Jonas Søderlund

Human Relations Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726721991623

Shifting an organization’s temporal order can be a key mechanism for accomplishing organizational change, but it is also fundamentally problematic: instead of helping an organization accomplish change, it may simply reinforce an already failing course of action. Our current understanding of the roles that temporal shifts play in enabling organizational change is inconclusive in terms of when and how temporal shifts contribute to the success of organizational change. We exploit an in-depth case study of a new digitalized design approach implemented at Advanced Construction to demonstrate how a temporal shift can increase temporal awareness, among organizational members, of the salient and differing temporalities involved. In this case, the increased temporal awareness facilitated improved temporal coordination, which in turn figured prominently in making actual change possible. Our study identifies three complementary roles of change-inducing temporal shifts—namely, in connection with past experience, current activities, and future directions. Thus, we develop a deeper understanding of the relation between temporal shifts and organizational change, and offer a novel account of how the establishment of a temporal zone harbors those three roles of temporal shifts.

Project Management Journal 52(3) p. 227-236 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/87569728211004064

Project Management Journal 51(4) p. 351-356 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/8756972820932002

International Journal of Project Management 38(8) p. 548-558 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2020.10.005

Both project management and international development came of age as scholarly and practice domains in the 20th century. They share a central concern with organizing work and delivering change. Though international development played a role in defining the project management domain in the 1950s and the 1960s, there has been little cross-fertilization between project management and international development in recent decades. The centrality of projects in international development efforts and the need for project management to help tackle global challenges that overlap with international development, such as climate change and COVID-19, make such cross-learning timely and rewarding. Accordingly, with the aim of cross-fertilization and integration, this paper examines what connects and differentiates the two domains of project management and international development, both conceptually and through the distinctive nature of their modes of delivery. The paper lays out a research agenda for the interface between project management and international development.

International Journal of Project Management Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2020.10.004

Tensions and paradoxes in temporary organizing p. 127-150 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X20200000067012

This chapter addresses the challenges associated with temporary organising under conditions of institutional complexity. The authors draw on findings from an in-depth case study of a megaproject initiated to reshape healthcare in Sweden. At the centre of this transformation was the construction of a new, ‘world-class’ hospital to replace the former (historical and renowned) university hospital. The authors posit that organising such projects is largely a matter of creating, responding to, and re-creating temporal institutional complexity. Thus, their study identifies four distinct response strategies – innovating, partial decoupling, avoiding, and surfing – on which project actors relied when dealing with the multiplicity of temporal institutional requirements. The authors propose a model for explaining how these strategies affected the temporal institutional complexity faced by the project. Their chapter adds to the literature on temporary organisations by highlighting the nature and dynamics of temporal institutional complexity and by revealing how inter-institutional temporary organisations cope with such complexity.

Journal of construction engineering and management 146(5) Doi: https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0001823

Research Policy 49(1) Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2019.103880

The organization of innovation labor is undergoing major changes in technology-based and engineering-intensive industries worldwide. Those changes reflect fluctuating market demands and increasing task uncertainty, and they are characterized by three related developments: externalization of the workforce, development of new types of employment relations, and greater use of technical consultants. These trends have led to the technical and engineering consulting (TEC) industry becoming a major player in the organization of innovation labor and thus also in the development and transfer of engineering knowledge. Determining what underlies the growth of this industry and the performance of TEC firms requires a better understanding of their nature and capabilities. Our paper builds on an in-depth case study—spanning multiple organizational levels and incorporating 50 interviews with a leading Scandinavian TEC firm’s top managers, middle managers, consultant managers, individual consultants, and clients as well as field observations and diary studies. These data lead us to posit two central capabilities associated with innovation labor in technical and engineering consulting: swift transition and knowledge cycling. The interplay between these capabilities, each of which arises from interactions between the firm level and the individual level, seems crucial for the successful development, organization, and supply of innovation labor and engineering knowledge.

