Developing a project management framework for supporting the sustainability of emerging contractors in the Free State

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to develop a project management framework that could be used to support the sustainability of emerging contractors in the Free State. Emerging contractors are a key vehicle within the construction industry used by the African National Congress Government to redress the economic marginalisation of previously disadvantaged population groups during the apartheid era. While not sparing resources and policy to assist emerging contractors’ businesses to survive and grow, government efforts do not seem to be yielding the desired results as the sustainability of emerging contractors remains threatened by early and high business failure rates. A major concern is that emerging contractors continue to deliver projects in the construction industry that do not conform to cost, time, scope and quality specifications which are considered generally to be the key measures of project success. Therefore, this shortfall places the sustainability of emerging contractors in question since their inability to deliver successful projects hampers their chances of obtaining further business in the construction industry. Moreover, the construction business by nature is project based and, therefore, requires the use of a project management approach. However, it is often reported that emerging contractors lack knowledge and skills in project management and construction and are thus not using a project management approach in their construction businesses which are constrained further by the limited resources available to emerging contractors. Drawing on pragmatism, an explanatory, sequential, mixed-methods research design was adopted for the study. The quantitative data were analysed statistically, while the qualitative data were transcribed and analysed thematically. In the study, the key components required to develop a project management framework that would be useful for emerging contractors in establishing the sustainability of their construction businesses were identified and emphasised. The findings of the study showed that the project management framework developed could support the sustainability of emerging contractors. The findings showed further that there was a statistically significant relationship between components of the project framework (i.e., project lifecycle, project control cycle, tools, and templates) measured and the components of sustainability (i.e. social, economic, and environmental). It was discovered that the project management framework included sufficient elements to prompt some change in how emerging contractors use project management processes in the construction industry. It is recommended in the study that emerging contractors adopt and use the developed project management framework to ensure their sustainability in the construction industry.