Value-driven Sustainability Consideration in Project Management : A single-case study in the railway construction industry

Abstract: The aspects of sustainability have over the last years become an increasingly important topic in the business world. In project management the relevance of sustainability has received attention as well, with a growing number of researchers addressing the link between sustainability and project management. In the construction industry the incorporation of sustainability is of importance as well, as these projects has long lasting effects on both the society and the environment. The goal of the study is to identify how sustainability is considered next to the standard project constraints of time, cost, quality and risk, and if this changes throughout the project chain. A qualitative single-case study was conducted on a complex railway megaproject in Sweden, utilizing the Q-methodology. The results revealed that the social and economic aspects of sustainability was well established throughout the project chain, however, not generally considered a part of sustainability. The environmental aspect was underrepresented throughout the project chain compared to the triple constrain and risk. Finally, the results revealed three distinct perspectives regarding the prioritization between sustainability, time, cost, quality and risk. These three perspectives could each be described as “Risk avert actors with a strong focus on the iron triangle”, “Holistic actors with a clear sustainability consideration” and lastly “Team building actors with a heavy focus on contract fulfillment”.