A contemporary framework for sustainable entrepreneurial project management

Purpose – The demand for sustainability is reshaping project governance in construction and other project-based industries, yet current entrepreneurial project management (EPM) processes remain inadequately theorised in relation to long-term environmental and social value creation. This paper addresses this important literature gap by proposing a sustainable entrepreneurial project management (S-EPM) framework that integrates entrepreneurial theory and sustainability logic across the project lifecycle. Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts a theory-building design grounded in a critical and integrative literature review to advance sustainable entrepreneurial project management. The literature searched was guided by the following keywords: entrepreneurial project management, sustainability theory, project governance and lifecycle management across major academic databases and screened for conceptual relevance. This is followed by synthesising through iterative coding and comparison to develop the S-EPM framework. Findings – The review shows that sustainability is best understood not as an external constraint or end-state but as a governing logic that regulates entrepreneurial discretion under uncertainty. The resulting S-EPM framework underscores how the intersection of entrepreneurial mindset and sustainability logic operates through project entry and formulation, project performance and project exit and transition. This logic highlights important mechanisms such as continuous justification, stakeholder co-creation, adaptive learning and resilience-oriented governance relevant in contemporary project management. Originality/value – This paper contributes a novel S-EPM framework that moves beyond the mere intersection of entrepreneurship and sustainability by identifying sustainability-governed entrepreneurial value creation as the framework's core logic. This S-EPM framework offers a distinct theoretical lens for emphasising the relevance of project governance, long-term value creation and sustainability-oriented leadership in complex project environments.