Equality, Diversity, and Inclusiveness in the Field of Project Management: Theoretical Relationships and Managerial Tool

We carried out a systematic literature review (SLR) to understand the impact of equality, diversity, and inclusiveness (EDI) on performance and creativity in the workplace within project-based organizations (PBOs). Our methodology is fully described in the report and follows standard SLR protocols. We also describe in detail the nature and characteristics of the research studies in the literature included in our study, paying attention to the methodological and industrial sector diversity, as well as the specific EDI dimensions studied. We found that most EDI research in the literature concerns the construction (37%) and information technology (41%) sectors and uses quantitative methodological techniques (55%). We also discovered that there is a lack of consistency or consensus in the terms used by authors to describe the various EDI constructs. To assist managers in navigating the spectrum of terms, some of which use subcategories of the main EDI terms and others represent near-identical constructs, we include a section on the nomenclature of EDI terms. An important contribution of our research is the identification of the theoretical relationships extracted from the empirical research in the SLR set. In total, we delineated 41 theoretical relationships in which either a correlation or a cause-and-effect relationship was found between an EDI-related dependent variable and one of three principal independent variables discovered in the articles selected: project performance, team performance, and product quality. One surprising finding was that in several cases the same dependent variable simultaneously had positive and negative associations with the independent variable by virtue of two or more mediating variables. All 41 relationships are clearly identified in Table 2 and discussed in the report, along with any relevant situational and contextual factors. The nature of the relationships found, which were frequently paradoxical due to the mediating variables, lend themselves to managerial manipulation for heightening the positive associations and reducing the negative associations for PBOs. However, because it is not always easy to predict the desired effect, we suggest that new digital technologies can be helpful. For example, could automation (artificial intelligence [AI] and smart contracts) be a way to enhance the "good" aspects of diversity while eliminating the "bad" ones? We consider this question in the report. Overall, the findings support the proposition that PBOs can improve team and project performance by increasing equality, promoting diversity, and maintaining a healthy balance of inclusiveness in the workplace. The variety of relationships and associated effects, however, suggests that as diversity increases, organizations need to actively introduce mechanisms in order to reduce the negative risks, such as greater relationship conflict, an overabundance of competing stakeholder interests, and a mismatch between gender egalitarianism and the organization's governance of its project management practices. We further consider the managerial implications of our findings and propose a novel framework as a tool to help managers develop their awareness of EDI considerations in general, and specifically in their own organization and environmental landscape, paying particular attention to who is involved and the possible added value to the organization. The purpose of this tool is to raise the awareness of EDI phenomena in PBOs and give managers a means of educating themselves and their employees about EDI concerns and its possible impacts, and to consider ways to recruit and manage their workforce more sustainably, building on what is already known and preparing a new vanguard of EDI-savvy leaders for future generations. We also tentatively suggest a future research agenda for EDI in PBOs based on our findings and the suggestions made for further research in the literature. This agenda is by no means intended to be exhaustive and should be used as a starting point to drive discussions on research focused on EDI dynamics and impacts in PBOs to the next level of maturity.