Interorganizational collaboration and systemic change framework for building information modeling (BIM) adoption

It was found that an integrated framework needs to be developed for the construction industry that allows optimized interorganizational collaboration and systemic change while using Building Information Modeling (BIM) technologies. The framework needs to be effective so the industry can adopt BIM through a set of interdependent activities beyond their organizational boundaries. The adoption has been proven difficult because of industry competitiveness and a fragmented work environment. Meanwhile, existing frameworks vary between studies. This research developed an integrated framework, identified critical factors, and provided an evaluation guide for interorganizational collaboration and set of coordinated changes necessary to adopt BIM. This was accomplished by incorporating the Collaborative Systemic Changes (CSC) framework that extends the classic Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) theory. It provided a way to adequately categorize the critical factors interrelated beyond organizational boundaries. An inductive case research used Formal Grounded Theory (FGT) to determine collaborative (social, interoperability, legal) factors that link the basic TOE factors in an integrated framework structure. Comparative analysis revealed collaborative sub-factors varied between studies and was more numerous than anticipated…too numerous to embrace and use. To establish a clear consensus, an online survey was conducted. A representative sample of 165 US contractors participated in the survey. Statistical analysis identified six factors - organizational variety, team BIM capability, scope of work, duty of care, risk and liability, and data preservation, as being distinct measures critical to the interorganizational BIM adoption. These six factors provided a guide for evaluating interorganizational BIM adoptability (I_BIMA). Utilization of the I_BIMA guide was demonstrated using quantitative data from three most recent BIM projects.