Constructions Management and the Complexity of the Construction Operations - Research Paper Example

Introduction Management methods and theories are changing rapidly because of the changes happening in the business world. Globalization and Liberalization brought many changes in the organizational world and business strategies. More and more scientific methods of management are implemented in the modern organizations in order to produce maximum results. There are different types of management changes; planned and unplanned, wide and partial changes, slow and gradual changes, fundamental changes, etc. In any individual and organizational changes are happening everywhere in the management field and construction industry is one among them. In construction industry, every assignment is considered as a project. A large project usually associated with lot of individuals. The success of the project depends on the collective efforts of the employees and the management of the organization. Even one employee’s negligence can spoil a large construction project. Construction project management is a complex process which involves various types of management issues. The success of the project depends on how well and effectively the project manger was able to unite all the separate entities of the project under one umbrella. Construction or real estate industry is one of the prominent industries in the world where major economic activities are going on. The worldwide annual expenditure for construction works is estimated around $3.4 trillion (Jackson, 2004, p.1). Moreover, in US itself, the constructions industry has recorded around $ 922 billion in 2003 (Jackson, 2004, p.4). The success of construction industry depends on many factors, and the management of the employees is one among them. A construction project can create lot of management issues at the time of construction and the manager’s ability would be severely tested. In other words, “the management of construction projects requires a good understanding and correct application of organisational theories ''. This paper critically assesses the above statement.  Leadership in Organisations for Construction Fryer et al, (2004) have mentioned that “every new contract is a period of uncertain for construction managers” (Fryer et al, 2004, p.19). In his opinion, ‘the success of leaders depends on their personality, values, styles of management, level of competence, self confidence, and in their trust in teams (Fryer et al, 2004, p.54). Construction manager is the person who leads a construction project from the beginning till the end. Many people think that the role of a construction manager starts only at the beginning of the actual construction activities. In fact, the job of the construction manager starts even at the time of the designing process. In other words the construction manager leads the architects towards the right design of the building they are going to construct because of his enhanced knowledge in the practicability of the designs created by the architects. If the architect or the designer designs some complicated structure without considering the practicability of the design, problem will arise at the construction stage. In short, management of a construction project by a construction leader begins from the designing process itself. “As the construction projects become more and more complex, the construction management also follows the same path” (Jackson, 2004, p.1). Construction industry or real estate industry is extremely volatile to the market fluctuations. In fact the recent recession has affected the construction industry more than any other industry. Because of this extreme fluctuating nature or the market and the complexity in a contraction process, construction management is one of the most difficult tasks among other organizational functions. Any decisions taken at a wrong time may cause immense damage to the project. For example, suppose a construction project intended to complete in 2007, was delayed due to some reason and completed only in 2008. The demand for flats and apartments in 2007 was extremely high whereas that for 2008 was extremely low because of recession. In other words, timely delivery of construction projects is very much important and it depends on the efficiency of the construction managers. “It is up to the construction manager to shop around for the least expensive yet most reliable materials all the while keeping the project budget in mind”(The Role of a Construction Manager, 2009). Another major area of construction management is the procurement. The raw material costs can fluctuate a lot during particular period of time. If the construction projects failed to complete in the prescribed time frame, the raw material costs may go beyond control and the project could end up in a disaster or failure. Construction manager is the person who knows the cost factor and the budget allotted for the project and he should be able to work within the budget and also should take immense attention while negotiating with the suppliers of raw materials. Moreover, he must ensure that the raw materials purchased are in good condition and the quality standards are met by those materials. Scheduling of the construction project is another important aspect in construction management. “The construction manager should create and update realistic schedules rapidly” (Halpin, 2005, p.102). The scheduling must be done based on the actual deadline of the completion of the project. The construction manger should have an idea about how much of the total project needed to be completed at a given time period and based on that he should ensure that the constructions works were developing in accordance with the schedule pre-planned. As discussed earlier, construction management involves various things; however the manpower management in construction industry seems to be the most vital one. The abilities of the construction manager would be severely tested when he interacts with a diverse workforce from different parts of the world with different types of skills and needs. Because of the huge differences in the needs and nature of the diverse construction workforce, no single management or leadership styles would be effective in construction industry. “The management styles usually employed are authoritarian and democratic (Handy, 1993, p.89). At the same