Overt obstacles and covert causes: An exploratory study of poor performance in megaprojects

Sergeeva, Natalya; Clegg, Stewart; Burdon, Steve; Clay, John

doi:10.1016/j.plas.2021.100011

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Despite a profitable economic return, such megaprojects are plagued with uncertainties, difficulties, inefficiencies and failures [20,21]. As one of the typical megaprojects in drylands, for instance, water megaprojects are stated to be inclined toward influencing development, political goals or state power rather than solving water deficiencies [19].…”

Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even so, these EIAs are state-sponsored undertakings with likely biased results. By conducting semi-structured interviews with megaproject stakeholders, Ninan et al [20] introduced covert obstacles, including the political push for projects. Categorised as high-risk endeavours, these projects are normally influenced by various actors and have generally failed to deliver planned objectives [20].…”

Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By conducting semi-structured interviews with megaproject stakeholders, Ninan et al [20] introduced covert obstacles, including the political push for projects. Categorised as high-risk endeavours, these projects are normally influenced by various actors and have generally failed to deliver planned objectives [20]. In other research, notions of "power" and "influence" were observed in 72% of the papers published on stakeholder analysis of environmental projects [23].…”

Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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‘Environmental Impact Assessment’ in Drylands: Late Knowledge Penetration or a Deliberate Ignorance for Megaprojects?

Amiraslani

2021

World

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Despite the paramount role of drylands in supporting people’s livelihoods and rendering ecosystem services, legislation on Environmental Impact Assessment has been introduced belatedly after several decades. By exemplifying Iran, the author proposes two main reasons for such a delayed action. First, drylands are misleadingly considered as barren lands where biodiversity is relatively low. In one classification, deserts are even categorized along with rocks. Second, the author emphasizes that drylands have been subjected to unprecedented changes due to the expansion of infrastructure and urbanization that started in the 1970s. These growing pressures have been beyond the ecological resilience of drylands and have not been monitored, assessed, and modified correctly. Further scrutiny regarding EIA undertakings in drylands and the way they can be improved is now needed.

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Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Drylands: Hot Spots For Megaprojectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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‘Environmental Impact Assessment’ in Drylands: Late Knowledge Penetration or a Deliberate Ignorance for Megaprojects?

Amiraslani

2021

World

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“…Considerable number of company managers thought that the increases in cost and low productivity were due to inflation and economic problems. In contrast, Ninan et al (2021) and Stukhart and Kirby (1995) revealed that the companies were not using resources efficiently, and decrease in productivity was also attributable to poor management. In another study, Baldwin and Bordoli (2014) found that 40% of the time lost on-site can be attributed to poor management, lack of materials when needed, poor identification of materials and inadequate storage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Material management practices and factors influencing material conservation on construction sites in Nigeria

Edike

2021

JEDT

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Purpose The purpose of this study is to enhance material conservation and further the knowledge of efficient material management practices on construction sites. This study investigated contractors’ material management practices on construction sites in Nigeria. The factors influencing material conservation on construction sites were also examined. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected through a survey of 125 contractors who were administered with structured questionnaire, which resulted in 82 valid returned questionnaire. Data collected was analyzed using frequency, importance, utility and severity indexes. Findings This study found checking materials delivered to a site for specification, use of security personnel to safeguard materials and analysis of materials as key material management practices used on construction sites. Critical factors influencing material management are materials double-handling, management of surplus materials, subsequent design changes, excessive paperwork and not receiving materials at the expected time. Practical implications The implementation of the material management practices identified in this study will support contractors to efficiently manage materials on construction sites. The factors influencing material conservation reported in this study will also help contractors understand the critical factors that may affect material management in their construction sites and make better plans for future projects. Originality/value This study has reported key issues confronting contractors on the conservation of materials on construction site and various material management practices suitable for application in a wide range of infrastructure projects. This is significant because the construction industry is recording outrageous cost and time overruns of infrastructure projects, which are vital to economic prosperity of nations. The issues and panaceas presented in this study had received scant consideration in construction literature in the sub-Sahara Africa. This study represents a novel synthesis and adds value to knowledge in a manner that has not been reported in previous studies.

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“…From this description, it is clear that megaprojects have much more complex social, cultural, institutional, and technical aspects than ordinary projects (Li, Han, Luo & Zhang, 2019). Indeed, megaprojects come hand in hand with mega-problems (Flyvbjerg, 2013), which may lead most megaprojects to failure (Flyvbjerg, 2014;Ninan, Clegg, Burdon & Clay, 2021). However, if successful, a megaproject can make a region prosperous and even become a unifying symbol for the country (Flyvbjerg, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complexity, leadership, and megaproject performance: A configuration analysis

Damayanti

Hartono

Wijaya

2021

JIEM

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Purpose: Rapid worldwide growth in megaprojects has attracted academic interest. In practice, complexity is one of the main causes for the failure of megaprojects. This study proposes a system of project manager leadership to overcome problems of complexity in achieving success with a megaproject.Design/methodology/approach: This study uses configuration analysis, fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), to investigate the combination of complexity and leadership competencies that promote megaproject success. This study analyzes three megaproject manager leadership competencies—technical, emotional–social and adaptive—with three megaproject complexities—structural, social and emergent—to determine the combinations and levels required to ensure a megaproject’s short- and long-term success. Seven Indonesian infrastructure megaprojects were involved in this explorative study.Findings: This study has identified four combinations between complexity and leadership competencies and three necessary conditions that can lead to a successful megaproject. This study also reports that insufficient project manager leadership competence in the technical, emotional-social, and adaptive aspects can lead to lower megaproject performance.Research limitations/implications: By using fsQCA, this study is sufficient to understand the combination of complexity and leadership competencies in the megaproject performance. However, configuration comparative analysis using small samples is unable to explain results that are more rigorous when compared with the statistical approach. Having higher cases and additional analytical approaches that can lead to a more robust quantitative analysis method is strongly needed to address these limitations.Practical implications: For practitioners, this study proposes effective leadership competency combinations for managing various complexities of the megaproject.Originality/value: This study provides an insight into the competencies of megaproject management leadership. This study contributes to the literature by providing fresh perspectives on megaproject management, especially in terms of complexity and leadership. This is an important research area for the development of megaproject management theory as it fills theoretical gaps in megaproject management in terms of the leadership aspect.

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Overt obstacles and covert causes: An exploratory study of poor performance in megaprojects

Cited by 12 publications

References 38 publications

‘Environmental Impact Assessment’ in Drylands: Late Knowledge Penetration or a Deliberate Ignorance for Megaprojects?

‘Environmental Impact Assessment’ in Drylands: Late Knowledge Penetration or a Deliberate Ignorance for Megaprojects?

Material management practices and factors influencing material conservation on construction sites in Nigeria

Complexity, leadership, and megaproject performance: A configuration analysis

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