Examining New Professional Actors Related to Employment Requirements

Paper in proceeding, 2017

Employment requirements are increasingly used in construction procurement in Sweden. The aim of this paper is to investigate how increased use of employment requirements give rise to new types of actors in the construction industry. This includes investigating how these actors define and populate a new professional role and knowledge domain within the construction industry, how they shape their identities and work practices, as well as how they redefine boundaries of the field. Semi-structured interviews with 21 built environment professionals working with employment requirements showed that that the increased use of employment requirements creates both opportunities and complexities for the construction industry. Due to an unclear knowledge domain, uncertain allocation of responsibilities, and iterative role development, “employment requirement professionals” are not a cohesive group, even though the role seems to be undergoing a professionalization process. The paper contributes to an understanding of the implications employment requirements have on roles and identities of built environment professionals, and how a new professional domain, new social identities and driving forces, and new collaborative work practices are established.