International Journal of Project Management 37(2) Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2019.01.001

Institutions are long-term and stabilizing mechanisms of social interaction that provide much of the groundwork for projects as temporary systems. Due to amassed change ambitions in contemporary projects, not least reflected in their increasing complexity, such systems to a greater extent revolve around processes of institutional change. This development sparks scholarly inquiries emphasizing the need for better understanding the linkages between projects and institutions, and how projects cope with and trigger institutional change. This introductory paper seeks to provide a background and backdrop to the study of the interlinkages between projects and institutions – to demonstrate how they are mutually constituting each other. However, this paper also points to various problems associated with them and the process in practice, and what problems require particular scholarly attention. Further, we discuss how the papers of this special issue inform a revised research agenda for the study of projects and institutions, and how they help us better understand some of the identified challenges.

International Journal of Project Management 37(2) p. 347-365 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2018.09.004

This paper introduces the notion of “temporal boundary spanning” and highlights the key role of project management in resolving temporal tensions among partners participating in interorganizational projects (IOPs). The present study, which is based on data from 93 IOPs undertaken within a major change program, relies on in-depth, semi-structured interviews, observations, and detailed analyses of written documents and procedures from those IOPs. Based on the data, we inductively develop a practice-based theory that identifies three main practices (framing, synchronizing, hyping) used to resolve the central temporal tensions observed in the studied IOPs. In that respect, the paper offers novel insights into the role and practice of project management in IOPs.

International Journal of Project Management 36(5) p. 673-686 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2018.03.007

This paper presents an in-depth and processual case study of a major infrastructural innovation project involving diverse private and public-sector organizations. The case study shows how organizing developed recursively in response to diverging temporal requirements, induced by the temporal institutional complexity facing the project. We introduce the idea of temporal conditioning to demonstrate how large-scale temporary organizations dynamically cope with conflicting temporal institutional requirements by making use of three strategies: (1) temporal avoidance, (2) temporal splitting, and (3) temporal matching. With its focus on the emergence of the project, this paper adds to our understanding of the dynamics of organizing in temporary and institutionally pluralistic settings – settings that put greater pressures on our ability to deal with conflicting institutional requirements pertaining to time and timing. Accordingly, we offer a new perspective on the dynamics of large-scale projects and how they respond to a particular kind of institutional complexity.

Project Management Institute

Project Management Journal 49(4) p. 20-35 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/8756972818781629

In projects, various kinds of formal and informal institutions are crucial for imprinting and controlling behavior. The interplay and potential conflict between these two types of institutions have attracted increasing scholarly and managerial attention, but conventional institutional analyses are hampered by the lack of effective methodological instruments for understanding these institutions and examining their fit (or misfit). Underpinned by the theoretical argument that institutions governing projects are networks, this study employs the methodology of social network analysis (SNA) to capture and analyze institutional interplay. We use four construction projects to illustrate the interplay between formal and informal institutions in projects and to show how this interplay affects project performance. Our findings reveal that, in general, performance is better when there is a better fit—which indicates the extent of interplay—between a project’s formal and informal guiding institutions. We also show how project managers can use SNA to diagnose formal and informal institutions, enhancing their fit and thereby improving project performance. The results presented here have implications for the role of these two institutional types and for how the fit between them can be improved through conscious effort.

International Journal of Project Management 36(1) p. 55-70 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2017.06.004

Project organising is a growing field of scholarly inquiry and management practice. In recent years, two important developments have influenced this field: (1) the study and practice of projects have extended their level of analysis from mainly focussing on individual projects to focussing on micro- as well as macro-level concerns around projects; and (2) there has been a greater interest in different kinds of scholarly inquiry. Taken together, these two developments call for closer scrutiny of how the levels of analysis and the types of inquiry are related and benefit each other, and of the explanations of project practices they could offer. To discuss avenues for future research on projects and project practice, this paper suggests the notion of project studies to better grasp the status of our field. We combine these two sets of ideas to analyse the status and future options for advancing project research: (1) levels of analysis; and (2) type of research. Analysing recent developments within project studies, we observe the emergence of what we refer to as type 3 research, which reconciles the need for theoretical development and engagement with practice. Type 3 research suggests pragmatic avenues to move away from accepted yet unhelpful assumptions about projects and project organising. The paper ends with an agenda for future research, which offers project scholars a variety of options to position themselves in the field of project studies, and to explore opportunities in the crossroads between levels of analysis and types of research.

