A conceptualisation of management situations relevant for collaborative IS research projects

Collaborative research projects as a means to organise Information Systems research and prototyping activities become increasingly widespread. Their management is challenged by a multiplicity of different partners, activities and results. Required is a project management approach that allows for flexibility within the project life-cycle to address changing needs. We present research in progress aimed at conceptualising the notion of project management relevant situations in this context. This discriminates the conditions and circumstances under which management involvement becomes necessary and thus enables the definition of a suitable management approach. We identify a set of constituent factors to describe different situations based on a literature review and interviews with project managers involved in collaborative research projects. Future research is presented with respect to completing the full analysis cycle of our thematic analysis and the development of a situation-specific project management approach.