
Acknowledgments Schoonhoven, C. B. (1981). Problems Zajac, E. J., Kraatz, M. S., & Bresser, R.
We would like to gratefully acknowledge with contingency theory: Testing (2000). Modeling the dynamics of
the financial support of the Project assumptions hidden within the strategic fit: A normative approach to
Management Institute in initiating and language of contingency “theory.” strategic change. Strategic
partially funding the Researching the Administrative Science Quarterly, 26, Management Journal 21, 429–453.
Value of Project Management project, 349–377.
as well as the donations in kind from the Segev, E. (1987). Strategy, strategy mak-
Mark Mullaly is a senior management consult-
universities, organizations, and individ- ing, and performance—An empirical
ant with over 20 years of experience of manag-
uals around the world that made this investigation. Management Science, 33,
ing projects in a range of industries, including
project possible. In addition, we grate- 258–269.
information technology, communications, utili-
fully acknowledge all of our academic Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2004).
ties, oil and gas, engineering, construction,
colleagues who volunteered their time Research proposal: Understanding the
finance, insurance, the arts, and research and
to work on this project with us and who value of project management. Project
development. He has provided project manage-
contributed effort and intellectual stim- Management Institute.
ment services to a number of prominent compa-
ulation to the results of this project in so Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2005, nies throughout Canada, as well as leading com-
many ways. ■ September 13). What’s the benefit? prehensive organizational development, process
Challenges in demonstrating the value implementation, software development, and
References of project management. Paper presented change management projects focused on the
Burns, T., & Stalker, G. M. (1961). The at PMI North American Global creation of effective project organizations. He is
management of innovation. London: Congress, Toronto, Canada. one of the foremost experts in organizational
Tavistock Publications. Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2007). project management in North America and is
Chorn, N. H. (1991). The “alignment” Understanding the value of project recognized for his work as the author and devel-
theory: Creating strategic fit. management: First steps on an inter- oper of Interthink Consulting’s project manage-
Management Decision, 29(1), 20–24. national investigation in search of ment maturity model. This framework was
Ginsberg, A., & Venkatraman, N. (1985). value. Project Management Journal, designed to assist organizations in evaluating
Contingency perspectives of organiza- 38(3), 74–89. their project management performance and
tional strategy: A critical review of the Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2008). establishing and realizing their development
empirical research. Academy of Researching the value of project man- goals. Through Interthink’s extensive research
Management Review, 10, 421–434. agement. Newtown Square, PA; Project efforts, this framework has been used to bench-
Henderson, J. C., & Venkatraman, N. Management Institute. mark and evaluate over 650 organizations from
(1993). Strategic alignment: Leveraging Venkatraman, N. (1989). The concept around the world. He is a regular columnist on
information technology for transform- of fit in strategy research: Toward verbal gantthead.com, the leading project management
ing organizations. IBM Systems and statistical correspondence. Academy portal, and for Projects & Work magazine, where
Journal, 32(1), 4–16. of Management Review, 14, 423–444. he also serves as a member of the editorial

124-135PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:47 PM Page 135
board. He is also a sessional instructor with the Over her almost 10 years with CIM, she has Rethinking Project Management (funded by the
University of Alberta School of Business and a worked to build links with external organizations United Kingdom’s National Science Research
lead instructor and program developer of the PM such as PMI and the International Project Council). She has led a number of PMI-sponsored
certificate programs offered by the University of Management Association. She is currently the research projects including the recently complet-
Alberta School of Business Executive Education program director for the Executive MBA in Project ed Researching the Value of Project Management
and Lifelong Learning program. He is past presi- Management program. She is also a visiting pro- global study. Her research interests include orga-
dent of the Northern Alberta Chapter of the fessor with the University of Technology, Sydney, nizational change, project management, team
Project Management Institute. He is currently and Bond University, Australia, where she super- building and leadership, complexity theory in
pursuing a PhD at Bond University in Australia. vises master’s and PhD research students. She is relation to organizations, and the professional-
Together with Janice Thomas of Athabasca well known in the international project manage- ization of knowledge workers. Ultimately, all of
University, he is co-principal investigator of ment community, both from serving on the PMI her research is aimed at understanding and
Investigating the Value of Project Management, Research Member Advisory Group and in an edi- communicating how the practice of project man-
a 3-year, $2.5 million investigation into the torial capacity for journals such as the Project agement in organizations can be improved. Prior
value of project management to organizations, Management Journal, International Journal of to becoming an academic, she spent 10 years as
which is sponsored in part by the Project Project Management, IEEE Transactions on a project manager in the fields of information
Management Institute. Engineering Management, and the International technology and organizational change. In addition
Journal of Business Performance and to research and teaching, she maintains close
Management, and through her involvement with ties to the practical realities of project manage-
Janice L. Thomas is an associate professor in collaborative research such as the Researching ment in organizations through consulting and
the Centre for Innovative Management (CIM). the Value of Project Management project and membership in professional associations.

136PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:48 PM Page 136
Cover to Cover
Kenneth H. Rose, PMP, Book Review Editor
Work Breakdown Structures for Projects,

Programs, and Enterprises
by Gregory T. Haugan
A
work breakdown structure (WBS) is as well as developing the project charter. The next
arguably the most important tool in a two Knowledge Areas, time and cost, are simple
project manager’s toolkit. A WBS helps extensions of WBS in that cost, resource, and
to define all the components of the work scheduling information for staffing and delivery
to be delivered, facilitates the effective allocation plans can be assigned to each WBS element. The
of and communications among resources, and concept of an EVMS is discussed, and specific
enables the estimation and tracking of costs for related references are provided for more detailed
a project. Whether you’re a novice or a seasoned reading. Other Knowledge Areas, such as commu-
project manager, the book Work Breakdown nication, quality, and risk, are also discussed. In
Structures for Projects, Programs, and Enterprises the communication area, WBS can be used to
by Gregory T. Haugan is an excellent and highly develop an organizational breakdown structure
recommended resource. (OBS), which aligns the team members with deliv-
The book is organized into three major parts erables, thereby facilitating status reporting and
Management Concepts, 2008,
covering fundamentals, applications, and exam- activity coordination efforts. Similarly, issues and
ISBN: 9781567262285, soft-
ples. This format enables readers at all skill and risks can be associated with specific WBS ele-
cover, 382 pp., $49.40 Member,
understanding levels to utilize the content ments, aiding in a more comprehensive view of
$52.00 Nonmember.
appropriate for their situation. Part 1 provides an the challenges that a project is facing and where
introduction to the WBS, along with a brief his- there may be potential bottlenecks. For the pro-
torical perspective. The WBS fundamentals chapter gives readers curement area, the WBS is an invaluable tool as it provides spe-
more insight into three basic types of WBS approaches: product, cific, well-defined deliverables that vendors can use for pricing
service, and results-based. Examples of each help solidify each and delivery, as well as ensures clear communications.
of the different conceptual approaches. Other key aspects As discussed earlier in the book, there are other ways to
described are the concepts of crosscutting and project man- develop a project WBS besides strictly by products. One such
agement elements. These elements are crucial to consider in approach is more aligned with process or life-cycle deliver-
order to ensure that all the work related to the approved project ables. From this viewpoint, the use of WBS is discussed as it
scope and that the activities associated with work management relates to various project life cycles, such as those typically
are accounted for. Part 1 includes a quick review of some avail- employed on information technology, Department of Defense,
able WBS software, and a chapter focused on a list of principles or construction-type projects. The latter two examples have
as defined by each of the conceptual WBS approaches along with more chapters specifically aligned to those types of projects.
a WBS development checklist. Finally, as many companies are embracing a more integrated,
Part 2 is focused on the applications aspects of using WBS in enterprise view of projects and programs, there is further dis-
aligning with project and portfolio management concepts and cussion regarding the effective use of a WBS at the portfolio
life-cycle planning, along with a more in-depth discussion and enterprise levels.
regarding the use of WBS on government and construction-related Part 3, “WBS Examples and Descriptions,” provides the reader
projects. This part also introduces the concept of performance with several excellent illustrations with supporting information
management and how a WBS provides the foundation for using for the various WBS development approaches, from which initial
an Earned Value Management System (EVMS). templates for similar projects can be made. Other useful infor-
In the project management chapter, Haugan discusses mation, such as details regarding the “Omni Class” structure
the rationale and effectiveness of using a WBS in several of the development for construction projects, along with other useful
Knowledge Areas presented in A Guide to the Project Manage- references, are provided in the appendices.
ment Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide). The most obvious In short, this is a must-have book for both new and experi-
is that of scope definition and developing the statement of work, enced project managers. Both may benefit from reviewing alter-
native approaches on such a key project management tool.
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 136
Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com) Reviewed by Greg Indelicato, PMP, Principal Program Director, Indelicato
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20102 Project Solutions, Plano, TX, USA.

137PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:50 PM Page 137
Cover to Cover
The Handbook of Program Management:

How to Facilitate Project Success with
Optimal Program Management
by James T. Brown
L
eading organizations are using pro- organization with some keys to process exe-
gram management more frequently as cution. The author describes the impor-
a way to achieve greater benefits from tance of useful status reports but omits the
the coordinated management of proj- communications management plan and
ects that are related in some manner. While information distribution methods. Chapter
more program management books now are 5 presents an interesting discussion on pro-
available, The Handbook of Program Manage- gram execution, noting the need for a plan
ment: How to Facilitate Project Success with but not describing its contents, a scope
Optimal Program Management by James T. statement, or the program work breakdown
Brown fills a void, as it emphasizes tips and structure. In this chapter, a table depicts an
guidelines for the program manager. It is based agenda for a project status meeting, which
on the author’s experience in program manage- really is a program status meeting agenda.
ment while with the National Aeronautics and Chapter 6 focuses on program team
Space Administration and in his teaching building but omits strategies for virtual
and consulting work. Dr. Brown emphasizes the teams. It emphasizes instead use of off-site
importance of strong leadership, the need for retreats and summits, which may not be
McGraw-Hill, 2008, ISBN: 9780071494724,
the program manager to create a culture to facil- practical given the size of many program
hardcover, 261 pp., $47.45 Member,
itate the work of the project managers under his teams and associated cost concerns.
$49.95 Nonmember.
or her direction, and the necessity of processes Communications are the focus in Chapter 7,
that are flexible and are not an administrative burden to execute. with guidelines for meetings, e-mails, and team charters. This
Each of the 10 chapters in this book includes tips and scenar- chapter describes challenges with virtual and global teams.
ios to focus on key points. Each chapter ends with a summary of Building on the author’s background in risk management,
“keystones” that were covered. For example, in Chapter 1, “Chaos Chapter 8 explains common program-level risks and the use of a
to Clarify,” a keystone is that the program manager must contin- five-by-five risk matrix, but omits the risk management plan,
ually improve the overall culture. In Chapter 2, “Attributes of the risk response plan, and risk register.
Effective Program Manager,” Dr. Brown provides a scenario to Chapter 9 provides an interesting overview of portfolio
demonstrate the difference between the role of the project man- management, which would benefit by showing a more complete
ager and the program manager in terms of the different chal- relationship to program management. This chapter lists guide-
lenges each faces. A tip in this chapter is to have a “cracked-door” lines useful for stage-gate reviews as opportunities are selected
policy in which team members can see the program manager and reviewed, but the topic of governance, another of the three
informally; this door is cracked open at the same time each day. themes in the PMI standard, is not discussed in the chapter or in
Chapter 3 focuses on stakeholder management, one of the the book. Chapter 10 summarizes positive program outcomes. It
three key themes in one of the Project Management Institute’s notes that “program managers are judged on results.” The
standards, The Standard for Program Management, but from the importance of benefit management, the final theme in the PMI
vantage point of the practicing practitioner. It omits discussion standard, is missing even though benefit realization is a major
of the importance of a stakeholder management plan, coupled reason for program management success.
with a communications management plan, and a strategy for In summary, The Handbook on Program Management is not a
stakeholder involvement from the beginning of the program. useful study reference for one seeking the Program Management
Instead, it focuses on a method for stakeholder assessment, a Professional (PgMP® ) credential, nor is it suitable for an academ-
description of six different types of stakeholders, and the need ic setting, as it lacks references and a review of other literature in
for communications strategies to build trust. this field. However, Dr. Brown has written an easy-to-read book
Chapter 4 then leads to the necessity of an easy-to-use that focuses on managing projects in a program setting with
process in program management supporting the culture of the numerous suggestions of best practices to follow.

Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com) Reviewed by Dr. Ginger Levin, PMP, PgMP, Project Management Consultant and
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20103 Educator, Lighthouse Point, FL, USA.

138PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:51 PM Page 138
Cover to Cover
Managing Politics and Conflict in Projects

by Brian Irwin
“I
n this world nothing is certain but He briefly addresses the necessity of proj-
death and taxes.” Were Benjamin ect conflict, sources of conflict in project
Franklin a modern-day project man- groups, and conflict resolution modes. Both
ager he might instead proclaim, “In chapters contain practical advice—tips and
projects nothing is certain but the inevitability topic-related techniques—that can be “put
of politics and conflict.” Indeed, politics and to immediate use.” Although these two
conflict are undeniable and inescapable real- chapters provide only cursory overviews of
ities in the project environment regardless of organizational politics and conflict, they are
the size or location of the project. Ignoring ostensibly the underpinnings for the materi-
them can be hazardous for the project manager al in the rest of the book.
and the project. Irwin devotes a chapter each to commu-
In Managing Politics and Conflict in nication, negotiation, multidirectional rela-
Projects, author Brian Irwin endeavors to help tionship management, political strategy, and
project managers uncover ways to manage con- leadership. These chapters, which focus on
flict constructively and use political play to the soft skills pertinent to the particular topic
advance their goals by improving their soft skills. Management Concepts, 2008, ISBN: discussed, have been “written so each can be
“Usually, it’s not the . . . science of project man- 9781567262216, softcover, 210 pp., read independently as needed.” Here again,
agement . . . that causes migraines and heart- $29.00 list price. tips and topic-related techniques have been
burn for project managers.” says Irwin. “Rather, included in each chapter. These are presum-
it’s the need for constant communication, negotiation, political ably “best practices” for managing politics and conflict in proj-
play, and influence,” or to put it another way, reliance on the soft ects that Irwin has drawn from his own project management
skills that are the essence of the art of project management. experiences. Some, while practical, are fairly obvious and are
Irwin’s book begins with a brief commentary on the art and likely to be techniques that novice project managers are already
science of project management, followed by a straightforward doing. Others sound good in theory but might prove impractical,
evaluation of some of the challenges inherent in the project envi- if not irrelevant, in real-life situations.
ronment: communication, competition for resources, unclear To illustrate the topics discussed in each chapter, Irwin has
project goals, lack of power, and project globalization. These chal- woven a running fictional case study into the book. The case
lenges are all the result of organizational politics, the cause of study is somewhat contrived and, at times, a bit melodramatic.
project-related conflicts, or both. By addressing them in the first But it does focus attention on some of the political issues and
chapter, Irwin provides context for the material discussed in the conflicts typically encountered in projects and it shows how
subsequent chapters. The content here is fairly basic, suggesting Irwin’s tips and techniques can be used to deal with them. The
that the book is geared more toward students and novices of real value-add of the case study is that it showcases how benefi-
project management than experienced practitioners, and that cial a mentor can be to a project manager. This is a great take-
Irwin intends to approach his subject matter broadly but not away for students, novices, and seasoned practitioners alike.
deeply. Managing Politics and Conflict in Projects tackles the rather
In the second chapter, Irwin makes an important distinction weighty issues of politics and conflict in the project environ-
between “positive” and “negative” politics. He provides broad ment. It is not the first book to do so, nor does it add to the exist-
overviews of organizational culture, project manager as an agent of ing literature in any unique or compelling way. Given the
change, and political self-awareness, which includes a couple author’s basic and sometimes flimsy treatment of the subject
of nine-question quizzes enabling the reader to do a quick self- matter, the book is unlikely to appeal widely to experienced
assessment. Similarly, in the third chapter, Irwin highlights practitioners. However, precisely because it does approach rela-
the difference between “constructive” and “destructive” conflict. tively complex topics in an undemanding and uncomplicated
way, the book might be of interest to students and novices.

© 2009 by the Project Management Institute Reviewed by Risto Gladden, PMP, MSc (Project Management), a project
Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com)
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20101 manager for Finantix, Ltd., in the United Kingdom.

139PMJ0205.qxd 2/13/09 12:52 PM Page 139
Cover to Cover
Researching the Value of Project Management