time, some construction managers adopts a mixture of the above two styles of management because of the needs of some situations. According to Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y, workforce can be divided into two; X types (those who dislike the work) and Y types (those who like their work) (Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y, 2007). Authoritarian leadership would be the ideal one for the X type workforce whereas democratic methods of management would be useful for the Y type workforce. Workforce in between X and Y can be managed with the help of a mixed approach. According to Mullins (2007), “leadership is not about being a wonder woman or man; but it about valuing individuality” (Mullins, 2007, p.155). As mentioned earlier, most of the construction industry consists of diverse workforce with different characteristics. The manger should manage these workforce individually rather than attempting to manage a group. In other words, the manager should assess the performance of each employee individually and formulate strategies suitable for the individual. Some employees may increase their productivity only after some pressure from the top. Such employees should be closely watched in the construction industry by the manager in order to make the employee perform better. If the manager failed to manage individually, the underperforming employees may escape from punishment in the name of group. In short, even though, group activities or team work is encouraged at the construction workplaces, the managers should make sure that the all the employees are performing well either individually or as part of the group or team. Walker (2007) has argued that “the quality of leadership is most important for project team effectiveness (Walker, 2007, p.137). Ritz (1993) has pointed out that “many construction managers are long on construction technology and knowhow but short on management skills” (Ritz, 1993, p.4). High level manpower management skills are essential for the construction managers as he is responsible for settling the disputes on and off the site. The style of approach of the manager is important in managing the workforce. Relationship building is accepted as the core of every business activity at present. “Management is only effective to the extent that it can mobilise and extend social relationships”(Handy, 1993, p.24). But it is difficult for the construction managers to build positive relationships with the workers always. Most of the construction workers are semiskilled or unskilled labours, who may not have adequate academic qualifications. If the construction manager adopts a democratic style of functioning in order to build rapport with the workforce, he may not exercise his power properly and the workforce will try to exploit it. Walker (2007) has pointed out that “the concept of power and leadership are closely related (Walker, 2007, p.202). If the leader or the manager failed to use his power at the right time, he won’t be able to derive the maximum productivity out of the construction workers. In short, the construction manager should use his power judiciously and the he should change his approaches based on the situations. Mullins, (2007) has pointed out that “small power distance relates to more participative leadership” (Mullins, 2007, p.28). In other words, when the distance between the manager and the worker increases, authoritarian management may would be the result. On the other hand when this distance decreases, participative management or democratic management would be the result. In short, the cooperation between the leader and the workers will be increased when the leader comes close to the workers. Good pay, motivation, incentives, regular promotions, training and development etc are necessary for the workers in construction industry to excel in their duties. Labour satisfaction is important in deciding the success of a construction project. Construction workers should have motivation for their jobs in order to deliver 100% productivity. The management styles of the construction manager play an important role in motivating the workers. The work culture should be developed in such a way that both the manager and the workers function in a healthy environment where no prejudices or biases control the management actions. In case of a conflict the manager should never take any one sided actions; instead he should take decisions after hearing the arguments of both the parties involved in the conflict. “Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant, they is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks” (Von Herder, n.d). Motivation is accepted as the driving force behind every human action. Human actions are primarily for certain goals and anything which helps them to achieve these goals will motivate them. Organizations are spending a substantial period of time in researching about the possible methods or strategies which can motivate the employees. Traditional methods like the rewards and punishments are not enough at the construction work sites. The workers are expecting something beyond that. Work-life imbalances are common problems in construction work sites because of the overtime works. Most of the people like to have a break after an eight hour long hard work. If the construction manager asks the workers to stay back for overtime jobs, most of them may not like it even though they were compelled to do so. At the same time, some employees welcome overtime works because of the possibility of making some extra money. In short, it is difficult to formulate a generalised theory of motivation because of the diverse needs of the diverse workforce in construction industry. As mentioned earlier, construction sector is always filled with workers diverse workers. For example, Middle East is famous for enormous construction works going on there. In fact the tallest building in the world has been recently unveiled in Dubai. Even amidst the recession several construction works are going on in Middle East. Most of the construction workers in Middle East are from countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka Philippines etc. In other words, workers of different culture and religion are working under the leadership of different construction managers in Middle East. Because of this huge diversity in workforce, conflicts or clashes