Taylor, S (2015) Sourcing of public sector building surveying and engineering professional services : A framework for progression. PhD thesis, University of Salford, UK.
Abstract
This research provides a significant and original contribution to knowledge, theory, the English local government, and other sectors. A robust examination of four outsourcing projects provides an important contribution to knowledge. The use of personal construct theory during the case study phase provides an original contribution to theory. The research and resulting framework provides beneficence to clients, suppliers, users, and researchers with a sourcing interest at both academic and practical levels.The literature suggested that cost, quality, and speed are the key drivers of sourcing. However, all three were rarely attained together. The literature also identified the importance of understanding the nature of the client / vendor relationship at operational and strategic levels, and the contingent preparation of a turnback / exit strategy.The research incorporated a mixed methods approach. The initial phase of the research employed a survey to contextualise the nature of sourcing within the local government sector. The survey was undertaken from an objectivist position.The results from the first phase indicated that facilities management was amongst the most popular services outsourced. The main driving factors were cost saving, improvements to operational capacity, and access to skills and technology. The popular contract values were up to £5m, and greater than £20m with contract durations 3 – 5 years and 10 plus years.The second phase of the research used a case study strategy that incorporated interview tactics from an interpretivist position. To observe the ‘truth of their reality’ personal construct theory incorporating repertory grids was used to elicit constructs from the participants, and ultimately inform the framework.The main issues arising from the case studies included: lack of client / supplier trust, contractual restrictions, performance monitoring, over promising and under delivering. The framework was synthesised from the key issues identified within the research modes of enquiry.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Baldry, D |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | skills; trust; personal construct theory; building surveying; facilities management; government; local government; monitoring; outsourcing; public sector; professional; case study; interview; duration; client; supplier |
| Index terms: | public sector, facilities management, cost saving, exit strategy, public sector building, monitoring, personal construct theory, outsourcing, surveying, case study, strategy, professional service, mixed method, duration, interview, performance monitoring, survey, local government, building surveying |
| Subjects: | administrative law, monitoring and control systems, construction type, economics, cognitive psychology, health monitoring assessment and metrics, organization, management, data collection methods, project controls, professional development, business, control systems |
| Topics: | Health and Safety, Procurement, Research Practice, Legal Issues, Organizational Design, Site Management, Cost Management, Business Strategy, Governance, Construction Technology, Information Management, Time Control |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTE |
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