<p>This thesis is about human resource management (HRM) in project-based organisations. Firms have over the last decades tended to rely increasingly on project-based structures. This process of projectification implies a changed work situation for individuals in modern organisations. Researchers from the project field of research as well as from the HRM field of research have pointed to possible implications that projectification might have for HRM. This thesis explores this area through a combination of multiple, comparative, and single case studies of project-based organisations. The studies aim at identifying and analysing the changes and challenges for HRM in this particular context.</p><p>The studies are presented in four separate papers. The findings suggest a number of important and empirically nested challenges related to Competence, Trust, Change, and Individuals. Moreover, the changing roles of HR departments and line managers in the overall HR organisation are discussed and analysed. The thesis proposes alternative roles for line managers, depending on the organisational context, and it also proposes two ’ideal types’ of HR-departmental structures.</p>

This thesis is about human resource management (HRM) in project-based organisations. Firms have over the last decades tended to rely increasingly on project-based structures. This process of projectification implies a changed work situation for individuals in modern organisations. Researchers from the project field of research as well as from the HRM field of research have pointed to possible implications that projectification might have for HRM. This thesis explores this area through a combination of multiple, comparative, and single case studies of project-based organisations. The studies aim at identifying and analysing the changes and challenges for HRM in this particular context. The studies are presented in four separate papers. The findings suggest a number of important and empirically nested challenges related to Competence, Trust, Change, and Individuals. Moreover, the changing roles of HR departments and line managers in the overall HR organisation are discussed and analysed. The thesis proposes alternative roles for line managers, depending on the organisational context, and it also proposes two ’ideal types’ of HR-departmental structures.

For several years, knowledge has been treated as a key successful resource in business and management. As knowledge management has been researched in various research domains, academics in project management have been also interested in the potential role of knowledge management. The aim of the research is to explore the usefulness and potentiality of knowledge management as well as to confirm the influencing elements of knowledge sharing within project-based organisations. This research implemented a qualitative research method which prompted an in-depth understanding of individual members’ perceptions towards knowledge sharing in project teams. In order to fulfil the methodological objective, the data were collected by using semi-structured interviews with 26 project managers from five project-based firms. The grounded theory method was adopted as the data analysis technique of this study. It allowed the researcher to explore and analyse the individuals’ perceptions of knowledge sharing and knowledge management. As a result, this study suggests four potential influencing factors of knowledge sharing, which are trust, relationship, motivation, and self-efficacy. The research data show that trust plays a role as a basic currency between members to share knowledge. Positive and affirmative relationships with other members will make it easy to share more knowledge and lead to better quality of knowledge. In this research, the informants also imply that members would be motivated to engage in knowledge sharing in respect to workload, culture, and remuneration. Lastly, one’s belief that one can achieve certain things -self-efficacy- is also important to create improved knowledge sharing between members in project teams. The research found that the majority of the companies managed their knowledge and carried out knowledge sharing activities. However, most of them did not recognise that their behaviours were relevant to knowledge management. In this research, the author suggests that confirming precedent knowledge management and knowledge sharing activities should occur prior to adopting new approaches. Furthermore, this research explores the potential influencing factors that play a role as either enablers or barriers. Thus, project managers and management should be cautious and ensure that influencing factors are equally balanced. Due to the nature of qualitative research methods, the sample size is relatively small compared to quantitative methods such as a survey and a questionnaire. As a result, future studies will consider more data in order to enhance further applicability and utilisation of the research.

Innovation is one of the most important factors behind today´s global economic growth and prosperity. In the current economic climate, increasing global competition and rapidly changing environment, an organisations ability to innovate is regarded as a key factor for success. It is widely accepted that creating new processes, products and procedures are vital for productivity and growth in all sectors. The literature on innovation measurements areas and utilities is voluminous and diverse. Assessing and measuring the complex conditions that influence a firm’s innovation capability is a challenging task, due to the inconsistency, inaccessibility, and complexity of measures. An integrative and holistic innovation capability assessment framework should include all aspects of innovation. This study attempt to address this gap, the lack of a holistic innovation capability assessment framework (HICAF) in project-based firms, by (a) reviewing the literature on innovation, innovation assessment, and measurement areas (b) through a qualitative case study exploring the factors promoting innovation in project-based firms (c) integrating the findings into a holistic assessment framework (d) generating items, in form of a statement, to address the underlying construct of each identified factor (e) applying the proposed framework within an organisation and statistically validating the instrument to achieve item homogeneity. Internal consistency reliability estimates have been utilized to produce a final framework consisting of 57 statistically validated items and eight theoretically grounded categories with 19 corresponding factors promoting innovation, also called enablers, in technology-orientated project-based organisations. In addition to the identified literature findings, the case study resulted in two new enablers, time management, and quality, which are not necessarily specific for project-based organisations, rather specific for the observed organisation. The performed case study is insufficient for determining whether there are any specific enablers for project-based organisations. The advantages of HICAF lies in its simplicity due to practical applicability in a large scale and facilitates managers to diagnose the organisation and recognize true symptoms to then apply appropriate treatment and remedies. A frequent application of HICAF can also help to study the effect of specific treatment and remedies in relation to innovation capability.