International Journal of Management Reviews 20(4) p. 880-902 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/ijmr.12168

This paper explores liminality, a concept receiving increased attention in management and organization studies and gaining prominence because of its capacity to capture the interstitial and temporary elements of organizing and work. The authors present a systematic review of t he literature on liminality, covering 61 published papers, and undertake a critical analysis of how the concept of liminality has been used in prior research. This review reveals associations with three main themes: process; position; and place. For each theme, the authors identify the central research questions posed, while comparing individual and collective levels of analysis. During this process, the Authors revisit several ideas central to the original, anthropological research on liminality, a perspective from which they suggest a rejuvenation of liminality research in management and organization studies. This paper argues for a greater focus on the liminal experience itself – especially its ritual and temporal dimensions – and for improving the comparative analysis of liminality following the three themes identified in this paper. The authors suggest that revising the agenda for liminality research along these lines could facilitate more informed responses to the challenges of an increasingly temporary and dynamic work life

Technology Analysis & Strategic Management 30(10) p. 1226-1245 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2018.1459538

Given the project-based organization’s (PBO) strong focus on autonomy and temporary decentralisation, it faces unique challenges with regard to longterm organisational learning and capability development. To address how PBOs cope with these challenges, we address the role of knowledge governance (KG) mechanisms to foster capability development. The present paper reports on a multiple case study comprising 23 PBOs and demonstrates the importance of ‘configurations of KG mechanisms’ for facilitating learning and capability development. This paper develops four distinct configurations (balanced, formalistic, interactive, and fragile) that promote three principal organisational-level learning processes: shifting, leveraging and adapting. This research underscores the close relationship between knowledge governance mechanisms and capability development and the importance of designing the appropriate configuration of KG mechanisms to foster capability development.

Research Policy 47(5) p. 965-979 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2018.03.002

As knowledge production becomes more specialized, studying complex and multi-faceted empirical realities becomes more difficult. This has created a growing need for cross-fertilization and collaboration between research disciplines. According to prior studies, the sharing of concepts, ideas and empirical domains with other disciplines may promote cross-fertilization. We challenge this one-sided view. Based on an analysis of the parallel development of the neighboring disciplines of innovation studies and project management, we show that the sharing of concepts and empirical domains can have ambivalent effects. Under conditions of ideological distancing, shared concepts and domains will be narrowly assimilated − an effect we call ‘encapsulation’ – which creates an illusion of sharing, while promoting further self-containment. By comparison, reflexive meta-theories and cross-disciplinary community-building will enable a form of sharing that promotes cross-fertilization. Our findings inform research on research specialization, cross-fertilization and effectiveness of interdisciplinary collaborationAs knowledge production becomes more specialized, studying complex and multi-faceted empirical realities becomes more difficult. This has created a growing need for cross-fertilization and collaboration between research disciplines. According to prior studies, the sharing of concepts, ideas and empirical domains with other disciplines may promote cross-fertilization. We challenge this one-sided view. Based on an analysis of the parallel development of the neighboring disciplines of innovation studies and project management, we show that the sharing of concepts and empirical domains can have ambivalent effects. Under conditions of ideological distancing, shared concepts and domains will be narrowly assimilated − an effect we call ‘encapsulation’ – which creates an illusion of sharing, while promoting further self-containment. By comparison, reflexive meta-theories and cross-disciplinary community-building will enable a form of sharing that promotes cross-fertilization. Our findings inform research on research specialization, cross-fertilization and effectiveness of interdisciplinary collaboration

Organization Studies Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840618789201

Large-scale innovative projects (LSIPs) play a central role in arranging for exploratory and strategic opportunity seeking that transcends organizational and disciplinary boundaries. This paper outlines a theory that addresses the two most salient characteristics of such organizations: their extreme task uniqueness and high degree of interdisciplinarity. Drawing on the work of Peter Galison and the case of the Radiation Laboratory project, we introduce the notion of LSIPs as ‘temporary trading zones’ and posit the centrality of ‘interlanguage creation’ for coordinating such projects. We demonstrate that LSIPs foster and, indeed, practically necessitate the creation of an interlanguage via interaction among three core elements: linguistic representations, project management tools and material representations. Summarizing our observations, we propose a process model of interlanguage creation in LSIPs; this model identifies five critical developmental phases that reveal how the three core elements interact to create an interlanguage.

