AN ASSESSMENT OF THE ROLES OF PROJECT MANAGERS IN SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION

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AN ASSESSMENT OF THE ROLES OF PROJECT MANAGERS IN SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

A key notion of sustainable development entails the integration and harmonization of the social, environmental and economic wellbeing both in the short term and in the long term. The combination of these three variables can also be seen as the “Triple Bottom Line” which includes People (social), Planet (environmental) and Profit (economical) (Elkington, 2013). A change in sustainable development entails the changes in the three pillars of the triple bottom line. There exists however the argument on whether an equal amount of attention should be given to each of the three pillars in all cases, and whether this will bring about a non-realizable situation. Project managers need to take into cognizance the scope of sustainable development within their projects, and whether this scope is limited to project deliverables or whether it comprises of more than the deliverables as well as whether the project relates with the organization within which it takes place. There has been recent connection of project management with sustainable development (Gareis, Heumann & Martinuzzi 2011). Sustainable development in principle can be seen as “a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development; and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations”.

Project manager and sustainability are both currently considered hot topics by managers (Lindgren and Packendorff, 2016). In fact, there is an increasing interest in developing and proving new managerial practices for project management (PM), and principles of sustainability dominate every context of business and organizational management. Therefore, the integration of these two fields represents the future for project-based organizations (Hyväri, 2016).

Projects are influenced by the environment in which they are carried out, but they also contribute to the change of the same environment. From a sustainability perspective, the project delivery phase and the final deliverable produce impacts that could be particularly advantageous in the present, but could have negative effects for many stakeholders in future scenarios. In other words, to produce the deliverables for which it was undertaken, each project uses energy and produces social, economic, and environmental (SEE) impacts, which define the degree of sustainability of the project as a whole (Atkinson, 2014).

Sustainability creates a community vision that respects the prudent use of natural resources to ensure that present generations can achieve a high degree of economic security, and can achieve democracy and popular participation in community control while preserving integrity of the ecological system and of life (Costantino, Di Gravio, Nonino, 2015). The three aspects of sustainability identified as “Triple Bottom Line,” or alternatively “Triple P: people, planet, and profit” (Lindgren and Packendorff, 2016) show the balance or harmony between economic, social, and environmental aspects. These three pillars, however, are not stable, but are influenced by constant movement due to social, political, economic, and environmental pressures, which produce their effects when the pillars link together (Atkinson, 2014). According to Gimenez, Sierra and Rodon (2012) and Kleindorfer, Singhal and Van Wassenhove (2015), sustainability integrates social, environmental, and economic responsibility in order to create a rational use of present resources without compromising the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs.

The link between project and sustainability, even if under-examined, is evident. Projects are based on temporary endeavors that, consuming resources, deliver beneficial objectives. Sustainability defines criteria for proper use of resources and for the evaluation of outputs in terms of economic, social, and environmental impacts. The traditional project management approach allocates and exploits these resources, seeking the optimal combination of time, cost, and quality performances, to maximize the benefits of stakeholders (Tharp, 2012). This approach has proven to be very reductionist over time, because it does not consider wide-ranging social and environmental issues, which are the sustainability challenges. Furthermore, there is often a mismatch of evaluation between project success and project management success that limits the real integration of these sustainability issues; in fact, project success is next to the idea of effectiveness (achieved vs. targeted objectives), while project management success is next to the idea of efficiency (consumed resources vs. achieved targets) (Costantino, Di Gravio and Nonino, 2015). This generates some relevant trade-offs for project managers.

In one of the most important and widespread books containing the best PM practices, the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) (Tinoco and Sato, 2016), sustainability is poorly addressed. This raises the need for a more holistic and coherent view of projects in terms of the degree of fitness with their environment and society at large (.

Sustainability, as field of study, can provide project management with new perspectives, supporting project managers in their decision-making about planning, management, and control of the resources assigned to the project, considering the economic, social, and environmental impacts of not only the project life cycle, but also the asset’s life cycle and the life cycle of the products this asset produces. The objective would be to ensure that decisions made are in the best interest of the clients, but without harming society and the environment (Zainul-Abidin, 2012). For this reason, a sustainable approach would be particularly well suited to major projects that consume large quantities of materials and energy, and the products of which have lifelong impacts on the economy, society, and the natural environment.

This research focuses on the role of project manager in building sustainable development. This is imperative because the professionals involved in project management which include the project managers have the necessary technical skills, the competencies as well as the knowledge needed to effectively implement the sustainability creativity. In the way that the accountants engage in developing sustainability reporting tools, the engineers engage in the development of sustainable „green‟ technologies, so as well does the project managers are responsible in developing and transmitting the sustainable practices. The role of project managers in the context of this paper is specifically essential in the trend growing towards” projectification‟ (the reorganization of tasks and activities) in which puts the project managers in a noticeable economic and societal position.

This research is timely as it focuses on the important role of project managers in sustainable development, as well as addresses key research areas which include inclusiveness, innovativeness and reflective societies through examining the way in which the well-being of the society can be generated and sustained overtime. This research looks to contribute to the understanding of professionals in the context project managers in the development of a sustainable society. Thus, this research emphasizes on the contribution of project management to sustainable development through adoption, adaptation, and the rejection of sustainability principles and practices.

Statement of the Problem

Serious concern has been expressed about public projects that have been abandoned in various parts of the country, after huge financial mobilizations.  Most of the projects are in the construction industry and sometimes funded by foreign agencies.  Various factors have been adduced for this unhealthy scenario, the most notable being poor project analysis and management.  Another problem facing the sector include phenomenal increase in prices of the inputs occasioned by dearth of building material locally, and difficulties in importation of foreign alternatives.  The construction industry also has very low absorptive capacity added to shortage of well-trained indigenous manpower required to plan, manage, and to execute contracts awarded to them.

Against this background, with more capital investment in the construction industry in Nigeria because the nation is at the developing stage, there is need to assess the role of project managers in sustainable construction.

Objectives of the Study

The aim of this study is to assess the role of project managers in sustainable construction.

The study specific objectives are to:

1. To assess construction managers techniques in the construction industry in the study area
2. To identify and assess factors affecting the construction manager techniques in the study area
3. To examine the role of construction managers on construction cost, time and quality in the study area.

Research Questions

From the above information, the research question generated which this study provides answers to are:

1. What are the construction managers techniques in the construction industry in the study area?
2. What are the factors affecting the construction manager techniques in the study area?
3. What are the role of construction manager  on construction cost, time and overall performance in the study area?

Significance of the Study

The significant of the study cannot be underestimated. It is significant because data generated from the study is sufficient to expand further fields of knowledge of this topic from many other dimensions, the study also present sufficient challenges to academics to increase their interest in the field.

The findings of the study will be beneficial in the following ways:

Construction industries will be able to meet workers demand, as its personnel service strategies has been translated into specific policies and practices.

Building industries will be able to achieve better financial performance through its effective source of reference to the researcher. This research will help academic continuity and strengthen the existing knowledge and also contributing to human resource management in the building industry. The research therefore will help to ascertain if there is linkage between building resources practice.

Scope of the Study

The study of the role of project managers in sustainable construction is very large as there are too many construction industries in the country. Therefore, for the purpose of this research and limited schedule of time, this research will be centered on some selected construction companies in Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

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