<p>Enterprises of any size need to face different challenges which might be specific to their environment or their structure. Therefore, to overcome these barriers each company owner needs to take into consideration suitable ways through which the available and potential resources can be best use in dealing with the business context. Issues like, market breakthrough and acceptance, competition, economic environment, can prove to be critical for a small business which bases its activities on innovation type of services and products.</p><p>By studding the specific context of small businesses with an entrepreneurial and innovative character, we try to address in this thesis one of the particular ways through which these type of companies can face challenges within their environment: by involving different categories of external support in their projects and business activities. While the need for capital, information and co-operation is growing along with the small business development, we also have chosen to focus our attention on three types of support infrastructures: finance, information and network. Then, each of these support aspects is analysed in connection with project critical success factors in order to establish a certain relevance that external assistance can have on project success.</p><p>The case studies are based on five small companies within a Swedish incubator in the region of Västerbotten county. As for our study we consider governmental agencies, universities and Science Parks, as three representative support agents, we decided to take closely analyse one of them, and so we looked at the policies and environment of the incubator which hosts the five small companies. And so, Uminova Innovation and its incubator, which are part of Uminova Science Park, could be considered as the overall case study framework. Then, the outcomes of this thesis highlight the perceived influence of the three support infrastructures: finance, information and networks on the business projects, activities and processes. Although the particular business characteristics have their own impact when it comes to the types of support each studied company choose to approach, a general link has been noticed between a certain type of business activities or plans and the involved support.</p><p>As this study brings up particular matters which engage both small business and the business support agents, we believe that the outcomes of the analysis and the broad theoretical framework would be a suitable reference for practitioners of support policies as well as for small business owners. Therefore, the actions and policies of these actors can be further developed by taking in consideration the critical success factors which have a direct implication in enhancing a particular support that further can contribute to project success.</p>

Enterprises of any size need to face different challenges which might be specific to their environment or their structure. Therefore, to overcome these barriers each company owner needs to take into consideration suitable ways through which the available and potential resources can be best use in dealing with the business context. Issues like, market breakthrough and acceptance, competition, economic environment, can prove to be critical for a small business which bases its activities on innovation type of services and products. By studding the specific context of small businesses with an entrepreneurial and innovative character, we try to address in this thesis one of the particular ways through which these type of companies can face challenges within their environment: by involving different categories of external support in their projects and business activities. While the need for capital, information and co-operation is growing along with the small business development, we also have chosen to focus our attention on three types of support infrastructures: finance, information and network. Then, each of these support aspects is analysed in connection with project critical success factors in order to establish a certain relevance that external assistance can have on project success. The case studies are based on five small companies within a Swedish incubator in the region of Västerbotten county. As for our study we consider governmental agencies, universities and Science Parks, as three representative support agents, we decided to take closely analyse one of them, and so we looked at the policies and environment of the incubator which hosts the five small companies. And so, Uminova Innovation and its incubator, which are part of Uminova Science Park, could be considered as the overall case study framework. Then, the outcomes of this thesis highlight the perceived influence of the three support infrastructures: finance, information and networks on the business projects, activities and processes. Although the particular business characteristics have their own impact when it comes to the types of support each studied company choose to approach, a general link has been noticed between a certain type of business activities or plans and the involved support. As this study brings up particular matters which engage both small business and the business support agents, we believe that the outcomes of the analysis and the broad theoretical framework would be a suitable reference for practitioners of support policies as well as for small business owners. Therefore, the actions and policies of these actors can be further developed by taking in consideration the critical success factors which have a direct implication in enhancing a particular support that further can contribute to project success.

