Exploring the relationship between governance, tie strength, and NPD performance

Bazyar, Afshar; Mohammadi, Shahriar; Teimoury, Ebrahim; Fesharaki, Mehdi N.

doi:10.1504/ijass.2013.053347

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 94 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This study further confirmed that the strength of ties was influential to the performance in megaprojects. This was consistent with findings of the existing studies relating to strength of ties in other contexts (Bazyar et al , 2013; Gunawan et al , 2016; Lee and Yang, 2014; Teimoury et al , 2011). Additionally, the direct effect of weak ties on project performance was greater than the effect of strong ties.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…The respondents’ basic information includes their designations, work experience and educational background. The strength of ties scale was designed based on prior studies (Bazyar et al , 2013; Collins and Clark, 2003; Levin and Cross, 2004). The scale of types of conflicts (Chen et al , 2014; Wu et al , 2017, 2018) and project performance (Castillo et al , 2017; Mesa et al , 2016; Nassar and Abourizk, 2014; Toor and Ogunlana, 2010) was also designed using the relevant literature.…”

Section: Methods and Data Presentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As a result, stakeholders acquire access to information and resource in megaproject networks through the strength of ties. The strength of ties is essentially the basis of knowledge, information and resource interactions between stakeholders, all of which improve project performance (Bazyar et al , 2013; Teimoury et al , 2011). Kang (2007) found that project performance is positively related to the high frequency and closeness of the strength of ties.…”

Section: Hypotheses Development and Theoretical Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

How does strength of ties influence project performance in Chinese megaprojects?

Zheng

Zhao

et al. 2020

IJCMA

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose This study aims to investigate how the strength of ties (i.e. strong ties and weak ties) in megaproject networks influences project performance in terms of types of conflicts. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was undertaken with professionals in Chinese megaprojects and 445 valid responses were received. A conflict-based theoretical model was developed and tested with structural equation modeling. Findings The results indicated that task conflict had a constructive effect on project performance, whereas relationship conflict and process conflict had destructive effects. Both strong and weak ties positively affected project performance, and that weak ties exerted greater effects on performance. The introduction of conflicts significantly weakened the effect of strong ties on project performance. Strong ties indirectly affected project performance via task conflict and relationship conflict, whereas weak ties affected performance only through task conflict. Task conflict had a constructive effect on project performance, whereas relationship conflict and process conflict had destructive impact. Research limitations/implications This study identified the positive effect of strength of ties on project performance as well as the constructive and destructive roles of conflicts. Furthermore, the findings provided evidence that strength of ties and conflicts were critical factors for project performance. While, there are still limitations. There are other attributes of megaproject networks, such as network nodes’ characteristics and network structure, which may influence conflicts and project performance. Future research would be conducted to explore the role of these variables. Meanwhile, because different types of conflicts may mutually transform under certain conditions, future research would also address this issue in megaprojects. Practical implications As for the management strategies, project stakeholders should know the existence of project networks, exactly assess their resource endowment, especially their external and internal relationship network. In accordance with changes of the project network, stakeholders should share knowledge and learn techniques about how to respond to relationship disturbances, thus reducing relationship conflict and process conflict. Furthermore, stakeholders should place an emphasis on fostering and reinforcing communication and trust, thus effectively resolving task conflict, ambiguity and uncertainty engendered from network ties in a megaproject network. Originality/value The main contribution of this study is threefold. First, this study will enrich the literature on strength of ties by accentuating the roles of conflicts in megaproject context. Second, this study contributes to the theoretical development of a conceptual model for explaining the interrelationships among strength of ties, conflicts and project performance. Third, this study will respond to the call “which dimension, i.e. strong ties or weak ties, is more influential” by exploring the direct and indirect effects of strength of ties on project performance.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Methods and Data Presentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hypotheses Development and Theoretical Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

How does strength of ties influence project performance in Chinese megaprojects?

Zheng

Zhao

et al. 2020

IJCMA

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The questionnaire items were further revised by five managers in the field of megaprojects. The strength of ties was adopted from Granovetter (1973), Hansen (1999) and Bazyar et al (2013). Term flexibility was assessed using the methods proposed by Cruz and Marques (2013) and Demirel et al (2017).…”

Section: Methods and Data Presentation Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How does the strength of ties influence relationship quality in Chinese megaprojects? The mediating role of contractual flexibility

Zhi-bin

Zhao

et al. 2021

BJM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeThis study aims to explore the influence of the strength of ties (strong ties and weak ties) on contractual flexibility (term flexibility and process flexibility) and relationship quality among stakeholders in a megaproject network.Design/methodology/approachThis study, via a questionnaire survey, collected 380 valid responses from megaproject professionals (including project managers, department managers and project engineers). The data were analyzed using least squares structural equation modeling.FindingsThe results show that both strong ties and weak ties have positive effects on relationship quality. The introduction of contractual flexibility can help improve relationship quality by combining the positive effects of the strength of ties. Interestingly, the indirect influence of strong ties on relationship quality is mainly due to term flexibility. However, the influence of process flexibility is not significant, while weak ties have an indirect influence through term flexibility and process flexibility.Research limitations/implicationsThis study, while helpful to megaproject management both in theory and practice, is nevertheless subject to several limitations. First, this study only considers the impact of the strength of ties on contractual flexibility and relationship quality; other factors, such as environmental uncertainty, are not explored. Second, the sample data are limited to just a few regions of China. Future research should cover other influencing factors, in order to make the model more substantial; data should also be collected from different cultural and industrial sources, thereby extending and further verifying the results.Originality/valueThis study makes three contributions to extant megaproject literature. First, this study provides a deep and nuanced understanding of the strength of ties. With the distinction between strong ties and weak ties clearly explained, this research furnishes a subtler understanding of relationship governance than has previously been achieved. Second, by precisely identifying the mechanism of how contract flexibility improves contract control and coordination functions, this research offers a complementary view of how contractual flexibility positively contributes to cooperation and relationship quality. Third, this study identifies which dimension of the strength of ties is more influential. This brings a new explanation for the previous controversy and offers some insight into the determinants of how to improve relationship quality in Chinese megaprojects.

show abstract

“…In this study, variable measures were developed based on a systematic literature review and on-site interviews with experts. The measurement items of the strength of ties are drawn from the research of Granovetter (1973), Hansen (1999) and Bazyar et al (2013). The measurement items of trust derive from the research of McAllister (1995), Zaheer et al (1998), Pinto et al (2009) and Wu et al (2017).…”

Section: Methods and Data Presentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

How different strengths of ties impact project performance in megaprojects: the mediating role of trust

et al. 2020

IJMPB

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the relationships between the different strengths of ties (strong ties and weak ties), types of trust and project performance in megaprojects.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire survey was conducted with various experts and professionals involved in megaprojects, and 350 valid responses were received. Data was analyzed by means of structural equation modeling.FindingsThe results show that both strong ties and weak ties have positive impacts on trust in megaprojects, but weak ties have a more significant positive effect than do strong ties. Unexpectedly, the introduction of interorganizational trust significantly weakens the effect of the strength of ties on project performance. The indirect influence of the strength of ties on performance has different paths. Weak ties have an indirect effect via calculative trust and relational trust. However, in a strong ties network, inferior stakeholders lack the information necessary to complete a megaproject, and they believe that calculative trust will not promote project performance until the megaproject is successfully delivered. Thus, the effect of calculative trust on project performance is not significant.Research limitations/implicationsThese findings provide evidence in regard to strength of ties governance being a part of the effective strategy in improving megaprojects’ performance. It also demonstrates the mediating function of trust and advances the current understandings of the underlying mechanism of the strength of ties on project performance, thus providing implications for researchers and practitioners. However, this study has some limitations. For example, the strength of ties and trust between organizations are a dynamic process in megaprojects. This study does not conduct in-depth analysis of the evolution mechanism and investigate the different levels of trust at different stages of the megaproject. Future research can be guided by these directions.Originality/valueThe main contribution of this study is fourfold. First, this study enriches the literature on strength of ties by accentuating the roles of trust in megaproject context. Second, this study contributes to the theoretical development of a conceptual model for explaining the interrelationships among strength of ties, types of trust and project performance. Third, this study responds to the call “which dimension (i.e. strong ties or weak ties) is more influential” by exploring the direct and indirect effects of strength of ties on project performance. Finally, this study breaks through the limitation of traditional cognition that megaproject management can be met by relying on rigid contracts. In other words, trust can supplement the weakness of rigid contract by forming contract flexibility with different strength of ties. Meanwhile, the specific strategies to establish and maintain trust are given, such as building information model (BIM) collaboration platform and reputation management mechanism.

show abstract

Exploring the relationship between governance, tie strength, and NPD performance

Cited by 4 publications

References 94 publications

How does strength of ties influence project performance in Chinese megaprojects?

How does strength of ties influence project performance in Chinese megaprojects?

How does the strength of ties influence relationship quality in Chinese megaprojects? The mediating role of contractual flexibility

How different strengths of ties impact project performance in megaprojects: the mediating role of trust

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About