<p>Det blir allt vanligare att människor byter arbetsgivare flera gånger under sitt yrkesverksamma liv och den gamla synen på anställningen som ett livslångt åtagande håller på att försvinna. Organisationer knyter till sig temporära medarbetare, bland annat till sina olika projekt, för att dessa ska tillföra sådan kompetens som inte finns i den ordinarie organisationen. Detta syns tydligt i statistiken från SCB som visar att andelen temporärt anställda ökar i Sverige och nu är nästan 16 % av arbetskraften.</p><p>Uppsatsen behandlar lärandeprocesser i organisationer med höga E/A-tal, det vill säga organisationer där andelen temporärt anställda överstiger andelen tillsvidareanställda medarbetare. Den inriktar sig på lärandet i och mellan projekt, samt hur huvudorganisationen tar del av lärandet i projekten, när individerna med specialkompetens bara är temporärt anställda.</p><p>Respondentorganisationernas syn på kunskap stannar vid individuell kompetens. De har som strategi att till varje nytt projekt anställa personer med rätt kompetens temporärt. När projektet är avslutat, slutar även de som är anställda för projektet. Om organisationen behöver personer med samma kompetens för andra projekt, återanställs personerna temporärt för att arbeta i dem.</p><p>Studien visar att de undersökta organisationerna har en fungerande lärprocess trots att de inte medvetet strävar efter detta. Inom projekten sker hela tiden ett kunskapsutbyte mellan teammedlemmarna, och mycket utav denna kunskap sprids inom organisationen genom småprat och formella möten. En viktig kunskapskälla är de chefer som fungerar som länk mellan huvudorganisationen och projektgrupperna.</p> / <p>It is getting increasingly common for people to change employer several times during their professional life. The old way to look at employment as a one single lifelong commitment is declining. Organisations are now using more temporary employees, among other things for their different projects, with the intention that these should provide complementary competence to the organisation. This is clearly shown in the statistics from SCB, which illustrates that the share of temporary employees in Sweden increases and at the present represents almost 16 % of the labour force.</p><p>This thesis studies learning processes in organisations with a high E/E-number, which stand for organisations where the share of temporary employees exceeds the share of regular employees. The thesis focus on learning within and between projects, as well as how the main organisation takes part of the learning in the projects, when the individuals with special competence are only temporary employed.</p><p>The respondent organisations view on knowledge stop at individual competence. Their strategy is to employ people with the right competences temporary to each new project, so when the project is closed, the people and the competence leave. If the organisation requires people with the same competence again for other projects, they are temporary re-employed.</p><p>The study shows that the organisations examined do have a functional learning process, although they do not consciously strive for this. Within the projects there is a constant knowledge exchange between the team members, and a lot of this knowledge is spread through out the organisation by small talk and formal meetings. An important source of knowledge is the supervisors which function as a link between the main organisation and the project teams.</p>

Submitted by Priscilla Araujo (priscilla@ibict.br) on 2016-11-10T18:44:57Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) rios2013.pdf: 2213922 bytes, checksum: 86b790394a77e5f5960a78a2c7c59ff2 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-10T18:44:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) rios2013.pdf: 2213922 bytes, checksum: 86b790394a77e5f5960a78a2c7c59ff2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-27 / Esta tese discute a inovação sob uma perspectiva sistêmica, bem como os processos de criação de conhecimento em sua difusão e aplicação. / This thesis discusses innovation from a systemic perspective, as well as the processes of knowledge creation and diffusion and its application.

