Innovation networks in the construction arena : the strategic management of mixed enterprises

Abstract

The building and construction sector is one of the five largest contributors to the
Australian economy and is a key performance component in the economy of many
other jurisdictions. However, the ongoing viability of this sector is increasingly reliant
on its ability to foster and transfer innovated products and practices. Interorganisational
networks, which bring together key industry stakeholders and facilitate
the flows of information, resources and trust necessary to secure innovation, have
emerged as a key growth strategy within this and other arenas. The blending of
organisations, resources and purposes creates new, hybrid institutional forms that
draw on a mix of contract, structure and interpersonal relationship as integration
processes.
This paper argues that hybrid networked arrangements, because they incorporate
relational elements, require management strategies and techniques that not always
synonymous with conventional management approaches, including those used within
the building and construction sector. It traces the emergence of the Construction
Innovation Project in Australia as a hybrid institutional arrangement moulding public,
private and academic stakeholders of the building and construction industry into a
coherent collective force aimed at fostering innovation and its application within all
levels of the industry. Specifically, the paper examines the Construction Innovation
Project to ascertain the impact of relational governance and its management to
harness and leverage the skills, resources and capacities of members to secure
innovative outcomes. Finally, the paper offers some prospects to guide the ongoing
work of this body and any other charged with a similar integrative responsibility.