Managing Unplanned Events In Large Infrastructure Projects: Results From An In-Depth Comparative Case Evaluation

Abstract

This contribution intends to move beyond the truism that infrastructure project management is contextual and evaluates which configurations of management actions and contexts produce what outcomes. Therefore, we introduce multi-value Qualitative Comparative Analysis (mvQCA) as a complexity-informed method, and apply it to the Dutch A2 Maastricht infrastructure project. An analysis of eighteen cases within the project showed that context is explanatory for the different and sometimes contradictory results produced by management strategies. In particular, we found that (1) internal-oriented private management seems strongly associated with low satisfaction, (2) external-oriented management is strongly associated with high satisfaction in cases of social, local unplanned events, and (3) sometimes internal-oriented management is associated with high satisfaction, depending in particular on the nature of the cooperation between principal and contractor.