ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the linkages and connections between organizational improvisation and project-based management (PM). Although improvised work is evident in many domains, its use within PM is relatively under-researched, especially as it requires stepping away from the traditional “Plan – the Execute” paradigm.
The various constructs or components of organizational improvisation from Miner, Bassoff, and Moorman (1998) are considered in turn, both with regard to their contribution to organizational improvisation, and as they apply to managing projects. Some emerging implications are discussed.
Finally, the chapter considers issues where organizational improvisation has fundamentally changed the way that projects are considered and managed, and improvising within the project domain is changing the skills that are needed to be an effective project manager. Such managers also need to be more adept at more behavioral interactions, and this is finally being reflected in the leading “Body of Knowledge”, which is published by the US-based Project Management Institute.
