Design patterns for work and organization structures to improve performance in Public-Private Partnerships

Abstract

A project planning phase is critical to the success of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project. The design of a work breakdown structure (WBS) is an essential and effective task in the planning phase. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new way of designing a WBS through the Work Breakdown Design Pattern Generator (WBDPG). Compared to conventional ways of creating a WBS, the WBDPG helps to design a WBS based on the ability to compare the alternatives and their potential benefits. The core hypothesis of this research is that a well-designed and thus better performing - WBS should increase alignment between situational project requirements and the project's product breakdown structure (PBS) or organizational breakdown structure (OBS). In order to consider this alignment and tradeoffs, a method is proposed which uses morphological and domain mapping matrices to conduct a tradespace and scenario analyses. With this "generator" method, combinations of different breakdown rules across several layers of hierarchy lead to predicted varying levels of performance of the project. For example, a WBS made of functional breakdown rules shows high alignment with the PBS, thus such projects result in better performance related to the product structure. In contrast, a WBS driven by resource breakdown rules aligns highly with the OBS, resulting in high performance related to the organizational structure. In a case where locational difference has a big impact on the project, a WBS made of geographical breakdown rules is likely to lead to better performance. The research concludes that the Work Breakdown Design Pattern Generator can forecast different performance given WBSs designed through different combinations of breakdown rules, and resulting variation in alignment across breakdown structures. Given that PPP projects are often complex, with large-scale and many stakeholders, the method demonstrates a way that structural alternatives can be generated so that the various partners in dialogue can shape their work approach efficiency in the early phase. The research has several limitations and opportunities for extension. In this paper, the organization structure and the product structure are assumed as given. Also, any refinement or change loops to the WBS during the project were not considered.