Project Management Journal, Vol. 47, No. 6, 24–43
© 2016 by the Project Management Institute
Published online at www.pmi.org/PMJ
Sustainability and Success Variables
in the Project Management Context:
An Expert Panel
Mauro Luiz Martens, Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP) and University of São Paulo
(USP), São Paulo, Brazil
Marly M. Carvalho, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, Brazil
INTRODUCTION
Sustainable development and the concept of sustainability, connected to the triple bottom line—economic, environmental, and social—has required a new perspective for projects (Labuschagne, Brent, & Van Erck, 2005; Valdes-Vasquez & Klotz, 2013; Munck, Galleli, & Souza, 2013).
Despite the fact that sustainability has attracted the interest of professionals and scholars in the project management field (Silvius, Schipper, & Nedeski,
2013; Sánchez, 2015; Silvius & Schipper, 2015; Sarkis, Meade, & Presley, 2012;
Valdes-Vasquez & Klotz, 2013; Labuschagne, Brent, & Van Erck, 2005), and that
project management can be a means to positively influence the integration
of sustainability dimensions (Bocchini, Frangopol, Ummenhofer, & Zinke,
2014), there is a gap between the perception of importance and the actual use
of sustainability in project management (SPM) practice (Martens & Carvalho,
2016a). In addition, project management can be considered a missing link in
the ecodesign literature (Brones, Carvalho, & Zancul, 2014), being an incipient
theme approached in specialized ecodesign articles (Brones & Carvalho, 2015).
It is clear that there is an expansive available body of knowledge in the
fields of both sustainability and project management, but there is a lack of
research that links both areas. Moreover, the literature about this research topic
has grown but remains dispersed across different fields (Martens & Carvalho,
2016b), which can be demonstrated by the omission of core sustainability
issues in the widespread project management bodies of knowledge. Moreover,
there is the need for further research for developing tools, techniques, and
methodologies (Singh, Murty, Gupta, & Dikshit, 2012), and a lack of integration
of sustainability in project management function routine (Cole, 2005; Brones,
Carvalho, & Zancul, 2014).
Nevertheless, sustainability can be linked with project management in
many ways; for example, it can be as leading variables (Which variables
should be managed toward sustainability during the project life cycle?) but
also as a lagging success indicator (What was the impact of the project on
people, the planet, and money?) (Carvalho & Rabechini, 2011).
The need for further studies bridging sustainability to project management
(Brones & Carvalho, 2015), combined with the increasing importance of both in
the current business environment, motivates this study. Taking a broader look
at the literature, we aim to answer these questions: What are the key variables
in sustainability to be explored in the project management context? Does project sustainability management impact project success? To answer these questions, the research design merges literature review, applying the techniques of
content analysis (Krippendorff, 1980) and an expert panel, using the analytic
hierarchy process (AHP) (Saaty, 1990; Saaty, 2008). The literature data were
This research identifies the key variables of
sustainability in project management and
explores the impact of these variables on
project success. The methodological approach
combined a literature review and an expert
panel. The expert panel was conducted in
two phases: interviews were conducted with
five experts to validate the content of the
identified variables, and a forum was held
with 11 experts from 10 universities in 6 different countries. Research data were analyzed
using content analysis, descriptive statistics,
and analytic hierarchy process. Through systematic expert reviews, this research shows
a succinct and relevant list of variables and
their classification, reflecting the experts’
consensus, which can help practitioners and
scholars introduce sustainability into project
management. Similarly, the key variables for
project success are identified and classified.
Finally, the article explores the experts’ perspectives on the impact of sustainability in
project success.
KEYWORDS: sustainability; project
management; triple-bottom line;
sustainability in project management;
project success; analytic hierarchy process
PAPE
RS
ABSTRACT ■
