STUDIES ON EXPLORING CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR STAKEHOLDERS MANAGEMENT IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN GHANA

ABSTRACT

Construction projects are undertaken to achieve specific objectives and the success of it is measured by the realization of the set goals including stakeholder satisfaction. Several stakeholders are involved in construction projects and depending on the environment, complexity, and procurement method adopted; stakeholders are involved at different phases of the project undertaking different tasks and duties. These stakeholders with variable influence and power, play key roles in the success or failure of project. Hence, construction projects are normally influenced by success element which can help parties reach their envisioned goals with greater proficiency. The purpose of this study was to identify the various project stakeholders, examine the roles of project stakeholders, and also examine the impact of stakeholders on construction projects, and finally to determine critical success factors leading to construction project success in Ghana. Many critical success factors such as factors related to project manager‘s performance, factors related to organization, factors related to project, and factors related to external environment which become obvious from this study would be useful to ascertain which factors impact on the success of projects. Stakeholder Management is therefore indispensable if project goals are to be achieved. The research develops on the existing performance area outlined to advance a contingency-based model for evaluating construction projects in Ghana. This research also focused on the key elements and best methods that lead to the success of project in Ghana, the exploration of likely indicators for its evaluation and the identification of the critical success factors. In an attempt to fill this research gaps, a questionnaire survey was carry out in Ashanti Region - Ghana to gather the views of construction practitioners and clients concerning the relative significance of CSFs for stakeholder management. Findings from this report showed that all selected CSFs are regarded as critical by most respondents for the success of stakeholder management in construction projects. The factor concerning Effective Program Time Management is considered most essential for managing stakeholders. 

CHAPTER ONE 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1 Background of Study

A Stakeholder is anyone who has an interest in the development or result of a project (Fewing, 2005). In a normal construction project management, any or all of the following may be a stakeholder: the client, the principal contractor, designers, subcontractors, people employed in any capacity in the project, local authorities, the end users of the product, professional bodies, local residents, local business owners, politicians, environment groups, and many more. Stakeholder management seems to be one of the major concerns in construction project management in Ghana. The prospect of project success is greatly reduced if stakeholders are ineffective in management. The communication and interrelationships among stakeholders mostly determine the total performance of a construction project, and have the critical responsibility for bringing a project to a successful completion.

Construction project involves processes of planning, scheduling, and controlling. Proper management of all these will lead to a successful completion of the project. But it seems major projects are not completed due to improper stakeholder management (Newcome, 2003; Smith and Love, 2004).

In order to run a successful project, it necessary to address the needs of the project stakeholders, effectively predicting how the project will affect them and how the can affect the project. The effective management of project stakeholders is considered an important key to project success (Olomolaiye & Chiniyo, 2010). Ineffective stakeholder management can result in dissatisfaction with the final project and negative impact on the projects‘ financial plan and schedule (Olomolaiye & Chiniyo, 2010).

An increasing number of studies have identified the importance of stakeholder management in construction projects (El-Gohary et al.,2006). However, the construction industry has a poor record of stakeholder management during the past decades due to the complexity and uncertainty of projects (Loosemore 2006). Many problems of stakeholder management in construction projects suggested by earlier researchers include insufficient engagement of stakeholders, project managers having unclear objectives of the stakeholder management, difficulty to identify the ―invisible‖ stakeholder, and poor communication with stakeholders (Pouloudi and Whitley 1997; Loosemore 2006; Bourne and Walker 2006; Rowlinson and Cheung 2008).

In order to resolve these problems, project parties need to know what the fundamentals are for managing stakeholders (Cleland and Ireland 2002). To identify the essentials of stakeholder management, ‗Critical Success Factors‘ (CSFs) approach is used in this thesis. The concept of Critical Success Factors is usually credited to (Daniel, 1961) who introduced it in association with the management information crisis (Fortune & White, 2006). Rubin and Seeling (1967) first initiated the theory of project success factors in 1967 and Rockart (1982) used the expressions critical success factors (CSFs) for the first time (Toor, 2008): This approach was first advanced by Rockart (1979). CSFs can be defined as ‗areas, in which outcomes, if they are satisfactory, well guarantee successful competitive performance for the organization‖ (Rockart 1879). Saraph et al. (1989) observed them as ―those critical areas of managerial planning and action that must be practiced in order to achieve effectiveness‖. Many scholars (e.g. Chan et al., 2001); Jefferies et al., 2002; Yu et al., 2006) have used this technique as a means to improve the performance of the management process. In the field of stakeholder management, Cleland and Ireland (2002) consider it important that the project term should recognize whether or not it is successfully ―managing‖ the project stakeholders. In this write-up, CSFs are seen as those events and practices that should be addressed in order to ensure successful management of stakeholders in construction industry in Ghana.

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Item Type: Ghanaian Topic  |  Size: 101 pages  |  Chapters: 1-5

Format: MS Word  |  Delivery: Within 30Mins.

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