The underlying theory of project management is obsolete

Koskela, LJ; Howell, G

Abstract

In prior literature, it has been generally seen that there is no explicit theory of project management. We contend that it is possible to precisely point out the underlying theoretical foundation of project management as espoused in the PMBOK Guide by PMI and mostly applied in practice. This foundation can be divided into a theory of project and a theory of management. We link theories to the body of
knowledge by comparing prescriptions derived from theory to prescriptions presented in the PMBOK. Secondly, we show, by a comparison to competing theories and by an analysis of anomalies (deviations from assumptions or outcomes as implied in the body of knowledge) observed in project management practice, that this foundation is obsolete and has to be substituted by a wider and more powerful theoretical foundation.

Citation

Koskela, L., & Howell, G. (2002, June). The underlying theory of project management is obsolete. Presented at The PMI Research Conference, Seattle, Washington

• Presentation Conference Type: Other
• Conference Name: The PMI Research Conference
• Conference Location: Seattle, Washington
• Start Date: Jun 1, 2002
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2002
• Deposit Date: Jun 23, 2010
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 23, 2010
• Additional Information: Event Type : Conference; References : Applebaum, H.A. 1982. Construction Management: Traditional versus Bureaucratic Methods. Anthropological Quarterly, vol. 55, n:o 4: 224-234. Ballard, G. & Howell, G. 1998. Shielding Production: Essential Step in Production Control. J. Constr. Engrg. and Mgmt., 124 (1) 11-17. Bhaskaran, K. & Pinedo, M. Dispatching. In: Handbook of Industrial Engineering. G. Salvendy (ed.), John Wiley, New York. 1991. Pp. 2182-2198. Cook, H.E. 1997. Product Management - Value, quality, cost, price, profit and organization. Chapman & Hall, London. 411 p. Cooper, K.G. 1993. The Rework Cycle: Why Projects Are Mismanaged. pmnetwork, February 1993, pp. 5-7. Duncan, W. (Director, Standards Committee). 1996. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. PMI Publications, Sylva, NC. 176 p. Emerson, Harrington. 1917. The Twelve Principles of Efficiency. Fifth ed. The Engineering magazine, New York. 423 p. Fondahl, John. 1980. Network Techniques for Project Planning, Scheduling, and Control. In: Handbook of Construction Management and Organization. Frein, Joseph P. (ed.). Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York. Pp. 442–471. Ford, Henry. 1926. Today And Tomorrow. Doubleday, Page & Co., Garden City. (Available as reprint edition: Productivity Press, Cambridge MA. 1988.) 286 p. Forsberg, Kevin, Mooz, Hal & Cotterman, Howard. 1996. Visualizing Project Management. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 298 p. Friedrich, D.R., Daly, J.P. & Dick, W.G. 1987. Revisions, Repairs, and Rework on Large Projects. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, Vol. 113, No.3, pp. 488-500. Fugate, Mary & Knapp, Joan. 1998. The Development of Bodies of Knowledge in the Professions. Appendix B in: Project Management Institute. 1999. The Future of Project Management. Newtown Square. Pp. 101–113. Giglioni, G.B. & Bedeian, A.G. 1974. A Conspectus of Management Control Theory: 1900-1972. Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 17, pp. 292-305. Gilbreth, Frank B. and Gilbreth, L.M. 1922. Process Charts and Their Place in Management. Mechanical Engineering, January, pp. 38-41, 70. Hofstede, Geert. 1978. The Poverty of Management Control Philosophy. Academy of Management Review, July, 450-461. Hopp, Wallace & Spearman, Mark. 1996. Factory Physics: Foundations of Manufacturing Management. Irwin/McGraw-Hill, Boston. 