Studies have shown that project managers are responsible for the successful management of various projects. Increasingly, this success depends on the project manager being a knowledge worker (KW)—i.e., possessing and utilizing both “hard” and “soft” skills/competencies to manage assigned projects. Nonetheless, there has not been enough studies on what these competencies are, especially in the context of developing countries (DCs). This study, therefore, seeks to conceptualize project managers as KWs by identifying the key competencies and their relationships needed to effectively manage projects in DCs. To achieve this objective, a survey was conducted among 112 project management (PM) practitioners in Ghana. The opinions from the respondents were edited, summarized and categorized by creating word queries, thus, making it easier to make deductions from them. Finally, content analysis was conducted to help establish links in the responses so as to deduce appropriate recommendations. The findings provide a set of “soft” and “hard” skills/competencies and their unique combinations for effective PM in DCs. The primary contribution of this study stems from highlighting the key competencies that project managers need to ensure effective PM in DCs, thus, helping these countries to make a more efficient use of their scarce resources.

Many projects in developing countries (DCs) have been recognised as crucial forces for poverty reduction and making people’s lives easier. Despite their relevance, projects in these countries typically fail or are abandoned before completion. Recent calls suggest that projects in DCs are multifaceted, interdependent and of a complex nature; consequently, they are influenced by various factors that are specific to these territories, requiring new research efforts that delve deeper into the particularities of this specific setting. Literature on project management success (PMS) in DCs is very limited, and the existing attempts either rely on PMS factors for developed countries and/or use conventional variable-oriented analyses that are not transferrable to the context of DCs. Aiming to shed new light on the factors that shape PMS in DCs, this study examines both the configurational and the independent influence of three factors that have been emphasised in PM literature as determinants of PMS. To achieve this objective, a survey was conducted among 215 project manager practitioners in Ghana. First, we validate the factors’ structure obtained from literature. Next, we examine the configurational influence of these factors on PMS in DCs, complementing the findings with robustness checks. Our results support the existence of distinct pathways, suggesting that there is no unique recipe, but different strategies that can be followed. The study concludes with a series of recommendations that are expected to help engineers and project managers in DCs understand and deal with project management challenges.

Many developing countries (DCs) are currently spending on construction projects due to the high demand resulting from rapid urbanization. However, the results of these projects in terms of time, cost and quality do not tend to meet the expectations of the stakeholders. Despite the relevance and high visibility of this situation in many DCs, this topic has received little research attention. This study examines the combined effect of six factors that are commonly signaled in the project management literature as determinants of successful project management in construction projects. Our ultimate goal is to identify the extent to which traditional factors play a role in project management in DCs, as recent studies have highlighted the uniqueness of project management in these countries, therefore, requiring specific analysis within this context. To empirically address this goal we rely on an ad-hoc survey that collects the responses from 120 project management practitioners in Ghana. First, building upon existing works, we construct and validate a scale that evaluates project management practices in DCs. Next, we use qualitative comparative analysis to scrutinize which combination(s) of the aforementioned six factors lead to successful project management in construction projects. The findings support the initial intuition about the existence of distinct pathways, suggesting that there is no unique formula, but that different situations (i.e., combinations of factors) might require the adoption of diverse project management practices. The primary contribution of this research stems from adding to the project management body of knowledge the understanding of how a combination of factors can assist construction engineers and project managers to plan and implement successful construction projects in DCs.

Construction project management (CPM) in developing countries (DCs) tends to experience high levels of failures. These failures have been attributed to technical, behavioural and economic factors. However, in an increased globalised world, understanding cultural dimensions and their impacts has become essential for effective CPM. This study examines the extent to which national cultural dimensions (NCDs) explain CPM in DCs. Six dimensions that were identified from the review were used in a survey of 140 project management (PM) experts. Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, a scale was obtained and validated through structural equation modelling. The results reveal that the level of inequality and the orientation of a developing country with respect to time are able to significantly predict CPM in these countries. This study draws managerial attention to how different cultural dimensions and collaboration among project team members impact CPM. The value of this research lies in the creation of a model that contributes to the understanding of CPM in DCs from the cultural perspective. This will help project managers to properly devise ways of dealing with cultural misunderstandings, which will eventually lead to appropriate approaches to CPM in these countries.