Abstract
The delivery of projects in the construction industry is evolving, as in other related industries. In this regard, new innovative ways are emerging in the quest to seek solutions that are contingent on providing the best services to clients within limited budgets and time frames. With the increase in project-based operations and the sophistication of the construction industry, effective communication has become a critical element for the success of project delivery. Therefore, communication management has become a requirement for coordinating and monitoring communication channels to ensure information accuracy, resulting in effective communication. Communication management is the process that plans, coordinates, monitors, and controls all communication channels used in organizations (Muszyńska, 2011). Since communication is a critical element for every organization, accurate and timely communication of information among project team members is essential to achieving an organization’s objectives. Modern technologies are tools that can enhance the coordination and management of communication channels, improving communication among team members. Previous researchers have outlined the benefits of modern technologies related to enhancing construction project delivery. However, not many studies have highlighted the implementation of these technologies in communication management. For this reason, this study seeks to assess the extent to which fourth industrial revolution (4IR) can be used in communication management to enhance construction project delivery in South African construction projects. To pursue this, the research data comes from both primary and secondary sources. The collection of secondary data was done through a detailed review of literature, and primary data was then collected quantitatively through the distribution of one hundred and fifty (150) questionnaires. Cronbach’s alpha was used to ensure the reliability of the research questionnaire's scale. The findings of the research were analyzed using descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analyses (EFA). According to the descriptive analysis, the highest indicators of the extent to which communication management is used for project delivery in South African construction industries include increasing communication frequency (time response), improving communication cooperativeness, monitoring the regulation of communication flow, creating strategies that suit project objectives, keeping all communications in one platform, and setting expectations for when project members will receive updates. The findings also revealed that respondents are aware of the importance of communication management for construction project
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delivery in terms of its ability to overcome communication barriers, efficiency in communication environment, building communication relations, improving communication planning, developing effective communication strategies, and communication planning being the highest ranked variables. Furthermore, the study identified factors that hinder the application of modern communication technologies for construction project delivery, including the cost expenses incurred in the upgrade of technological tools, project managers' comfortability with traditional methods, constraints in financing staff training to be tech-savvy, the high cost of acquisition, the lack of interest by decision-makers, and the technological capacity of the stakeholders involved. The study also revealed measures that can ensure the effective application of modern communication technologies, such as proper education for technology users, improving the technological culture of the organization, introducing clear objectives about technology application, ensuring strong management interventions, understanding the compatibility of modern communication technologies, and propensity towards innovations. The study further revealed that the benefits of the effective application of modern communication technologies were improved efficiency in operations, improved flow of information across the organization, improved communication during construction project delivery, timely delivery of projects, improved communication during construction operations and improved efficiency in executing organizational tasks. Finally, the study revealed that the role of an interorganizational culture in communication management was to create a positive effect on trust, create collaborations in relationships, establish common sets of principles, establish interdependence in organizations and create unified culture are important roles of interorganizational culture in communication management. Further analyses were conducted on the data by executing exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using an orthogonal method of rotation to determine the correlation. The reliability of the factors was also revealed in the study. The study recommended that further research should lean more towards investigating ways in which the communication environment is considered by project team members. It further recommends that the role of interorganizational culture in creating a positive effect on trust on how contractual guidelines and the adaptation of existing regulations and policies will assist in the enhancement of construction project delivery.