Team management in research project management: comparative analysis of bodies of knowledge

Abstract

Team management is a fundamental process to achieve the objectives outlined in the life cycle of projects, it is relevant that it is analyzed in contexts where their performance is of utmost importance to achieve institutional objectives. And it is the Higher Education Institutions (HEI), where projects of diverse typology are developed, and in the research processes, which were the scope of application of the present work, in which the evidence of bodies of knowledge in terms of project team management was contrasted with the application that this has in the management of research projects. A qualitative approach was used based on the application of interviews to research professors who execute research projects within the framework of the development of the work plan and management indicators.  The research was structured in three parts, 1) it contains the theoretical foundation around models in project management, in order to draw a matrix to identify common elements that should structure the management of project teams; 2) the analysis of the information collected from the interviews conducted with research professors from two Higher Education Institutions, and 3) it contains a conceptual model proposed for the management of research project teams in HEIs.

The guidelines and methodologies for project team management in HEIs show that institutional policies for this purpose are not fully consistent with the practice in the development and implementation of research projects.