Effective urban and regional planning has the potential to contribute to achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, particularly in countries where land is readily available for development. Jos Metropolis has been chosen as a focus of study as it exemplifies the problem of urban sprawl in Nigerian cities. This research seeks to evaluate the need for spatial planning and to develop a framework and guidance for addressing physical planning problems with particular reference to Jos Metropolis, Nigeria. The epistemological position of the study leans towards interpretivism while the ontological and axiological standpoints are towards constructivist and value laden respectively. The research methodological strategy employed is mixed methods involving multiple case studies of the planning authorities from Jos metropolis, Nigeria, that have used the urban master plan as a development control measure. Questionnaires, interviews (face-to-face interview) and documents reviews were the data collection methods. This research revealed that; urbanisation and its related problems can be controlled effectively using appropriate planning approaches in regions of both developed and developing countries. Statistically, the results showed that the components of institutional framework, specifically, tiers of government (institutions), planning legislation and the administrations were not significantly affected by the culture, physical, political, institutions, financial, knowledge, analytical and legal constraints whilst the planning authorities were significantly constrained. The urban planning system in the Jos metropolis is not effective in ensuring controlled urban development and management. Hence, based on these outcomes, a spatial planning framework and guidance is developed for effective urban development and management in Jos Metropolis Nigeria. Finally, this study recommended further research opportunities as the frameworks and guidance document developed are used in urban and regional planning and the activities of development plan /control process in the other 36 States of the Nigerian Federation including Abuja.

Disasters have become prevalent events, particularly in Indonesia which is considered to be a country that is particularly vulnerable to disasters. The fairly recent earthquakes in Indonesia (the 2004 Aceh earthquake, the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake and the 2009 West Sumatra earthquake), have caused loss to human life and also damage to houses, buildings and infrastructures. With regard to the disaster management cycle, reconstruction plays an important role as the key phase in mitigating future disasters. The importance and challenges associated with knowledge management in post-disaster reconstruction projects have received very little attention. The significance of the challenges is not matched by parallel research in the area. This research aims to develop a conceptual model and a set of guidance for improved awareness and understanding of the role of knowledge communication in effective project management of post-disaster reconstruction (PDR) projects. In addressing this aim, the research identifies challenges in PDR projects; investigates critical success factors related to PDR projects; and investigates knowledge communication implementation in PDR projects. The research also developed a model and a set of guidance. This research adopted a mixed methodological (quantitative and qualitative) approach. It also used questionnaire survey and semi structured interview to elicit the research data. A total 143 respondents comprising contractors, local governments, NGOs, and consultants, completed the questionnaire. The data elicited from the questionnaire was the basis for quantitative analysis using SPSS version 16 software package. Thirty-three (33) interview data obtained were analysed qualitatively using the NVivo version 9 software package. The study concludes, inter alia, that construction quality is the central issue in PDR projects. Achieving planned quality is perceived as the most challenging aspect in the PDR projects. Similarly, meeting the required quality is also considered as the most important criterion for project success. Contractors, consultants and local governments consider the ‘golden triangle’ (time, cost, and quality) as the main success criteria, whereas NGOs consider end users’ (disaster victims) satisfaction as the main success criterion. In the main, ‘conducting meetings’, ‘face-to-face interactions’ and ‘reports’ are considered as the main methods for communicating knowledge among project stakeholders. Limited time, limited ability, and different backgrounds of stakeholders are the main barriers in communicating knowledge. With regard to the role of knowledge communication, the research showed that knowledge communication offers significant contribution to improving the quality of work, to the spread of best practices, and a reduction of re-work. Although respondents acknowledged the importance of knowledge communication, the implementation, however, is still primarily limited to face-to-face project meetings. An analogical model, called the KERAN model, and guidance document have been developed in this research. The model represents the process of post-disaster reconstruction projects and the role of knowledge communication in projects. The model is accompanied by a guidance document that explains the implementation of knowledge communication in post-disaster reconstruction projects. The model and guidance document have been validated using a questionnaire that has been completed by project managers. The study recommends that project managers in Indonesia should develop their skills in project control, take full advantage of the benefits of project meetings, and improve their communication and social skills in order to improve knowledge communication on projects. Future work is needed on how to transfer disaster related knowledge to construction workers.

