Topic: Knowledge management

By Manon Bradley
February 25th 2020

Improving Organisational Learning

This study draws on the practical experience of 14 Major Projects Association members to improve their capacity and capability for organisational learning.  This practitioner insight was complemented with a review of academic literature.

By Jonathan Norman
February 25th 2020

What can our Members Learn from Other Sectors? Highlight Report

During our Annual Conference, Dame Inga Beale in her keynote speech reflected on how her moments of inspiration and innovation often came from interactions with people outside of her immediate circle of work, typically from a different industry sector. Whilst there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ approach, there is certainly merit in exploring what makes other industry sectors successful and how the lessons learnt could be applied to the major projects industry. For example, why is it that productivity growth in manufacturing is so far ahead of other industry sectors and what can we learn from them? Similarly, why does the automotive sector invest so much in research, development and innovation compared to other sectors and what can we learn from them? The objective of this event is to take a step back from the world of major projects that is very familiar to most of us, in order to explore and learn what other industries have done to overcome their challenges and ultimately develop and deliver their projects successfully. This half-day seminar will be a series of talks from non-member organisations from a wide range of industry sectors including, but not limited to, manufacturing, automotive, art, aerospace and technology. Our members will have the opportunity to learn from first-hand experiences and success stories shared by leading experts from different fields.

By Jonathan Norman
February 25th 2020

What can our Members Learn from Other Sectors? Full Report

During our Annual Conference, Dame Inga Beale in her keynote speech reflected on how her moments of inspiration and innovation often came from interactions with people outside of her immediate circle of work, typically from a different industry sector. Whilst there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ approach, there is certainly merit in exploring what makes other industry sectors successful and how the lessons learnt could be applied to the major projects industry. For example, why is it that productivity growth in manufacturing is so far ahead of other industry sectors and what can we learn from them? Similarly, why does the automotive sector invest so much in research, development and innovation compared to other sectors and what can we learn from them? The objective of this event is to take a step back from the world of major projects that is very familiar to most of us, in order to explore and learn what other industries have done to overcome their challenges and ultimately develop and deliver their projects successfully. This half-day seminar will be a series of talks from non-member organisations from a wide range of industry sectors including, but not limited to, manufacturing, automotive, art, aerospace and technology. Our members will have the opportunity to learn from first-hand experiences and success stories shared by leading experts from different fields.

By Jonathan Norman
October 24th 2019

Innovation & Health and Safety Highlight Report

Health and safety is embracing new technology, and innovation is the main driver behind this dynamic and continuous cycle. Product discovery, development, review and commercialisation enable companies to reinvest in new products and processes. The resulting improvements in health and safety within the workplace benefit all. High end technology has aided a revolution on major projects with forward looking companies embracing new ideas such as the use of drones, augmented reality, automated robotics and artificial intelligence. These projects and their staff are bristling with tech. This event will bring together a panel of experts to explore how we can drive innovation in an ever-changing environment, investigate how some sectors do this well and discover ways to beat the benchmark.

By Jonathan Norman
October 24th 2019

Innovation & Health and Safety Full Report

Health and safety is embracing new technology, and innovation is the main driver behind this dynamic and continuous cycle. Product discovery, development, review and commercialisation enable companies to reinvest in new products and processes. The resulting improvements in health and safety within the workplace benefit all. High end technology has aided a revolution on major projects with forward looking companies embracing new ideas such as the use of drones, augmented reality, automated robotics and artificial intelligence. These projects and their staff are bristling with tech. This event will bring together a panel of experts to explore how we can drive innovation in an ever-changing environment, investigate how some sectors do this well and discover ways to beat the benchmark.

By Jonathan Norman
July 10th 2018

Knowledge Management Full Report

Whilst we aspire to deliver more and faster the reality, within major projects is that the speed of complexity and change is now outpacing our ability to learn from what’s happening. Initiatives such as the Olympics 2012 and Crossrail Learning Legacies are wonderful resources that allow us to learn from the past, but we need to develop new skills and new processes to learn from the present and from each other. Knowledge and Learning in Major Projects builds on the work of the Major Projects Knowledge Hub to explore three aspects of learning: Explicit Learning – the structures, processes and systems that enable us to capture and disseminate what we know about the engineering and technical aspects of major projects delivery. Tacit Learning – the social structures, behaviours and technology that help us to share what we believe, feel or know intuitively about managing large teams and large emerging projects and Social Learning – the experience of learning in the moment from interacting with, listening to and watching how those around us approach everyday tasks and more complex challenges. Learning from mistakes, from success and from innovation is one the unrealised areas of project performance as we remain fated to reinvent the wheel, repeat and relive our painful experiences with each new project. At this event we will hear the experience from some of our leading project organizations; draw on advice from pioneers in the use of social and collaborative tools within the enterprise; and experience the power of collaborating and knowledge sharing in a large-scale peer assist session. All designed to help us break this cycle of non-learning.

