Time-limited and complex interaction : studies of industrial projects

• This doctoral dissertation reports on four case studies of industrial project organizations: The studies cover product development and construction projects at ABB, Ericsson and Volvo. Generally, the studies aim at exploring the time-limited and complex character of project interaction. Particularly, they focus on three aspects of time-limited interaction, i.e. deadlines as control mechanisms, the effects of temporary relationships and the problems due to differences in time orientation among project actors.Deadlines are analyzed in their capacity to promote global reflection and rethinking especially in projects of a concurrent nature. Temporary relationships are analyzed in contexts of clients and contractors in project-based industries and between individuals and organizations in professional project-intensive industries. Time-limited and complex interaction in project organizations is also investigated by analyzing differences in time orientation among project actors. By utilizing the concept of pacing, it is submitted that time orientation problems are frequently at the core of project management and perhaps particularly difficult in inter-firm settings.This dissertation consists of eight papers and an extended summary where different aspects of the time-limited dimension are analyzed. One of the papers also suggests a categorization of the schools of thought currently prevailing in project management research.

Nyckelord

project management

project organization

temporary organization

time limits

complexity

deadlines

temporary relationships

time orientation

pacing

projektledning

företag

projektadministration

SOCIAL SCIENCES

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

dok (ämneskategori)