The complex nature of the construction industry calls for an effective claims management
system which is supported by Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR). Research indicates that
ADR is not applied effectively in the industry, which raises the question as to the competence
levels of practicing professionals in the role of ADR facilitator. The purpose of the study was
to identify the requirements for effective ADR practice and to determine the competence
levels of practicing professionals facilitating ADR in the South African construction industry.
The findings of the research are intended to determine possible education and training
requirements which may be employed to ultimately improve the contribution of ADR in the
industry.
A literature review was conducted to identify the requirements for effective ADR practice
based on international standard practice. A questionnaire based on identified competencies
was then developed and administered amongst the practicing professionals in order to
determine current knowledge, skills, attributes and experience levels of practicing
professionals in the South African construction industry. The findings of the data analysis
were plotted on a competence model which reflected the key competencies as identified in the
literature review. The competence models reflected the competence levels of practitioners in
the industry.
A situational competence model was developed illustrating the development process required
for ADR facilitators in the construction industry through which professionals should progress
in achieving competence however; the model is based on the current situation and will be
subjected to variations as the situation changes. The situational competence model suggests
that practicing professionals progress through four stages before becoming fully competent in
facilitating ADR. Respondents were also grouped into age groups in order to address
education and training compared to experience gained. This was intended to determine at
which point competence is achieved by comparing the state of the new entrants to the industry
with the more experienced professionals. Qualitative data was obtained by means of interviews and open ended questions posed in the
questionnaire provided the information required to assess the current situation in the industry.
The findings indicated that the problem areas tend toward the the application of the methods,
skills and techniques however, respondents consider the application of the fundamentals of
ADR important and they are applied effectively as required for successful dispute resolution.
The high ratings on the self analysis in terms of the active listening competence raised the
question as to the possibility that there may have been a degree of misinterpretation regarding
the effective application of this competency. This response also suggests the possible
influence of response bias.
It was concluded that ADR in the industry is not applied according to the requirements of
standard practice and according to the data analysis of the self evaluation; practicing
professionals do not meet the requirements for competence in the practice of ADR. It was also
identified that experience needs to be addressed in order to achieve competence. Practicing
professionals are knowledgeable of the requirements for effective practice, however,
experience is lacking.
A further need which was identified in practice was for conciliation to be facilitated on site in
order to minimize the risk of dispute, in the project environment.
The findings support the need for more emphasis to be placed on ADR in the construction
industry in the form of education, training and mentorship.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ufs/oai:etd.uovs.ac.za:etd-05172013-110814 |
| Date | 17 May 2013 |
| Creators | du Preez, Olive RC |
| Contributors | Prof JJP Verster, Dr FH Berry |
| Publisher | University of the Free State |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en-uk |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.uovs.ac.za//theses/available/etd-05172013-110814/restricted/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University Free State or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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