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Terry Cooke-Davies

Bio: Terry Cooke-Davies is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Project management & Project management triangle. The author has an hindex of 12, co-authored 18 publications receiving 2628 citations.

Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a comprehensive answer to the question of which factors are critical to project success depends on answering three separate questions: “What factors lead to project management success?”, "What factors leads to a successful project?" and "What factor leads to consistently successful projects?"

1,695 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider two key themes from the Rethinking Project Management Network activities: projectification and managing multiple projects, and discuss the development of the concept of projectification over the past decade.

341 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors have referred to problems caused by complexity or problems of particular significance to complex projects in the field of project management, and they referred to the problems of complexity caused by particular significance for complex projects.
Abstract: Both practitioners and researchers in the field of project management have referred to problems caused by complexity or problems of particular significance to complex projects In different scienti

215 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a review of the formal and informal aspects of the sponsorship role and provide guidance to organi- zations and professional organizations by defining the role and responsibilities of the sponsor within corporate and project governance frameworks.
Abstract: Several factors have combined to draw attention to the importance of sponsoring projects and programs. One factor is that after several decades of attempting to improve success rates of projects by focusing on project-based management and the project manage- ment competence of practitioners, convincing evidence demonstrates that success or failure of projects is not entirely within the control of the proj- ect manager and project team. Contextual issues are crucial in influencing the progress and outcomes of projects, and a key theme that has emerged is the importance of top management support. Another fac- tor that has drawn attention to the sponsorship role is increased focus on corporate governance resulting from numerous high-profile corporate collapses, which have highlighted the need for accountability, transparency, and the ability to implement strategy. The sponsorship role provides the critical link between corporate and project governance and is important in ensuring that governance requirements are met and that support is provided to projects and programs. This article reports on research designed to address both formal and informal aspects of the sponsorship role and to provide guidance to organi- zations and professional organizations by defining the role and responsibilities of the sponsor within corporate and project governance frameworks and identifying the characteristics of effective perform- ance of the sponsor role. First, the role of sponsor- ship in the governance context is introduced; this is followed by a review of the literature relating to the sponsorship role, including its treatment in project and general management literature and in standards. The research methodology was specifically designed to take a holistic view of the sponsorship role, by examining the role in its project/program and organi- zational context and ensuring inclusion of views and experiences of sponsors as well as those of project managers, team members, and other stakeholders. A qualitative approach was adopted, focusing on a small number of case-study organizations and proj- ects/programs enabling researchers to gain a rich understanding of the environment in which the role of the sponsor is realized. Over 108 interviews relat- ing to 36 projects/programs in nine organizations from five geographic regions (Australia, China, Europe, North America, and South Africa) were recorded, transcribed, and then coded by the five researchers involved in the study. A priori codes derived from five preliminary studies were used for primary coding of the data. As the transcripts were coded, the researchers reviewed the data for emer- gent themes that might suggest additional codes. Analysis of the literature and the extensive qualita- tive data led to the development of a conceptual model for making sense of the sponsor's role. This model reflects the differing perspectives that may exist at the interface of the act of governing the proj- ect, which requires that the project be looked at from the perspective of the parent organization (gover- nance), and the act of providing top management support, which requires looking at the parent organi- zation from the perspective of the project (support). Under differing circumstances, the sponsor may need to emphasize the provision of governance, or support, or both. Utilizing this conceptual model, sec- ondary codes were created reflecting quotations per- taining to governance, support, and behaviors of sponsors. Review of quotations provided a rich illus- tration of the governance and support aspects of the sponsorship role and gave substance to effective behaviors, which led to the discovery of useful oppor- tunities for connection with mainstream general management literature to further enhance under- standing. The conceptual model has significant potential to provide organizations and sponsors with guidance in understanding and defining the effective contextual conduct of the sponsorship role.

