Governance of Projects: Generating value by linking projects with their permanent organisation

Abstract

There exists little research into how value is effectively generated by temporary projects from the wider perspective of a permanent organisation. This paper investigates empirically how ‘Governance of Projects’ – the way in which a single, permanent organisation identifies, creates, and subsequently harvests value through multiple projects – occurs in four private-sector case companies. Data were collected from in-depth interviews with a wide range of employees and from internal operational documents. These data were codified and analysed as evidence of the types and intensity of links between organisational elements. The results illuminate the complex interplay of links that are imperative if the permanent organisation is to derive value from its projects, and shows that these links are context-dependent and vary between organisations. It is that the links exist, and not what the type of link is, that matters most. That these links extend beyond the project's execution is critical for maximising value. The paper demonstrates the advantages of adopting an organisational perspective in order to properly understand how Governance of Projects generates value within a permanent organisation.