Ruwanpura, U D R E and Perera, B A K S (2023) Management of external stakeholders' influences in donor-funded irrigation infrastructure projects in sri lanka. Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, 12(4), pp. 820-846. ISSN 2046-6099
Abstract
Purpose: Accelerating the influences of external stakeholders in any construction project is inevitable. Studies on external stakeholder influence on construction projects and literature on external stakeholder management in irrigation infrastructure projects executed with donor funds are scarce. Thus, this study aimed to investigate how to manage the external stakeholders' influence on donor-funded irrigation infrastructure projects effectively. Design/methodology/approach: A mixed approach consisting of 17 semi-structured interviews and two rounds of questionnaire surveys was adopted to rank the following: the types of external stakeholders who can significantly influence irrigation infrastructure projects, significant influencing strategies used by those stakeholders, and significant strategies that can be adopted to manage external stakeholder influence on the projects. Findings: In total, 12 of external stakeholders who can significantly influence irrigation infrastructure projects were identified; 17 significant influencing strategies used by external project stakeholders and 22 significant strategies used to manage external stakeholder influence on the projects were identified. The influencing/management strategies specific to each external stakeholder type and those that are common to all external stakeholder types were identified separately. The grievance redress mechanism should be activated for managing external stakeholder influence on donor-funded irrigation infrastructure projects. Originality/value: This study contributes to theory by identifying significant strategies that can be used to manage external stakeholder influence on donor-funded irrigation infrastructure projects during the planning and design stages. The study will help project teams to handle external stakeholder influence on the projects successfully, accomplish project objectives, and make maximum utilization of the donor funds received.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | donor funds; external stakeholder; influencing strategies; irrigation infrastructure; management strategies |
| Index terms: | management strategy, project team, donor, infrastructure project, Sri Lanka, survey, strategy, interview, external stakeholder, project stakeholder, questionnaire, design stage, methodology, construction project |
| Subjects: | sociology, infrastructure and transport systems, management, research methods, Geography, production management, professional practice, project delivery, data collection methods |
| Topics: | Design Practice, Stakeholder Management, Business Strategy, Engineering Principles, Research Practice, Project Management, Geographical Context |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
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