Ikediashi, D I; Ogunlana, S O and Alotaibi, A (2014) Analysis of project failure factors for infrastructure projects in Saudi Arabia: A multivariate approach. Journal of Construction in Developing Countries, 19(1), pp. 35-52. ISSN 1823-6499
Abstract
The rapidly changing face of the Saudi construction industry occasioned by the boost in oil revenue means that the best project management practices must be given priority to be able to confront the challenges associated with the management of infrastructure projects. The study develops a framework for identifying and classifying causes of project failures in the Saudi construction industry. A quantitative questionnaire survey was used to solicit responses from 67 respondents in the city of Jeddah, selected using an online questionnaire survey. Target respondents were mainly civil engineers, architects, quantity surveyors and building engineers who have years of experience in the management of infrastructure projects in Saudi Arabia. Findings reveal that poor risk management was rated the most critical failure factor for infrastructure projects, while budget overruns and poor communication by management followed closely at second and third, respectively. Additionally, eight components were extracted from the 24 items used for factor analysis. Among the extracted factors are project management deficiencies, risk challenges and government interference. Recommendations include, among others, that project risk management frameworks should be re-designed to guide clients and other stakeholders in an effort to reduce a project's unexpected exposure to risk.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | factor analysis; failure factors; project delivery; project management; Saudi Arabia |
| Index terms: | project risk management, engineer, Saudi Arabia, project failure, quantity surveying, project delivery, project management, construction industry, infrastructure project, architect, factor analysis, risk management, revenue, survey, civil engineer, face, failure factor, project management practice, exposure, questionnaire, budget overrun |
| Subjects: | project completion, data collection methods, risk assessment, profession, project delivery, financial and cost management, economic analysis, psychology, project management theory and practice, financial risk, Geography, public and environmental health, statistical analysis, industry analysis, infrastructure and transport systems |
| Topics: | Health and Safety, Cost Management, Business Strategy, Engineering Principles, Geographical Context, Project Management, Research Practice, Roles and Professions, Risk Management, Procurement, Organizational Design |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
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