Skip to main content

Research

Our members conduct responsible, relevant and rigorous scholarly research in project management. The work of our members is published in leading academic journals such as the International Journal of Project Management, Project Management Journal and International Journal of Managing Projects in Business. We are editors, guest editors or editorial board members for a number of journals.

Research themes

Our research currently focuses on the following themes:

  • Sustainable Interventions – sustainable project management; sensemaking, contextualisation and paradoxes in the context of sustainability; the dark side of the management of projects; governance for sustainable project management
  • Leadership and Organisational Behaviour in Projects – leadership in and of projects; behaviour in projects; organisational justice; coping strategies
  • Governance – governance of interorganisational project networks; fair project governance; contracting; governance for sustainable project management
  • New Professions – project management profession; national regulations; professionalisation of project management; historical development of the profession; sociology of professions
  • Dynamics of institutionalisation of new practices – business organisation; information technology
  • Projects as Temporary Form of Organising – linking to questions about leadership, strategy and change
  • Digitalisation – digital transformation process of construction projects; barriers and enablers; BIM
  • Operational Research – barriers and enablers of implementing OR tools to support decision-making
  • Productivity Improvement, Lean Production and Knowledge Management – learning curve models, project learning and productivity in construction projects
  • Ageing Intervention Developments (AID)
    • to promote an age-friendly construction industry where older construction workers feel safe, comfortable, and happy while improving productivity.
    • to promote an age-friendly built environment that is inclusive and accessible to promote active ageing.
    • inspired by smart construction and smart infrastructure technologies (e.g., smart sensing, wearable technologies, augmented reality/immersive virtual reality).

Research projects

Our members also work on a number of externally funded research projects. Please find a selection of projects below:

Prefab Sprouting (ESRC, Feb 2022 – Jul 2024, £725,940) An interdisciplinary research project to investigate the role of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the English Housing Crisis through mapping the MMC sector, investigating the delivery of MMC projects and the experiences of residents in such housing; Dr Christine Unterhitzenberger (Co-Investigator)

Reuse to reduce food waste (Research England, Nov 2022 – Jun 2023) Reuse to reduce food waste: understand policy barriers preventing food upcycling is progressing smoothly; Dr Luca Sabini (Co-Investigator)

Benchmarking to reduce budget uncertainty & actual cost, and increase learning from Oil & Gas (NDA/NNL, Feb 2021 – Aug 2024, £91,000) This project delivers a methodology based on benchmarking able to improve cost estimations (reduction of the difference between budget cost and actual cost), to foster reduction of actual cost and share learnings from large infrastructure projects/megaprojects as well as literature/experience to reduce cost, time and increase benefits; Dr Christine Unterhitzenberger (Principal Investigator)

Project X (ESRC, Dec 2018 – Dec 2021, £1,001,783) A collaboration between government (Infrastructure and Projects Authority and various government departments), academia (University of Sussex, Brighton, Leeds, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge, Hull, Cranfield, Warwick, Manchester, Bath) and industry (through professional bodies – APM, PMI, MPA); Dr Dicle Kortantamer (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)

Fairness and Unfairness in Projects (APM, Oct 2020 – Oct 2022, £25,000) This project explores what individuals perceive as fair or unfair treatment in projects, which factors influence their perceptions and subsequent behaviours and how these impact individuals, organisations and projects; Dr Christine Unterhitzenberger (Principal Investigator)

Governance of Interorganisational Project Networks (PMI, Jan 2021 – Dec 2021, US $50,000) This project suggests a shift in perspective in the study of interorganizational networks from the temporary organization (the project) to a semi-permanent network of organizations and their joint projects; Dr Christine Unterhitzenberger (Co-Investigator)

Contextualizing sustainability. This project investigates mechanisms through which collaborative settings contextualize sustainability in construction projects; Dr Luca Sabini (Investigator)

Tensions and innovation. This project studies how tensions from sustainability trigger innovation in project portfolio management; Dr Luca Sabini (Investigator)

Responsible Research

The LCP is an institutional partner of the Responsible Research in Business and Management (RRBM) network to advance and promote responsible research in business and management for a better world.

Get in touch

If you would like to work with us please email projects@leeds.ac.uk or get in touch with our Director Prof Christine Unterhitzenberger (c.unterhitzenberger@leeds.ac.uk).