Chen, Wenxin (2022) Establishing balance in project governance: Exploring yin-yang and mindfulness. PhD thesis, University of New South Wales, Australia.
Abstract
Projects account for 20%–40% of all economic activity (Schoper et al., 2018). They are the main vehicle for achieving organizational strategies (Kwak & Anbari, 2009). Despite this, the rates of project success remain low. Many researchers point to project governance as a key factor in improving project success (Crawford et al., 2008). In that light, a key focus in this thesis is the role of project sponsors in project governance, particularly their relationships with project managers and project teams by way of formal and informal governance mechanisms. However, little is understood about the interplay between two major types of governance mechanisms, formal and informal, regarded as either substitutes or complements. This lack of understanding can be attributed to two factors: (1) a lack of a holistic and dynamic perspective in developing project governance mechanisms and (2) little consideration of project sponsors' cognitive barriers in implementing the governance mechanisms.This thesis draws on Yin-Yang and mindfulness theories to explore whether and how an appropriate balance can be established between complementary yet conflicting project governance mechanisms, with a view to project performance. Three Chinese case studies were conducted to verify the usefulness of Yin-Yang balancing principles in guiding the interplay of formal and informal governance mechanisms and the importance of the project sponsor's mindfulness in balancing the governance mechanisms. The case studies suggest adopting a bundling perspective that considers interaction among individual mechanisms within the same type and divergent attention that requires the project sponsor to reflect on and collect essential information outside the predefined project governance scope. This approach may enhance the project's performance.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | McDermott, Vanessa and Huybers, Twan |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | case studies; governance; project performance; project success |
| Index terms: | governance, project success, project manager, case study, mindfulness, project performance, economic activity, interaction, project team, project sponsor, organizational strategy, bundling |
| Subjects: | behavioral psychology, economic analysis, project management theory and practice, sociology, health conditions and diseases, profession, data collection methods, business, project delivery, financial and cost management |
| Topics: | Project Management, Stakeholder Management, Roles and Professions, Governance, Cost Management, Business Strategy, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here