The purpose of this research project is to help develop the disclosure literature in relation to the banking sector, which is currently sparse due to the limited empirical research studies on the extent of banking disclosure and its relationship with corporate-specific attributes. Specifically, this study seeks to accomplish four main objectives. One of the main objectives is to measure the extent of voluntary disclosure provided in the annual reports of Libyan commercial banks, over the period 2006 to 2011. The second objective is to examine if there has been any significant improvement in the levels of voluntary information disclosure provided in the annual reports. Thirdly, the study investigates whether there is any significant association between seven commercial bank-specific attributes (i.e. age of bank, size of bank, bank liquidity position, profitability, government ownership, foreign ownership, and listing status) and the extent of voluntary disclosure. Finally, this study explores the views and perceptions of Libyan commercial banks’ annual report preparers related to the current mandatory financial reporting and voluntary disclosure practice issues. This study uses a self-constructed, un-weighted disclosure index, comprising of 63 information items, to measure the extent of voluntary disclosure in 54 annual reports of listed and unlisted commercial banks, over a six-year reporting period. The research data were analysed using content, descriptive and multiple regression analyses. Overall, the results show that the extent of voluntary disclosure in the Libyan commercial banks’ annual reports is low, with an average of 38%, however there was an improvement in the general level of voluntary disclosure and its categories over a six-year period. The multiple regression results indicate that commercial bank size and listing status are significant independent variables in explaining variation in annual voluntary disclosure, while other independent variables are found to be insignificantly associated with the extent of voluntary disclosure.

The notion of human capital as an economic asset was first emerged in 1961 when Theodore Schultz coined the phrase. In the current most serious economic crisis since the 1930s, strategists and analysts in governments and commercial institutions are turning to people as being the most important asset in regaining economic stability and growth. This study aims to establish a framework to measure the impact of special economic zones on human capital accumulation within the context of Dubai. This framework will help decision makers to set up effective policies for future economic zones and to focus resources on key factors to accelerate the development of local human capital which is vital for the city’s economic growth. The specific research questions were: To what level does human capital accumulation occur within Dubai SEZs? What characterises human capital development in SEZs? What are the drivers of human capital development in Dubai SEZs? The research was carried out in three phases. The first phase was an exploratory study used to localise the variables, introduce adjustment, validate, verify, discuss variables obtained from the literature review, and to present the conceptual framework. The second phase measured the impact as well as the relationship of each variable on human capital development, to explain how human capital is developed within special economic zone firms, to gather more data and information about the localised variables influencing human capital development, and to collect data to build up a Human Capital Index. The third phase compares the impact of special economic zones on human capital in a cross comparison of firms’ development. An in-depth literature review was conducted on human capital and special economic zones. By focusing on the macro and micro levels, the study shed light on the factors that drive human capital development. The study established a framework to measure the impact of special economic zones on human capital accumulation within the context of Dubai. The proposed framework is characterised by education level, years of experience, the level of continuous knowledge accumulation, employees’ ability to build competence, and the application of the learnt education, knowledge and practice. The framwork proposed that human capital development is driven by the firm’s type, size, financial performance, free zone level of clustering, culture of avoidance and collectivness, and finally, the level of technical know-how spillover. The research concludes that human capital development does take place in Dubai special economic zones but at a moderate level. Human capital development is affected by the firm’s type, its financial performance, the level of clustering in the free zone, and what level of technical know-how spillover has influenced human capital development within Dubai free zones. In contrast, the culture of collectiveness is realised to have a minor effect on human capital development within free zone firms, while an avoidance culture is recognised to have no impact whatsoever.