Det blir allt vanligare att människor byter arbetsgivare flera gånger under sitt yrkesverksamma liv och den gamla synen på anställningen som ett livslångt åtagande håller på att försvinna. Organisationer knyter till sig temporära medarbetare, bland annat till sina olika projekt, för att dessa ska tillföra sådan kompetens som inte finns i den ordinarie organisationen. Detta syns tydligt i statistiken från SCB som visar att andelen temporärt anställda ökar i Sverige och nu är nästan 16 % av arbetskraften. Uppsatsen behandlar lärandeprocesser i organisationer med höga E/A-tal, det vill säga organisationer där andelen temporärt anställda överstiger andelen tillsvidareanställda medarbetare. Den inriktar sig på lärandet i och mellan projekt, samt hur huvudorganisationen tar del av lärandet i projekten, när individerna med specialkompetens bara är temporärt anställda. Respondentorganisationernas syn på kunskap stannar vid individuell kompetens. De har som strategi att till varje nytt projekt anställa personer med rätt kompetens temporärt. När projektet är avslutat, slutar även de som är anställda för projektet. Om organisationen behöver personer med samma kompetens för andra projekt, återanställs personerna temporärt för att arbeta i dem. Studien visar att de undersökta organisationerna har en fungerande lärprocess trots att de inte medvetet strävar efter detta. Inom projekten sker hela tiden ett kunskapsutbyte mellan teammedlemmarna, och mycket utav denna kunskap sprids inom organisationen genom småprat och formella möten. En viktig kunskapskälla är de chefer som fungerar som länk mellan huvudorganisationen och projektgrupperna. / It is getting increasingly common for people to change employer several times during their professional life. The old way to look at employment as a one single lifelong commitment is declining. Organisations are now using more temporary employees, among other things for their different projects, with the intention that these should provide complementary competence to the organisation. This is clearly shown in the statistics from SCB, which illustrates that the share of temporary employees in Sweden increases and at the present represents almost 16 % of the labour force. This thesis studies learning processes in organisations with a high E/E-number, which stand for organisations where the share of temporary employees exceeds the share of regular employees. The thesis focus on learning within and between projects, as well as how the main organisation takes part of the learning in the projects, when the individuals with special competence are only temporary employed. The respondent organisations view on knowledge stop at individual competence. Their strategy is to employ people with the right competences temporary to each new project, so when the project is closed, the people and the competence leave. If the organisation requires people with the same competence again for other projects, they are temporary re-employed. The study shows that the organisations examined do have a functional learning process, although they do not consciously strive for this. Within the projects there is a constant knowledge exchange between the team members, and a lot of this knowledge is spread through out the organisation by small talk and formal meetings. An important source of knowledge is the supervisors which function as a link between the main organisation and the project teams.

This doctoral thesis addresses human resource management in project-based organisations. The aim is to explore the challenges for HRM in project-based organisations and the changes in people management systems to meet these challenges. The thesis consists of a compilation of six papers and an extended summary. The research reported in the thesis is based on a combination of multiple, comparative, and single case studies of project-based organisations. The core case studies have been conducted at Saab Aerosystems, AstraZeneca, Volvo Car Corporation, and Tetra Pak. The results indicate central challenges regarding competence development and career structures, performance review processes and reputation of project workers, and the increased responsibility and pressured work environment for project workers. They further indicate that many of these challenges are handled through a more HR-oriented line manager role, while HR departments are downsized and centralised. The thesis hence emphasises the need to understand HRM as a dimension of management in which various players share the responsibility for its design and performance. To conclude, the thesis applies a capabilities perspective on project-based organisations and develops a conceptual framework that embraces people capability: the organisational capability to manage the relation between people and their organisational context. In this framework, people management systems improve people capability when they integrate it with strategic, functional, and project capabilities. It is suggested that the people capability framework provides new possibilities to analyse HRM in project-based organisations and to explain the changes in people management systems that are needed to align them to the project-based context. / I avhandlingen studeras human resource management (HRM) i projektbaserade organisationer. Syftet är att utforska de utmaningar som HRM i projektbaserade organisationer möter på grund av de speciella karaktärsdrag som denna organisationsform har, samt hur personalarbetet i denna typ av organisationer förändras för att anpassas till ett projektbaserat arbetssätt. Avhandlingen är en sammanläggningsavhandling bestående av sex artiklar och kappa, författade på engelska. Artiklarna bygger på fallstudier av projektintensiva och kunskapsintensiva organisationer. De centrala fallstudierna har genomförts på Saab Aerosystems, AstraZeneca, Volvo Car Corporation och Tetra Pak. Avhandlingen visar på utmaningar gällande kompetensutveckling och karriärvägar, utvärderingsprocesser och rykte för projektmedarbetare, samt individens ökade ansvar och tidspressade arbetssituation. De visar vidare på att många av dessa utmaningar framför allt hanteras genom en mer HR-orienterad roll för första linjens chefer medan personalavdelningar minskas och centraliseras. I avhandlingen tydliggörs därför vikten av att förstå HRM som en dimension av management där flera aktörer tillsammans bidrar till dess utförande och uppbyggnad. Avslutningsvis används ett perspektiv som fokuserar organisatoriska förmågor i projektbaserade företag för att utveckla en konceptuell modell för people capability: den organisatoriska förmågan att hantera relationen mellan individer och deras organisatoriska kontext. Modellens utgångspunkt är att personalarbetet i projektbaserade organisationer kan bidra till en förbättrad people capability om det integrerar denna förmåga med strategiska, funktionella och projektförmågor. I avhandlingen föreslås att people capability modellen ger nya möjligheter att analysera HRM i projektbaserade organisationer och att förklara de förändringar personalarbetet som krävs för att anpassa det till det projektbaserade arbetssättet.