Strategic Management Practices in the Construction Industry : a Dynamic Capabilities View

This book is an empirical study of strategic management practices in the construction industry. It examines the dynamic capabilities paradigm within the context of the Indonesian construction industry. The characteristics of asset-capability combinations were found to be significant determinants of the competitive advantage of the Indonesian construction enterprises, and that such advantage sequentially contributes to organizational performance. In doing so, this study fills an important gap in the empirical literature and reinforces the dynamic capabilities framework’s recognition as a rigorous theory of strategic management. As the dynamic capabilities framework can work in the context of Indonesia, it suggests that the framework has potential applicability in other emerging and developing countries

The role of education and awareness in workplace alcohol and drug use in the Australian construction industry : proposed program of research and preliminary results

The main aim of this paper is to outline a proposed program of research which will attempt to quantify the extent of the problem of alcohol and other drugs in the Australian construction industry, and furthermore, develop an appropriate industry-wide policy and cultural change management program and implementation plan to address the problem. This paper will also present preliminary results from the study. The study will use qualitative and quantitative methods (in the form of interviews and surveys, respectively) to evaluate the extent of the problem of alcohol and other drug use in this industry, to ascertain the feasibility of an industry-wide policy and cultural change management program, and to develop an appropriate implementation plan. The study will be undertaken in several construction organisations, at selected sites in South Australia, Victoria and Northern Territory. It is anticipated that approximately 500 employees from the participating organisations across Australia will take part in the study. The World Health Organisation’s Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) will be used to measure the extent of alcohol use in the industry. Illicit drug use, ‘‘readiness to change’’, impediments to reducing impairment, feasibility of proposed interventions, and employee attitudes and knowledge regarding workplace AOD impairment, will also be measured through a combination of interviews and surveys. Among the preliminary findings, for 51% (n=127) of respondents, score on the AUDIT indicated alcohol use at hazardous levels. Of the respondents who were using alcohol at hazardous levels, 76% reported (n97) that they do not have a problem with drinking and 54% (n=68) reported that it would be easy to ‘‘cut down’’ or stop drinking. Nearly half (49%) of all respondents (n=122) had used marijuana/cannabis at some time prior to being surveyed. The use of other illicit substances was much less frequently reported. Preliminary interview findings indicated a lack of adequate employee knowledge regarding the physical effects of alcohol and other drugs in the workplace. As for conclusions, the proposed study will address a major gap in the literature with regard to the extent of the problem of alcohol and other drug use in the construction industry in Australia. The study will also develop and implement a national, evidence-based workplace policy, with the aim of mitigating the deleterious effects of alcohol and other drugs in this industry.

An exploratory study of the factors enhancing and inhibiting export growth in the Chilean wine industry

The objective of this exploratory study is to investigate the main drivers that enhance and inhibit the export performance of Chilean wineries. Based on survey data collected from Chilean wineries, the findings of this study suggest that the main constraints within the Chilean wineries in developing exports is the lack of financial resources, limited quantities of stocks for market expansion, management’s lack of knowledge and experience, and the high cost of travelling and participating in trade shows. The main drivers of wine export performance according to the respondents are high quality of the wines, well established network of international distributors, and marketing skills. The major inhibitors of developing wine exports are exchange rate variability, problems in selecting a reliable international distributor, and limited government support to promote wine exports. This study also shows that export managers of Chilean wineries have high educational levels and have international experience. The findings have important implications for export development efforts of both governments and managers.

Environmental reporting in the Australian mining industry : complying with regulation or meeting international best practice?

It is nearly 10 years since the introduction of s 299(1)(f) Corporations Act , which requires the disclosure of information regarding a company's environmental performance within its annual report. This provision has generated considerable debate in the years since its introduction, fundamentally between proponents of either a voluntary or mandatory environmental reporting framework. This study examines the adequacy of the current regulatory framework. The environmental reporting practices of 24 listed companies in the resources industries are assessed relative to a standard set by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. These Guidelines are argued to represent "international best practice" in environmental reporting and a "scorecard" approach is used to score the quality of disclosure according to this voluntary benchmark. Larger companies in the sample tend to report environmental information over and above the level required by legislation. Some, but not all companies present a stand-alone environmental/sustainability report. However, smaller companies provide minimal information in compliance with s 299(1)(f) . The findings indicate that "international best practice" environmental reporting is unlikely to be achieved by Australian companies under the current regulatory framework. In the current regulatory environment that scrutinises s 299(1)(f) , this article provides some preliminary evidence of the quality of disclosures generated in the Australian market.

Achieving quality improvement in the mask manufacturing industry by using Six Sigma technique

The Six Sigma technique is one of the quality management strategies and is utilised for improving the quality and productivity in the manufacturing process. It is inspired by the two major project methodologies of Deming’s "Plan – Do – Check – Act (PDCA)" Cycle which consists of DMAIC and DMADV. Those two methodologies are comprised of five phases. The DMAIC project methodology will be comprehensively used in this research. In brief, DMAIC is utilised for improving the existing manufacturing process and it involves the phases Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, and Control. Mask industry has become a significant industry in today’s society since the outbreak of some serious diseases such as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu, influenza, swine flu and hay fever. Protecting the respiratory system, then, has become the fundamental requirement for preventing respiratory deceases. Mask is the most appropriate and protective product inasmuch as it is effective in protecting the respiratory tract and resisting the virus infection through air. In order to satisfy various customers’ requirements, thousands of mask products are designed in the market. Moreover, masks are also widely used in industries including medical industries, semi-conductor industries, food industries, traditional manufacturing, and metal industries. Notwithstanding the quality of masks have become the prioritisations since they are used to prevent dangerous diseases and safeguard people, the quality improvement technique are of very high significance in mask industry. The purpose of this research project is firstly to investigate the current quality control practices in a mask industry, then, to explore the feasibility of using Six Sigma technique in that industry, and finally, to implement the Six Sigma technique in the case company to develop and evaluate the product quality process. This research mainly investigates the quality problems of musk industry and effectiveness of six sigma technique in musk industry with the United Excel Enterprise Corporation (UEE) Company as a case company. The DMAIC project methodology in the Six Sigma technique is adopted and developed in this research. This research makes significant contribution to knowledge. The main results contribute to the discovering the root causes of quality problems in a mask industry. Secondly, the company was able to increase not only acceptance rate but quality level by utilising the Six Sigma technique. Hence, utilising the Six Sigma technique could increase the production capacity of the company. Third, the Six Sigma technique is necessary to be extensively modified to improve the quality control in the mask industry. The impact of the Six Sigma technique on the overall performance in the business organisation should be further explored in future research.

Industry needs and course content in project management

The new competitive international business environment is characterised by constant change and uncertainty. This is particularly true in project-oriented industries such as construction where subcontracting and competitive tendering add new dimensions to an already uncertain working environment. Many management writers and practitioners argue that the changing business environment and the speed required to design, develop and market products and services will lead to increasing use of project management in the future. This means that project management skills will become a competitive weapon for those individuals and firms that properly develop them.