by Janice Thomas and Mark Mullaly
I
f project management had no value, peo- different models for different reasons.
ple wouldn’t use it. They would execute Because of this, the “what matters” question
projects through the old standbys of tra- remains unanswered and requires another
dition, intuition, and trial and error. But bridge to the next issue.
project management does have value, and Value is the subject of Chapter 8. It is
everybody knows it. The trouble is, nobody the essential topic of the research effort. The
knows exactly what that value is. And many authors adopted five dimensions of value:
are starting to ask. satisfaction, alignment, process outcomes,
Janice Thomas and Mark Mullaly have an business outcomes, and return on invest-
answer of sorts in their report Researching the ment. They found the first four could be
Value of Project Management. It is an answer measured directly, but the value of return on
“of sorts” because it is not a set of clearly investment could only be derived from the
defined equations or tools and techniques others. Readers should note the concept of
that practitioners may be seeking, but rather a “fit” presented in this chapter. It is the degree
comprehensive description of the search for to which practices respond to situations and
the answer. It is a research report, not a para- is highly influential regarding value.
Project Management Institute, 2008,
digm for practice. The elusive question of “what matters”
ISBN: 9781933890494, softcover,
Like all good research reports, it begins leads to Chapter 9, “Drivers of Value.” This
458 pp., $39.95 Member, $49.95
with the obligatory sections on purpose, liter- chapter integrates the data of context, imple-
Nonmember.
ature review, methodology, and methods, mentation, and value. The charts can be a
both qualitative and quantitative. An appen- challenge to the speed-reader. A little extra
dix provides a case-study summary describing the participating time and some deliberate thought will yield a more useful result.
organizations. Academics may be most interested in these ele- Readers should walk away from this chapter with a better under-
ments. All readers may benefit from the literature review. standing of value, but, alas, there’s still no answer to the question,
The authors intend for all chapters to stand alone and be read “What matters?”
independently. Readers looking for broad understanding should Chapter 10, “Conclusions,” wraps it up. More than half of
consider the whole, not individual parts. Practitioners should the 65 participating project organizations indicated tangible value
scan Chapters 1–5 for background and peruse Chapters 6–9 for from project management. None of them quantified the degree
meaning. Chapters 6–9 address content, implementation, value, of value. Some could not, and those who could did not. Most
and drivers of value. They constitute the heart of the report. participants indicated intangible value. This kind of value was
Chapter 6, “Context,” explores the organizational environ- most frequently cited and was the source of executive quota-
ment in which project management is applied. The two research tions on the value of project management. Many organizations
questions are: What are the differences among organizations, that reported value expressed no assurance of sustaining that
and which differences matter? This global study disclosed differ- value. Some even reported a decline. Project management may
ences within economic, people, cultural, project, organizational be a change and a great leap forward; recidivism may be an ever-
attribute, and strategic contexts. The “how” part of context was present plague lurking just below the surface.
not difficult to collect and summarize. The “what matters” part So, in the end, project management shows value to an organ-
was far more difficult and required a bridge to implementation. ization—a value that is situationally dependent and difficult to
In Chapter 7, “Implementation,” the authors describe what grasp. It may be that organizations choose to implement project
organizations do that they call “project management.” Research management not because of a rationally defined business case,
showed a rich mixture of training, practices, tools, and organiza- but because someone at a senior level decided that order is bet-
tional infrastructure in global project management. It showed ter than chaos. Accountants may not like it, but it works.
there is no single model universally applied. Organizations apply
Project Management Journal, Vol. 40, No. 1, 139 Reviewed by Kenneth H. Rose, PMP, Director, Peninsula Center for
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute Project Management in Hampton, VA, USA, and winner of the 2006 PMI
Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com)
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20105 David I. Cleland Project Management Literature Award.

140-141PMJ0213.qxd 2/13/09 6:07 PM Page 140
Calendar of Events
Spring 2009
Development” and “register for an 23–26 March

MARCH 2009 e-learning course” for more information. PMI® SeminarsWorld®, New Orleans,
5–19 March Louisiana, USA. To register, please visit
eSeminarsWorldSM. Building Teams, 19 March www.pmi.org, then click on “Career
Commitment and Culture for Virtual PMI Panama Project Management Development” and look under “Train-
Teams. For more information, please Symposium. Panama City, Panama. ing & Events.”
visit www.pmi.org, then click on “Career This symposium, hosted by the PMI
26–30 March
Development” and “register for an Panama Chapter with CH2M HILL and
PMI Clear Lake-Galveston and Houston
e-learning course” for more information. several others, features three tracks
Chapters’ Seminar @ Sea IV. Galveston,
during the day with two main keynot-
9–10 March Texas, USA. Cruise from Galveston Island
ers. Attend a special session on the
PMI Alabama Chapters 2009 Sympo- to Cozumel, Mexico. Our fourth cruise is
Panama Canal expansion project and
sium. Birmingham, Alabama, USA. The planned to be the best. Enjoy a great line-
actually see the work taking place. For
PMI Birmingham, Huntsville and up of speakers and fun entertainment.
more information, please visit www.
Montgomery Chapters present the You can earn up to 14 PDUs and do this
pmi-panama.org/simposio2009.
first annual Alabama symposium for with a good group of travelers. For more
project professionals. Theme: “Alabama 19 March information, please visit www.pmiclg.
Horizons: The Project Management PMI Michigan Thumb Chapter Pro- org/index.phtml.
Kaleidoscope.” Confirmed speakers fessional Development Day. Bay City,
include Debbie Lundberg, Tom Michigan, USA. Keynote speakers and
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Karen Storsteen. For more information, metrics that clearly illustrate the “net
2–16 April
please visit www. pmibirmingham.org. positive impact” associated with adap-
eSeminarsWorldSM. Delivering Business
tation of “lean and green” project
12–13 March Strategies Through Programs. For more
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information, please visit www.pmi-
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PMI® SeminarsWorld®, Atlanta, Georgia,
Sherry Lansing. For more information, Program. For more information, please
USA. To register, please visit www.
please visit www.PmiMileHiSym.org. visit www.pmi.org, then click on “Career
pmi.org, then click on “Career Develop-
Development” and “register for an
12–26 March ment” and look under “Training & Events.”
e-learning course” for more information.
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Arizona, USA. To register, please visit
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www.pmi.org, then click on “Career
“register for an e-learning course” for Day. Albany, New York, USA. “Risk
Development” and look under “Training
more information. Management: Best Practices and
& Events.”
Techniques.” Lead presenter: Carl
12–26 March
Pritchard, PMP. Follow the entire risk 29–30 April
eSeminarsWorldSM. Managing Multiple
management process from planning PMI Manitoba Chapter 10th Annual
Projects. For more information, please
and identification through qualifica- Professional Development Days.
visit www.pmi.org, then click on “Career
tion, quantification, response develop- Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Two full
ment, and response control. Integrating days, one day of keynote and breakout
© 2009 by the Project Management Institute risk management with project manage- speakers and one day of workshops.
Published online in Wiley InterScience
(www.interscience.wiley.com)
ment is covered. For more information, For more information, please visit www.
DOI: 10.1002/pmj.20108 please visit www.pmi-uny.org. pmimanitoba.org.

