An empirical investigation of the relationship between intellectual capital and project success
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the relationship between project-specific intellectual capital (IC) and project success in the context of information technology (IT) projects.
Design/methodology/approach
Using data collected from surveys of 603 IT professionals across a variety of projects, the authors constructed a structural (structural equation model) model in AMOS to examine the relationships between three dimensions of project-specific IC (project team, project customer and project process) and project success.
Findings
The empirical results support the proposition that IC has a positive impact on project success, and thus may be a good indicator of future projects’ performance. More importantly, the authors found out an important mediating role of a project’s structural capital (process) in exploiting its human (team) and relational (customer) capital for realising project success.
Research limitations/implications
Interpretation of current results should be considered in light of the following methodological limitations: convenient rather than systematic sampling, use of previously untested measures and prevailing European subjects.
Practical implications
These results suggest that project-based organisations need to invest heavily in their project workforce talent and then translate it into superior project practices in order to produce successful IT projects. They also need to maintain close relationships with their project customers and involve them during the entire project process.
Originality/value
The current empirical evidence extends the understanding of the role of IC in improving project success and thus helps project-based organisations create and maintain competitive advantage in emerging economies.
Keywords
Citation
Handzic, M., Durmic, N., Kraljic, A. and Kraljic, T. (2016), "An empirical investigation of the relationship between intellectual capital and project success", Journal of Intellectual Capital, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 471-483. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-01-2016-0004
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited