List of figures List of tables Preface Publisher's acknowledgements   Chapter 1        The project concept and the organisational perspective 1.1       Projects and perspectives 1.2       The task perspective 1.2.1    Definition and main ideas 1.2.2    Theoretical base 1.2.3    Criticisms of task perspective 1.3       The organisational perspective 1.3.1    Definition and main ideas 1.3.2    Theoretical base 1.4       A universal project management theory or several contingency theories? 1.4.1    Types of project 1.4.2    Life cycle models 1.4.3    How this affects what follows 1.5       The project assignment 1.5.1    The rationale of the project – stability and change at the same time 1.5.2    Dividing responsibilities between the project and base organisation 1.5.3    What sort of changes is possible in a base organisation? 1.5.4    Pursuing different types of change at the same time – PSO 1.5.5    Evolutionary development 1.5.6    Resistance to change 1.5.7    The evolving task 1.6       Projects and time 1.6.1    Cyclical, linear and alternating time 1.6.2    Temporal focus and temporal depth 1.6.3    Polychronicity and monochronicity 1.6.4    Scheduling of activities – entrainment of processes 1.6.5    Coping with stress 1.7       A project management theory based on the organisational perspective 1.7.1    Concepts, theories and methods 1.7.2    A project management theory 1.7.3    Theory elaboration Notes to Chapter 1   Chapter 2        The foundation of the project 2.1       Strategies affecting projects 2.1.1    Change strategy: punctuated equilibrium 2.1.2    Change strategy: event pacing or time pacing 2.1.3    Positioning strategy 2.1.4    Implementation strategies 2.2       Project uncertainty 2.2.1    The concept of uncertainty 2.2.2    Attitudes to uncertainty 2.2.3    Uncertainty management strategies 2.3       Project stakeholders 2.3.1    Salience 2.3.2    A strategy for dealing with stakeholders 2.3.3    Constructing a coalition – the contribution/reward model 2.4       Establishing the project 2.4.1    Business case 2.4.2    Project mandate 2.5       Project mission, goals and success criteria 2.5.1    Missionand goals 2.5.2    Elaborating the mission – mission breakdown structure 2.5.3    Project success criteria 2.5.4    Moving targets 2.6       Project scope and delimitations 2.6.1    Freedom of action 2.6.2    Project responsibilities 2.6.3    Project completion date 2.7 &

In practice, we see that projects often fail: people disagree, they change their minds, they learn as a work progresses. The project develops into an important and influential organisation with its own opinions, needs and challenges. Researchers have, for a long time, pointed out the need for new approaches to project management, to take into account the specific demands of individual projects. Erling S. Andersen’s new book examines project management from an organisational perspective. A project is a temporary organisation, established by its base organisation to carry out an assignment on its behalf. From this perspective, project management focusses on the relationship between the permanent and the temporary organisation. Inherent in this perspective is an understanding of the project’s most important purpose, to facilitate another organisation’s progress. The assignment is about change, often within a certain time limit. Rethinking Project Management discusses the foundation of the project, the planning, essential organising, control and leadership, all within an organisational perspective. There is no ‘right way’ to tackle projects – this book invites readers to rethink traditional methods and theories and offers new perspectives on every aspect of the project management process. A key title for any student of project management, Rethinking Project Management provides a unique grounding in the essentials of the subject, as well as a base for further study of contemporary issues in the field. Erling S. Andersen is Professor of Project Management and Information Systems,BI Norwegian School of Management, Oslo.