140-141PMJ0213.qxd 2/13/09 6:07 PM Page 141
Spring 2009
world leaders in project performance led, web-based professional develop-

MAY 2009 management, networking, and the latest ment courses. The eSeminarsWorldSM
1 May in software and consulting to make your topics are as diverse as our traditional
PMI South Florida Chapter Profes- program successful. For more informa- SeminarsWorld® face-to-face offerings,
sional Development Day. Davie, tion, please visit www.pmi-cpm.org. yet offer the convenience of attending
Florida, USA. This year’s theme, “Making and earning valuable PDUs from your
a Difference: Transforming, Leading, OCTOBER 2009 computer. Courses are offered over 2-
Adding Value,” is about utilizing project and 5-week periods, and require
10–13 October
management tools, techniques, and approximately one hour each day to
PMI® Global Congress 2009–North
best practices to impact how practi- complete. You choose what time of day
America. Orlando, Florida, USA. For
tioners work globally and locally to lead to log in and complete lessons and
more information, please visit http://
teams, organizations, and projects to assignments. Please visit www.pmi.org,
congresses.pmi.org.
achieve valued business results. For then click on “Career Development”
more information, please visit www. and “register for an e-learning course”
southfloridapmi.org. EVENT NEWS for more information.
6th Annual College of Scheduling
4–7 May Conference to Take Place in Boston. On Latin America Regional Events
PMI® SeminarsWorld®, Vancouver, March 17–20, 2009, join hundreds of Instead of hosting a PMI Global
British Columbia, Canada. To register, scheduling professionals at the world’s Congress 2009—Latin America, PMI
please visit www.pmi.org, then click on largest conference focused entirely on will support regional events in Latin
“Career Development,” and look under scheduling. Tom Driscoll, senior vice America. The following is a tentative list
“Training & Events.” president, Construction Services Divi- of the events that PMI will co-sponsor
sion, URS Corporation, will keynote the with local components:
11–14 May
300 attendee event, along with fea- • Mexico PMTour National Event (June)
PMI® SeminarsWorld®, Philadelphia,
tured speakers from CC Myers and • Costa Rica AP-CON National Con-
Pennsylvania, USA. To register, please
Microsoft. Attend the “Boston Sea Party” gress (October)
visit www.pmi.org, then click on
and mingle with key scheduling industry • Tour Cono Sur, Peru, Argentina, Chile,
“Career Development,” and look under
leaders including PMI Founder J. Gordon Uruguay, Paraguay (November)
“Training & Events.”
Davis, PhD, PMI Fellow, this year’s Jim • Brazilian Chapters’ National Con-
17–20 May O’Brien Lifetime Achievement Award gress (November)
6th Annual College of Scheduling Winner. Earn up to 14 PDUs toward
Conference. Boston, Massachusetts, maintenance of your PMI credential. PMI Global Congresses are regional
USA. For more information, please visit This informative 3-day conference conferences that provide professional
www.pmicosconference.com. Please will show you how organizations every- development, networking, information
also see “Event News” (below) for more where are obtaining remarkable busi- sharing, and recognition for project
details. ness value from project scheduling. management practitioners from the
Learn how worldwide organizations are region and around the world.
18–20 May
advancing the techniques, practice, and Congresses feature areas of focus
PMI® Global Congress 2009–EMEA.
profession of project scheduling presentations that cover both global and
Amsterdam, The Netherlands. For more
and establishing practice standards for regional project management issues
information, please visit http://congresses.
the project management profession. and emerging challenges, and apply to
pmi.org.
Highlights include: project managers of all skill levels and
27–29 May • Over 60 informative sessions organ- career stages. By attending an assort-
EVM World 2009. Naples, Florida ized into seven tracks; ment of presentations and high-quality
USA. PMI College of Performance • Vendor and product showcase; speakers, attendees gain insight into a
Management’s 25th Annual Interna- • Town Hall meetings on “hot” sched- broad spectrum of topics. Networking
tional Conference and Training uling topics; events provide an environment to meet
Seminars. EVM World 2009 Conference • A mock trial with a real judge; and fellow practitioners across all industries,
is a chance to learn about project per- • Opportunity to meet distinguished share experiences, and exchange ideas.
formance techniques, including earned project management authors. PMI credential holders who attend
value management (EVM). The confer- congress can earn Professional
ence provides training, current topics eSeminarsWorldSM Offerings Development Units (PDUs) toward the
from practicing professionals, access to eSeminarsWorldSM is a series of instructor- maintenance of their credential. ■

142-144PMJ0213.qxd 3/6/09 12:14 PM Page 142
Project Management Journal

Guidelines
The Project Management Journal® publishes research Editing Your Paper
relevant to researchers, advanced practitioners, and Make sure papers adhere to the theme or question to be
organizations from the project, program, and portfo- answered. Writing should be clear and concise. Full-
lio management field. Due to the integrative and length research articles should not exceed 30 double-
interdisciplinary nature of these fields, the Journal spaced manuscript pages, including references, appen-
publishes the best papers from a number of other dis- dixes, tables, and figures.
ciplines, including, but not limited to, organizational
behavior and theory, strategic management, sociolo-
Manuscript Format/Style
All manuscripts submitted for consideration should
gy, economics, political science, history, information
meet the following guidelines:
science, systems theory, communication theory, and
• All papers must be written in the English language
psychology. We look for papers that are of interest to a
(American spelling).
broad audience. The Journal publishes qualitative
• Title page of the manuscript should include the title of
papers as well as quantitative works and purely con-
the paper, author name(s) and affiliation(s), and the
ceptual or theoretical papers, including diverse
name, mailing address, and phone and fax numbers of
research methods and approaches. Our aim is to inte-
the author to whom correspondence should be directed.
grate the various types of project, program, and port-
folio management research.
To permit objective reviews by two referees, the
The Journal neither approves nor disapproves, nor
abstract and first page of the text must not reveal the
does it guarantee the validity or accuracy of any data,
author(s) and/or affiliation(s), but only the manuscript
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title.
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Formatting the Paper
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Authors are expected to describe the knowledge Windows format. If the conversion does not work, Mac
and foundations underlying their research approach, and users should save files as Word (.doc) files.
theoretical concepts that give meaning to data, and to
Fonts
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Use a 10- or 12-point Times or Times New Roman font.
Papers that speculate beyond current thinking are more
You may use bold and italics in the text, but do not
desirable than papers that use tried-and-true methods
underline. Use 10-point Helvetica or Arial font for text
to study routine problems, or papers motivated strictly
within tables and graphics.
by data collection and analysis.
Authors should strive to be original, insightful, and Margins
theoretically bold; demonstration of a significant value- Papers should be double-spaced and in a single-column
added advance to the field’s understanding of an issue format. All margins should be 1 inch.
or topic is crucial to acceptance for publication.
Headings
Multiple-study papers that feature diverse methodolog-
Use 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-level headings only.
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tributions. References, Footnotes, Tables, Figures,
Authors should make contributions of specialized and Appendices
research to project, program, and portfolio manage- Always acknowledge the work of others used to advance
ment theory and define any specialized terms and ana- a point in your paper. For questions regarding reference
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well written, avoiding jargon at all times. The Journal Manual of the American Psychological Association.
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a greater significance to one methodological style than cation date in parentheses, (e.g., Cleland & King, 1983),
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the manuscript. Include page numbers for all quota- and fax numbers, and e-mail address. Correspon-
tions. dence will be directed only to the first author listed.
Follow the format in the examples shown below: • Abstract of 100 words or less that outlines the purpose,
scope, and conclusions of the manuscript.
Baker, B. (1993). The project manager and the
• Keywords. Select 4 to 8 keywords.
media: Some lessons from the stealth bomber pro-
• Text (use headings and no more than two levels of sub-
gram. Project Management Journal, 24(3), 11–14.
headings). To permit objective reviews by two referees,
Cleland, D. I., & King, W. R. (1983). Systems analysis the abstract and first page of the text should not reveal the
and project management. New York: McGraw-Hill. authors and/or affiliations, but only the manuscript
Hartley, J. R. (1992). Concurrent engineering. title.
Cambridge, MA: Productivity Press. • References.
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Graphics and Illustrations bered (in Arabic numerals), and placed on a separate
Be sure to number tables and figures with Arabic
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script acceptance, authors must also provide a signed
in 300-dpi jpg, tiff, or Powerpoint formats.
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Tips for creating graphics:
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By submitting a manuscript, the author certifies that
tion can be difficult to display).
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although the Journal is published in grayscale.
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Accepted manuscripts may be subject to editorial
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changes made by the Editor. The author is solely respon-
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Use an appendix to provide more detailed informa-
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Submission Policy Review Process

