Training to become a boundary spanner in a project environment: Insights from an inter-organizational trainee program

Other conference contribution, 2024

To facilitate interaction and knowledge exchange in projects and in multi project environments, there is a need for boundary spanning roles. Traditionally people that act as boundary spanners obtain this role as a result of a lifetime of practicing. However, with an immense need for transition in regard to for example sustainability and digitalization, there is a need to speed up the pace and find other ways. Building on documentation and interviews with previous participants in an inter-organizational trainee program in Sweden, this paper gives empirical insight into professional training by investigating how individuals may become boundary spanners in project and in multi project environments. The findings show that participating in an inter-organizational traineeship speed up the understanding of and how to deal with inter-organizational complexity and how to not only manage stakeholder diversity but also to see the advantage of differences, all traits important for a boundary spanning role. This in turn is made feasible through the means of developed communication, teambuilding, and networking abilities.