Abstract
The manner in which the project management discipline is executed in projects has a bearing
on the project success as outlined by various studies. Scholars have earlier presented research
on project management in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. This
study aimed to conduct a country specific research in order to add to the body of knowledge
which explored the manner in which construction project outcomes are affected. It can be seen
that blanket studies have presented positive outlooks on project management in the region of
SADC but a more country specific studies have indicated problem areas in the discipline when
a specific country is studied.
The objective of this research is to increase the body of knowledge of how to successfully
complete projects in developing countries. This research will benefit governments, investors,
donors and project management practitioners. This objective was achieved by mean of: An investigation
of what it means for a project to be considered successful; Exploring and applying
an existing system to measure project outcome; Investigating the impact of various criteria on
the outcome of a project.
The Integrated Performance index (IPI) was used to investigate project outcomes. The
framework requires the application of three stages namely: the identification of important segments
in the project lifecycle, the acknowledgement of key performance factors in the identified
segments and the amalgamation of these factors into the IPI. Using the selected factors: Merit;
Category; Decision Effectiveness; Schedule Deviation; Cost Deviation; Project Management
Systems and risk; it was possible to analyse each project and determine which factors were
causing poor performance. Analysis of the data collectively did not yield any findings regarding
common trends in poor performance. Therefore, a determination on which factors influence construction
project outcomes in Zambia as a region could not be determined at this stage. The
findings of this study can be useful to organizations or persons looking for industry or project
type specific information relating to project performance.
In addition to the calculation of IPIs, a total of 28 unique challenges were identified. The
most common challenges experienced in the surveyed projects were related to cost or budget.
It was found that five (5) of the projects had listed these challenges. The second most common
group of challenges were: Non/Delayed payments; Inflation; Inadequate Scope; Variations; Unqualified
personnel; Schedule and Procurement Issues.
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)