Paradoxes in Integrated Project Delivery

Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) is a delivery model that has attracted increasing interest in both academia and industry over the past decade or so. It is based on enforced collaboration through a multi-party agreement, sharing risks and opportunities, common decision-making, co-location, and other means. There are fundamental paradoxes embedded in any project delivery model, and the ones related to IPD seem to be underexplored. Paradoxes are contradictory yet interrelated elements that exist simultaneously and persist over time. Because there is no unambiguous right or wrong solution to a paradoxical problem, it has to be resolved by balancing the considerations in question. This implies that the solution will always be contextual and that it can always be disputed. This empirically inspired conceptual paper identifies nine paradoxes grouped into four paradox themes that are central to IPD: relational dynamics, misaligned expectations, strategic dilemmas, and project implementation challenges. Through the examination of these paradoxes, we discuss and identify the inherent challenges in the adoption of IPD.