Project manager's perspectives on enhancing collaboration in multidisciplinary environmental management projects

The project management literature recognizes collaboration as being important to project success. However, clear guidance on how collaboration can be developed and maintained amongst key project stakeholders remains a gap in this literature. In parallel, the environmental management literature has examined collaboration for more than two decades in large, multi-disciplinary projects. This research sought to identify opportunities for cross-disciplinary learning. Adopting a projects-as-practice approach, qualitative interviews with practitioners undertaking project management for complex, multidisciplinary environmental projects were used to develop normative theory regarding strategies for encouraging successful collaboration in such settings. Findings highlight key differences in how collaboration is conceptualized within the project management and environmental management fields and identify opportunities (and boundaries) for cross-disciplinary learning. In addition, clear strategies are presented to guide practitioners in how collaboration can be encouraged in practice.