Developing effective strategies for international construction projects requires knowledge and expertise that is technically, socially, politically, economically and culturally based (Fellows et al., 2002). These strategies all require effective communication to work. Communication in the international environment is further complicated by the differences in languages and cultures involved. The importance of effective communication cannot be overemphasised because it is the ultimate means by which behaviour is modified, change is effected, knowledge is acquired and shared, and goals are achieved (Howes and Tah, 2003). According to Loosemore and Al Muslmani (1999), communication problems will emerge as one of the most significant contemporary challenges facing construction project managers in an increasingly international construction market. However, Dieckmann (1996) points out that communication is also regarded as one of the most neglected and overlooked parts of international operations, and lack of communication has been cited as one of the biggest reasons for the failure of change projects to meet their expectations (Pardu, 1996). Cross-cultural communication is defined as "the process whereby individuals from different cultural backgrounds attempt to share meanings and feelings through the exchange of verbal and non-verbal messages" (Harris and Moran, 2000). This sequential explanatory mixed methods study investigates the impact of cross-cultural communication on construction project management systems in Samoa. The first phase involved an opinion questionnaire survey with predominantly quantitative questions addressing the impact of human and cultural influences on project management and crosscultural communication evaluation processes, as experienced by expatriates and local managers, who have worked or are working in Samoa across a number of industries. Qualitative interviews were used in the second phase to probe significant themes and findings in the first phase by explaining and exploring aspects of the cross-cultural communication process focusing on construction project managers and supervisors working in Samoa. The quantitative results and qualitative findings generally confirmed the literature on crosscultural communication and related project management issues. The findings highlighted contrasting views between the different nationalities involved in projects in Samoa. Specific 'new themes' to a small island nation such as Samoa were identified. This research developed a generic conceptual framework for cross-cultural communication evaluation in an international project environment. An integrated cultural framework was also formulated to identify central differences in culture. In conclusion, it is clearly evident from this study that international project management requires an effective process regarding communication evaluation. The findings indicate there is no single 'best solution' to effectively manage the impact of cross-cultural communication on management systems. Rather, it requires the application of appropriate strategies by the proactive practitioners with the necessary cross-cultural skills that best suit the host environment in which the projects are being carried out.

The Research has developed protocols for effective adoption of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) for Building Project Management by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Indian construction industry. Project Managers are required to facilitate the integration of work of all the agencies and project team organizations are geographically separated beyond national boundaries or in context of large countries like India, within the national boundaries. In doing so, there is a need to make better use of information and knowledge generated in all stages of development. The key to project information management is the information flow associated with inter-organizational communication and the effectiveness of the project manager to communicate with and feedback to the rest of the project team throughout the project life cycle. Better communication can be achieved by using computer tools for effective data processing and information management, through Information Communication Technologies (ICT). As the majority of the construction organizations are Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), the communication management research is required to address management and communication processes adopted by SMEs. These issues can be addressed by global research, but also require clear understanding of the management and communication processes followed by SMEs of each distinct regional area or country. The research was conducted through a sequential mixed methods approach focusing on collecting and analyzing both quantitative and qualitative data in the study in a sequential manner. To develop a balance check mechanism, the research was divided into four phases: Interpretive analysis of perceived benefits of use of ICT for building project management, conducted by Interpretive Structural Modeling analysis; Questionnaire survey data collection and empirical analysis of data including Structural Equation Modeling analysis (quantitative method); Semi-structured interview survey data collection and analysis including Data Envelopment Analysis (quantitative and qualitative method) and case studies analysis conducted by SAP-LAP analysis (qualitative method) leading to synthesis of the results of the four phases. The purpose of this four-phase, sequential mixed methods study was to start with the pragmatic assumptions; obtain statistical, quantitative results from a broad sample of organizations to analyze or study research variables at industry and organization levels and then follow up with a few organizations and projects to study the research variables at the level of the organization and people. Synthesis of the knowledge enhancement from the literature survey, data analysis results and their interpretation led to the proposed 'IT Enhanced Communication Protocols for Building Project Management'. The protocols are proposed as a 'Strategic Model for Enhancing ICT Diffusion in Building Projects'. The model is based on Everett Rogers's 'Diffusions of innovations theory' and is formulated at three levels of study i.e industry, organization and people. It is discussed as a generic framework of five stages of Roger's 'Diffusions of innovations theory' i.e Knowledge, Persuasion, Decision, Implementation and Confirmation.

Thesis (PhDBusinessAdministration)--University of South Australia, 2003.

Thesis (DBusinessAdministration)--University of South Australia, 2003.

Thesis (MProjMgmt)--University of South Australia, 2001.

Thesis (MAppSci in Project Management) --University of South Australia, 1994

Thesis (MAppSc in Project Management)--University of South Australia, 1994

Thesis (MAppSc in Project Management)--University of South Australia, 1994

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is faced with the rapid rate of urban deterioration. With the unique and densely populated nature of the city, the road to urban revitalisation can be envisaged to be a long and painful one. The government is determined to expedite the urban renewal work by establishing of the Urban Renewal Authority in May 2001 to replace Land Development Corporation that was established in 1988 to tackle the issue. The new set up is to operate with more public accountability and transparency as demanded by the community at large. It is also commissioned with the task of completing 225 projects in the next 25 years involving an estimated cost of over A$75 billion. The government has also decided to make Hong Kong Special Administrative Region a truly sustainable city by incorporating both urban sustainability and quality in urban renewal. Thus, a re-thinking of the project management application to enhance urban renewal project implementation is necessary and is beneficial in terms of finance, public confidence and maintenance of the sustainable competitive advantage of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. This research is therefore justified. The research question formulated is:How can the project management body of knowledge and practice be applied to enable effective and efficient implementation of urban renewal projects in Hong Kong SAR?.Investigation of the extant literature in chapter 2 identified gaps in the body of knowledge and practice of applying professional project management principles and practices to urban renewal projects. A project management application model was formulated with five research issues that need to be resolved before the research question could be answered. These five research issues covered:• project organisational structure• team structure• attributes of team members• stakeholder management• communication and information technology enablersThe five research issues considered were:• Research Issue 1: What are the effects of projectised type organisational structure with integrated and multidisciplinary teams, corporate communication team, social services teams and informal project management community for each targeted district on urban renewal projects implementation?• Research Issue 2: What are the effects of a headquarters organisational structure with formal project management community, project auditing team, project support group and functional specialist advisory group on supporting the projectised organisational structure for each targeted district?• Research Issue 3: What are the effects of a flattened hierarchical structure with team members possessing sustainability knowledge and project managerial leaders being generalising specialists on the project team performance?• Research Issue 4: What are the effects of involving stakeholders at the outset of and throughout the projects with partnering relationship and formation of district advisory committee/community on urban renewal project implementation? • Research Issue 5: What are the effects of adopting information technology enablers by establishing computerised project management information system interlinked to Web site accessible to the public on communication to stakeholders?The case study research methodology was adopted to answer each of the research issues. In depth studies of Urban Renewal Authority with functional departments as embedded subunits were designed. Less in-depth case studies were also conducted for overseas cases in developed countries like Australia, United State of America, United Kingdom, Singapore, Denmark, Austria, Ireland and Spain for cross-case analysis. A total of 13 personal interviews with different levels of staff were conducted for seven embedded sub-units in the Urban Renewal Authority case. Information was obtained from ten overseas cases from their Web site and also via e-mail correspondence with the appropriate staff in the organisations.The data obtained were then analysed to show the patterns of the results for each of the five research issues developed in the literature review and also for the new findings that were not planned from the literature review. The findings were then compared with the extant literature to identify the contributions that this research makes to understanding how the project management body of knowledge and practice can be applied to enable effective and efficient implementation of urban renewal projects in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The application model for effective and efficient implementation of urban renewal projects modified to take into account the resolution of the research issues and the new findings is subsequently concluded.This research has contributed to both the knowledge of project management and urban renewal. The project management body of knowledge may need to put more emphasis on aspects of sustainability, multi-disciplinary and integrated approach, team hierarchical structure, team member attributes, stakeholder involvement and information technology enablers. Government support in both policy and implementation levels are of paramount importance in urban renewal work and needs more attention and focus. This research also provides some suggestions on the practice and policy especially on change management for introducing the application model in the existing organisation and the need of new legislation to supplement the existing one, on which the operation of Urban Renewal Authority is based.Finally, suggestions for further research are presented. These include quantitative research to test the application model built, generalisation of the research to other places with different operating environments for both governmental and non-governmental organisations, strategy for urban renewal, attributes of top management for managing urban renewal organisation, and cultural risk in managing urban renewal projects.

Software engineering techniques have been employed for many years to guide software product creation. In the last decade the appropriateness of many techniques has been questioned, given unacceptably high rates of software project failure. In light of this, there have emerged a new set of agile software development methodologies aimed at reducing software projects risks, on the basis that this will improve the likelihood of achieving software project success. Recent studies show that agile methods have been gaining increasing industry attention. However, while the practices recommended by agile methodologies are said to reduce risks, there exists little evidence to verify this position. In addition, it is posited that the very processes recommended by agile methodologies may themselves introduce other risks. Consequently, this study addresses the risks inherent in the human collaboration practices that are central to agile methods. An analysis of the risk management literature reveals that personality conflicts and customer-developer disagreements are social risks that occur through human collaboration. These risks negatively affect team cohesion and software project success. Personality conflicts are said to be mostly influenced through poor team formation, whereas customer-developer disagreements are induced through excessive customer direct interaction. However, these risks are not adequately addressed by standard risk management theories. Furthermore, an evaluation reveals that these risks are also not considered by existing software tools.This study therefore designs and implements a web-based solution to lessen the social risks that may arise in agile projects. The Agile Social-Risk Mitigation Tool (ASRMT) offers support for personnel capability assessment and management and for remote customer feature management, extending the customer's access through an interface. Using software engineering experts to evaluate ASRMT, the tool is shown to effectively address social risk management theories, and is considered likely to assist agile developers in their handling of social risks. In addition, above and beyond its intended purpose, ASRMT is also likely to assist agile teams with general project management. The findings of the ASRMT user evaluations demonstrate sufficient proof of concept to suggest that such a tool could have value in live software projects.