A generic model for creating organizational change and innovation in the building process

Abstract

Building on the empirical work of a doctoral dissertation on change management in the Norwegian building industry, this paper provides the outline of a generic innovation model for creating innovation and increased productivity in building projects. Central to this innovation model is the necessity for participative visualization of a common frame of reference. This is a shared understanding visualized as a joint enterprise image of the whole of the parts and the relationships of actual collective work practice integrating the planning and construction part of the building process as a whole. The model consists of three necessary arenas for knowledge development, being identified as “collective knowing”: “relational knowledge”, and “knowing how”. The paper concludes that the knowledge content of each arena continuously relates to one another in a dynamic and interdependent way constituting an actionable and generic model for innovation and productivity in the building process.