Project Ecosystems: Enabling Emergent Project Value

A project ecosystem is a distinct type of ecosystem, consisting of a broad set of interdependent heterogeneous actors, associated with a focal project, who collectively enable value emergence beyond what was contracted. Project ecosystems differ from both project ecologies and project networks in that they only endure for the tenure of the focal project, and their emergent value is instantiated in strategic innovation, knowledge diffusion, and wider economic, social, and environmental impacts. Implications for project complementarities, evolution, and orchestration, with clear and concrete suggestions for future research, are discussed.