research overview 25-mar-2015 terence ahern be, mba, phd academic supervisors: prof. brian leavy...

Research Overview

25-Mar-2015

Terence Ahern BE, MBA, PhD

Academic Supervisors: Prof. Brian Leavy & Prof. P.J. Byrne

The Development of Project Management Capability in Complex Organizational Settings: Towards

a Knowledge-Based View

1Dr. Terence Ahern - PhD Research Overview

Table of Contents


Introduction & Research

Background

Research Findings & Implications

Research Conclusions

Innovation Learning

Organization

Organizational Context & Research Motivation

Environmental Change & Organizational Innovation

Rapid change in the external environments of public sector organizations in the 1990s/2000s – National Development Plans and EU market deregulation of the energy sector

Trigger for the development of project management capability (PMC) for delivering capital infrastructure projects in two public-sector organizations investigated –

Iarnród Éireann / Irish Rail and ESB, each with 5,000 to 10,000 employees

Research Motivation How do large and complex organizations develop significant new strategic capabilities

from a previous low base in response to radical environmental change?

Complex organizations - open systems, indeterminate, faced with uncertainty. Use models of rationality to seek determinacy and certainty.


Research Model - Developing Project Management Capability (PMC)


Research Question: How do learning processes underpin the development of Project Management Capability (PMC) in complex organizational settings?

Data Collection & Analysis Primary data: 51 semi-structured interviews - 35 in Iarnród Éireann and 16 in ESB

– total transcripts of 350k words

Secondary data: company procedures, reports, documentation, etc.

Inductive analysis of data using a practice-oriented research perspective

Goals Practice - Learning Development

PMC Development Context - External & Internal

External Stimulus

Goals

PMC Dimensions Goals

Structures Procedures Resources Systems

PMC Process Groups

Goals Differentiation

Integration Normalization

Organizational Capability Development - Approaches Resource Based View (Economics)

Penrose (1959) – Theory of the growth of the firm (TGF)

Organizations as pools of resources services derived from resources

Management experience as a limit on firm growth and capability development

Barney (1990) - Resources as valuable, rare, inimitable, non-substitutable (V R I N)

Grant (1991) – Framework for resources, capabilities, strategy … Porter’s 5-Forces

Teece et al (1997) – Dynamic capability for resource reconfiguration in volatile environments

Organizational Routines (Economics) Nelson & Winter (1982) – Routines as building blocks for capability

Zollo & Winter (2002) – Co-evolution of operational / dynamic routines and learning

Organizational Culture Barney (1986) – Values, beliefs, assumptions, symbols … valuable, rare, inimitable

Knowledge Based View (Learning) Nonaka et al (1991) - Knowledge creation explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge

Grant (1996) – “Toward a knowledge-based theory of the firm”, Strategic Mgmt Jnl


Organizational Capability Development – Playing Chess

Resources Chess pieces ... Lego blocks

Routines Standard moves as building blocks – all known games as prior knowledge

Rule driven – apply existing knowledge little learning

Culture Game protocols, behaviour, etiquette, etc

Attitudes to risk and reward

Prestige attached to winning

Innovation & Learning Every game different learning

Exploratory moves learning

Innovative moves learning

Continuous improvement continuous learning


Knowledge is a Tricky Business

Economic Development

Knowledge Economy

Smart Economy

Knowledge Workers

Value-Add

Etc.

Complete the Sentence

Knowledge is …


Types of Knowledge & Interaction Explicit Knowledge (Known)

Practical knowledge - professions, business, organizations, politics, households

Intellectual knowledge - arts, culture, science (E = mc2)

Pastime knowledge - gossip, news, stories, jokes

Spiritual knowledge - religion

Unwanted knowledge - accidently acquired, aimlessly retained


Experiential Knowledge (Knowing) Knowing that - propositional (know-that) … today is Wednesday … E = mc2

Knowing what - aggregations of knowing that

Knowing how - procedural (know-how)

Knowing who; Knowing whom; Knowing why; Knowing when; Knowing where

Tacit Dimension of Knowledge “We can know more than we can tell” (Michael Polanyi)

Recognising a face in a crowd; riding a bicycle; speaking a language; doing algebra

From-to character of the tacit dimension. Integration “from” subsidiary particulars “to” a focal referent , e.g., piano playing, acting role (lines)

Tacit foreknowledge - entrepreneurs see environment as “image” (Penrose)

Interplay

Research Inquiry - Knowledge Boundaries & Opportunities

Main Research QuestionHow do learning processes underpin the development of Project Management Capability (PMC) in complex organizational settings?

