CQU University PPMP20015 Term 1-2020 Assessment 1: Research Report

This research report proposal, submitted for CQU University's PPMP20015 course, investigates the benefits of enhancing project management skills within the context of construction projects in Australia. The report begins by identifying a research gap, highlighting the limited existing research on the advantages of improved project management skills, particularly within the Australian construction sector. It justifies the research by emphasizing the importance of project management skills for successful construction project outcomes. A literature review of ten scholarly journal articles is then presented, covering key aspects such as project management skills themselves, the reasons for adopting these skills, and the benefits they provide. The credibility of the articles is assessed, detailing the methods used to locate and evaluate the sources. The report concludes by outlining the proposed research questions and objectives, designed to guide the study and contribute to a deeper understanding of the impact of project management skills on construction projects in Australia, aiming to fill the identified research gap and provide valuable insights for industry professionals.

CQU University: PPMP20015 Term 1-2020
Assessment 1: Proposed Research Report
Student Name: _____________________ Date: ______________
Student No: _____________________
Proposed research topic
The research proposal describes that present study will focuses on “Exploring the benefits of increasing
project management skills in the context of construction projects in Australia”.
1. Research gap and rationale for undertaking the proposed research
The investigation of the prior articles revealed that majority of the studies is conducted to understand the
needs and requirement of project management skills in construction projects. The prior research
involves understanding the overall context of the construction projects which require different skills and
abilities for the management of the skills in effective manner. This leads in providing complete
information regarding the reasons why project management skills are needed in the construction
projects. Through the analysis it is revealed that not much of the research is conducted to understand the
benefits for raising the project management skills and it is described that prior studies were not
conducted in the Australian construction projects. This is the research gap which can be taking into
further investigation. The analysis of the literature review also estimated that not much of the study used
quantitative approach that is most of the prior studies focuses on collecting and analysing the
information by adopting qualitative approach which includes that no scientific analysis is done to reveal
the objective of the research.
Therefore, to fill the above research gap the present research focuses on providing information about the
advantages as well as benefits for project management skills in the construction projects of Australia.
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The present research supports in conducting the research in Australia it is because project management
skills is considered necessary aspect for getting the development of the construction projects. The
proposed research will be close to the research gap because of providing information about the
percentage of construction projects which successes in Australia through increasing project management
skills in comparison to the construction projects which conducted with lower skills. The proposed study
will take into consideration Australian construction projects which prior studies do not much involved
and give knowledge. Furthermore, the proposed research will be conducted by using quantitative
approach; therefore the proposed research can close the gap and can provide new information about the
subject matter.
The present research is considered important because it provide knowledge to the other companies
which focus on developing construction project to develop opportunities to skills of their labor and
workers to management project in efficient manner. So that it provide several benefits to the
organizations. The proposed research also describe skills which can be adopted to develop efficient
construction projects and which can provide some advantages to the companies that is reduction in the
cost and expenditure. This supports in giving overall information about the proposed topic and helps in
achieving the objective of conducting the research. However, the proposed research fill the gap of the
prior studies and this research will use different methodologies and research philosophies to maintain
validity in the study.
2. Literature review of ten (10) scholarly journal articles
a) Literature review
Project management skills
The research conducted the study to understand the project management skills which is increased to
manage the construction projects in effective manner (Ma et al., 2014). The analysis revealed that
communication and risk management skills are the efficient skills because of clearly communicating the
work which is to be done. The managers also moved from various risky activities this skills supports in
managing and controlling the risk. From the investigation it is revealed that risk management is the
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skills which should be increased among the labor because of reducing the potential risk so that best
practices are adopted by the manager and labor which all are in the construction projects (Ma et al.,
2014). The research gap revealed that this research only focuses on the limited skills of construction
projects.
The project management skills the appropriate approach for development of the project and it leads in
reducing the risk and increase team work as well as coordination in the construction projects
(Khamaksorn, 2016). The objective of the study is to understand the skills which are to be increased in
the construction projects mangers so that more success of the project will be revealed. From the analysis
it is revealed that technology skills is the new skills which should be provided to the construction
project managers because of having broad understanding and knowledge of technology (Khamaksorn,
2016). Therefore, at the same time it should also be the particular technical grip to exploring the
condition of the project. From the investigation it is revealed that negotiation is the efficient skill which
is used in increase in the construction project (Ogunde et al., 2017). It is because this supports in
effective management of the resources and selecting the budget so that role will be conducted in
significant manner. The research gap of the study is that it does not provide information about effects of
this skills on the construction projects.
Reasons of adopting project management skills
The study was conducted to investigate the reasons and causes which give to the managers to increase
the project management skills (Meng & Boyd, 2017). The analysis revealed that construction projects
include high risk because of including various technologies and performing other hazardous activities.
The analysis also describes that project management skills increased because of deciding the budgets of
the construction projects and resources which are required in developing construction projects.
Therefore, researcher revealed negotiation skills is considered highly important for the construction
projects. It is because of utilizing the construction management software and leads in increasing the
development of project (Meng & Boyd, 2017). The research gap of the research is that it does not
include specific region for providing information about skills in construction projects.
