A project management implementation strategy for public sector construction activities

Abstract

The research focuses on the implementation of project management in South African public sector work departments. These departments are typically responsible for managing the construction activities whereby building accommodation is provided for rendering collective services such as health and education. The theoretical basis of the research stems from the earlier work of Schellenberg (1983) who suggested that strategy formulation and implementation be viewed from both content and process school perspectives. The content-related issues of the formulation and implementation of a strategy for project management were examined through the use of a force field analysis, as utilized elsewhere by both Nicholas (1990) and Kerzner (1992). The process-related issues of formulating and implementing a strategy for project management were examined through the application of the Connor and Lake (1988) general change management model. The research strategy involved the use of a questionnaire comprising five parts namely, A: the general classification of the respondents, 8: the general orientation of respondents to project management, C: the management of organizational change, D: a force field analysis of the success driving and restraining factors in the implementation of project management, and E: a theoretical assessment of the chances of successfully implementing project management. All results were analyzed first for the respondents as a whole, secondly for the different managerial levels (top-level, middle and lower management), and thirdly for the different application groups (formal, informal and no project management). While it was found that formal project management was already being applied in a large proportion of work departments, the results of the research could be of benefit to the work departments where informal project management is applied or where no project management is currently being applied.