Latest Research: Riskwork in the Construction of Heathrow terminal Two

Riskwork

Policy aspirations to improve construction productivity and transition to Net Zero require a better understanding of the dynamics of successfully managing risk during the execution of large-scale complex infrastructure programmes. Riskwork examines the link between accountability, everyday risk management and project-based learning. This research considers how emergent ‘residual’ risks are managed to sustain performance progress in the dynamic setting of a megaproject.  To do this we developed a longitudinal case study that tracks the temporal development of innovative state-of-the-art risk management and organisational account giving practices during the construction of Heathrow Terminal 2.

Findings and Contribution

The findings describe how the maintenance of project performance engages risk management practice that moves beyond detecting and documenting planning variance. Instead the empirical findings describe how reporting forums, dashboards and performance reports can play an important role in brokering consensus towards which risks are deemed worthy of protection.

This contributes to the capabilities literature by developing an empirical case that describes an important role for adaptive risk architectures in maintaining project-based learning. On a practical level it has significant implications for risk management approaches that seek to oversimplify the management of risk into a form of accountability management that mitigates risks by demanding compliance. It highlights that risk management is intertwined with accountability management and the two can affect an appetite for learning and innovation.  Methodologically it reveals the importance of research design that acknowledges the path dependent nature of performance and risk management.  

For more information read the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) Working Paper: Riskwork in the Construction of Heathrow Terminal Two

Contact the researcher:

Dr Rebecca Vine, Lecturer University of Sussex,

email: r.vine@sussex.ac.uk