Identification of Factors Affecting Risk Appetite of Organizations in Selection of Mega Construction Projects

Risk appetite is a crucial component that plays a key role in the decision-making process of project risk management. Despite rising scholarly interest in project risk management, risk appetite has received little attention thus far. A well-defined risk appetite ensures that all decisions taken throughout the course of a project are consistent with an organization’s ultimate strategic aim. This research aims to identify the factors affecting the risk appetite of megaproject selection in the construction sector. The study adds to the knowledge of risk appetite in mega construction project selection and qualitatively examines the factors affecting risk appetite. Exploratory research design is used to identify these factors. The factors are identified using semi-structured interviews of 30 practitioners from the top and middle management working on mega construction projects. Thematic analysis was performed using NVIVO academic software. The most highlighted factors are financial attributes, board of directors’ agility, political factors, project location and demographics. The proposed conceptual framework identifies the factors affecting the risk appetite of mega construction project selection. These factors may be utilized as a starting point by construction project organizations to evaluate the risk appetite of a mega construction project. Risk appetite-based project selection will decrease chances of failures, delays, and cost overruns in mega-projects. These factors can be used by researchers as a rationale for developing predictive or descriptive models of project selection based on risk appetite.

Circular Project Selection: How Companies Can Evaluate Circular Innovation Projects

For a transition toward the circular economy (CE) at the firm level, circular innovations are an essential requirement. Many companies are still hesitant to introduce circular solutions, as their future success chances are difficult to predict. Circular solutions often imply a high uncertainty and complexity because they are designed over multiple life cycles and are strongly interconnected with diverse stakeholders. Therefore, an effective selection process tailored to circular innovation is of great advantage. This study examines circular project selection by investigating selection processes and evaluation criteria for circular innovation management. A qualitative research design was chosen, including 18 in-depth interviews with CE experts and representatives from CE pioneer companies. Findings on the selection process show that circular innovation projects are often embedded in a strategic CE framework decision. Whereas idea generation is usually approached bottom-up involving different stakeholders, project evaluation is rather performed top-down by top management or in cross-functional teams. Furthermore, the study discusses evaluation criteria and their CE implications in detail and structures them into a criteria framework that can be used in multi-criteria decision models. This paper makes a theoretical contribution by connecting innovation and CE literature and by providing new knowledge on the still scarcely explored topic of circular project selection. As practical contribution, the study guides managers on how to approach project selection in circular innovation management and thus supports their development toward a CE.

MCDM-Based R&D Project Selection: A Systematic Literature Review

From small spin-offs deploying innovative software to big pharmaceutical complexes making vaccines, Research and Development (R&D) Project Portfolio Selection (PPS) is an essential strategic process for various companies. It was never easy to select a set of projects among many feasible possibilities, even for yesterday’s paces. However, the world is rapidly changing, and so is R&D PPS. The portfolio objectives excel profit in the same manner that model constraints go beyond budget limitations. In parallel, project selection approaches and solving algorithms followed the increase of computational power. Despite all those changes, the importance of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods and the decision criteria used for R&D PPS, there is still room for a systematic literature review (SLR) for the topic. Thus, this paper offers an SLR of the existing literature from the half-century, 1970, and onward MCDM-based R&D PPS performed in Scopus and Web of Science Core Collection. We provide a comprehensive picture of this field, show how it is changing, and highlight standard practices and research opportunities in the area. We perform a broad classification of the MCDM methods, categorized by the nature of alternatives, types of integration approach, the MCDM method itself, and types of uncertainty, by the 66 studies in the SLR database. The portfolios’ classification obeys the application domain and the number of projects. We have also explored all the 263 criteria found in the literature by grouping them according to experts from five Brazilian R&D organizations that together manage portfolios valued around US$ 5 billion a year, accounting for 38% of all Brazilian annual expenditure in R&D projects. We also include a bibliometric analysis of the considered papers and research opportunities highlighted or not explored by researchers. Given the increasing number of decision-making approaches and new technologies available, we hope to provide guidance on the topic and promote knowledge production and growth concerning the usage of MCDM methods and decision criteria in R&D PPS.