The objective of the study is to find the reason of requiring the project management skills, the data
collection was done through adopting the opinions of the labour and employees who all are involved in
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construction project activities (Pavlineri et al., 2017). The analysis of the data describes that situation of
increasing skills arises because of more labour involved in the project so it become important for team
management. The results also describes that managing the projects require more team work and more
involvement of the labour, this is because this can increase coordination and supports in developing new
strategies for the construction project (Pavlineri et al., 2017).
The analysis of the study describes that skills is required due to utilization of the efficient technology so
that more technology is used in different construction projects (Tabassi et al., 2016). Therefore, the
construction projects also require new software, tools and machinery which can develop the project. The
estimation also describes that it is important to communicate the project status to other labor so that
construction project managed and developed in more efficient and effective manner. Therefore, this
leads in efficient coordination of the team and project staff so that they understand the requirement and
needs of the construction projects (Tabassi et al., 2016). The research gap of the study is that it does not
give data about particular tools and technology which used in the construction projects.
Benefits of project management skills
The study was understood to explore the advantages of rise in the project management knowledge and
skills in the construction projects of UK (Sunindijo et al., 2017). The investigation revealed that it leads
in increasing of communication and increase team work in the construction projects. This leads in
reducing the cost and expenditure of the project. The results also revealed that it results in maintaining
the health and safety among the employees due to reducing the risk in the construction projects. This
also supports in increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the companies so that construction
projects will be developed and provide more profits to the companies (Sunindijo et al., 2017). The
research does not give data about degree of influence skills has on the construction projects of UK.
The aim of the study is to examine the impact of project management skills on the benefits of
construction projects. The information collection is doe through adopting the primary method that is by
including the labors in the construction projects (Demirkesen & Ozorhon, 2017). Through the analysis it
is revealed that it increase the utilization and adoption of advanced technologies in the construction.
This supports in maintaining efficiency in the projects and at the same time reduce the risk of hazardous
activities at the time of construction projects. Therefore, it is estimated that companies should develop
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various strategies to develop the project management skills among the labor to the management of the
activities in the construction projects (Demirkesen & Ozorhon, 2017).
The estimation also describes that project management skills supports the labor and managers of
Australia to manage the overall time and cost of the project (Netto Jr & Raju, 2017). This results in
getting efficient results and develops the overall framework and strategy for conducting the project. This
also reduces in the construction projects of Australia. The results also describes that does better
allocation of budgets for the required activities, this also results in managing the risk and develop the
strategies before the occurring of the issue and problems. This also helps companies to identify the
priority activities which should be conducted in the construction projects (Netto Jr & Raju, 2017). The
research gap of the research is that it does not reveal data regarding the development and outcomes
companies earn due to increasing skills in project management.
Findings
The above investigation revealed that there are various project management skills which involved in the
construction projects such as communication, team work, negotiation etc (Netto Jr & Raju, 2017). This
leads in supporting the companies to manage better operations of the activities. There are various
reasons which give rise to adopt different skills which includes managing the team work, allocation of
the resources and due to reduction of the expenditure in the construction projects (Meng & Boyd, 2017).
Furthermore, it provide various benefits to construction projects such as in UK it decrease and also give
other advantages to Australia such as better understanding and allocation of activities as well as budgets
(Marx et al., 2017).
b) Credibility of articles used in the literature review
i) General process for locating articles:
The locating of the articles in the proposed research is done through developing the key themes which
includes “project management skills in construction projects”, “Reasons for project management skills”,
“benefits of increasing project management skills in construction projects”. The present research will
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focuses on getting current information by reviewing existing literature in-depth manner. The article
selection is done by Google Scholar. Therefore, the journals which all are selected supports in getting
valid information about the subject matter.
ii) Evaluation and description of credibility of each article
The article is highly credible because it has genuine peer review and DOI number of the article is
also mention and the selected article is also ranked in the international journal. The second article is
reliable due to the reason that authors of the article are specialized in their field and it is also ranked
internationally. The selected has peer review and it has reputed editorial board of the journal. The
article which is used in the research has journal index in scientific database as well as it also ranked
internationally.
The article which all are selected for understanding the benefits of project management skills are
also credible because the fifth article has actual peer review and also has index in scientific
database. The journal does not need and require payments by the authors and editorial board of the
article are well-reputed. Furthermore, the last journal also ranked internationally and not need
payments from the authors.
3. Research questions and objectives
The above questions and objectives will supports in achieving the objective of conducting the research
by using different data collection and analysis techniques, this leads in maintaining validity in the study.
a) Research Question 1: “What are the benefits of increasing the project management skills for
construction projects in Australia?”
Research Objective 1: “To investigate the reasons which give rise to increase the
project management skills for construction projects”
Research Objective 2: “To understand the benefits and advantages of rising project
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management skills for Australian construction projects”
b) Research Question 2: “Describe the percentage of impact project management skills has on the
construction project of Australia?”
