Design phase stakeholders' involvement for success of building projects

Abstract

Success of a building project is conventionally judged in terms of, completion within the scheduled time, completion within the budget, and fully complying to the clients’ satisfaction with minimum subsequent modifications and reworks. Several researchers worldwide have highlighted the contribution of the building design phase for achieving the success of a building project. Irrespective of this awareness, instances are not rare to find, where clients are facing various difficulties in completing/operating their buildings. Research and many case studies from the industry have provided evidences for cost overruns, delay in completion, mismatch between the delivered product and the clients’ expectations, and high cost and time expenditure on variations and modifications in building projects. Literature review also indicates the comparatively low attention given by previous researchers for stakeholder management during design phase within design management as well as in overall project management. The objective of this research study is to develop an understanding on significance of timely participation of design phase stakeholders and effective coordination amongst them during the design phase of a building project for better achieving the project objectives. This broad objective was studied under four sub-objectives, in addition to the two hypothesis framed for testing. The study utilized an expert opinion survey conducted among the experts of building industry. Data collected through the survey were analysed using both descriptive and statistical analysis techniques. The findings of the survey validated the two research hypothesis. In addition, this study proposes two novel concepts. a) Division of Design Phase, based on the particular deliverables, for managing the involvement of stakeholders. b) ‘Design Teams Diagram’ which is a Process Diagram, proposed as a tool for managing the involvement of design phase stakeholders. Based on the findings it is recommended to form and maintain dedicated design teams from the beginning of design phase to the completion of a building project.