19-03-19 People, Process & Results Rethinking ... · 3/19/2019 · 19-03-19 5 Literature Review 3. Research question There are two main conclusions from the above literature review

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Tuesday,19March2019Montreal,Quebec

MoniqueAubryPhD,SchoolofBusiness,UniversitéduQuébecàMontréal,CanadaMélanieLavoie-Tremblay,PhD,SchoolofNursing,McGillUniversity,Montréal,Canada

Rethinkingorganizationaldesignformanagingmultipleprojects

Aubry, M., & Lavoie-Tremblay, M. (2018). Rethinking Organizational Design for Managing Multiple Projects. International Journal of Project Management, 36(1), 12-26. Early version of this paper has been presented at EURAM 2016. A short version of this paper, for professionals, has been published as: Aubry, M., & Lavoie-Tremblay, M. (2017). Organizing for the management of projects: The Project Management Office in the dynamics of Organizational Design. In S. Sankaran, R. Müller, & N. Drouin (Eds.), Organizational Project Management: Achieving Strategies through projects. Cambridge (UK): Cambridge University Press.

Project Management Seminar People, Process & Results

Following the latest reform of the health and social services almost all healthcare entities have been merged. I am the deputy CEO of one of these merged institutions. One of my main roles is to organize the internal functioning of our organization. In this approach, I have set up a coordination structure at the top level of the organization. I have dissociated on one hand the coordination of current operations (i.e., clinical activities) in an integrated services with the reform context, and on the other hand, the performance and improvement of which one component is monitoring and control "all" projects (strategic, lean, accreditation, and so forth). Personal email received recently from a decision-maker, translated and adapted by one of the authors.

«Rethinking»?

Monique Aubry & Mélanie Lavoie-Tremblay 2

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«Rethinking»?

•  Difficulty to find out literature that addresses this question on how to organize for the management of multiple concurrent projects in a pluralist context (complex, multiple stakeholders, uncertainty)

•  Predominance of contingency theory

•  Lack of social dynamics

•  Lack of a process view (rather than a “thing”)

•  Opportunity to relate project management findings to the theory of organization


OrganizationalDesign•  Thispaperisinspiredfrompreviousworkoninnovativeformsoforganizing(Pettigrewetal.,2003).

•  Withaparticularperspectivecomingfromthestudyofprojectmanagementofficesandgovernancecommitteesfromadiversityoftheories,methodologiesandempiricalapproaches(Aubry,2013).

•  Thispaperprovidesanopportunitytobettersituatethisresearchandthepreviousonesinawiderdebateoforganizationaldesign.


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OrganizationalDesign•  Organizational design refers to understanding of how to

organize people and resources in order to collectively accomplish desired ends. (Greenwood & Miller, 2011)

•  Greenwood & Miller (2011) claim that organizational design has been neglected within recent research in the organizational theory.

•  Project management field has a good potential to contribute to organizational theory: P-form (Söderlund & Tell, 2009; project business (Artto & Wickstrom, 2005); project-based and project-oriented firms (Geraldi, 2009; Hobday, 2000); project management offices (Aubry et al., 2011); governance (Müller, 2011; Turner & Keegan, 1998); and temporal-permanent interfaces (Winch, 2014).


LiteratureReview1.Organizationaldesigninthetheoryoforganization

–  InspiredfromFenton&Pettigrew(2000)andVandeVenetal.,(2013)

GlobalApproach Mainissues Representativeauthor

Universalform:bureaucracyandmultidivisional

•  Todevelopamodeloforganizationalbehaviordesignedtocontroltheactivitiesofmembers

•  Historyoforganizationsinanevolutionistperspective

Weber,1947Chandler,1962

Contingency •  Todevelopageneralizedtypologyoforganizationsformsbasedoneitherasidealtypesorasvariablesformodelingorganizations

•  Matrixform•  Configurationalapproach•  Industrialeconomics

Stinchcombe,1959Burns&Stalker,1961Galbraith,1977Miller&Friesen,1964Williamson,1975

NetworkAnalysis •  Formsoforganizationsbasedontheorganizationofactions

Burt,1978;Granovetter,1992

Newformsoforganizingforinnovation

•  Strategizing/structuring•  Networks:dynamicconstructionofnetworks•  Knowledge•  Postbureaucratic

Pettigrewetal.,2003Callon,1986;Latour,2005Hedlund,1994Clegg,2012


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Keyquestion/Contributions Representativeauthors

History of individual organization to describe and explain the resulting organizational design and the dynamic process.