The design, construction and commissioning of construction projects have been repeatedly mentioned as fragmented and inefficient. Much of the waste that is generated throughout the lifecycle of a building is mainly related to project stakeholders not having access to information that others have created. Most recently, there has been a focus on creating and reusing digital project information, throughout the lifecycle, to facilitate the exchange of information, which includes Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD). The “low hanging fruit” advantage of BIM models is based on the production of coordinated and clash- free designs along which provide the ability to visualise building information in 3D. However, greater benefits can be achieved if organisations embrace BIM development into their work practices that can lead to higher levels of collaboration between project stakeholders. This can only be achieved through client-led initiatives, supported by clear and effective management tools, to manage change throughout the design and construction process. The aim of this research is to develop a process protocol for the successful implementation of IPD in client organisations using BIM as the main vehicle to control and manage the integration process. The research focuses on the identification of high level processes and their inter-relationships, which could provide guidance to client organisations on how to implement and manage IPD effectively. Three multi-storey buildings, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), were selected as case studies. The first case was used as an exploratory study to validate the suitability of the proposed process protocol for the UAE’s local experiences and conditions, which has suffered from long delays and high cost overrun. As a “control case”, the study aimed to discover and investigate the real reasons behind the delays, their causes and how they could have been addressed adequately if BIM and IPD had been adopted. Case studies two and three involved on-going projects that implemented BIM from the early stages of the design phases but with different level of collaboration among the project stakeholders and were selected to ensure that the proposed process protocol is effective and can be implemented at different levels of collaboration, particularly in competitive tendering environments. Questionnaires were developed and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the client’s representatives, consultants and contractors focused on validating the various components of the process protocol throughout a project’s lifecycle. The study shows that there is a lack of collaborative environment between various project stakeholders. Although the use of BIM has proven to be an effective tool, the success of collaboration can only be achieved with strong client leadership, trust and shared risk and rewards. However, local culture and contractual frameworks were found to be a major hurdle in achieving this aim. Client’s Legal Department can create and approve new type of contracts with the assistance of specially created BIM Office and Project Department. Client can take the driving seat by setting up a client committee to continuously review and monitor the project progress and to ensure that the proposed client’s requirements, plans and BIM strategy are accommodated in the project brief. With the presence of BIM, identifying BIM capabilities at early stage of the project are very important where the existence BIM management services were found to add a significant value to the successful implementation of BIM/IPD. Based on the University of Salford’s process protocol, this research produced a seven-phase process protocol, starting from strategy setting to operation (FM), to help client organisations to successfully adopt BIM/IPD. The process protocol is found to be the easiest tool, among others, to communicate the various roles and responsibilities to project stakeholders and ensures a strong client leadership is exercised throughout the design and construction process.

Developed countries has long been paying attention to performance management (PM) field. Team and individual performance were always part of PM framework that were an area for research and development. Countries as well as oorganizations have increased their reliance on teams which is part of a basic aspect of modern organizational life; less work assignments fully performed by one individual alone. It is naturally the result of cost cutting pressure and improving efficiency to enable the public sector to remain competitive on a global scale. However, when diving deep into the team performance and specifically individual performance within the team, it is not clear if the individual target setting is linked with the team target and how it effects the overall performance either for the team or organization. Much research has been conducted on individual target settings, and increasingly on team targets. However, not enough research has been conducted on exploring and evaluating individual targets linked to the team target. Abu Dhabi as a city is becoming well recognized and its economy is strong and globally recognized to be a driver. It is also evident that Abu Dhabi Government (ADG) is putting lots of efforts in building sustainable knowledge based economy. As ADG has gone through transformation during the past few years. As a result, PM are an area of attention to which it facilitate the efforts to be efficient and more developed government. As any modern government, cross functional teams were created between ADG organizations to achieve different deliverables that can’t be achieved by individuals or an organization alone. Despite the fact that ADG is using PM as an important method to improve and sustain growths, it is faced with a number of challenges that could affect the performance of the different teams to deliver their targets in more effect way. This study therefor aims to investigate the effect of individual target setting on team effectiveness and overall performance in ADG and propose strategic approach to improve individual performance within teams. This aim was achieved by conducting qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection targeting to explore how the main variables of target setting are associated with the attitudes and opinions of individuals working in teams. The study reveals that despite the growing emphasis on the important of PM and the role of individual target setting within teams in enhancing the organisations capabilities and the overall operational excellence, the study shows how individual target setting with teams impact on overall performance of various organisations within ADG.

