Insights for the governance of large projects: Analysis of Organization Theory and Project Management: Administering Uncertainty in Norwegian Offshore Oil by Stinchcombe and Heimer

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to scrutinize the influence of the highly cited Organization Theory and Project Management on consequent project research and to highlight the key contributions of the book, how it has affected consequent project research and to identify areas that could be further explored in future research. Design/methodology/approachThe paper takes the form of a book review and literature analysis. FindingsIt is found that the book offers insights to elaborating the salient characteristics of large, complex and uncertain projects. It identifies the underlying theories and concepts to improve our understanding of the three main issues: the sources of uncertainty in large engineering intensive projects; management and governance approaches utilized to tackle uncertainty; and project routines and innovation. Some of these insights have later been acknowledged by project scholars focusing topics such as project governance and the management of uncertainty in projects. Practical implicationsThe book offers several insights and lessons to scholars and practitioners working with large engineering intensive projects. Originality/valueThe contribution of the book is not used to its full potential in project research. The paper's identification of the book's key insights should be useful for both scholars and practitioners.