Critical success factors (CSFs) in a multidisciplinary engineering practice

There is increasing interest in how organisations in construction manage, organise and deliver successful projects. In the project management literature these challenges are often defined in terms of better control of timescales, budgets and resource planning. Yet these are impoverished terms for conceptualising success, which is both multi-dimensional and contextual. The aim of the paper is to explore the perceptions of critical success factors (CSFs) in a multi-disciplinary engineering practice. The findings indicate that project success is related to five dimensions of work: individuals, teams, process, project and product. Understanding these elements and their interdependence may enable managers to identify strengths and weaknesses in current work practices. An important insight provided by this research is that CSFs is a form of knowing, which needs to be articulated and communicated more effectively within the project community.