Janice Thomas

• Doctor of Philosophy, Organizational Analysis
• Athabasca University

For many years project management has been moving toward professionalization through voluntary certification. Simultaneously, recruiters increasingly use voluntary professional certification as a signal of applicant competencies and likely future performance, to increase the efficiency of the selection process. This practice increases the value of...

Project management (PM) is one of many occupations following a path to professionalization that includes voluntary certification. It has been said that certification, and especially voluntary certification, can be seen as an approach to being good by improving our competence in the profession, or a means to looking good , essentially signaling the...

Measures of self-efficacy beliefs have been shown to be the best predictor of individual performance in many disciplines over 30 years. This makes measures of perceived self-efficacy a good indicator for those interested in hiring for, or improving specific skill sets. In project management, measuring the skill level of project managers is an impor...

Received wisdom is that 70% of change projects fail. Though contested, perceptions of change failure persist even where beneficial changes can be seen to deliver valued outcomes. Practical literature advises change managers to clearly articulate the value desired from investment in change; often these articulations of value are simplified reference...

Executive sponsorship is critical to project success; however, the impact of the sponsorship role on project management value and sustainability is not known. Using correlation analysis we examine survey responses from 91 U.S. executives. Formalizing and providing training on the sponsorship role and responsibilities are both significantly related...

When to terminate a new product development (NPD) project is an important economic decision and an interesting managerial dilemma. To date research examining NPD termination decisions has been largely focused on the single project level examining the impact of formal termination decision processes. This study examines these decisions at the organiz...

Management innovation is a complex and dynamic process of organizational change that is not well understood. Drawing from the innovation and organizational change literatures, and using project management as an example of one particular form of management innovation, we operationalize this project management innovation process by identifying types...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider how multiple logic systems employed by project managers lead to manifold understandings of two foundational project management constructs (“project” and “planning”) that in turn influence both the practice of project management and project outcomes. Design/methodology/approach – Largely conceptual...

The strategic management literature has struggled with how to recognize, measure, and even understand the concept of “fit” between strategy, structure, and environment. Nevertheless, the concept of fit was fundamentally important from the beginning of the Value of Project Management project. In this article, we compare the “fit” construct defined b...

Organizations' attempts to implement and gain value from investments in project management have resulted in the rapid growth and, in some cases, demise of project management offices (PMOs). The recent research literature on PMOs provides an ambiguous picture of the value case for PMOs and suggests the tenuous nature of their current position in man...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a cost‐benefit interpretation of academic‐practitioner research by describing and analysing several recent relevant examples of academic‐practitioner research with a focus on doctoral theses carried out at universities and business schools in clusters of research centred in North America, Australia an...

Interest in project management is growing significantly. Yet, projects continue to fail at an astonishing rate. At the same time, the role complexity, chaos and uncertainty play within our projects and project environments is gaining recognition in both research and practice. Hence, it is time to review our understanding of project management educa...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide of a review of the theory and models underlying project management (PM) research degrees that encourage reflective learning. Design/methodology/approach Review of the literature and reflection on the practice of being actively involved in conducting and supervising academic research and disseminating...

Organizations investing in project management need to be assured of a concrete return. Without the ability to clearly define its value, project management joins the long line of initiatives (i.e., TQM, information systems, training, human resources) struggling to prove their worth to organizations. However, demonstrating a concrete value in organiz...

By design, bodies of knowledge capture and influence best working practices. Gendered assumptions based on masculine cognitive styles are predominant in the Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) [PMI. Project Management Body of Knowledge. Project Management Institute 1996]. This study investigates the assumptions and cognitive s...

The EPSRC funded Rethinking Project Management Network produced several insights into new directions for project management theory and practise, highlighting gaps between current theory and practise in several areas. This paper reviews the discussions around project management practitioner development that arose out of this rethinking process where...

Since the mid 1970s, project management associations around the world have made serious attempts to conduct themselves as professional associations. Traditional professions distinguished themselves by emphasising standards such as service to the public and competence in their field, and by ensuring that their membership meets these standards. An im...

This paper puts forth the somewhat controversial position that what is needed to improve project management in practice is not more research on what should be done or the frequency and/or use of traditional project management practices. We argue that while a great deal is written about traditional project management we know very little about the “a...

Since the mid 1970s, project management associations around the world have made serious attempts to conduct themselves as professional associations. Traditional professions distinguished themselves by emphasising standards such as service to the public and competence in their field, and by ensuring that their membership meets these standards. An im...

Strong isomorphic forces are at work in the emerging project management profession. At the same time, competent project management practice is evolving and expanding to include both soft and hard skills. Contemporary gender scholarship purports that these different skill sets are founded on inherently gendered logic systems. Thus, questions regardi...

Project management maturity models are important assessment tools for the profession. Maturity models identify organizational strengths and weaknesses as well as provide benchmarking information. They capture explicit, codified practice (know-what), but do not include the intangible assets of project management (know-how). Some have made the claim...

Worldwide, project management is gaining acceptance as a business competency for many organizations. On one hand, the authors note a growing interest in the use of elements of project management in virtually every segment of every industry. On the other hand, long-term investment in project management remains a tough sell at the executive level. Kn...

As interest in projects and project management as a way to manage the organization of the future increases, creating a comprehensive understanding and theory of effective project management is of paramount importance for both practitioners and organizational research. This is particularly important given the rate of failure of projects today. Rece...

Despite tremendous growth in the project management profession and substantial proof that the profession has helped increase productivity and bottom line earnings, some senior-level executives are still fighting progress. Why is it so difficult to sell project management to senior executives? and How do you get them on board? are the main questions...

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta, 2000. Includes bibliographical references.