How do organizations learn and create new knowledge? ‒ Learning-before-doing vs. learning-by-doing

Can organizations learn or is it only individuals who can learn? ‒ Individual minds vs. collective mind

Is organizational learning equal to or greater than the sum of the parts? ‒ Lego blocks vs. teamwork synergy

Knowledge terminology – what’s the difference and why it matters‒ Data, information, known (know-that), knowing (know-how), intuition (tacit), wisdom

What is organizational knowledge and where is it found? ‒ Explicit ... libraries, databases, etc.‒ Experiential ... embedded in organizational processes, routines, practices, etc.‒ Tacit ... embodied in organizational personnel, relationships, behaviours, etc.

How can knowledge creation, learning, and utilization in organizations be managed? ‒ Explicit ... planned ... centralized ‒ Experiential ... planned / emergent ... centralized / distributed‒ Tacit ... emergent ... distributed


Table of Contents



Background



Innovation Learning

Organization

Research Findings and Implications for Developing Organizational Capability in Project Management

Main Research Insight - PMC is Developed Through Organizational ‛Complex Problem Solving’ (CPS)

Planning Paradox: Unlike traditional projects, complex projects cannot be fully specified in advance

Incomplete knowledge Continuous learning during projects PMC as practice

(1) Complex knowledge formation is emergent bounded planning distributed management

(2) Knowledge formation is grounded in problem solving, which involves organizing and learning

(3) Developing organizational capability involves dynamic, non-linear, organizational learning


Output

Input

Individual ComplexProjects Projects

Medium/LargeProjects

Project Knowledge Spectrum

Revised Linear Model

Innovation – Team

Innovation – Individual

Planning

(Ahern et al, 2014)

Research Findings - 1



Emergent Complex Knowledge Formation & Distributed Organizing

In traditional projects, plans are goal-driven with little learning expected during implementation beyond linear learning based on error detection and elimination planning paradigm

As complex projects cannot be fully specified in advance, incomplete plans at the outset are common learning during project delivery is intrinsic but often downplayed

Leadership by consensus of a community of learners that delivers a project by learning the project vs. leadership by authority of a production team in the application of prior knowledge

Distributed coordination mechanism, such as ‘a common will of mutual interest’, which is fostered around project goals and paced by the project life cycle synergy


Project Capability Traditional Complex

Planning Specified Goals & Means Outline Goals & Means

Metaphor Gyroscope Puzzle Solving

Main Locus of Risk Planning Phase Planning & Execution Phases

Organizational Learning Theory Guided Evolution (Plans) Means-End (Goals)

Project Execution Mode & Plan-Led, Error Detection, & Goal-Led, Exploratory, &

Theory of Knowledge Growth Linear Problem Solving Non-Linear Problem Solving








Output

Input





Innovation – Team


Planning

(Ahern et al, 2014)

Choice and evaluation ‘screens’

Uncertainty regarding thefinal design

Certainty regarding the

final design

TIM

E

Design involves progressively reducing the number of possibilities until the final design is reached

CONCEPT

FINAL DESIGN SPECIFICATON

Large number of design options

One design

Slack, Chambers, & Johnston (2007)

Knowledge Funnel

Knowledge Funnel

Research Findings - 2 Knowledge Formation Through Problem Solving as a Mode of Organizing and Learning

Problem solving approach is reinterpreted as a two-stage process of differentiation (disordering) and integration (ordering) activities that reduces knowledge entropy (disorder)

Knowledge formation involves organizing and learning at the same time as a synonymous duality of ‘organizing-learning’ knowledge formation is a mode of organizing and learning

(MOL)

Creative destruction - knowledge formation follows a path from “order to disorder to order” rather than from “order to order” under traditional assumptions. The transition point ‘B’

between differentiation and integration can be leveraged.

