Boundary Management in Projects: Antecedents, Activities and Performance

Despite increasing interest among practitioners and the recent scientific explo-rations on the dynamics of boundary management in project and team contexts, the existing studies seems to lack empirical understanding on the factors that explain the boundary management behavior of project managers. The purpose of this study is to analyze how the three antecedent factors - cross-functional participation, embeddedness and top management control - are related to four different types of boundary management activities practiced by project managers, namely coordinating, enabling, reporting and guarding. Based on the sample of 236 projects, the results show that embeddedness and top-management control have positive influence on boundary-management activities and cross-functional participation has both positive and negative contribution to boundary management activities. Furthermore, the results reveal that boundary management activities have both positive and negative influence on project performance. Contributions of the research are discussed, as well as practical implications, limitations, and directions for future research.Boundary management, project team, embeddedness, cross-functional participation, top-management control

Pengaruh Kualitas Hubungan Sesama Anggota Tim Dan Kepemimpinan Bersama Terhadap Efektivitas Tim Pada Organisasi Publik

. This study aims to examine the effect of team member exchange qualities and shared leadership on team effectiveness in order to describe cross-functional integration conditions in public organizations. Cross-functional integration on these research explained with two points of view, as a group members behavior and as a team process. Cross-functional integration as a group members behavior established if (1) team member exchange qualities positively affects shared leadership; and (2) shared leadership positively affects team effectiveness. Cross-functional integration as a team process established if team member exchange qualities affects on team effectiveness through shared leadership. The study was conducted on Directorate A, B and C, with totally 90 respondents. The research method used regression analysis and path analysis. The results showed (1) team member exchange qualities positively affect shared leadership on Directorate A, B and C; (2) shared leadership positively affects team effectiveness on Directorate B and C; and (3) team member exchange qualities positively affects team effectiveness through shared leadership on Directorate C. Based on those results, we can conclude that cross-functional integration as group member behavior established in Directorate B and C, and cross-functional integration as a team process established only in Directorate C

Kerjasama Tim Lintas Fungsi Dan Kinerja Manajemen Proyek

This paper examines the linkage between cross-functional teamwork and project management performance. The main thrust of the study is continuing debates on how cross-functional teamwork contributes to project management performance: on-time, on-budget, and on-purpose. The level of influence was observed based on six critical factors: the clarity of super-ordinate goals, conformity of project team members to organization rules and procedures, physical proximity of each project team members, accessibility of project team members, knowledge sharing amongst project team members, and fairness of selection process of the project team members.The study uses combination of survey and case studies approach to answer such complex question. Samples were driven from 44 healthcare projects under the coordination of Health Department in East Java involving 88 respondents in the study. The hierarchical regression analysis was then used to explain major antecedents of cross-functional teamwork on the performance of project management.The study concludes that successful project management accounts multi-dimensional issues. The clarity of super-ordinate goals and physical proximity of team members have positive and significant influence in the performance of cross-functional teamwork. These invite further research to improve generalizability of the study

Structural differentiation and ambidexterity: The mediating role of integration mechanisms

Prior studies have emphasized that structural attributes are crucial to simultaneously pursuing exploration and exploitation, yet our understanding of antecedents of ambidexterity is still limited. Structural differentiation can help ambidextrous organizations to maintain multiple inconsistent and conflicting demands; however, differentiated exploratory and exploitative activities need to be mobilized, coordinated, integrated, and applied. Based on this idea, we delineate formal and informal senior team integration mechanisms (e.g., contingency rewards and social integration) and formal and informal organizational integration mechanisms (e.g., cross-functional interfaces and connectedness) and examine how they mediate the relationship between structural differentiation and ambidexterity. Overall, our findings suggest that the previously asserted direct effect of structural differentiation on ambidexterity operates through informal senior team (i.e., senior team social integration) and formal organizational (i.e., cross-functional interfaces) integration mechanisms. Through this richer explanation and empirical assessment, we contribute to a greater clarity and better understanding of how organizations may effectively pursue exploration and exploitation simultaneously to achieve ambidexterity

CASE STUDY -- LEAN 94-01: Integrators, not Generalists Needed: A Case Study of IPD Teams at Textron Defense Systems

The following case study examines an organization that essentially eliminated traditional functional groups and assigned all employees to cross-functional product or process teams. Although the organizational and cultural change occurred throughout the enterprise, this case will focus primarily on the structure of teams and the management of skills and capabilities within the integrated product development (IPD) core process. In the IPD area, multi-disciplinary teams were established with the expectation that individuals would both retain their own area of expertise and broaden their understanding of the functional expertise of their fellow team members. In essence, team members were expected to become “integrators,” as opposed to “generalists.” Although a major cultural change has occurred over a two-year time period, the change to date is considered as only the first step in an evolutionary process. The transition of this organization from a traditional matrix with strong functional hierarchies to a team-based structure highlights a number of human resource implications, including team selection, performance evaluation and rewards, and career paths. The study will conclude with a summary of lessons learned and the applicability of such an organization to the defense aircraft industry

How to promote knowledge sharing in cross-functional NPD teams

This paper investigates the common issues that may arise in cross-functional new product development (NPD) teams from a Knowledge Management perspective. The study has been built around a contextualized trigger, where several factors were preventing a new-born NPD team from performing effectively. The purpose of this paper is to give insights of the main dynamics involved in the knowledge sharing process throughout the application of a systematic problem-solving approach to the case investigated by the authors. Due to the impossibility of building a universal recipe suitable for every team in every situation, this work represents a compromise trying to exemplify how to prioritise interventions in a given context, in order to provide a benchmark for similar circumstances. This paper, using an action research method within a single case context, takes shape around the advises and suggestions made by authors to Electronic Connected Ltd (disguised name), a small-medium enterprise (SME) in a situation of NPD paralysis. In particular, the paper emphasizes the importance of effective leadership and supporting environment in facilitating communication, enhancing cohesiveness, fostering joint commitment and giving direction in order to enable knowledge sharing and to leverage capabilities to conclusively deliver new products

Using a Peer-Nominated Team to Drive Change and Improve Trust

The article discusses the use of a peer-nominated team for driving change and improvement of trust in an organization. Topics include the concerns identified by the leadership of an organization during the survey of employees annually, the case study regarding the utilization of a peer nominated, cross-functional team within a multi-national healthcare company in Canada, and the involvement aspired by the client organization to start the change process

Agile values and their implementation in practice

Today agile approaches are often used for the development of digital products. Since their development in the 90s, Agile Methodologies, such as Scrum and Extreme Programming, have evolved. Team collaboration is strongly influenced by the values and principles of the Agile Manifesto. The values and principles described in the Agile Manifesto support the optimization of the development process. In this article, the current operation is analyzed in Agile Product Development Processes. Both, the cooperation in the project team and the understanding of the roles and tasks will be analyzed. The results are set in relation to the best practices of Agile Methodologies. A quantitative questionnaire related to best practices in Agile Product Development was developed. The study was carried out with 175 interdisciplinary participants from the IT industry. For the evaluation of the results, 93 participants were included who have expertise in the subject area Agile Methodologies. On one hand, it is shown that the collaborative development of product-related ideas brings benefits. On the other hand, it is investigated which effect a good understanding of the product has on decisions made during the implementation. Furthermore, the skillset of product managers, the use of pair programming, and the advantages of cross-functional teams are analyzed.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TIN2013-46928-C3-3-