This thesis focuses on the development of a micro-simulation model for urban shuttle-lane roadworks. The aim of this research is to study the effectiveness of shuttle-lane roadworks traffic management controls (i.e. operated by temporary traffic signals) on capacity, delays and safety. SIMSUR (SIMulation of Shuttle-lane Urban Roadworks) micro-simulation model is based on car-following and shuttle-lane rules, considers the various decisions undertaken when approaching temporary traffic signals at urban shuttle-lane roadworks (i.e. tailgating, crossing through amber or even violating the red light). Data from six different sources were collected (from 23 different sites with over 54 hours of traffic data video recordings). This includes data from visited roadworks sites, Individual Vehicle Data (IVD) from UK motorways and data from typical signalised junctions. Temporary traffic signals operation modes, including Fixed Time (FT) and Vehicle Actuated (VA) signals, have been integrated within the developed micro-simulation model. The developed model has been verified, calibrated and validated using real traffic data. Various scenarios were tested using the developed simulation model such as the effect of various parameters on system capacity, delays and safety (i.e. site length, HGVs%, directional split, and drivers’ non-compliance with temporary traffic signals). The results revealed that the maximum shuttle-lane roadworks capacity values which could be achieved (using existing temporary traffic signals settings) for two-way flow are 1,860 and 2,060 veh/hr for FT and VA signals, respectively. Regression analysis was also carried out using different factors and could be used in analytical models to provide a more accurate estimation of system capacity compared to existing equations. Using improved signals settings, capacity could be increased by about 3.5%. Making the assumption that Microwave Vehicle Detector (MVD) could be simulated within the model, various ranges were tested and the optimum range was found to be 80m (rather than the existing 40m) which could result in an increase in system capacity of 4.2%. Using speed reduction (i.e. speed hump) in advance of the stop line could reduce the effect of dilemma zone by reducing the number of vehicles crossing at the onset of amber or violating the red light by about 33%.

Despite the widespread availability of e-learning websites in the Arab world, the link between Arabic culture, Arabic language and the usability of e-learning websites has been researched very little. Moreover, the Arab world lacks usability guidelines to support the creation of effective Arabic e-learning websites. Poor usability often means poor user interaction and hence reduced user acceptance and satisfaction. This research undertakes an experiment with 50 Arab participants to investigate their judgement of an Arabic and English e-learning website. The participants completed seven e-learning tasks and completed an e-learning, evaluation, usability, and aesthetics questionnaire. The participants gave their feedback on the positive and negative features of each e-learning website following the experiment. This experiment was followed by a case study and fuzzy set theory analysis to validate the results. The findings are summarised in nine Arabic usability guidelines. This thesis contributes to the body of knowledge in various ways. Firstly, it establishes the differences between Arabic and English languages and their effects on usability. Secondly, it identifies the design elements and barriers that affect the usability of Arabic websites. Thirdly, it produces nine usability guidelines for improving the usability of Arabic e-learning websites. In particular, these guidelines suggest using appropriate images and contents, which respect cultural and religious values, by using blue as a main colour, 12/13-point font size and Arabic Traditional font type, and that the written content should be written by an native Arabic-speaking writer. These guidelines contribute towards creating e-learning systems that have high learnability and high efficiency. However, aesthetics may not have a strong influence on the judgement of Arab users.

Post-disaster resettlement programmes are being conducted by governments and other relevant organisations to relocate displaced people to provided safe places; considering the original land standards to subsequently improve the standard of living. Although resettlement programmes have been broadly implemented within several communities who were exposed to hazards, it appears that numerous intricate problems were identified throughout their implementation. These results illustrate unsuccessful resettlement programmes which require a more effective solution. According to previous works, vulnerable hazard areas have been rarely studied in terms of displaced persons’ activities correlated between spatial and socio-economic aspects. With respect to the interaction between human and locations, humans perform their activities based upon their locations; likewise, displaced people also perform their activities based on the resettlement areas. Effective applications integrated with the theoretical knowledge-base in Geoinformatics help mitigate the problems associated with the interaction between human and locations. Specifically, the spatial analysis techniques employing several scenes of high-resolution images that are carefully applied in this research in order to present an effective method to minimise the spatial and non-spatial problems in resettlement programme. A case study of Ban Nam Ko sub-district is used to gain knowledge from the resettlement activities associated with displacement locations. The explored results of this research present appropriate functions and specific conditions for displacement locations used in resettlement activities. The explored results propose potential solutions of achieving a successful resettlement programme response to debris-flow disasters. With consideration of physical, socio-economic, and administrative factors of residents and surrounding environment, this study is beneficial to governments and relevant organisations to establish displacement locations associated with activities in each resettlement phase and to setup the spatial and non-spatial database in resettlement plan for other vulnerable debris-flow hazard areas.