Research Objective 1: “To analyse the project management skills used in construction
projects”
Research Objective 2: “To examine the effects of project management skills on
construction projects of Australia”
4. Research methodology for the proposed research
i) Purpose of aresearch methodology
The purpose of research methodology is that it supports in collecting and analyzing the information
subject matter, it also supports the researchers to understand the overall view of the topic in-depth
(Teherani et al., 2015). This describes the step by step procedure which supports in identifying the
information and to move to the results and findings of the research, it is considered overall strategy of
the research which supports in achieving the objectives of the research.
The research methodology also describes the value and belief of the research by which the answer of
proposed problems maintain validity, reliability of the information. Furthermore, it supports in
identifying the factors regarding the aspects and approach so that more information is gathered
regarding the subject matter (Percy et al., 2015). This supports in examining the specific target group
through which the accurate information by taking of the opinions of the respondents is gathered and
supports in developing the structure of the research by discovering main dimensions.
The purpose of research methodology is also discovering various answers about the questions by
applying various scientific procedures and systems (Pavlineri et al., 2017). This supports in making
familiar with the aspects so that it provide insight about the topic and get overall complete information.
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The estimation revealed that researchers used this to describe the characteristics of the specific group
which is selected in the research and also examine the frequency of the occurring of results.
Furthermore, it also provides adequate information about the association among two variables.
ii) Proposed research methodology
The proposed research will be using quantitative research methodology because of getting the
information about subject matter and to adopt the principle of validity and accuracy. In the present
research researchers will use positivism research philosophy to describe the manner to getting results
about the research (Queirós et al., 2017). The present research use exploratory and descriptive research
design because of exploring the project management skills which is used in construction projects of
Australia. The descriptive analysis is done through using SPSS and excels software to get the results
through tables and charts that is in tabular format (Meng & Boyd, 2017).
The present research used primary method that is questionnaire method is used to gather the opinions of
the respondents in this various questions are formed which describes the reason for which product
management skills is used and the advantages which skills provide to construction project of Australia.
The research also uses deductive approach so that statistical analysis is used to evaluate the accuracy
and validity of the information (Marx et al., 2017).
iii) Justification for choosing the proposed research methodology
The quantitative research approach is used because through this the analysis about the findings is done
in scientific manner and provides clear information about the findings of the research because of
describing it through charts and graphs. The primary research supports in providing responses of the
respondents and helps in getting more information about the subject matter.
Through this methodology researchers can explore more new ideas about the skills and knowledge
which is needed in construction projects of Australia and their impact on the operations of construction
projects. Furthermore, positivism research philosophy reveals the manner for conducting the research
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and manages the value and belief of the research with the real life information.
5. Reference List
Demirkesen, S. & Ozorhon, B., 2017. Measuring project management performance: case of
construction industry. Engineering Management Journal, 29(4), pp.258-77.
Khamaksorn, A., 2016. Project management knowledge and skills for the construction industry. In
Nternational Conference on Civil, Architecture and Sustainable Development .
Ma, T., Luong, C. & Zuo, J., 2014. A study of the skills of construction project managers in
Australia and their needs for training and certification. In the 2014 International Conference on
Engineering Project and Production Management, p.55.
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Marx, W., Haunschild, R. & Bornmann, L., 2017. Quantitative analysis of a highly dynamic
research field. Journal of Grapevine Research, 56(1), pp.35-43.
Meng, X. & Boyd, P., 2017. The role of the project manager in relationship management.
International Journal of Project Management, 35(5), pp.717-28.
Netto Jr, J.A. & Raju, V., 2017. "Significance of project management skills and balancing of
managerial conflicts between project stakeholders. International Journal of Social Sciences, 3(2).
Ogunde, A. et al., 2017. Challenges confronting construction project management system for
sustainable construction in developing countries. Journal of Building Performance, 8(1), pp.1-11.
Pavlineri, N., Skoulikidis, N.T. & Tsihrintzis, V.A., 2017. Constructed floating wetlands: a review
of research, design, operation and management aspects, and data meta-analysis. Chemical
Engineering Journal, 308, pp.1120-32.
Percy, W.H., Kostere, K. & Kostere, S., 2015. Generic qualitative research in psychology. The
Qualitative Report, 20(2), pp.76-85.
Queirós, A., Faria, D. & Almeida, F., 2017. Strengths and limitations of qualitative and quantitative
research methods. Journal of Education Studies, 5(3), pp.112-20.
Sunindijo, R.Y., Zou, P.X. & Dainty, A., 2017. Managerial skills for managing construction safety.
Civil Engineering Dimension, 19(2), pp.63-72.
Tabassi, A.A., Argyropoulou, M., Roufechaei, K.M. & Argyropoulou, R., 2016. Leadership
behavior of project managers in sustainable construction projects. Procedia Computer Science,
100(100), pp.724-30.
Teherani, A. et al., 2015. Choosing a qualitative research approach. Journal of graduate medical
education, 7(4), pp.669-70.
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