Using Twitter for Collaborative Student and Project Manager Learning

2016 ◽  
pp. 812-830
Author(s):  
Kate Barnett-Richards ◽  
Marie Sams

This chapter presents an insight into a pilot project which took place at a UK higher education institution which used Twitter as a social media tool for engaging industry managers and students in sharing knowledge and collaborating on problem solving in the field of project management. Project management education and team formation literature is discussed, as well as reflections from the authors on the advantages and challenges for project teams on using Twitter as a social media tool. The wider implications for Project Managers adopting social media is considered more broadly, and important factors are recommended when making decisions whether to use social media to encourage teamwork and co-operation.

Author(s):  
Kate Barnett-Richards ◽  
Marie Sams

This chapter presents an insight into a pilot project which took place at a UK higher education institution which used Twitter as a social media tool for engaging industry managers and students in sharing knowledge and collaborating on problem solving in the field of project management. Project management education and team formation literature is discussed, as well as reflections from the authors on the advantages and challenges for project teams on using Twitter as a social media tool. The wider implications for Project Managers adopting social media is considered more broadly, and important factors are recommended when making decisions whether to use social media to encourage teamwork and co-operation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinzhao Tian

In the face of ever-increasing globalisation, the question of how to manage project teams efficiently andsuccessfully was never likely to be settled easily. It has been shown that 92% of project team members believe that softskiils are needed in their teamwork, 60% think that soft skill impacts project management, and 83% hold the view thatsoft skill is relevant to the performance of project teams. The research aims to help overseas project managers to obtaingreater insight into the impact of soft skill on project teams and so manage them more effectively. The introduction contextpresents the general concepts of soft skills and project management. Through a wide range of cases and examples ofproject teams, the impact of those skills on project teams will be explored.


2016 ◽  
pp. 1400-1418
Author(s):  
Mark Sponselee

This chapter provides insight into the effects of social media on (the execution of) project management. Billions of people nowadays make daily use of social media. This phenomenon also gradually found its way to the business world. With projects being an essential element of many organizations, project managers must be aware what social media is all about and how it can strengthen their projects. The time is right for project managers to explore and embrace social media as an additional tool to be used for managing projects more effectively. This chapter tries to bridge an existing knowledge gap within organizations about how to make effective use of social media within projects. It is described how the functionalities of social media may be used within project management. Moreover, several overall effects of social media on project management are illuminated. And finally, four barriers for social media use within project management are captured.


Author(s):  
Mark Sponselee

This chapter provides insight into the effects of social media on (the execution of) project management. Billions of people nowadays make daily use of social media. This phenomenon also gradually found its way to the business world. With projects being an essential element of many organizations, project managers must be aware what social media is all about and how it can strengthen their projects. The time is right for project managers to explore and embrace social media as an additional tool to be used for managing projects more effectively. This chapter tries to bridge an existing knowledge gap within organizations about how to make effective use of social media within projects. It is described how the functionalities of social media may be used within project management. Moreover, several overall effects of social media on project management are illuminated. And finally, four barriers for social media use within project management are captured.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karuna Devi Mishra ◽  
Dr. Sudarsanam

This paper investigates the current challenges faced by the project managers in creating realistic expectations of customers in dynamic changing project environment which are created by rapid introduction of new unknowns, as they progress. One might say they are more akin to packing boxes of frogs without a cover, setting each thing right before a new challenge is faced. The difficulties posed by these projects are identified and the literature is reviewed for suitable approaches. Why do projects fail and what more is critical to the success of project? All projects are conceived with a vision to satisfy certain needs of the business. Hence, the beneficiary of these needs become key stakeholder. Appropriate participation of this key stakeholder in steering the project ensures the success of the project. Also businesses are impacted by competition and changing market place resulting in skewed expectation management. Managing expectations enhances the success of the project immensely. Now, goal of the project plays a pivotal role and hence respecting it, is an important task, in project management. Project governance is an important aspect which needs to change according to the requirements and requires a dynamic approach rather than a ‘rule book approach’.


First Monday ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katy Jordan

Web link mining has been previously used as a way of gaining insight into how the Internet may be replicating or reshaping connections between institutions within the higher education sector. Institutions are increasingly active on social media platforms, and these connections have not been studied. This paper presents an exploratory analysis of the network of UK higher education institutional accounts on Twitter. All U.K. institutions have a presence. Standing in recent university rankings is found to be a significant predictor of several network metrics. In examining the communities present within the network, a combination of ranking and geolocation play a role. Analysis of a sample of tweets which mention more than one U.K. higher education institution provides an indication of why the topics of tweets would reinforce prestige and location in the network structure.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Zinga Novais ◽  
Jorge Vareda Gomes ◽  
Mário José Batista Romão

