Murphy, R (2011) Strategic planning in Irish quantity surveying practices. PhD thesis, Heriot-Watt University, UK.
Abstract
The role and usefulness of strategic planning has been well documented over several decades of strategic management research. Despite the significant body of existing knowledge in the field of strategic planning, there remains a paucity of investigation into the construction sector, specifically in Professional Service Firms (PSF?s) operating within it. The aim of this research was to ascertain the type, scope and extent of strategic planning within Irish Quantity Surveying (QS) practices and to ascertain the extent to which such processes correspond to strategic planning literature. This research was an exploratory study, undertaken in two phases in line with mixed methods employed for undertaking the study. The first, qualitative, phase involved in-depth semi-structured interviews with the principals of eleven QS practices of varying size. The second, quantitative phase, involved a widespread survey of every QS practice registered with the Society of Chartered Surveyors (SCS) in Ireland, for which a response rate of over 40% was achieved. The findings discover that the type, scope and extent of strategic planning within Irish QS practices vary with practice size and ownership structure. Distinct groups of practices are evident based on a number of strategic planning process characteristics, including formality, approach, participation, flow and planning horizon. Despite the absence of a systematic or formal process within smaller QS practices, it is clear that principals are thinking and acting strategically. These practices broadly follow strategic planning processes advocated in the literature, are mostly unaware that this is the case; however confirm that a more systematic strategic planning process is beginning to emerge, particularly in light of the severity of the current economic and construction industry downturn in Ireland. The findings of the research provide an important contribution towards addressing the significant gap in existing knowledge in this regard. The conclusions drawn are specific to the QS profession, the research has been designed such that it has potential to be applied to other PSF?s within and outside the construction industry.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Henderson, I |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction sector; interview; Ireland; land; Mali; owner; ownership; participation; professional; professional service firm; quantity survey; quantity surveying; strategic management; strategic planning; survey; surveying |
| Index terms: | interview, society, quantity surveying practice, surveying, survey, exploratory study, strategic management, chartered surveyor, construction sector, Mali, mixed method, owner, professional service firm, profession, strategic planning, ownership, investigation, construction industry, land, Ireland |
| Subjects: | Geography, research methods, communities and social development, institututions, organization, management, economics, industry analysis, sociology, profession, data collection methods, health monitoring assessment and metrics, real estate economics |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Business Strategy, Roles and Professions, Stakeholder Management, Urban Studies, Organizational Design, Geographical Context, Health and Safety |
| 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