Conceptualizing Team Adaptability and Project Complexity: A Literature Review

Abstract

Construction projects are usually laced with ambiguities and uncertainties that make them increasingly complex in today’s fast changing world. Team adaptability as an organizational behavior is considered an important quality for success in such uncertain project environments yet it remains largely unexplored in a construction context. This notable absence is perhaps partly due to the general unwillingness to focus on individual psychology, as the industry seems infatuated with process efficiency. A team’s ability to be adaptive to change and quickly respond during make-or-break moments in construction projects is considered vital for project management. Drawing on an extensive review of academic literature on organizational behavior we propose that the complex nature of the construction project itself, in turn, plays a role as a moderating factor on team adaptability. Conclusions are drawn highlighting the significance of team adaptability in complex projects and proposing future research areas.