may occur between the workers. For example, bullying is common among workers in most of the construction sites. “The law often has a hard time addressing workplace bullying—in many ways it’s a problem in search of a solution. No specific legislation exists against bullying, but employers still may be liable for bullying behaviour” (Fox, 2008). The construction managers should take sensible decisions while segregating things which are legal and illegal at the workplace. The construction manager should never take any side while dealing with bullying issues and he should be able to settle the issues amicably. In a diverse work environment, the needs of some employees may clash with the needs of other employees. For example, Fridays are sacred for Muslims whereas Sundays are sacred for the Christians. Work scheduled on Fridays will be difficult for the Muslims whereas the works scheduled on Sundays may not be suited to the Christians. In such cases the construction manager should take extreme care while scheduling the works on Fridays and Sundays. He should never compel a Christian worker to report for duties on Sundays and same thing is applicable to the Muslim workers on Fridays. Apart from the man management skills, the construction manager should know the interplay among the labour organization, labour law, labour cost etc (Halpin, 2005, p.226). Labour unions are so strong in most of the construction industries. In some construction sites, different unions with contrasting demands and ideologies may also exist. The management of labour unions and their demand is another major duty of the construction managers. Quiet often the demands of the unions and that of the management could be contrasting. The construction manager should act as a bridge between the workers and the organization and he should try to safeguard the interests of both the parties. The construction manager should have proper awareness about the existing labour laws. For example, in Middle East, no outside construction works should be conducted in between 1 pm and 4 pm because of the extreme hot weather conditions. The management can take any steps to improve the productivity of the workforce as far as such steps may not violate the rights of the workers. For example, asking the construction workers to attend training sessions is a management action in line with the employment laws. Unlike many other managers, the construction managers are doing many things at a time. In other words, “the construction manager should have multitasking skills” (The Role of a Construction Manager, 2009). Apart from man management skills, procurement skills, negotiation skills, communication skills etc are necessary for the construction manger to excel in his profession. “Centralised authority is necessary for the construction manger to execute his multitasking functions efficiently”(Sears et al, 2008, p. 15). There may be some assistants for the help of the construction managers. He should be able to control all such subordinates properly in order to execute the project in time and that also min an efficient manner. Change in inevitable everywhere and construction industry is also not an exception. It is difficult to implement changes in the construction industry because of the probability of strong resistance from the illiterate or uneducated work force. The first step in managing any type of organizational change in construction industry is, understanding how to manage change with a single individual. In short, to make a change successfully an individual needs: When a construction firm try to implement changes in their workplace, it should make sure that the employees have a positive attitude towards it. The individual change management and the organizational change management are interrelated. In order to succeed in organizational change management, both the employees and the managers should change their attitudes and activities strictly in accordance with the needs of the organization.   Conclusions Constructions management is extremely different from other management types because of the complexity of the construction operations and the diverse nature of the workforce. Construction managers need to perform many tasks at a time and they should coordinate with many departments in order to complete the construction projects successfully. Apart from sound leadership qualities, the construction managers or leaders should have better communication skills, decision making skills, negotiation skills etc. Moreover, he should be aware of the labour laws and labour organizations and also the existing legal frame works in the area where the construction works are going on. Construction industry is normally dominated by skilled, semi skilled and unskilled labours from different nations. The construction management should adopt different management strategies to manage this extremely diverse workforce. The construction managers should never keep any prejudices or biases while managing the construction people. Construction employees should never feel that discrimination with respect to gender, race, skills, or profession existing at the workplace. In short, the management of construction projects requires a good understanding and correct application of organisational theories. References 1. Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y. (2007). [Online], Available at http://www.envisionsoftware.com/articles/Theory_X.html , [Accessed on 06 December 2010] 2. Fryer B, Ellis R, Egbu C and Gorse C. (2004), The Practice of Construction Management Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 4 edition (September 20, 2004) 3. Fox M. (2008). Workplace bullying emerges as new employment law issue, [Online], Available at http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/articles/7379/1/Workplace-bullying-emerges-as-new-employment-law-issue/Page1.html#, [Accessed on 06 December 2010] 4. Halpin D. W.(2005). Construction Management. Publisher: Wiley; 3 edition (November 4, 2005) 5. Handy C,(1993), Understanding Organisations, Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 4 edition (December 2, 1993) 6. Jackson B. (2004). Construction Management JumpStart. 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Walker, A (2007), Project Management in Construction, Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 5 edition (September 4, 2007) Read More