Project Governance Getting Investments Right

by Williams, Terry M.; Samset, Knut

• ISBN13: 9780230363489
• ISBN10: 0230363482
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-11-27
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Large projects are complex undertakings representing major investments. Often problems arise because of failure at the start of a project in terms of establishing governance, choosing the appropriate concept, analyzing the proposal and environment, and maximizing the utility of the investment, all within complex and political decision-making structures. As a result, many projects fail even though they were implemented successfully, simply because the project concept was wrong. While attention has been paid to project execution, this area is underrepresented in literature. However, considerable advances have been made, both practical and in putting the behavior and management of major projects on a proper theoretical basis. This volume therefore provides a resumé of the state of this domain. It is a guide for practitioners, decision-makers and their advisors, as well as students. It takes a narrow view of the project, widening to place it within the organization, then the organizational nexus, and finally the political environment, to give a holistic view on how bad ideas can be avoided and good ideas developed into successful projects.

Author Biography

TERRY WILLIAMS is Dean of Hull University Business School, UK, and a management scientist. After nine years in the defense industry in project risk management, he returned to academia. He was previously department head at the University of Strathclyde and the Director of the University of Southampton's School of Management, UK. He is widely published, is a qualified project manager and is active in the project management research community. KNUT SAMSET is a professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and Director of the Concept Research Program on Front-end Management of Major Investment Projects. His background is in engineering and social science. He has extensive experience as advisor to national and international governmental organizations, and has written a number of books on project design, evaluation, and project risk management.

Table of Contents

List of Tables
List of Figures
Acknowledgements
Notes on Contributors
Introduction; T.Williams & K.Samset
The Influence of Strategic Context on Project Management Systems: A Senior Management Perspective; V.K.Narayanan & R.DeFillippi
The Proposal; K.Samset & G.Holst Volden
Assessing the Proposal; C.Chapman
Designing the Project; A.Edkins & A.Smith
Decision-makings in Organisation; T.O'Leary
Decision-making around the Project – How and Why 'Glory' Projects Fail; S.Cicmil & D.Braddon
Decision-making in the Political Environment; T.Christensen
Concluding Note; T.Williams