A new governance approach for multi-firm projects: lessons from Olkiluoto 3 and Flamanville 3 nuclear power plant projects

We analyze governance in two contemporary nuclear power plant projects: Olkiluoto 3 (Finland) and Flamanville 3 (France). We suggest that in the governance of large multi-firm projects, any of the prevalent governance approaches that rely on market, hierarchy, or hybrid forms, is not adequate as such. This paper opens up avenues towards a novel theory of governance in large projects by adopting a project network view with multiple networked firms within a single project, and by simultaneously going beyond organizational forms that cut across the traditional firm–market dichotomy. Our analysis suggests four changes in the prevailing perspective towards the governance of large projects. First, there should be a shift from viewing multi-firm projects as hierarchical contract organizations to viewing them as supply networks characterized by a complex and networked organizational structure. Second, there should be a shift in the emphasis of the predominant modes of governance, market and hierarchy towards novel governance approaches that emphasize network-level mechanisms such as self-regulation within the project. Third, there should be a shift from viewing projects as temporary endeavors to viewing projects as short-term events or episodes embedded in the long-term sphere of shared history and expected future activities among the involved actors. Fourth, there should be a shift from the prevailing narrow view of a hierarchical project management system towards an open system view of managing in complex and challenging institutional environments

Identifying Success Factors in Construction Projects: A Case Study

© 2015 by the Project Management Institute. Published online in Wiley Online Library. Defining "project success" has been of interest for many years, and recent developments combine multiple measurable and psychosocial factors that add to this definition. There has also been research into success factors, but little research into the causal chains through which success emerges. Following the multi-dimensionality of "success," this article shows how success factors combine in complex interactions; it describes factors contributing to project performance by a company working on two major construction programs and shows how to map and analyze paths from root causes to success criteria. The study also identifies some specific factors - some generic, some context-dependent - none of these is uncommon but here they come together synergistically

Involving, Countering and Overlooking Stakeholder Networks in Soft Regulation: Case study of a SME’s implementation of SA8000

To achieve effective stakeholder governance in the context of international social accountability certification (SA8000) requires constructing a network of agreement. In a case study of a small-to-medium-sized enterprise (SME), we examine managers’ attempts at enrolling participants in the supply chain to investigate how they strive to engage these stakeholders. We adopt actor-network theory (ANT) and sensemaking theory to develop a novel approach to understanding social accountability (SA) standards’ certification in stakeholder networks. We argue that the design and operation of any SA standard across a network requires not only attempts at enrolling other participants in the supply chain but management contextualizing and problematizing the terms of their involvement.acceptedVersio

Successful delivery of mega-projects

textThe term "mega-projects" is generally used to describe those projects whose capital budgets exceed one billion dollars. Many recent studies assessing the performance of mega-projects have concluded that cost and schedule overruns are common in all industry segments and world regions. Mega-projects are of importance not only to the stakeholders involved in development and construction, but also to the societies, economies, and environments impacted by these projects. There are very few studies that provide guidance on the effective planning and execution of megaprojects. Given the enormous amount of capital dollars at stake and the prevailing trend towards poor performance, the Construction Industry Institute initiated Research Team 315 (RT 315), Successful Delivery of Mega-projects, to attempt to identify why these failures happen and what can be done to prevent or reduce mega-project performance failures. The primary research question the team was tasked to find answer was: "What sorts of changes in project development and execution are needed to increase the likelihood of success on mega-projects?" After conducting a thorough literature review the RT finalized the following two hypothesis to validate (1) there are factors that have higher occurrence and performance impacts on mega-projects. (2) These factors require changes in mega-project planning and execution to improve the chances of successful outcomes. Through preliminary interviews, surveys, follow up interviews and case studies, the research identified 34 impact factors with high occurrence and high negative performance impact on mega-projects. The research also prioritized the most impactful factors that should be avoided or mitigated to increase the likelihood of successful mega-project outcomes. The research went deeper by identifying specific case examples of how the negative impacts might manifest. Furthermore, for each of the factors, the research identified specific mitigation strategies and recommendations that should be adopted during front-end-planning and execution. All of these results have been compiled into an Excel-based Implementation Resource, IR 315-2 Mega-Project Assessment of Criticality Tool (MPACT). MPACT provides project teams the means to a structured assessment process of critical factors on mega-projects, enabling more accurate and thorough mitigation planning on these impact factors, in order to improve mega-project performance.Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineerin

The ESG and the Multi-Employer Worksite: Protecting Workers and Best Practices in Construction

Construction is a high-risk industry. The built environment is a major source of carbon emissions and energy consumption. The time is now for this industry to embrace environmental, social, and governance (ESG). The construction industry lags behind many industries in their adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability Reporting (SR) with strategies to preserve human health and the environment in perpetuity. The multiemployer construction worksite is unique in that responsibility for ESG and Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) are often delegated to those subcontractors who have the least resources to practice CSR, SR, and effective OSH. The General Contractor (GC) has the power and responsibility to coordinate and support CSR, SR, and effective OSH. Organizations such as BREEA, IWBI-WELL, GBC, LEED, Green Globes, ISO, and others are available to assist companies in becoming good environmental citizens. In the US, OSHA has promulgated regulations to protect workers. The multiemployer worksite is controlled by the GC, who can ensure that all subcontractors are compliant with OSH regulations, as well as encourage and coordinate ESG initiatives. Best practices have been developed and disseminated to the construction industry. Humanity’s future is at stake, and the construction industry must step forward and become leaders in ESG and OSH

Worker voice and the health and safety regulatory system in New Zealand : an interpretivist case study inquiry in the commercial construction industry : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Figures 2.1 and 3.2 are re-used with permission.The importance of involving workers in effective management of workplace health and safety (WHS) risks is well established. Transforming this rhetoric into sustainable practice continues to be a global problem. The siloed nature of industrial relations, WHS, human resource management and organisational behaviour debates has resulted in researchers talking past each other. Consequently, there is a dearth of literature drawing WHS research into contemporary debates exploring a broad range of direct and indirect forms of ‘worker voice’. The purpose of this thesis is to determine how and why the current statutory framework is contributing to enhancing workers’ involvement in workplace decisions that affect their WHS outcomes. This interpretivist constructivist multiple-case study applies a Multidisciplinary Analytical Model of Worker Voice to demonstrate how a multidisciplinary approach bridges divides and facilitates rich understanding of a contemporary phenomenon. The thesis clarifies the ambiguity and misunderstanding of terms that influence the interpretation and enactment of duties in the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA). It identifies and maps the different forms of worker engagement, participation and representation (EP&R) that exist under the current statutory provisions in New Zealand, and more importantly, the influence of worker voice. This research enables us to understand how and under what conditions worker EP&R can thrive. The two-phase study involved semi-structured interviews with 14 key stakeholders at the macro and industry levels, and 31 case study participants in three large commercial construction organisations at the meso level. Secondary qualitative data sources included 12 observations, and public and organisational documents. Hermeneutic analysis and interpretation revealed how the current HSWA stimulated improvements in leadership and risk management. The characteristics of effective worker voice systems were co-constructed with the key stakeholders and developed into an EP&R Compliance Maturity Model of Worker Voice. This model highlighted proactive and reactive responses to the HSWA in the organisations operating in a low-union, high-risk context. The overarching perceptions of the HSWA reinvigorating interest in worker voice underpinned improvements in macro level tripartism and meso level engagement. However, traditional representation structures have been eroded rather than strengthened

Managing Risks in a Failing IT Project: A Social Constructionist View

Why do IT projects continue to stumble, despite the proliferation of risk management methodologies and a growing body of knowledge on project risk assessment and mitigation? In this paper, we propose an alternative theoretical perspective that views project risk as a social construction process shaped by the risk accounts of social groups and actors within an implementation context. Risk management is embedded in the social processes where risks are negotiated and contested, with some risk accounts amplified and some attenuated. Through the analysis of a large IT implementation in an Asian logistics firm and its trajectory of successive crises, we examine the process of the social construction of risk. Our findings highlight the inherent fragmentation and the challenge of building collectiveness in risk construction, and the need for risk managers to consider the influence of broader social structures and the reshaping dynamism of sudden focusing events in managing complex IT projects

Perverse incentives and invisible tradeoffs in subway construction in China: a case study of Hangzhou subway collapse

Abstract—Hangzhou subway collapse is the most serious subway construction disaster to date in China. In this article, the management and regulatory questions the collapse raised are focused and a case study of Hangzhou subway collapse is given. By regarding the contractual arrangement as an outcome of a power game of principal-agent, the social causes and the perverse incentives to strategic behaviors of the key players are investigated to explain the particular project outcomes. In the end, some policy suggestions are given for improving the safety performance of subway construction