Collaborative delivery methods in construction projects provide a new operational environment, which can foster effective interaction and cooperation between different project stakeholders. Project managers are one of the most important players in this environment, who therefore need to possess appropriate competencies. Collaborative construction projects and their managerial solutions are still a relatively new field and, thus, special aspects such as competencies of project managers in such projects have been limitedly studied. The present research aimed to evaluate project managers’ competencies in collaborative construction projects in Finland through a human behavioral approach, where project managers’ everyday work was the main source for understanding the competencies of relevance. Accordingly, a web-based questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used for data collection from the case projects. Based on the gained data, project managers’ behaviors were analyzed, and consequently, their specific competencies were identified. Findings of this study propose 10 core competencies for project managers in collaborative construction projects, e.g., group capabilities, language proficiency, and leveraging diversity. Additionally, a set of supportive competencies were identified which, together with the core competencies, form the profile of project managers’ competencies for collaborative construction projects. Finally, the differences between competencies needed in traditional and in collaborative construction projects are discussed.

Purpose The success of projects clearly relies on project management personnel and particularly on project managers. Their performance and capacities are based on the achieved competencies. The purpose of this paper is to address possible discrepancies between the views arising from the research results and standards of practice related to project managers’ competencies. Design/methodology/approach For reaching the aim of the study, a comprehensive literature review, covering previous studies and related standards of practice was conducted, and analyses of competencies in the studies and standards of practice containing the rank of competencies based on frequency of appearance were developed. Findings The findings are proposing four discrepancies between the results of previous studies and standards of practice: commonly existing/missing competencies; uneven priority of some competencies in the view of researchers vs standards of practice; uneven degree of consensus on the importance of competencies; and research results are more context-oriented than the standards of practice. In addition, 98 project managers’ competencies were identified, from which 68 were qualified as weighty ones. Moreover, a categorization of project managers’ weighty competencies was developed. Finally, a list of competencies of relevance for different project types and their targets is presented. Originality/value The findings of this study provide a contribution with respect of present knowledge over project managers’ competencies by recognizing certain discrepancies between research results and standards of practice. Another contribution of the study is the comprehensive list of competencies together with considerations of their relevance in different project contexts and in different project types.

Purpose Design management plays a significant role in value creation in a construction project. Within the last few decades, new design tools such as building information model have been introduced, which supposedly enhance design productivity and quality. However, no such revolution of design quality has emerged. Therefore, more research on how design management affects the quality of construction project is needed. The purpose of this paper is to better understand the connection between design management procedures and quality. Design/methodology/approach This is a case study with a mixed-method approach. The data collection strategies used are quantitative user satisfaction survey and qualitative analysis over the documentation of the case project. Findings A deductive analysis was conducted to four suggested indicators of beneficial collaboration. An explanation was found for how the quality of the project outcome can be forecasted from the management style and procedures. Research limitations/implications The research was conducted as single case study, and therefore, greater data would enable further development of the indicators. Practical implications The indicators have wide range of applicability: the clients can forecast the quality performance by evaluating the management procedures already during the project instead of waiting until the end of project. The indicator system also provides societal impact as it guides the clients to use the kind of managerial practices that improve the ability to create value in projects that are difficult to evaluate in money terms. Originality/value The research provides a novel way to gain a holistic view with analytical indicator tools. The research contributes to lean design management literature by providing insight to the underlying mechanism of beneficial collaboration.

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