Despite the progress that has been made with regard to construction cost management, many drawbacks including the unpredictability of construction costs continue to raise concerns. This research study aimed to contribute to improving construction cost management by identifying the key issues which contribute to such drawbacks, and developing conceptual solutions to mitigate them. The design science approach has been selected as the overall research method. Design science approach has been augmented through an analysis to the root cause of each identified key issue, an inference of countermeasure to the each root cause (conceptual solution), and synthesis of the (practical) solutions. This research has identified failure to forecast, failure to support improvement opportunities, costs being considered as resulting from action, neglect of value consideration, poor support for inter-organizational cost management, negative influence on behaviour, and constraints created by budgeting, as key issues contributing to the current drawback of construction cost management. This study proposes the recognition of waste through flow theory, integrating costs to design, value generation theory, seeing construction as production, incentives aligned to improvement, separating the different functions of budgeting and the dynamic approach to managing costs as solutions to the identified drawbacks. The outcomes of this study contribute to developing practical solutions for constriction cost management, and also represent conceptual gains in the field.

Supervision of construction workers on a site is crucial to ensure construction worker safety, to maintain the quality of work performed and to maintain acceptable levels of productivity. The act of supervision itself requires the site superintendent to physically monitor workers in an environment that is constantly changing throughout the various phases of construction. This can be a complicated task on a medium to large building site with several trades working simultaneously on multiple floors or areas. There exists a need for construction superintendents to know the location of construction workers within a site. Academicians and industry professionals have demonstrated the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Tags in construction applications in the past few years. RFID tags have successfully been used to track construction materials, equipment and tools. Studies indicate that the use of RFID tags in construction improves the overall process of construction. Building information modeling (BIM) technology is emerging as the industry standard in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) sector. BIM is being used as a comprehensive design, management, visualization, communication and facility maintenance and management tool. This research presents the creation of a decision support framework for site supervision based on monitoring construction workers by combining RFID technology with BIM. A conceptual decision support framework to monitor site safety was developed by interviewing site superintendents. Conducting a web-based questionnaire of construction industry professionals validated the framework. A proof-of-concept virtual prototype was created to track the movement of construction workers using RFID and BIM. The procedures undertaken to create the conceptual framework and the virtual prototype are described in the thesis.

In recent years, the concept of sustainable regeneration has been recognised as being a major social and economic concern which has been a focal point of government policy for some time in the UK. The appreciation of such concerns has led to the development of various evaluation frameworks to guide practitioners to deliver higher and improved sustainability standards for their sustainable regeneration projects. Although these evaluation frameworks have been applied on sustainability projects in general, their focuses have remained limited to the evaluation of the environmental benefits, seemingly, relegating the social and economic benefits to the background. It has been argued that achieving successful delivery of socio-economic regeneration has proved to be elusive and difficult to deliver due to lack of understanding and over concentration on the environmental aspect of sustainability. While there have been some studies on sustainability evaluation of regeneration projects in general in the UK, it is contended that, there remain a paucity of a well-defined empirical research that is able to deal with the issues relating to the evaluation of the socio-economic sustainability benefits of sustainable regeneration projects. Hence the study aims to develop a framework that can be used to evaluate the social and economic sustainability benefits of sustainable regeneration projects. The study adopts a mixed method approach: qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to explore the research questions to meet the aim and objectives set out for the study. A qualitative data is collected through semi-structured interviews from 21 practitioners from three selected construction organisations involved in the delivery of sustainable regeneration projects in the UK. This is complemented by a quantitative data collected through a questionnaire survey from 193 practitioners involved in the delivery of sustainable regeneration projects in the UK. The study identifies a number of barriers and drivers that determine the adoption and implementation of the social and economic sustainability factors in the delivery of successful sustainable regeneration projects in the UK. Notable among the barriers identified include, lack of funding/financial support, the contracts’ requirements and lack of clients’ willingness to adopt sustainability. Similarly, enhancement of reputation, competitive advantage and clients’ requirements are some of the drivers identified to be determining the adoption and implementation of the social and economic sustainability factors in the delivery of the regeneration projects. The findings also reveal that health and safety, education and skill training opportunities and affordable housing are the most considered social sustainability factors being promoted by practitioners on their regeneration projects. The economic sustainability factors which are currently being promoted by practitioners include, value for money, profitability for investors/developer (Return on investment) and jobs and employment opportunities. It is observed that a significant number of practitioners are still not genuinely committed to adopt and implement the socio-economic sustainability principles on their regeneration projects. The study also identifies the lack of understanding and knowledge of the sustainability composition of sustainable regeneration projects. An evaluation framework is developed to guide practitioners to evaluate the social and economic sustainability benefits of their sustainable regeneration projects. It recommends for guidelines or checklist of the key sustainability composition of sustainable regeneration projects to guide practitioners.