Resurshanteringen är en viktig del av arbetet i ett projekt och hur resursallokeringen går till är avgörande för projektet och resultatets framgång. Trots att resursallokering är extra problematiskt i multiprojektmiljöer finns det relativt lite forskning inom ämnet. Inom branschen för teknik- och förnyelsebar energi drivs majoriteten av produktutvecklingen i form av projekt. Vår studie genomfördes för att svara på uppsatsens forskningsfråga: Hur påverkar projektledare organisationens resurshantering under projektets genomförande? För att samla in data genomfördes semistrukturerade intervjuer med totalt sex projektledare från en organisation som arbetar med lösningar för förnyelsebar energi inom sol- och gas-teknologi. Organisationen finns representerad på tre orter nationellt och ytterligare två orter internationellt. Vi har konstruerat vår intervjuguide utifrån vår problemformulering och analysen av de data som samlats in utfördes i två steg. I steg ett analyserade vi vad och hur projektledarna prioriterade samt hur de konkret gjorde för organisationens resurshantering. Syftet var att få respondenterna att berätta om sina upplevelser kring hur organisationen arbetar med resursallokering och hur de som projektledare gör när de behöver påverka den. I steg två jämfördes analyserad data gentemot tidigare forskning om projekt och resursallokering i multiprojektmiljöer. De två stegen redovisas gemensamt och parallellt med varandra i analysen för att skapa en helhetsbild i analysen. Uppsatsens resultat visar hur projektledare inom den studerade organisationen gör för att påverka organisationens resurshantering under projektets genomförande. Vår slutsats är att projektledarna påverkar organisationens resurshantering genom att förbereda sig med en grundläggande planering med förslag till problemlösningar vilka presenteras uteslutande vid personlig kontakt i form av formella och informella möten. / Resource management is an important aspect of the work of a project, and the allocation of resources is crucial for the project’s success. Although resource allocation is extra problematic in multi-project environments, there is relatively little research on the subject. In the technology and renewable energy sector, the majority of product development is conducted in the form of projects.    Our study was conducted to answer the essay's research question: How do project managers affect the organization's resource management during project implementation? To collect data, semistructured interviews were conducted with a total of six project managers from an organization that works with renewable energy solutions in solar and gas technology. Along with having offices in three locations nationally, the organization is also represented in two additional locations internationally.    We have designed our interview guide based on our problem formulation, and the analysis of the data collected was performed in two steps. In step one we analyzed what and how the project managers prioritized various aspects of the projects and how they actually managed the resources. The purpose was to get the respondents to share their experiences about how the organization handles resource allocation and how they act as project managers when they need to provide influence.    In step two, we compared our data analysis to previous research on projects and resource management in multi-project environments. The two steps are reported jointly and continuously to create an overall picture in the analysis. The essay's results show how project managers influence the organization's resource management during the project's implementation.    Our conclusion is that project managers influence the organization's resource management by carefully planning for changes in the project along with suggestions for problem solving. This influence is exerted exclusively using personal contact methods via both formal and informal meetings.

<p>Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the corporate world are achieving increasing importance and attention especially in the advent of intense globalization. This is evident from the magnitude and growth of deal values and resultant ‘mega-mergers’ transacted in recent times. As expert advisory are sought in M&A activities to facilitate the undertaking and maximise the value of the transaction, advisory firms begin to play a more significant and at the same time lucrative role in M&A activities, to the extent of determining the outcome of such projects. Being an area of limited research, it is thus valuable to investigate what M&A advisory firms view as critical success factors to the projects they undertake. Consequently, the research question of “What are the critical success factors for merger & acquisition projects in the view of merger & acquisition advisory firms” has been raised. A list of ten critical success factors for M&A projects is firstly identified from an extensive literature review. These factors are (1) Complete and Clear objectives, goals and scope of the project, (2) Client consultation and acceptance, (3) Project manager’s competence and commitment, (4) Project team member’s competence and commitment, (5) Communication and information sharing and exchange, (6) Project plan development, (7) M&A advisory firm’s resource planning, (8) Time management and tight secrecy, (9) Price evaluation and financing scheme, and (10) Risk management.</p><p>In an attempt to explore the importance of each factor in the practical context, data have been collected through three research methods. Primarily, the authors conduct a semi-structured interview with six interviewees currently working in three organizations which provide professional services related to M&A projects. Meanwhile, a self-completion questionnaire method is employed, following which a sample of 325 M&A advisory firms based in the U.S. is selected to participate in an online survey. In addition, the authors follow a case study approach based on the three organizations of the six interviewees in order to establish comprehensive knowledge about issues relating to M&A projects.</p><p>In response to the research question, the findings strongly indicate that seven out of ten factors in the original list have a positive impact, being the factors listed above as (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (8), and (9). On the other hand, it revealed the lesser importance of the other three. In addition, three new factors have been discovered from analyzing the data collected, being (i) Having a number of key potential buyers with suitable profile (ii) Right, correct and complete information and data in the data room, and (iii) The quality of the selling company. While as another outcome of this research, further practical insights have been provided regarding the role of M&A advisory firms, the M&A process, common issues faced by M&A projects and the success criteria for M&A projects.</p><p>The findings from this research contribute valuable new knowledge to both researchers and practitioners in both project management and M&A fields, while facilitating the achievement of successful M&A projects.</p>

