Changing Markets: Implications for the Planning Process in ETO Companies

摘要

This article focuses on project planning within an ETO context using shipbuilding as an empirical case. The aim of the research is to understand how a change in market from offshore to cruise affect the planning processes. The article adopts qualitative methods to understand the involved actors strategies and choices to execute a new type of build. The research shows how long-terms association with one market, caused a certain flow of work. This allowed the involved actors to rely on routine activities, which made the actual process of planning fade into the background. A new market comes with new challenges and demands, which disrupted this workflow. The article analyses what caused the lack of focus on planning and its consequences. It argues for a danger of companies confusing structure with content, and calls attention to the importance of the context of planning. In this case, the context of market.