| 1. |
- Backlund, Fredrik, et al.
(författare)
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Project Management Maturity Models – A Critical Review : A Case Study within Swedish Engineering and Construction Organizations
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier. - 1877-0428. ; 119, s. 837-846
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Different kinds of project management maturity models (PM3s) exist today, most of them inspired by the capability maturity model (CMM) developed in the beginning of the 90ies, originally intended to measure capability in software development projects. Research indicates that organizations with higher project management (PM) maturity levels are expected to be successful in terms of project effectiveness and efficiency, and thus have a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Though, despite several PM3s developed during a time period of over 20 years, knowledge about how PM3s are a*pplied in organizations is sparse within the PM literature. This paper explores how major engineering and construction companies view PM maturity and PM3s in order to develop and improve their PM practices. These kinds of organizations are mainly project-intensive, objective oriented,and have the capabilities to perform overall business development initiatives, i.e. suitable for applying PM3s.The contribution of PM3s to organizational improvement and development is somewhat unclear. Therefore, a literature review highlights different aspects regarding PM3s, specifically their purpose, strengths, and weaknesses. To what extent PM3s are used, interviews have been conducted with seven respondents within different project intensive organizations, in their roles as project managers or in charge of PM development. How a PM3 can beintroduced and applied is explored via an in-depth case study at the major mining company in Sweden, LKAB. However, tentative results show that the application of PM3s in Swedish engineering and construction organizations are limited, indicating that further research is needed
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| 2. |
- Bergman, Inger, 1948, et al.
(författare)
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Teaching Organizational Project Management at Postgraduate Level
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 119, s. 446-455
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- At postgraduate level, students expect more than basic project management education. Therefore a course called “Organisational Project Management” (OPM) was introduced in an international master's program in project management. The intention with the course was twofold: Firstly, to introduce OPM as a research field in organization theory; secondly, to prepare the students for working in a multi-project environment. In this paper we present how the course was designed to fulfill the students’ demands on an academic course at this level, while at the same time giving them practical experience of how OPM is implemented in the industry. Hence, the course is divided in a theoretical part presenting current theories in OPM, and a practical part, in which the students study how these theories and practices are applied in different companies. The students are working in a project spanning from initiation to closure, in which they prepare for and perform a maturity assessment of a company of their choice. The course has been run in six consecutive programs. From start, feedback from the students has shown that they consider the learning outcome very high and useful for their future work life. For some of the students, this is the first time that they have been provided an opportunity to discuss organizational issues and concepts such as project governance and project portfolio management with a manager in the industry. For students with work experience, the course has provided means to reflect on their previous work life.
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| 3. |
- Browne, Michael, et al.
(författare)
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A Comparative Assessment of the Light Goods Vehicles Fleet and the Scope to Reduce its CO2 Emissions in the UK and France
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 125, s. 334-344
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Light goods vehicles (vans) are an important and growing part of road traffic in the UK and France, especially in urban areas. Given the continued growth in van traffic it seems timely to consider the reasons for this growth and the scope for carbon dioxide (CO2) reductions. By comparing growth patterns and CO2 reduction opportunities in two countries it is possible to identify some of the most important directions for policy. In each country analysis is presented of the van fleet, its annual average distance travelled, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
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| 4. |
- Gustafsson, Anton, et al.
(författare)
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Have Computer - Will Travel : A Discourse Analysis of a 1:1 Initiative in Upper Secondary School.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 141:0, s. 182-187
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of the presented study is to investigate how teachers and students renegotiate their positions within a pedagogical discourse where problems and possibilities are manifested through the new artifact, the personal computer. The sample consists of teachers and students at an upper secondary school in Sweden where all students have been provided with a personal laptop by their school. Information has been collected by the use of semi-structured interviews. The analysis mainly draws on Laclau & Mouffe’s theories of how subjects create discourses through articulations and then investigate qualitative differences between interviewees. The results indicate that teachers actively include some specific meanings of the computer while others are excluded. A recurring feature of this was the conflict of old and new practices with the introduction such as the perceived conflict between computers and textbooks. This relation remained controversial among teachers. The students had to negotiate the teachers’ definition of the computer because of the power relations, even though they could account for a far wider and more reflexive stance towards the potential of the computer.
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| 5. |
- Holguín-Veras, J, et al.
(författare)
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The New York City Off-hour Delivery Project: Lessons for City Logistics
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 125, s. 36-48
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The paper identifies and discusses the fundamental tenets that should guide planning and implementation of City Logistics projects, and the chief lessons learned from the off-hours delivery project conducted in New York City.