Scranton, 2015

Matrix type of organization: question of how to organize projects in matrix type of organizations based on a limited number of variables; search for ideal type of PMO

Hobbs and Aubry, 2011; Hobbs and Ménard, 1993; Larson, 2004

Economic theory: transaction cost understanding of governance mechanisms for project-based organizations. Ethics is put in relation with this economic perspective through the governance structure.

Müller et al, 2016; Turner and Keegan, 1998; Turner and Keegan, 2001; Turner and Müller, 2003; Winch, 2014

Diversity of situations: Overall context (including history of the organization) has priority over individual variables. Some generic configurations are identified.

Engwall, 2003; Hobday, 2000; Lampel and Jha, 2004

P-form, project-based or project-oriented organizations, multi-project firms.Project management capabilities in project-based organization and in relation to permanent functions

Cattani et al., 2011; Huemann, 2010; Geraldi, 2008; Söderlund and Tell, 2009.

Power and politics are always part of a governance structure and its evolution in large organizations and major projects.

Flyvbjerg, 2001; Miller and Lessard, 2000

Networks are understood as a type of governance with its specific mechanisms. Given the network-like structure in project-based organizations, new knowledge mechanisms are developed based on situated learning and reflective practices.

Bresnen et al., 2005; DeFillippi, 2001; DeFillippi and Sydow, 2016; Müller et al., 2013;

LiteratureReview2.Organizingforprojects


Keyquestion/Contributions Representativeauthors

Networks are understood as a type of governance with its specific mechanisms. Given the network-like structure in project-based organizations, new knowledge mechanisms are developed based on situated learning and reflective practices.

Bresnen et al., 2005; DeFillippi, 2001; DeFillippi and Sydow, 2016; Müller et al., 2013;

Projects follow a strategy. Competing values in the contribution of PMOs to the organizational performance.

Aubry et al., 2012; Morris and Jamieson, 2004

Tensions and paradoxes in organizational design leading to frequent changes. Governance structure. This perspective admits the coexistence of competing views on governance in a continuum of, on the one hand, maximizing the utility of agency and, on the other hand, governance being a cooperative approach between multiple stakeholders.

Aubry et al., 2014; DeFillippi and Arthur, 1998 Müller, 2017

LiteratureReview2.Organizingforprojects


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LiteratureReview3.ResearchquestionTherearetwomainconclusionsfromtheaboveliteraturereview•  Inprojectmanagementfield,thereisalackofrecognitionofthe

managementaspectunderneaththeresearchonstructures(-ing),thatistheorganizationaldesign.

•  Giventhevarietyofterms(fragmentation)usedtotalkaboutthestructureintheprojectmanagementliterature,thereisaneedtobetterunderstandwhatisgoingonintheorganizationwhencomestimetodesignawayfordeliveringmultipleprojects.Thisunderstandingmayleadtoaproposalforanintegrativeconcept.

•  Theresearchquestionis:Howisorganizationaldesignperformedinthemanagementofmultipleprojects?


Scopeofthisresearch


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TheoreticalFrameworkTheoriesinconcert(Greenwood&Miller,2010)forabetterunderstandingof

pluralisticcontext(Denisetal.,2007)


•  Thisresearchisdesigned“[…]toaddressissuesinwhichpeopleareconcerned”(Schram,2012,p.23).

•  Theoveralldesignisbasedon3in-depthcase-studiesinuniversityhospitalsfacingmajororganizationaltransformations

•  Multiplemethods

Methodology


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GlobalMethodology

1 2


CaseDescription


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Case A

Case B

Case C

Organizational Designs


Case B

Year Government decisions Construction Hospital Management Management of projects

1996 Administrative mergers of 3 hospitals

1999 Announcement for the construction of a new hospital on a unique site

2000 Announcement of the site

2003 Change of political party to Liberal

2006 Decision to change the site

2008 Political tensions on the site change for the new hospital

Launch of the call for proposals for PPP

Change of General Manager - Interim

2009 Change of General Manager

2010 Start of construction of the Center for Research

2011 Decision of the PPP partner and start of the construction of the new building for more than 2 billion CAD

Authorisation of the budget for the PMO

Nomination of the PMO director and start of PMO operations with hiring of experts

2012 Change of political party to Parti Québécois

2012 Government Report –recommendation to change the model for PMO auto financing

Impact from Rapport Biron: auto-financing model for PMO

2013 Delivery of the Phase 1 Research Center

Change of General Manager - Interim

The PMO Director also assumes the operational responsibilities for one hospital site.