Mergers and acquisitions (M&amp;A) in the corporate world are achieving increasing importance and attention especially in the advent of intense globalization. This is evident from the magnitude and growth of deal values and resultant ‘mega-mergers’ transacted in recent times. As expert advisory are sought in M&amp;A activities to facilitate the undertaking and maximise the value of the transaction, advisory firms begin to play a more significant and at the same time lucrative role in M&amp;A activities, to the extent of determining the outcome of such projects. Being an area of limited research, it is thus valuable to investigate what M&amp;A advisory firms view as critical success factors to the projects they undertake. Consequently, the research question of “What are the critical success factors for merger &amp; acquisition projects in the view of merger &amp; acquisition advisory firms” has been raised. A list of ten critical success factors for M&amp;A projects is firstly identified from an extensive literature review. These factors are (1) Complete and Clear objectives, goals and scope of the project, (2) Client consultation and acceptance, (3) Project manager’s competence and commitment, (4) Project team member’s competence and commitment, (5) Communication and information sharing and exchange, (6) Project plan development, (7) M&amp;A advisory firm’s resource planning, (8) Time management and tight secrecy, (9) Price evaluation and financing scheme, and (10) Risk management. In an attempt to explore the importance of each factor in the practical context, data have been collected through three research methods. Primarily, the authors conduct a semi-structured interview with six interviewees currently working in three organizations which provide professional services related to M&amp;A projects. Meanwhile, a self-completion questionnaire method is employed, following which a sample of 325 M&amp;A advisory firms based in the U.S. is selected to participate in an online survey. In addition, the authors follow a case study approach based on the three organizations of the six interviewees in order to establish comprehensive knowledge about issues relating to M&amp;A projects. In response to the research question, the findings strongly indicate that seven out of ten factors in the original list have a positive impact, being the factors listed above as (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (8), and (9). On the other hand, it revealed the lesser importance of the other three. In addition, three new factors have been discovered from analyzing the data collected, being (i) Having a number of key potential buyers with suitable profile (ii) Right, correct and complete information and data in the data room, and (iii) The quality of the selling company. While as another outcome of this research, further practical insights have been provided regarding the role of M&amp;A advisory firms, the M&amp;A process, common issues faced by M&amp;A projects and the success criteria for M&amp;A projects. The findings from this research contribute valuable new knowledge to both researchers and practitioners in both project management and M&amp;A fields, while facilitating the achievement of successful M&amp;A projects.

Urban regeneration has become a frequently and widely used urban transformation strategy in many cities since the beginning of the 1990s. A number of urban regeneration projects have been implemented in declining city centres, old-industrial and harbour sites, and the working-class residential areas and undermined historical heritage sites of cities. The rise and mushrooming of such projects all over the world however brings about the questions related to their success level. This thesis aims to assess the success level of urban regeneration projects according to the measurable (qualitative and quantitative) features of integrated planning approaches. It seeks to develop a model to examine the success level of urban regeneration projects in physical, environmental, economic and social terms. Using case study as a research method, the research focuses on the on-going &amp / #8216 / Rehabilitation of the Fener and Balat Districts Programme&amp / #8217 / in the Istanbul Historical Peninsula, and tries to answer the question of how far this Programme can be successful in terms of regenerating the Fener-Balat Districts physically, environmentally, economically and socially.

