Abstract:
Managing the change process throughout a project’s life cycle is complex and should be understood,
planned for, implemented and measured by the project manager, supported by organisational systems and
processes for enhanced project success. The aim of this research was the development of an assessment
tool to measure change dynamics across the four stages of a project life cycle, being: the
conceptual/initiation-, the planning-, the implementation-, and the post-implementation stages. A
triangulation method was followed inclusive of a three-phased research design including a thorough
literature review, item development and scale development using the principles for scientific scale
development and psychometric testing. A non-probability sample of 85 (49.4%) South African and 87
(50.6%) international project managers mainly working in the United Emirates were used. The assessment
tool developed consisted of 103 items. Item-scale and reliability analysis, together with Tucker’s phi results,
confirmed the reliability, internal consistency and structure of the assessment tool for both the South African
and international samples. Cronbach alpha coefficients of 0.937, 0.974, 0.931 and 0.875 were calculated for
each of the four phases of a project life cycle respectively. This tool should be useful as both a measurement
and a diagnostic instrument for organisations and project managers to improve change management in the
project environment.
