Factor analyzing project management practices in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the underlying dimensional structure of project management practices to identify key factors that underpin the successful completion of projects. Design/methodology/approach It employs exploratory factor analyses to investigate the interrelationships of the survey items synthesized from the literature by retaining and reorganizing the important information from the original data while redundant information is removed. Findings The nine theoretical constructs comprising 64 items were coalesced onto five latent constructs comprising 50 items while explaining 50.914 percent of the total variance. The extracted five constructs that describe the best project management practices have been labelled risk management, organizational culture, stakeholder approach, management approach, and project leadership. Practical implications The study results benefit both practitioners and the academic community as five broad categories of best project management practices are identified and their interdependencies are established. Project management professionals can use the latent factors as the critical factors for project success, whereas the research community can use the authors’ results to build higher order structural models and to test hypotheses by linking the latent variables with project performance measures. Originality/value The study contributes to the discourse on project management by identifying critical practices that contribute to the successful completion of projects.

The Impact of Psychological Empowerment of Project-Oriented Employees on Project Success: A Moderated Mediation Model

“…Research has demonstrated that project successsuccessful completion of the final product for which the project was initiated is a key factor in achieving a competitive advantage in terms of performance and output (Baccarini, 1999). Given the importance of project success in anticipating successful work outcomes, previous studies have examined its role in terms of political stability (Kwak, 2002), flexible project planning (Khan et al, 2000), satisfaction of stakeholder groups (Albert et al, 2017) and connection of project management practices with project outcomes (Ajmal et al, 2017). However, limited studies have examined the role of psychological abilities, specifically employees' psychological empowerment, that may potentially interact with project success (Rowlinson & Cheung, 2008) in project-based organisations (Sok et al, 2018), particularly the combination of mediating and moderating mechanisms in the aforementioned relationship.…”

Key Indicators Influencing Team Effectiveness in Project-Based Team

“…Use of the latest technology as a system for team needs in daily work [8], [9], [16], [17], [11], [16], [17] Leadership The ability of leaders to influence their members to achieve goals [18], [8], [19], [20], [10], [21], [2], [14], [22], [23], [24] Management Support Full support and commitment from top management to help the team [18], [25], [2], [11], [26], [13] Creativity, Innovation, and Improvement…”

“…Encourage innovative thinking that can contribute to improving contribution for teams [27], [11], [26], [28], [29], [15], [23] Trust and Respect All members need to trust each other and be treated equally [16], [11], [26], [28], [29] Encouraging Initiative Motivate all team members to come up with a good and doable idea that can make a positive contribution to the team [8], [19], [11], [26], [29], [22], [30] Teamwork Responsive to changes and uncertainties well during the project [16], [11], [26], [12], [13], [14], [29], [10] Security Ensure the health and safety of members working there (Physiological and psychological safety) [16], [18], [19], [11], [30] Information Sharing Information should be accessible and available to all team members [7], [11], [26], [12], [31], [29], [22], [23] Close Monitoring Ability to record all existing activities, compare with targets and analyze errors and take corrective action [32], [19], [26],…”

Ameliorating time and cost control with project learning and communication management

“…In a recent study, AlShamsi and Ajmal (2018b) affirm that organizational leadership and culture are the most significant factors impacting knowledge sharing. As such, an organization relies entirely on its human capital to learn and share knowledge in order to add value for future projects (Ajmal et al , 2017; Mainga, 2017; Sense, 2008).…”