A project is a mode of organizing to accomplish a temporary undertaking vs. project as task

KnowledgeBellows

BEntropy Envelope Entropy Envelope

entropy (+) entropy (-)

Start → Differentiation → Integration → Goal(Goal)

divergence convergencedisordering ordering

Logical Structure of Knowledge Formation









Output

Input





Innovation – Team


Planning

(Ahern et al, 2014)


Organizational Capability Development as Dynamic ‛Organizational Learning’

As a new strategic capability, project management capability (PMC) is developed as a dynamic ‛organizational learning’ capability through continuous ‛complex problem solving’ (CPS)

PMC development as a 'learning organization‘ and multi-level ‘capability ecology’

Like a fractal snowflake pattern, the same logical structure for learning is found to operate at individual and organizational levels – goals, differentiation, integration, normalization


PROBLEM-SOLVING LEARNING GOALS DIFFERENTIATION INTEGRATION NORMALIZATION

PM - PMBOK

PMI (2013) - process groups initiating planning executing closingmonitoring & controlling → → → →

PMC Development (IE & ESB) GOALS DIFFERENTIATION INTEGRATION NORMALIZATION

PMC Development - External goals consulting drafting publishingPMC Development - Board goals devising implementing regularizingPMC Development - Organization goals designing configuring transferringPMC Development - Project (Supervision) goals planning executing handoverPMC Development - Project (Works Staff) goals survey/design/plan implement handover

monitoring & controlling → → → →

Research Model - Developing Project Management Capability (PMC)


Research Question: How do learning processes underpin the development of Project Management Capability (PMC) in complex organizational settings?

Data Collection & Analysis Primary data: 51 semi-structured interviews - 35 in Iarnród Éireann and 16 in ESB

– total transcripts of 350k words

Secondary data: company procedures, reports, documentation, etc.

Inductive analysis of data using a practice-oriented research perspective

Goals Practice - Learning Development

PMC Development Context - External & Internal

External Stimulus

Goals

PMC Dimensions Goals

Structures Procedures Resources Systems

PMC Process Groups

Goals Differentiation

Integration Normalization

Table of Contents



Background



Innovation Learning

Organization

Conclusions and Implications for a Knowledge Based View –

Boundaries and Opportunities

Inquiry Knowledge Boundaries and OpportunitiesMain Research Question

How do learning processes underpin the development of Project Management Capability (PMC) in complex organizational settings?

How do organizations learn and create new knowledge? ‒ Learning-before-doing vs. learning-by-doing

Can organizations learn or is it only individuals who can learn? ‒ Individual minds vs. collective mind

Is organizational learning equal to or greater than the sum of the parts? ‒ Lego blocks vs. teamwork synergy

Knowledge terminology – what’s the difference and why it matters‒ Data, information, known (know-that), knowing (know-how), intuition (tacit), wisdom

What is organizational knowledge and where is it found? ‒ Explicit ... libraries, databases, etc.‒ Experiential ... embedded in organizational processes, routines, practices, etc.‒ Tacit ... embodied in organizational personnel, relationships, behaviours, etc.

How can knowledge creation, learning, and utilization in organizations be managed? ‒ Explicit ... planned ... centralized ‒ Experiential ... planned / emergent ... centralized / distributed‒ Tacit ... emergent ... distributed


Table of Contents



Background



Innovation Learning

Organization

Innovation Learning Framework


Systems Thinking

----- Innovation

Culture (Self-Organizing)

Shared Vision

----- Common

Will

Personal Mastery

----- Master

Practice

Mental Models

----- Distributed Organizing

Team Learning

----- Community of Learners

Innovation Learning Organization

KnowledgeUncertainty

-UnknownKnowns

KnowledgeIndeterminacy

-Unknown Unknowns

ExperientialKnowledge

- Known

Unknowns

ExplicitKnowledge

- Known Knowns

(adapted from Senge, 1990)

Knowledge Formation Potential: From N-Synergy to N2-Synergy

When knowledge is embodied in people, there are two knowledge links between every two people, not one. If someone is inspired by a colleague, this represents one

knowledge link. But, if there is mutual inspiration based on a shared interest and cooperation, there are two knowledge links

Between 2 people, there are 4 potential knowledge elements - 2 individuals and 2 links

Using people as corner points that form geometric shapes, the knowledge elements between people build up as a squared series based on the number of people – 12, 22 (line), 32

(triangle), 42 (square), 52 (pentagon), 62 (hexagon), etc.


Persons (N) A 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... NKnowledge Link Pairs B 0 1 3 6 10 15 ...Knowledge Links C (Bx2) 0 2 6 12 20 30 ...Knowledge Elements D (A+C) 1 4 9 16 25 36 ... N2

Learning Organization Knowledge Potential

(Ahern, 2013; Ahern et al, 2015)

Thank You!

Q & A?

The Development of Project Management Capability in Complex Organizational Settings: Towards

a Knowledge-Based View


research overview 25-mar-2015 terence ahern be, mba, phd academic supervisors: prof. brian leavy...

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