Project managers’ knowledge management and competency model for construction in Malaysia

The construction industry in Malaysia plays a critical role in its economic development. However, this sector suffers frequent problems, including time and cost overrun, low quality, and poor performance and productivity. One of the critical factors leading to these problems is the incompetent proje...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Hashim, Elmahdee M. A. B. A.
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/79282/1/ElmahdeePSPS2016.pdf
http://eprints.utm.my/id/eprint/79282/
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Institution: Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Language: English
Description
Summary:The construction industry in Malaysia plays a critical role in its economic development. However, this sector suffers frequent problems, including time and cost overrun, low quality, and poor performance and productivity. One of the critical factors leading to these problems is the incompetent project managers who lead and execute projects. This study investigated the role of the knowledge management approach in improving project managers' competencies through testing the relationship between knowledge management (KM) and project managers' competencies (PMC). Despite the direct linkage between knowledge management and competencies, literature rarely shows a model that presents this direct relationship, particularly in the construction industry. This study applied a quantitative method using an online survey for data collection. The target respondents were project managers in construction companies in Malaysia. The questionnaire was distributed to randomly selected 480 construction companies from the CIDB website. A total number of 227 completed responses were collected from 181 companies. The data was analyzed using descriptive analysis, a reliability test, and exploratory factor analysis using SPSS software. However, the research model and research hypotheses were tested through structural equation modeling (SEM) using AMOS software. The results of the descriptive analysis indicated that the application of knowledge management in Malaysian construction companies is modest. Also, the findings indicated that knowledge management has a positive causal effect on project managers' competencies. The KM-PMC model developed in this study capable for predicting and improving project managers’ competencies using the knowledge management approach. As this study is limited to the direct effect of knowledge management on project managers’ competencies, future research may explore the mediator factors that affect relationships within the KM-PMC model.