Construction companies are the engines that drive a nation’s economy and must train their workforce effectively to enhance their performance. It has been recognised that training is the most effective tool for improving the performance and efficiency of the construction workforce; practitioners, academics, government agencies, professional institutions and clients of the construction industry all agree. In recognition of this, the industry must endeavour to provide a truly professional service or product, which is qualitatively superior and gives value for money. The on-going skills deficiency in the Iraqi construction industry calls for urgent remedies, of which training is one solution which is becoming an important issue in this sector at present. The aim of the present research is to develop models that will help to assess skills and knowledge needs for the Iraqi construction industry. This research is also concerned with finding an appropriate body of skills and knowledge related to the Iraqi construction industry, based on what construction site managers, project managers, civil engineers and architects actually do; how they perceive the importance of such tasks now and in the future. This study explains all of the issues concerning TNA practices in terms of how TNA is conducted, i.e., how training needs are assessed and how assessment is delivered. This study also investigates all the drivers and challenges that face TNA activities. The perception of the importance of the TNA outcome is also considered. This research is mainly focused on construction engineers: site managers, civil engineers, project leaders and architects; their attitudes, perceptions and viewpoints towards the research objectives. The data presented is derived from a study of 239 Iraqi construction employees and subsequently analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software. This study reveals that the level of adoption of organizational training needs assessment procedures among training managers in the selected organizations is moderately high. However, the level of adoption of occupational and individual training needs assessment is lower. Most training managers are using surveys or interviews as methods to solicit information for training needs assessment purposes. The job analysis method is occasionally used in conducting training needs assessment, while measurement of the knowledge and skills of individuals is seldom done. It is also indicated that the respondents agree that training should be focused mostly on project management skills and site management administration knowledge; priority must be given to training needs through performance appraisal and site visits. The author thinks that the findings of this study might face an uphill struggle, in trying to get it accepted and then taken on-aboard by the construction industry. Nevertheless, there are strong and powerful signs (or at least a very strong indicators) of economic improvement in Iraq, that makes this study an important and extremely relevant lever, in the process of such economic improvement. To the best of the researcher’s knowledge, this study will be the first of its kind in the Iraqi construction industry to be undertaken. The findings will enrich the existing literature on the quality of training programmes in the construction industry and fill the gaps in knowledge of studies on Iraq in particular. This study makes a contribution to knowledge on both the academic and practical levels. It raises the general understanding of the current TNA practices and management in the Iraqi construction industry. It has brought together a large body of knowledge on construction management problems in Iraq, TNA in Arab countries and combined a variety of schools of thought into one integrated model. This research integrates, refines and extends the empirical work conducted in the field of TNA in Iraq, since until the present there has been a lack of such studies in this country. It is hoped that the outcome of this research will lead to a better understanding of the need for training construction engineers in Iraq and will encourage other researchers to extend this study through further work.

Organisations are becoming more complex and diverse in responding to globalisation and to internal and external changes, and this complexity makes them more vulnerable to different types of organisational conflict. One study stated that Libyan Cement Companies have suffered and are still suffering from the phenomenon of conflict either between individuals, groups, departments, or organisations and needed to be studied in depth. Therefore, this study aims to develop a framework for the causal factors of interpersonal conflict (IPC) in the Libyan Cement Industry (LCI), in order to improve the interpersonal conflict management in this industry, by providing recommendations to the LCI administration for their reduction. The scope of the research lies in the field of social sciences; the reality (results) of the study is constructed differently by participants as they hold different beliefs, behaviours and attitudes. Consequently, interpretivism is the most appropriate research philosophy. The logic of this research is theory building rather than theory testing; therefore the study falls under inductive logic and adopts a qualitative approach. The main research strategy is multiple embedded case studies of the two organisations of the Libyan Cement Industry. The findings were obtained from 48 semi-structured interviews that were conducted with the managers and the employees in different manufactories of the LCI, and then triangulation with other sources such as documentation and direct observation to enhance the validity and reliability of the research results. The data is analysed by using thematic analysis via coding the data, categorising the codes into themes and summarising the findings at various stages. The results of the study show that IPC is at a high level in the LCI and the causal factors of this kind of conflict were found to be due to: individual differences factors; behavioural factors; organisational factors; financial factors; and external environmental factors. Through comparing the results of the field study with what is found in the literature of the factors causing IPC, some factors that cause IPC in the Libyan environment have not yet been mentioned in previous studies; such as: contradictions between the organisation’s policy and the state’s laws; mismanagement; and tribal fanaticism. These unique factors that appeared in the Libyan environment are represented as the main contributions to knowledge for the study. In addition, the findings of this research strengthen the existing literature on IPC and its causal factors and reduce the gap in knowledge applying to Libyan studies, and will help the Libyan Cement Industry to manage IPC in an appropriate way. The findings would also be helpful for many managers, and could be used in many empirical studies on IPC and its management.

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.