Presently, within the human resource management (HRM) genre and including the construction management discipline, the identification and development of appropriate performance measures is seen as the only viable means for validating and engendering managerial excellence. There is also a growing awareness that appropriate predictive modelling practices can help engender the identification and development of these measures. Against the background that project-based sectors of the construction industry in developing countries need to adopt a proactive approach towards recognising and embedding performance measures in HRM practices, this thesis addresses the development of a model for predicting the performance of project managers (PMs) in mass house building projects (MHBPs) in Ghana. A literature review of the significance of performance measures in the HRM genre is first presented including an evaluation of the methodologies for measuring the performance of PMs. This is followed by a review of research and development in the management of human resources in the construction industry in developing countries including Ghana. Informed by the literature, an appropriate theoretical framework is adopted which draws on the organisational psychology theory of job performance, the conventional wisdom in project success criteria and an emerging framework of project lifecycle. Subsequently, a competency-based multidimensional conceptual model is developed. The conceptual model reflects both the elements of performance behaviours and outcomes in predicting the performance of PMs at the conceptual, design, tender, procurement, construction and operational phases of the project lifecycle. Adopting positivism as an appropriate research paradigm, structured questionnaire survey is used to elicit the relevant data from property developers in Ghana for the construction phase of the project lifecycle. Subsequently the data is analysed using one-sample t-test, factor analysis and multiple regression analysis (stepwise). From a broad range of competency-based measures used as independent variables, it is found that, the best predictors of the PMs’ performance at the “construction phase” of MHBPs are: job knowledge in site layout techniques for repetitive construction works; dedication in helping works contractors to achieve works programme; job knowledge of appropriate technology transfer for repetitive construction works; effective time management practices on the house-units; ability to provide effective solution to conflicts while maintaining good relationships; ease with which the PM is approachable by works contractors; and volunteering to help works contractors solve personal problems. These independent variables explained 74.4% of the variance in the model (at p < 0.0005). Validation of the model confirmed its goodness of fit and hence predictive accuracy. The findings suggest that at the construction phase of MHBPs, PMs who exhibit these behavioural competencies are likely to achieve higher levels of performance. Accordingly, PMs who aspire to achieve better managerial performance outcome on MHBPs should strive towards developing and improving these competencies. It is contended that the developed model could be used by property developers for the selection and recruitment of potential PMs and also for developing appropriate training requirements towards best practice improvement in the implementation of MHBPs. While the study focuses on Ghana, there is the potential for the model to be adopted for use by other developing countries towards the advancement of improved HRM activities in project management practice.

As a response to the need for efficiency and innovation that modern society hasplaced over healthcare organizations, they are constantly looking for more efficientand innovative tools that facilitate the daily practices for providers. In this context,the use of digital solutions or eHealth arises as an alternative for healthcare.Despite the potential benefits of eHealth solutions, healthcare leaders experiencedifficulties implementing them. For that reason, health services researchersacknowledge the critical role of implementation science in the sector. Seeking tomotivate organizations to embrace eHealth solutions and their benefits, thisresearch identifies the barriers and facilitators experienced by project managersduring the implementation projects of innovations in healthcare. Moreover, itproposes the clarification of concrete criteria to assess success derived from theoutcomes of an implementation project. Starting with a literature review, followedby qualitative research and a data collection through a total of ten semi-structuredinterviews with project managers. Moreover, the data analysis is made based onthematic analysis. The results identify three main facilitators for innovation: 1)maintaining a balanced level of understanding for all stakeholders, 2) to have opencommunication, and 3) to have a high involvement of the top management with theproject. Moreover, the most relevant barrier faced by managers is the lack of skilledand competent people within the organization. Regarding the success ofimplementation projects, the most relevant criteria are: 1) delivering in the righttime, budget, scope and quality (reach the project goals), 2) maintaining thecustomer and user satisfaction, and 3) increase in work efficiency in the healthcareorganizations. To some extent, the mentioned factors contribute to facilitating theimplementation of innovations in healthcare. The role of managers inimplementation is highly valuable since they represent the bridge between topmanagement and front-line employees. This research summarizes the experienceof the managers -from a consultancy company- while working in theimplementation of digital tools in healthcare. Therefore, the research provides abetter understanding regarding the barriers, facilitators and success criteria forimplementation.