668 p. Howell, G.A., Laufer, A., and Ballard, G. 1993. Uncertainty and Project Objectives, Project Appraisal, 8(1), 1993, 37-43. Johnston, R.B. 1995. Making manufacturing practices tacit: a case study of computer aided production management and lean production. J. Opl. Res. Soc. 46, 1174-1183. Johnston, R.B. & Brennan, M. 1996. Planning or Organizing: the Implications of Theories of Activity for Management of Operations. Omega, Int. J. Mgmt. Sc., Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 367-384. Kharbanda, O.P. & Pinto, Jeffrey K. 1996. What Made Gertie Gallop: Learning from Project Failures? Van Nostrand Reinhold. 368 p. Kloppenborg, T.J. & Opfer, W.A. 2000. Forty Years of Project Management Research: Trends, Interpretations, and Predictions. Project Management Research at the Turn of the Millennium. Proceedings of PMI Research Conference 2000, 21-24 June 2000, Paris, France. Pp. 41-59. Koskela, Lauri. 2000. An exploration towards a production theory and its application to construction. Espoo, VTT Building Technology. 296 p. VTT Publications; 408. WWW: http://www.inf.vtt.fi/pdf/publications/2000/P408.pdf Koskela, Lauri & Gregory A. Howell. 2002. The theory of project management - problem and opportunity. Working paper. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland & Lean Construction Insitute. Loid, David. Limitations of the Project Monitoring Concept. Construction Economics and Organization. Proceedings of the Nordic Seminar on Construction Economics and Organization, 12 – 13 April 1999, Gothenburg. Department of Management of Construction and Facilities, Chalmers University of Technology. Pp. 53–59. Morris, Peter W.G. 2000. Researching the Unanswered Questions of Project Management. Project Management Research at the Turn of the Millennium. Proceedings of PMI Research Conference 2000, 21-24 June 2000, Paris, France. Pp.87-101. Morris, Peter. 1994. The Management of Projects. Thomas Telford, London. 358 p. Ogunnaike, Babatunde A. & Ray, Harmon W. 1994. Process Dynamics, Modeling, and Control. Oxford University Press, New York. 1260 p. Porter, M. 1985. Competitive Advantage. The Free Press. 557 p. Project Management Institute. 1999. The Future of Project Management. Newtown Square. 139 p. Sahlin-Andersson, Kerstin. 1992. The Social Construction of Projects. A Case Study of Organizing an Extraordinary Building Project – the Stockholm Globe Arena. Scandinavian Housing & Planning Research, Vol. 9, pp. 65-78. Shannon, Claude E. & Weaver, Warren. 1949. The Mathematical Theory of Communication. (Republished ed. 1962). The University of Illinois Press, Urbana. 117 p. Shenhar, A.J. 1998. From Theory to Practice: Toward a Typology of Project Management Styles, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Vol. 45, No. 1, February, pp. 33-48. Shewhart, W.A. 1931. Economic Control of Quality of Manufactured Product. Van Nostrand, New York. 501 p. Shewhart, Walter A. & Deming, W. Edwards. 1939. Statistical Method from the Viewpoint of Quality Control. The Graduate School, The Department of Agriculture, Washington. 155 p. Spear, Steven & Bowen, H. Kent. 1999. Decoding the DNA of the Toyota Production System. Harvard Business Review, September-October, pp. 97–106. Starr, Martin. 1966. Evolving concepts in production management. In: Readings in production and operations management, Elwood S. Buffa (ed.). John Wiley, New York. Pp. 28–35. Suh, Nam Pyo. 2001. Axiomatic Design: Advances and Applications. Oxford University Press. 503 p. Turner, J. Rodney. 1993. The handbook of project-based management. McGraw-Hill, London. 540 p. Turner, J. Rodney. 1999. Project management: A profession based on knowledge or faith? (Editorial). International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 17, No. 6, pp. 329-330. Whetten, David, A. 1989. What Constitutes a Theoretical Contribution? Academy of Management Review, Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 490-495. Wiest, Jerome D. & Levy, Ferdinand K. 1969. A Management Guide to PERT/CPM. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs. 170 p. Winograd, T. & Flores, F. 1986. Understanding Computers and Cognition: A New Foundation for Design. Ablex, Norwood. 207 p. Wortmann, J.C. 1992. Factory of the Future: Towards an integrated theory for one-of-a-kind production. In: 'One-of-a-kind production': New approaches. Hirsch, B.E. & Thoben, K.-D. (Ed.). Elsevier Science, Amsterdam. Pp. 37-74.