2016 Outside the scope of this research

Moving

ExampleofIntra-caseAnalysis


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Number of projects

Innovation

Type Risk or uncertainty Degree

Prod./serv Process Market Input Organis. No/Low Med. High Incr. Radical

Case A 43 16 31 4 5 23 8 23 11 20 22

Case B 81 25 19 9 7 50 27 20 11 36 22

Case C 39 8 33 1 2 21 28 7 4 22 15

Note: the total is sometimes higher or lower that the number of projects because some projects fit into two types or other information may be unknown at the time of data collection

Portfolio of projects

Preparation 1st period: Initiation

2nd period: Cruising speed

3rd period Last sprint

Taming period PMO / nomination Lag period PMO

Start-up

Case A Visits to international sites 2007 1 year 2008 Organisational

Turbulence

Hard [Adverse] control

Making it happen!

Case B Conflicting period - site 2011 Very short 2011 Organisational

Turbulence Organisational Turbulence

Case C Unformal preparation 2009 1 year 2012 Smooth

transitioning Keep moving

Trajectories of transformation project

ExamplesofInter-casesAnalysis


1.   Questioningmimetism.DeliberateoccasionsformimetismhappenbetweenthethreePMOdirectors(DiMaggio&Powell,1983).Moreover,thethreecaseshavemanythingsincommon:universityhospitals,acomparabletransformationproject,sameregion,similartimeframe.However,theyhadspecificorganizationaldesign---Rationality?

2.   Organizationaldesignasaprocess.Consideringtheirtrajectory,theyhavehadalagperiodbeforeengagingintheproject,investingonthefront-end.Theytooktimetopreparethechangeandthinkabouttheorganizationaldesigntosucceedinthetransformationproject.

3.   Theoreticalcontributions.–  Helpinmoreinclusiveconceptstoavoidfragmentationofthefield–  Atwo-wayrelationshipwiththeoryoforganization:mobilizingorganizationaldesign

andcontributingtothedevelopmentofthistheory

4.   Practicalcontributions–  Fordecision-makersengagedinorganizationaldesign:ascontextiscrucialtotakeinto

account,thekeymessageisbeingslowinorganizationaldesign.Making-sensetakestime.

Discussion


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1.  Contextisofprimeimportancewhenengaginginorganizationaldesign.Contextreferstotheoverallunderstandinginwhichtheorganizationisembedded.Itincludesthetechnical,strategicandinstitutionallevels(MorrisandGeraldi,2011).

2.  Organizationaldesignisbetterunderstoodasanongoingprocessthatisconstantlyonthemove,ashasbeenpositedbyprocesstheory(Hernes,2014).

3.  Organizationaldesigntakestime.Thishaspromptedustocointhetermsloworganizationaldesign.Overall,thismeansthatthereisnoidealmodeltocopy;thattheparticularcontext,historyandidentityofanorganizationmustbetakenintoconsideration;andthatonemustengageinacollectiveefforttoenactwhatisfoundoutsideandinsidetheorganization—whichtakestime.

Conclusion


1.  Limitations

–  Moreworktobedoneonthecontributiontotheory–  Theoverarchingapproachofthispapermayhiddensmallimportanteventor

elementtobeconsideredinorganizationaldesign(theforestandthetrees).–  Regionallimitation(aswellasanopportunity)

2.  Futuresdirections–  Focusontheprocessofdesigning:understandingthephenomenonina

constantmovingoforganizations(Hernes,2014)

Conclusion


19-03-19 People, Process & Results Rethinking ... · 3/19/2019 · 19-03-19 5 Literature Review 3. Research question There are two main conclusions from the above literature review

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