This article conceptualizes and operationalizes ‘subjective entrepreneurial success’ in a manner which reflects the criteria employed by entrepreneurs, rather than those imposed by researchers. We used two studies to explore this notion; the first qualitative enquiry investigated success definitions using interviews with 185 German entrepreneurs; five factors emerged from their reports: firm performance, workplace relationships, personal fulfilment, community impact and personal financial rewards. The second study developed a questionnaire, the Subjective Entrepreneurial Success–Importance Scale (SES-IS), to measure these five factors using a sample of 184 entrepreneurs. We provide evidence for the validity of the SES-IS, including establishing systematic relationships of SES-IS with objective indicators of firm success, annual income and entrepreneur satisfaction with life and financial situation. We also provide evidence for the cross-cultural invariance of SES-IS using a sample of Polish entrepreneurs. The contribution of our research being that subjective entrepreneurial success is a multi-factorial construct, that is, entrepreneurs value various indicators of success with monetary returns as only one possible option.

Information and communication technology (ICT) greatly influence today’s business processes be it in public or private sectors. Everything that is done in business requires ICT in one way or the other. Research in ICTs is therefore critical. So much research was and is still carried out in projects that develop or enhance ICT but it is still apparent that the success rate of these projects is still very low. The extensive coverage of ICTs implies that if the success rate is still that low, many resources are being wasted in the failed projects; therefore, more research is needed to improve the success rate. Previous research has focussed on factors which are critical for the success of ICT projects, assuming that all ICT projects are the same. As a result, literature is full of different suggestions and guidelines of the factors critical to ICT projects’ success. This scenario brings challenges to project managers who end up using their own personal judgement to select which factors to consider for any project at hand. The end result is the high failure rate of ICT projects since there is a very high chance of applying the same critical success factors to different types of ICT projects. This research answered the question: which factors are critical to the success of computer networking projects in Zimbabwe and how these factors could be used for building a model that determines in advance the success of such projects? Literature reviewed indicated that most CSFs were not focused on specific types of ICT projects, hence were generalised. No literature was found on ICT projects’ CSFs in Zimbabwe. More so, no CSFs were found for computer networking projects as a specific instance of ICT projects. No model existed that predicts computer networking projects’ success. This study addressed the gaps by developing a CSF framework for ICT projects in Zimbabwe, determining CSFs for computer networking projects in Zimbabwe and the development of a logistic regression analysis model to predict computer networking projects’ success in Zimbabwe. Data was collected in Zimbabwe using a unique three-staged process which comprise metasynthesis analysis, questionnaire and interviews. The study was motivated by the fact that most available research focused on CSFs for general ICT projects and that no research was found on CSFs influencing projects in computer networking. Meta-synthesis analysis was therefore conducted on literature in order to identify CSFs as given in literature. The approach was appropriate since the researcher had noticed that there were extensive ICT projects’ CSFs and that no such research has been carried out in Zimbabwe. These CSFs formed the basis for the determination (using a questionnaire) of ICT projects CSFs for Zimbabwe in particular. Project practitioners’ viewpoints were sought through questionnaires. Once CSFs for ICT projects in Zimbabwe were determined, they formed the basis for the determination of unique critical success factors for computer networking projects in Zimbabwe. Interviews were used to get further information that would have been left out by questionnaires. The interview questions were set to clarify some unclear or conflicting responses from the questionnaire and providing in-depth insights into the factors critical to computer networking projects in Zimbabwe. The data i.e. critical success factors for computer networking projects guided the development of the logistic regression analysis model for the prediction of computer networking projects’ success in Zimbabwe. Data analysis from the questionnaire was analysed using SPSS Version 23.0. Factor analysis and principal component analysis were some of the techniques used in the analysis. Interview data was analysed through NVivo Version 10.0. From the results it was deduced that factors critical to ICT project management in Zimbabwe were closely related to those found in the literature. The only apparent difference was that CSFs for ICT projects in Zimbabwe were more specific thereby enhancing their applicability. Computer networking projects had fewer CSFs than general ICT projects. In addition, CSFs for general ICT projects were different from those critical to computer networking projects in Zimbabwe. The development of a comprehensive set of general ICT projects’ CSFs was the first contribution of this study. This was achieved through meta-synthesis analysis. The other contribution was the development of a CSF framework for ICT projects specific to Zimbabwe and those specific to computer networking projects in Zimbabwe. The major contribution was the development of the logistic regression analysis model that predicts computer networking projects’ success in Zimbabwe. These contributions will provide literature on ICT project management in Zimbabwe which will subsequently assist ICT project managers to concentrate on specific factors. The developed prediction model can be used by project managers to determine possible success or failure of ICT projects; thereby possible reducing wastage of resource. / School of Computing