The global economy, supported by technological progress, political changes and economic interdependency, has shaped a business environment that differs radically from the past. This new context has conducted organizations to develop and execute projects beyond national boundaries, both in terms of project scope and composition of project teams. However, international projects usually imply greater risks and uncertainty, making competence in the management of international projects a strategic element to organizations these days. The aim of this paper is to analyze the literature related to the management of international projects, trying to identify the main challenges and characteristics of this management activity. The methodological approach is based on systematic literature review, supported by bibliometric techniques and social network analysis. The database chosen for the selection of sample articles was the ISI Web of Knowledge (web of Science). Analyses suggest that a major portion of the literature related to the management of international projects has its theoretical foundations on investigations of cultural and behavioral differences between individuals. Results also suggest that one of the main challenges to the management of international projects resides on the effective integration of the project itself and its dispersed teams, a process that tends to be hampered by communicative, knowledge sharing, and decision making barriers inherent to this context.
International projects; Project management; Bibliometric study