Projects have been increasingly used in the implementation of organizations' business operations. Knowledge sharing has been considered essential in project environment; therefore, the integration of knowledge management within project management becomes crucial for project success. The objective of this research is to study how knowledge sharing is integrated within the context of a project, and what is the perception of project team members about it. A case study was carried out in a company within the financial sector, focused on a project team of the entity. The results revealed that project managers, other professionals in project management, and the organization itself are very much aware of the importance of knowledge sharing. The results also emphasized that, regardless of the lack of incentives by top management, project team members consider that knowledge sharing highly contributes for a successful execution of projects.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guofeng Ma ◽  
Shan Jiang ◽  
Jianyao Jia

PurposeA lack of reliable and effective communication tools poses major barriers impeding the performance of construction projects consisting of diverse participants. Although some construction project teams (CPTs) begin to apply social media (SM) as an available approach for project management the entire mechanism of SM adoption in this specific context remains understudied. Therefore, this study aims to adopt a CPT's lens to investigate the critical antecedents and associated effects underlying SM adoption in the construction industry.Design/methodology/approachBased on the technology–organization–environment (TOE) theory, a conceptual model was proposed and tested by empirical data collected from 159 CPTs in China. Structural equation modeling technique was employed for data analysis.FindingsThe results demonstrate that all the five extracted TOE-based antecedents including two technological factors (i.e. compatibility and expected cost), one organizational factor (i.e. top management support) and two environmental factors (i.e. project partner collaboration and project fit) are crucial to the adoption of SM in CPTs. Besides, SM acceptance is found to mediate the relationships between organizational and environmental factors and SM use. Moreover, SM use significantly predicts the communication effectiveness of CPTs.Research limitations/implicationsA questionnaire study based on cross-sectional data from China may only unveil the logic of SM adoption in the context of Chinese construction industry within a shorter time interval. It is recommended that future research could develop longitudinal studies among various construction practitioners in different countries to further specify and generalize the current findings.Originality/valueThis paper provides a comprehensive understanding of SM adoption in the construction industry by exploring the preadoption antecedents and postadoption effects from the perspective of project teams. The empirical findings advance the current web-based project management literature and afford new insights for construction practitioners into better managing SM application to reap its full capabilities in projects.


Author(s):  
Sara Marcelino-Sádaba ◽  
Amaya Perez-Ezcurdia

Organizations currently need project managers that are capable of performing in environments where change has gained great relevance. To accomplish this, these professionals must possess very diverse skills. On the other hand, project management is a young discipline that requires research to help us understand how to develop these skills. This chapter provides a holistic research framework proposal that is based on four elements: competences, approaches, scenarios, and levels of analysis. We affirm the importance of the meta-cognition competency, which is not commonly mentioned in previous studies but has proven to be very useful for a professional development that is self-regulated, reflective, and experience-based, with emphasis on the opportunities offered by new technologies. Two fundamental challenges are introduced: achieving a list of unified competences and transferring individual competences to the project teams and the organizations where these competences are displayed.


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 583-605 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graeme Coetzer

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between adult attention deficit (AAD) and the operational effectiveness of project managers (OEPM). Design/methodology/approach – In total, 160 actively employed business graduate students participated in a business course where they were assigned to four person project teams responsible for completing a major business project. The project contained four sub-projects each of which was managed by a different team member. At the end of the semester each team member rated the others on their operational effectiveness as a project manager. Each subject identified a close associate who completed an observer version of the Brown Attention Deficit Scale. Product moment correlations were used to test the hypotheses that AAD and each of the symptom clusters are negatively associated with OEPM. Simultaneous linear regression was used to test the hypothesis that difficulties activating and organizing to work (DAOW) is uniquely associated with OEPM after controlling for the influence of all the other symptom clusters. Findings – AAD and each of the symptom clusters is negatively associated with OEPM, and DAOW is uniquely associated with OEPM. Research limitations/implications – Research study is limited by use of an indirect work sample (working graduate students) and future research requires direct workplace samples of project managers. The influence of creativity within the relationship between AAD and project management effectiveness requires further investigation and may reveal beneficial aspects of the disorder. Practical implications – Individuals and organizations wanting to ensure timely and successful completion of key tasks and projects need to be aware of the influence of AAD on OEPM. The provision of intensive project management training/coaching, regular performance feedback, project management tools and an organized work space free of distractions is suggested for disordered project managers. Disordered project managers are especially vulnerable during the task activation and organization phase which may be addressed through the use of peer coaching and constructive team support. The effective design and management of project teams represents a significant opportunity for distributing the potential creative benefits of the disorder while managing the deficits. Pairing disordered employees with coworkers who are less creative but have better administrative skills may be mutually beneficial. Employee assistance programs that raise awareness and provide access to assessment are an important part of multimodal management of the disorder. Social implications – Increasing social, economic and legal pressures to provide reasonable accommodation for functional but disordered employees, be more inclusive and take appropriate advantage of employee diversity underscores the general social value of this research. Originality/value – This research study is the first examination of the influence of AAD within the nomological network that determines project manager effectiveness. The results are of value to researchers, organizational development specialists, human resource management specialists, managers and employees who are seeking effective multimodal management of the disorder in the workplace.


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