Rethinking the creation of social value through projects

Purpose This Special Issue, “Rethinking the Creation of Social Value through Projects,” examines projects as social and moral practices that shape value creation, distribution and societal outcomes beyond traditional performance metrics. Responding to conceptual ambiguities surrounding social value in project management, the eight included papers employ diverse methodological approaches to explore governance, leadership, inclusion, justice and sustainability across project contexts and stakeholder groups. Collectively, they challenge instrumental views of projects, positioning them as ethical and relational processes capable of enabling empowerment while also reproducing exclusion and inequity. The synthesis highlights key future research directions, including stronger integration across analytical levels linking temporary organising with institutional systems, improved evaluation of intangible benefits through hybrid and multimodal methods, deeper engagement with power and justice through collaborative governance frameworks and longitudinal studies tracing evolving value trajectories over time. By advancing a more reflexive and responsible understanding of project organising, the Special Issue calls for project management to embrace its broader societal purpose. Dedicated to Yvonne Schoper’s legacy, it invites continued inquiry into projects as vehicles for collective well-being and social purpose. Design/methodology/approach The articles published in this Special Issue encompass a rich and diverse set of perspectives on how social value is created in and through projects, opening new avenues for future research in the field. We acknowledge and appreciate the methodological plurality of these contributions. It mirrors the broad conceptual and epistemological foundations of the social value literature as well as the expansive debates currently shaping the field of project studies. Findings The eight papers span four analytical levels that consolidate and structure inquiry into social value. These four analytical levels reflect the multi-scalar nature of social value, from micro-level practices and experiences to macro-level institutional arrangements. Originality/value The Special Issue on “Rethinking the Creation of Social Value through Projects” positions the project not merely as a means of achieving ends but as a medium of meaning. Its eight papers, diverse in method yet united in purpose, chart a vision of projects as ethical, inclusive and enduring endeavours. They remind us that social value is created when leadership is purposive, governance is just, collaboration is trusting and learning persists across generations.