By Jonathan Norman
July 10th 2018

Knowledge Management Highlight Report

Whilst we aspire to deliver more and faster the reality, within major projects is that the speed of complexity and change is now outpacing our ability to learn from what’s happening. Initiatives such as the Olympics 2012 and Crossrail Learning Legacies are wonderful resources that allow us to learn from the past, but we need to develop new skills and new processes to learn from the present and from each other. Knowledge and Learning in Major Projects builds on the work of the Major Projects Knowledge Hub to explore three aspects of learning: Explicit Learning – the structures, processes and systems that enable us to capture and disseminate what we know about the engineering and technical aspects of major projects delivery. Tacit Learning – the social structures, behaviours and technology that help us to share what we believe, feel or know intuitively about managing large teams and large emerging projects and Social Learning – the experience of learning in the moment from interacting with, listening to and watching how those around us approach everyday tasks and more complex challenges. Learning from mistakes, from success and from innovation is one the unrealised areas of project performance as we remain fated to reinvent the wheel, repeat and relive our painful experiences with each new project. At this event we will hear the experience from some of our leading project organizations; draw on advice from pioneers in the use of social and collaborative tools within the enterprise; and experience the power of collaborating and knowledge sharing in a large-scale peer assist session. All designed to help us break this cycle of non-learning.

By Jonathan Norman
April 19th 2018

Workforce transformation – how should the industry respond to changing attitudes and expectations of the workforce? Highlight Report

We are all living longer. In 1980 the average life expectancy in the UK was around 74, by 2000 it was 78, and in 2015 it had reached 81. And the trend is continuing so that by 2030, people will live to be well into their 80s. This will have a profound impact upon the workplace – pensions (at their current rate) will not support pensioners through an extended retirement. It will become necessary for people to remain in work for far longer than they currently do. Retirement ages will extend into the 70s. This will change the way that people wish to work.

Already we have seen the disappearance of “jobs for life” and with this inevitable extension to the working life it is possible that we will no longer even see “careers for life”. Those entering the workforce in their 20s now have the prospect of working for 50+ years. It is unlikely that they will chose to stay for all those years in the same profession – a trend we have begun to see in the working patterns preferred by Millennials.

This evening discussion will explore what this will mean for major projects? We will explore how we might need to invest even more in organisational learning to deal with a regularly changing workforce; how leadership skills might need to shift from process to people; how technology can help to fill some of the gaps and the expectations around its use; as well as whether significant social shifts over the next generation will require us to adopt flexible working patterns and different ways of measuring project value.

This evening seminar is free to attend for all member organisations and will appeal to everyone in the major projects community. Commencing at 18.30 concluding at 20.30.

By Jonathan Norman
June 6th 2017

Should mega-projects be treated as temporary organisations? Highlight Report

Researchers often differentiate between projects as ‘temporary organisations’ and firms as ‘permanent organisations’, but the distinctions are not always clear or helpful. Mega-projects often have very long initiation and delivery phases, which may last for many years, sometimes even decades, and they deliver capital assets that are used for decades or centuries. The organisational context in which they operate has become more dynamic, with, for example a rapid rate of technological change in the digital technologies used in their delivery.

At this event, Jennifer Whyte will draw on her recent work to argue that mega-projects involve a range of more and less temporary forms of organising. She will use an example of a wind-farm as a long-term infrastructural megaproject to articulate how there are different understandings of time associated with 1) the delivery project, 2) the life-cycle; 3) the stakeholder organisations that set up the project; and 4) the special purpose vehicle through which it is delivered. Such mega-projects may outlive the firms involved in their initiation. She suggests that thinking about them as long-term projects may enable new thinking about their role in delivering interventions in broader systems and in creating long-term value.

THIS EVENT IS NOW FULLY BOOKED.

By Jonathan Norman
April 26th 2017

Tried & tested vs innovation in major projects Highlight Report

The question for major projects: “to innovate, or not to innovate?” has long been contested. Many major projects that incorporated innovative approaches to technology have become case studies of (so-called) project failure. Many have been hugely successful in bringing new solutions to the challenges of the modern world. What differentiates effective and ineffective innovation in projects?

This event will explore the range of options available to project owners to innovate, and, by extension, design, engineering, and execution firms. How can we assess how much, if any, innovation to attempt in projects? What is the impact of the contextual reality in which projects are conceived and delivered on the amount and type of innovation utilised? How can we assess the capabilities of the supply-side capacity and capability to innovate? What in fact do we mean by innovation, and do we all understand it the same way?

We will hear speakers from across the spectrum of projects that include – in some sectors depend on – innovative approaches. There will be interactive work included in the seminar, to give participants time to reflect on, and share with peers, innovative ideas on project innovation.