Project team performance within the Scottish water market based private finance initiative

The aim of this study was a comprehensive review of teams, based on the Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) consortia, bidding for Scottish Water PFI projects. NWG formed 3 separate consortia to bid for 6 of the 10 available PFI projects. The research had a number of objectives : to understand the performance of the NWG teams, to see how the NWG teams could be improved, to review the published work on all aspects of teams, to understand the differences between the NWG teams and other studies and to compare the findings from the NWG teams with current industrial practice. The study methodology used Charles Handy's teamwork model as a framework : to collect case study data from the NWG teams using a postal questionnaire and to review literature related to teams in the round. Research study data triangulation was achieved using industry based external validation. The study culminated in a project and team management support tool, in the form of a significant issue's checklist. The checklist contains 12 Key Success Factors (KSF) and 12 Key Barriers to Success (KBS), which when compared with the critical success factors and barriers identified in other studies showed good correlation.