The reputation of the Journal and contribution to
Submit manuscripts electronically using the journal’s
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can be addressed. Specific comments, reactions, and Double-Blind Reviews

suggestions are required. Submissions are subjected to a double-blind review, where-
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Pointers on the Substance of the Review Theory
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mulation?
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• Does the study inform or improve our understanding
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of that theory?
insightful contribution.
• Are the concepts clearly defined?
• Consider the Contribution of the Manuscript. Technical
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proper credit to existing work on the topic? Has the
issues for a review, but the overall contribution that the
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paper offers is also considered. Papers will not be
tain an appropriate number of references?
accepted if the contribution it offers is not meaningful
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or interesting. Reviewers will address uncertainties in
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• Consider Submissions From Authors Whose Native
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Language Is not English. Reviewers will distinguish
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between the quality of the writing, which may be fix-
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or quantitative) appropriate for the research question
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and theory?
Respectful Reviews • Does the paper make a new and meaningful contribu-
PMI recognizes that authors have spent a great deal of tion to the management literature in terms of theory,
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always treat an author’s work with respect, even if the • Has the author given proper citation to the original
reviewer disagrees or finds fault with what has been source of all information given in his or her work or in
written. others’ work that was cited?

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Volume 40, Number 1

4 Project Management Models as Value Creators

The Project Management Journal (Print ISSN 8756-

© 2009 Project Management Institute, Inc. All rights reserved.

Help us Celebrate PROJECT AWARDS

in Project Management PMI Fellow Award

PMI Linn Stuckenbruck Person

PMI Eric Jenett Project Management

Project Management Journal Paper

Continuing Professional Education

The First Study

Researching the Value of Project Management

Findings discussed in Researching the Value of Project

An invaluable addition to every project professional’s library.

Order your copy now at www.PMI.org/valuebook.

Making project management indispensable for business results.®

All prices are listed in U.S. dollars.

The Professional Research Journal of the Project Management Institute

19 Project Management Improvement Efforts—Creating Project Management Value By Uniqueness

28 The Value of Project Management to Organizations in Canada and Germany, or Do Values

55 Building Value Through Sustainable Project Management Offices

110 Project Management Systems: Moving Project Management From an Operational

136 Cover to Cover—Book Reviews

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal 1

Explorations of Value: Perspectives of the Value

2 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 3

4 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 5

Table 1: Case companies.

6 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 7

methods and tools. A career path for

8 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

project cycle from project preparation

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 9

development services. While maintaining

market shares have been increasing in

the Russian Federation, the Baltic region,

Project Management Model

10 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

they can boost their competitive advan-

Reducing number of repeated problem Efficiency Company E

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 11

12 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 13

ing how to structure, approach, and

14 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

Characteristics Company A Company B Company C Company D Company E

Table 7: Characteristics of the project management models of the case companies.

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 15

Table 8: Obtained values in the case companies according to the informants.

16 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 17

18 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

KEYWORDS: value of project management;

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 19

The education part has also been

20 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 21

22 March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj

March 2009 ■ Project Management Journal ■ DOI: 10.1002/pmj 23