Design Methods and Practices for Research of Project Management

Project management as a discipline has experienced near-exponential growth in its application across the business and not-for-profit sectors. This original, authoritative guide provides both practitioner and student researchers with a complete guide to research practice on project management. In Designs, Methods and Practices for Research of Project Management, Beverly Pasian has brought together original chapters from a veritable who's who of project management research including authors such as Harvey Maylor, Christophe Bredillet, Derek Walker, Miles Shepherd, Janice Thomas, Naomi Brookes and Darren Dalcher. The collection looks at research strategy, management, methodology, techniques as well as emerging topics such as social network analysis. The 38 chapters offer an international perspective with examples from a wide range of project management applications; engineering, construction, mega-projects, high-risk environments and social transformation. Each chapter includes tips and exercises for the research student, as well as a complete set of further references.

Contents: Foreword; Introduction. Part I Foundational Issues: Project management research: addressing integrative challenges, Harvey Maylor and Jonas Soederlund; Project management research: social dimensions and organisational context, Michael Young; The paradigm as a steering mechanism for new research endeavours, Thomas Biedenbach; Finding a way in Broceliande Forest: the magic domain of project management research, Christophe N. Bredillet; Ontology and epistemology, Ole Jonny Klakegg; The praxeology of applied research in autoethnographical research settings: a case study of a radical learning journey, Louis Klein and Christian A.P. Weiland. Part II Focusing your Research Effort: Research methods and success meaning in project management, Rogerio T.O. Lacerda, Leonardo Ensslin and Sandra Rolim Ensslin; The constructive research approach: problem solving for complex projects, Liisa Lehtiranta, Juha-Matti Junnonen, Sami Karna and Laura Pekuri; Novel or incremental contributions: the construction of research questions, Markus Hallgren; Moving from hunches to a research topic: salient literature and research methods, Beverley Lloyd-Walker and Derek Walker; Moving from `hunches' to an interesting research topic: defining the research topic, Derek Walker and Beverley Lloyd-Walker; Ethical considerations in project management research, Haukur Ingi Jonasson and Helgi Thor Ingason; Developing a critical literature review for project management research, Michael Tong and Craig Thomson; Critical engagement of previous research, Steven Nijhuis. Part III Specific Data Collection and Analysis Techniques: Interview methods for project management research, Miles Shepherd; Considering case studies in project management, Blaize Reich; Linking theory and practice in using action-oriented methods, Shankar Sankaran and Bob Dick; Dual cycle action research: a doctor of project management (DPM) research case study, Kersti Nogeste; An agile approach to the real experience of developing research methodology and methods, Hany Wells and Hedley Smyth; Giving voice to the project management practitioner, Mano Nugapitiya, Spike Boydell and Patrick Healy; Enter or not - how to gain and sustain access to research sites, Jill Owen, Chivonne Algeo and James Connor. Part IV Examples of Mixed Methods Strategies: Mixed methods research in project management, Roslyn Cameron and Shankar Sankaran; The value of mixed methods, Janice Thomas and Stella George; Managing research in large collaborative teams, Stella George and Janice Thomas; Applying mixed methods for researching project management in engineering projects, Marian Bosch-Rekveldt; Importance of sequencing in mixed methods research design, Beverly Pasian; An empirical research method strategy for construction consulting services projects, Li Yongkui, Yang Qing and He Qinghua. Part V Unique Environments for Project Management Research: A practical research method: the NETLIPSE case study, Pau Lian Staal-Org and Eddy Westerveld; Using multi-case approaches in project management research: the megaproject experience, Naomi Brookes, Robert Hickey, Paul Littau, Giorgio Locatelli and Gloria Oliomogbe; Project management research in post-conflict societies: challenges and complexities identified in Kosovo, James Earnest and Carolyn Dickie; Complexities of oil and gas exploration in the Middle East, Lawrence Monteilh. Part VI Writing as a Future Researcher: Studying relationships in project management through social network analysis, Deborah E. Gibbons and Roxanne Zolin; Social network analysis applied to project management, Nigel L. Williams, Nicole Ferdinand and Robin Croft; The electronic portfolio - a research enabler, Tracey Richardson. Part VII Benefitting from Experience: Supervisors and Publications: The voice of experience: an interview with Lynn Crawford; Supervisors and their sociological (and sometimes seemingly illogical) imagination, Spike Boydell; Common flaws in project management research reports, Gilbert Silvius; Publish or perish? Transforming your thesis into a tangible product, Darren Dalcher. Index.

Professional Practice & Development