Management Learning 49(4) p. 429-452 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350507618772258

Technical consulting plays an increasingly important role in developing and transferring knowledge in a wide range of industries and sectors. We present a case study of Swift Tech, a leading Scandinavian technical consulting firm, to identify and assess the importance of knowledge cycling—a knowledge process based on scheduled and recurrent rotation of technical consultants among organizational and problem-solving contexts. Our study identifies four main phases of knowledge cycling: entering an assignment, building experience, contributing to the project, and shifting to a new assignment. These phases underpin our model of knowledge cycling, which demonstrates that two aspects of local knowledge processes are critical: project task familiarization and project organization familiarization. We show that knowledge cycling relies on a dynamic interaction between client organization, consulting firm, and individual consultant in the ongoing transfer of knowledge among distinct contexts and communities. Knowledge cycling demonstrates the significance of “mobile knowledge” for the development of situated knowledge; hence, our results have important implications for situated learning theory.

International Journal of Operations & Production Management 38(6) p. 1274-1288 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-06-2018-781

Managing Knowledge Integration Across Boundaries p. 206-226

Project Management Journal 48(6) p. 5-16 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/875697281704800602

International Journal of Project Management 36(2) p. 331-333 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2017.05.005

Long Range Planning 49(6) p. 648-660 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2016.01.001

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 9(4) p. 931-954 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMPB-05-2016-0041

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 9(4) p. 767-797 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMPB-02-2016-0016

Management Learning 46(3) p. 260-279 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350507613516247

Human Relations 68(6) p. 973-1000 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726714549646

Academy of Management Proceedings Doi: https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2015.18086abstract

This study reveals how learning and experiences accumulated in temporary projects contribute to capability development and change of strategic orientation in project-based organizations. We argue that capability development in project-based organizations must rest upon an understanding of projects as “capability bridges”, thus contrasting extant literature’s common treatise of the temporariness inherent in project-based organizing. This paper presents an analytical framework that identifies how capabilities develop over time and across levels in specific contexts. The empirical data is derived from a longitudinal case study of capability development in an international project-based professional service firm. The case study demonstrates how projects function as bridges connecting both past, present and future, and individual-, project and- organization levels, thus illustrating the temporality of capabilities, on the one hand, and the multi- level features of capabilities, on the other hand. Thus, this study shows how knowledge and experiences accumulated from past and current projects influence the formation of future capabilities and strategies. Simultaneously, anticipations of the future influence current activities and the utilization of past project experiences. This leads to an improved understanding how capabilities are developed across organizational levels and across time.

The psychology and management of project teams Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780199861378.003.0004

International Journal of Project Management 33(2) p. 251-253 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2014.10.001

Journal of Workplace Learning 27(3) p. 176-192 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/JWL-12-2013-0110

Routledge

Project Management Journal 45(4) p. 2-6 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/pmj.21442

Project management: Critical perspectives on business and management Volume 4 p. 1-6

Project Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management Volume 1 p. 16-23

Employee Relations 36(2) p. 182-197 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-11-2012-0081

Project Management: Critical perspectives on business and management Volume 2 p. 1-23

Project Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management Volume 3 p. 1-10

Advancing Human Resource Project Management p. 350-382

Project Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management Volume 1 p. 1-15

Routledge

Academy of Management Proceedings 2014(1) Doi: https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2014.17228abstract

International Journal of Project Management 32(1) p. 1-6

International Journal of Project Management 332(7) p. 1085-1090 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2014.06.008

Routledge

Routledge

Gower Handbook of Project Management p. 519-531

Novel Approaches to Organizational Project Management Research: Translational and Transformational p. 117-140

International Journal of Project Management 31(5) p. 653-662 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2013.02.005

Academy of Management Proceedings 2013(1) Doi: https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2013.17546abstract

International Journal of Project Management 31(6) p. 889-902 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2012.11.010

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 6(2) p. 223-235 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/17538371311319106

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 6(3) p. 552-575 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMPB-03-2012-0006

