| dc.description.abstract | Academic research groups are organizations that work constantly on the preparation of research projects that result in monographs, dissertations, theses, articles, intellectual property registries, among others, being important agents of the production of scientific and technological knowledge in the country. Several studies reveal that these organizations have a similar way of working and face problems that interfere with the quality of their productions. With this in mind, a case study is presented in the Research Group Technical Systems Project (LPST, in Portuguese) of the Federal University of Santa Maria - RS, seeking to analyze the organizational environment and practices, in order to Identify how the process of developing the group's research projects can be improved. The organizational diagnosis carried out through environmental analysis, questionnaires and observations showed that the lack of formalization of the processes and the failures in project management are some of the main difficulties of this organization. From the diagnosis, a particular model of integrated management was created for the development of research projects of the group, supported in the PMBOK (PMI, 2013) guide of project management and in research methodologies. The model integrates all aspects related to research projects - environmental, organizational, communicational, cultural, etc. -, and systematizes the process in 4 phases: Planning, Qualification, Execution and Closure. The phases are decomposed into 22 activities, where one of them is a constant Monitoring action. For each phase and activity, the deliveries and practices that need to be performed by the students are specified, establishing new standards of planning, execution and control of the projects. The model also considers the organizational assets and interactions among the student and the guiding teacher and others involved with the project. As a tool for dissemination and application of the model in the group, a Research Project Guideline was created, a document that gathers all the information and instructions of the project process, including the responsibilities, behaviors and good practices that will guide the students through the elaboration of researches with more quality, confidence and autonomy. Thus, the model developed aims to promote a process of organizational change in the LPST group, where all members must adapt to the new culture of development and management of research projects, resulting in increased maturity and quality of projects. In addition, considering the benefits of the model in research organization, we estimate that it can also serve as a support for improvements in other academic research groups. | |