118 citations

Book
14 May 2009
TL;DR: In Exploring the Complexity of Projects: Implications of Complexity Theory for Project Management Practice, project managers will find the realities of project management and the strategies to incorporate the complexity of a project into the original scope.
Abstract: Exploring the Complexity of Projects: Implications of Complexity Theory for Project Management Practice explores the process and findings of the implications of the complexity theory for project management theory and practice. The golden triangle (project deadline, budget and output) makes the standard definition of project management processes, skills and knowledge paradoxical and divorced from practice. This monograph contains research of management processes and capabilities in innovative project settings and highlights the challenges in contemporary project management practice. This research suggests that in order to define and conceptualize project complexity, the building blocks of project must be more properly defined. These include: • Individual and group relationships • Individual and group cohesion • Definition of key performance indicators • Sources of project failure In practical terms, this research aims to propose and encourage a critical but constructive way of explaining, debating, and deliberating project management and project performance issues that can lead to a wider awareness, knowledge, and development of skills and competencies that match the complexity of projects as experienced by practitioners in contemporary organizations. In Exploring the Complexity of Projects: Implications of Complexity Theory for Project Management Practice, project managers will find the realities of project management and the strategies to incorporate the complexity of a project into the original scope.

109 citations


Cited by
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01 Jan 2008
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them, and describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative.
Abstract: What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative—leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.

2,134 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: The author wished to relate the three phases of research on insects and to express insect sociology as population biology in this detailed survey of knowledge of insect societies.
Abstract: In his introduction to this detailed survey of knowledge of insect societies, the author points out that research on insect sociology has proceeded in three phases, the natural history phase, the physiological phase and the population-biology phase. Advances in the first two phases have permitted embarkation in the third phase on a more rigorous theory of social evolution based on population genetics and writing this book, the author wished to relate the three phases of research on insects and to express insect sociology as population biology. A glossary of terms, a considerable bibliography and a general index are included. Other CABI sites 

1,394 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors survey the recent literature on project management to determine whether project management researchers consider leadership style a critical success factor when managing projects and whether they believe leadership style impacts project outcome.
Abstract: The literature on general management research often identifies leadership style as a critical success factor impacting individual and organizational performance. In this paper, commissioned by the Project Management Institute, the authors survey the recent literature on project management to determine whether project management researchers consider leadership style a critical success factor when managing projects and whether they believe leadership style impacts project outcome. This paper opens by outlining the purpose of this study and then describing the general management literature on leadership styles and competence in relation to four elements: 20th century leadership theory; team behavior; managerial behavior; and leadership competence. It then looks at the literature on project management and discusses the research on the relationship between a project manager's leadership style and competence and project outcome and success. It then identifies and explains six points concerning the project manager leadership style and competence that researchers have most frequently explored. The paper concludes by detailing this review's findings and by suggesting ideas on this topic that researchers could further explore. ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR Copyright of Project Management Journal is the property of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. / Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.

735 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Our views on project success have changed over the years from definitions that were limited to the implementation phase of the project life cycle to definitions that reflect an appreciation of succ... as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Our views on project success have changed over the years from definitions that were limited to the implementation phase of the project life cycle to definitions that reflect an appreciation of succ...

700 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors highlights the characteristics of articles on project success published between 1986 and 2004 in the Project Management Journal (PMJ) and the International Journal of Project Management (IJPM) and concludes with a discussion on the traditional state of the research, criticizes its assumptions and offers alternative metaphors and recommendations for future research.
Abstract: This article highlights the characteristics of articles on project success published between 1986 and 2004 in the Project Management Journal (PMJ) and the International Journal of Project Management (IJPM) The analysis covers references, concepts like project management success, project success, success criteria, and success factors; features of the samples, data collection, and analysis techniques used; and professional disciplines The results show that research on project success is characterized by diversity except in epistemological and methodological perspectives The article suggests a shift to project, portfolio, and program success and concludes with a discussion on the traditional state of the research, criticizes its assumptions, and offers alternative metaphors and recommendations for future research

698 citations