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| 6. |
- Lindholm, Maria, 1979
(författare)
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Successes and Failings of an Urban Freight Quality Partnership – The Story of the Gothenburg Local Freight Network
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 125, s. 125-135
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Freight Quality Partnerships (FQPs) for urban areas have gained interest during the last decade, as a way of including stakeholders in the discussions of freight problems and possible solutions. However, there is little knowledge of how those FQPs succeed. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how the partnerships can be developed over time, identifying problems and how they have been handled in order to be overcome as well as what experiences that could be transferred to other cities. This paper is presented as a narrative of a specific urban freight quality partnership, namely the one in Gothenburg, Sweden. The research is based on document analysis, interviews, a survey and a workshop amongst participants of the partnership as well as on participation at regular partnership meetings. Results suggest that the partnership approach is valuable in creating a good urban freight environment as well as for discussing potential solutions to specific problems. However, to gain good results from the partnership and the necessary long-term perspective, the partnership demands time and careful effort by the management in order to develop the partnership as well as to maintain interest amongst its stakeholders. Other cities are recommended to use a partnership approach in order to create good cooperation between freight stakeholders on a long-term basis, and in order to find possible solutions to urban freight problems that avoid sub-optimisation.
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| 7. |
- Ryd, Nina, 1968
(författare)
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Construction Clients Challenges – Emphasizing Early Stages
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 119, s. 134-141
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The built environment sector faces many challenges in terms of urbanization, energy efficiency, climate and demographic changes, etc. In addition, future today unknown challenges. Meeting these - and create sustainable, attractive cities and regions - cannot be done without the knowledge of architects, engineers and urban planners. Characteristic of a sustainable built environment is that there are many actors involved, both for professionals, policy makers and concerned parties. Among all these, the construction client has a significant role, a position that largely allows for the influence and change in attitudes, behaviors and procedures required for managing a sustainable transition. The paper consists of three parts, a basic survey of client's role's future challenges in managing construction projects based on questionnaire and interview studies, and a part where national and international examples are investigated. The third part develops new models of explanation. Although there is consensus on the importance of long-term and sustainable approach to urban development, much remains before this is reflected in the processes and patterns of organization for project implementation and management of the built environment. Ex. the short-term effectiveness in individual construction projects combined with long-term innovation to support sustainable development. An important question is how the understanding of social structures and activities can be integrated with technical and scientific knowledge for the assessment of costs in relation to public benefit.
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| 8. |
- Sundqvist, Erik, et al.
(författare)
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What is Project Efficiency and Effectiveness?
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier BV. - 1877-0428. ; 119, s. 278-287
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The concepts of efficiency and effectiveness are commonly used when evaluating different processes. As project management can be described by different kinds of processes, the aim with this research is to explore the concepts within project management through the lens of quality management. Since project-based organisations are often struggling with the balance between time, cost and quality, they are interested in doing this as efficient and effective as possible. However, there are a wide variety of views on efficiency and effectiveness among professionals and research scholars, which makes it difficult to apply these concepts in project-based settings.The study is based on a literature review and includes interviews with project office managers from Swedish construction and engineering companies. Findings from the study indicate that the terms efficiency and effectiveness are used without clear definitions, where measurements are executed and results interpreted in various ways. Clarifying the interpretation of project efficiency and effectiveness would help and support project- based organisations in their improvement work. Clarity implies improved preconditions to measure efficiency and effectiveness, and the possibility to develop indicators that can be used to help guide the organization in the desired direction. A clearer view on project efficiency and effectiveness can also be a basis for internal improvements in terms of time, cost and quality, as well as external improvements in terms of customer satisfaction.
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| 9. |
- von Schéele, Fabian, et al.
(författare)
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Time Distortion as a Metric for Information and Economy in Organizational Control
- 2014
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Ingår i: Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences. - : Elsevier. ; 147, s. 70-77
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Organizational management systems, for control and command, have attracted a great amount of research and debate since the very origin of management, as its underlying question is: how to manage human activity systems successfully? More recently, the so-called ‘Balanced Score Card’ approach has assumed dominance in managers’ practice. While that approach has its merits, it also has some important limitations; among others it ignores time and its relation to information. To deal with some aspect of this limitation, this paper introduces a metric, (e.g. mathematical model) funded upon information theory (entropy) that is linked through a notion of time-distortion to the economic performance of an organization. In this, a goal-related time- distortion, between a management system and its operating system, is a carrier of information with economic dependence. The proposed model shows, among others, that time-distortion influences economic performance dramatically, including a lever effect, while high information entropy does not necessarily imply high economic outcome.
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