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 95-123

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 313-325

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 263-289

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 177-203

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 291-311

International Journal of Project Management 30(6) p. 686-696 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2012.03.007

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 5(4) p. 559-577 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/17538371211280245

Scandinavian Journal of Management 29(1) p. 1-6 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scaman.2012.11.008

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 5(4) p. 617-633 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/17538371211268924

Studentlitteratur AB

Styrning: med projekt och kunskap i fokus p. 23-38

International Journal of Management Reviews 13(2) p. 153-176 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2010.00290.x

Oxford University Press

Knowledge integraton and innovation p. 170-201 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780199693924.003.0008

Oxford University Press

Palgrave Macmillan

The Oxford handbook of project management p. 37-64 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199563142.003.0003

Journal of Management Education 35(3) p. 377-405 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562910390369

Advances in Strategic Management 28 p. 235-262 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/S0742-3322(2011)0000028013

Knowledge integraton and innovation p. 96-124 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780199693924.003.0005

International Journal of Human Resource Management 22(10) p. 2202-2221 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2011.580189

International Journal of Project Management 29(5) p. 491-493 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2011.01.001

International Journal of Project Management 29(4) p. 480-490 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2011.02.007

The Oxford handbook of project management p. 201-223 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199563142.003.0009

Knowledge integraton and innovation p. 3-19 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780199693924.003.0001

International Journal of Project Management 28(8) p. 832-841 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2010.07.001

International Journal of Project Management 28(2) p. 130-141 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2009.11.010

International Journal of Human Resources Development and Management 10(4) p. 327-361

International Journal of Technology Management 50(1) p. 1-22

International Journal of Project Management 28(8) p. 796-806 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2010.05.005

International Journal of Management and Decision Making 11(2) p. 121-139

International Journal of Project Management 27(2) p. 101-112 Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2008.10.010

Project Management Journal 39(1) p. 111-122

G. Nilsson (Ed.), Bonniers Ledarskapshandböcker ¿ Ekonomistyrning

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business 1(2) p. 168-192

Stjernberg et al (Eds.). Projektliv - villkor för uthollig projektverksamhet

International Journal of Project Management 26(5)

Stjernberg et al (Eds.). Projektliv - villkor för uthollig projektverksamhet

International Journal of Innovation Management 12(1) p. 41-67

Stjernberg et al (Eds.). Projektliv - villkor för uthollig projektverksamhet

International Journal of Project Management 26(5) p. 465-468

International Journal of Project Management 26(3) p. 286-296

Organisation: teorier om ordning och oordning, D. Kärreman & A. Rehn (Eds.)

Academy of Management Conference

Academy of Management Conference

Anzam Conference

Kunskapsintegration och innovation i en internationaliserande ekonomi

The 75th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management

BI Leadership Magazine

Designs, methods and practices for research of project management. p. 11-17

Organization Science Winter Conference

Project Management Institute

Academy of Management Conference

30th European Group of Organization Studies (EGOS)

EGOS Conference

Academy of Management Conference

OLCK

Academy of Management Conference

IRNOP Conference 2013

IRNOP Conference 2013

Controllerhandboken p. 174-199

IRNOP

Academy of Management Conference

Perspektiv på ekonomistyrning p. 36-63

Academy of Management Conference

Management of Innovation and Technology p. 3-5

EURAM Conference

EURAM Conference

EGOS Conference

EGOS Conference

Academy of Management Conference

Management of Innovation and Technology p. 5-7

EGOS Conference

The Oxford handbook of project management p. 1-14

Konferanse

Academy of Management Meeting, Symposium on Project-based Organization and Beyond

Academy of Management Conference

NEON-Dagene

Handelshøyskolen BI

Konferanse

International Workshop on Human Resurce Management

NEON conference

Academy of Management Annual Meeting

IRNOP CONFERENCE

IRNOP CONFERENCE

EURAM Conference 2009

International HRM Workshop

NEON Conference

IRNOP CONFERENCE

Handelshøyskolen BI

International Project Management Association p. 4-9

PMI Research Conference

RADMA Workshop on Knowledge Integration, Linköping.

Annual Academy of Management Conference

EURAM Conference,EURAM Conference, Ljubljana. .

PMI Research Conference