Employee involvement in a hospital building project

Abstract

Employee involvement in the planning and execution of building projects vastly affects both project success and functionality in the operating stage. This study is based on interviews with employees to investigate how they experience involvement in change processes related to a hospital building project in Norway. This answers the call for more qualitative approaches in project management research to unveil what actually goes on in projects.The study uses several theoretical lenses. First, we look at employees’ access to different bases of power and empowerment. Second, we analyse how path dependence affects experienced involvement. Third, we analyse the employees’ reactions to organizational changes; exit, voice, loyalty and neglect.The findings show the high involvement of appointed employee representatives in project groups, although they sometimes felt powerless and without necessary support. Ordinary employees lacked information and had little experience of empowerment. The project mostly followed a strict process of path dependence, and informants described behaviours of both exit, voice, loyalty and neglect. Lack of employee involvement might have resulted in impractical solutions and undesired employee behaviour.