Egbu, C O; Gaskell, C and Howes, J (2002) The improvement of teamworking through the exploitation of IT: Lessons from the construction, manufacturing and finance sectors. In: Greenwood, D (ed.) Proceedings of 18th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 September 2002, Northumbria, UK.
Abstract
Based on an EPSRC sponsored research project that focuses on the utilization and exploitation of IT for teamworking in construction, manufacturing and the financial sectors, the research aims to assess the degree to which IT is or is not exploited for teamworking, and what lessons the construction industry can learn from other industrial sectors. The construction industry is aware of its position regarding IT and teamworking, and is willing to accept that research needs to be done and recommendations taken on board, but there is a real fear that IT is being introduced too fast and is becoming overused and overwhelming. The notion that IT can aid or encourage teamworking is confusing to some. Attention will be given, in this paper, to how this research can be put to use; how will the research be received; and what issues will it throw up for further debate and research? It is vital that companies are aware of the most frequently used technologies for teamworking. The industry must pay attention to cultural and structural variables, when introducing and attempting to exploit IT for teamworking. Vast amounts of money are being spent on hardware and software, but little is being done to ensure that this new IT orientation fits in with the actual culture of the organization. This leads to the major recommendation of the research – that directed training on IT for teamworking is vital if the uptake and full exploitation of IT is to be achieved. Finally, the paper recommends that there is ample scope for further studies to be conducted in this area.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | culture; education and training; teamwork; information technology |
| Index terms: | hardware, construction industry, information technology, education and training, teamwork, becoming, exploitation |
| Subjects: | professional education, industry analysis, philosophical process, management, computer hardware, computing systems |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Business Strategy, Digital Applications, Organizational Design, Education |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCT |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here