Project Stakeholder Management Research Proposal - South Africa

This research proposal examines the crucial role of stakeholder management within the context of municipality projects, specifically focusing on road infrastructure in South Africa. It begins with an introduction outlining the background, aims, objectives, and research questions, followed by a literature review exploring socio-economic conditions, project management, and stakeholder engagement. The study delves into stakeholder identification, analysis, and engagement strategies, with a particular emphasis on the challenges faced by South African municipalities. The research methodology chapter details the research philosophy, approach, design, data collection process, and ethical considerations. The proposal aims to identify the key stakeholders involved in public projects, understand the role of municipalities, and analyze effective management strategies for ensuring project success. The structure of the research paper includes an introduction, literature review, methodology, findings and analysis, and conclusion, providing a comprehensive framework for the study.

Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Research proposal
Name of the student:
Name of the University:
Author’s note:

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Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction:..............................................................................................................................3
1.1. Background of the study...........................................................................................................3
1.2 Research aim:.............................................................................................................................4
1.3 Research objectives:..................................................................................................................4
1.4 Research questions:...................................................................................................................4
1.5. Problem statement:...................................................................................................................5
1.6 Structure of the research paper:.................................................................................................5
2.0 Literature review:.......................................................................................................................7
2.1 Socio- economic conditions of South Africa:............................................................................7
2.2 Project and Project management...............................................................................................8
2.3 Municipality or public projects..................................................................................................8
2.4 Stakeholder management:..........................................................................................................9
2.5 Role of stakeholders in success or failure of a project............................................................10
2.6 Types of project stakeholders:.................................................................................................10
2.7 Stakeholder identification and analysis:..................................................................................12
2.8 Stakeholder engagement:.........................................................................................................13
2.9 Stakeholder engagement in South Africa:...............................................................................14
3.0 Research methodology:...........................................................................................................15

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3.1 Research philosophy:...............................................................................................................15
3.2 Research approach:..................................................................................................................15
3.3 Research design:......................................................................................................................16
3.4 Data collection process:...........................................................................................................17
3.5 Sampling method:....................................................................................................................17
3.6 Data analysis plan:...................................................................................................................18
3.7 Ethical consideration:..............................................................................................................18
3.8 Limitations of the study:..........................................................................................................19
4.0 Time scale or Gantt chart:........................................................................................................20
References:....................................................................................................................................21

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1.0 Introduction:
This chapter provides a brief introduction and outline of the research study. The research
background and the problem statement shall also be provided in this chapter along with the aims,
objectives and research questions.
1.1. Background of the study:
The study shall emphasize upon the management of the project stakeholders in context of
municipality environment in South Africa. The stakeholders involved herein include the rate
payers, the Government of the country and the private sector. The construction and maintenance
of the roads is looked after by the municipalities and the finance is obtained in the form of taxes
paid by the countrymen and the funds raised from the private sector while the entire process is
governed by the Government of South Africa. Proper road facilities are necessary for facilitating
the interaction between the countrymen and the exchange of goods and services. Well- connected
roads are necessary for the economic growth of a nation as it helps in the easy transportation of
goods. The capital projects of road infrastructure in South Africa are managed by National and
Provincial Government through Department of Transport and SANRAL (South African National
Road Agency Limited) however; the municipality mainly handles the maintenance and road
expansion projects. The project stakeholders are affected by the success or failure of a project
and also have the capability to drive a project towards success or failure. In case of construction
projects, the stakeholders are those individuals or group of individuals who have their interest or
some form of ownership in the projects and contribute either their skills and knowledge or
monetary support in the project.

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Effective stakeholder management helps in the formation of cordial relations with the
stakeholders by understanding and managing the expectations of the stakeholders (Maylor,
Blackmon and Huemann 2016). Engaging stakeholders is often a challenging task to manage the
stakeholders on a regular basis. It is necessary to know the expectations of the stakeholders and
fulfill their expectations by involving them in the important processes. It is important to know
the manner in which the different stakeholders shall be involved in the organizational processes
or projects. It is necessary to establish proper communication with the stakeholders and keep
them informed about the important facts and decisions in order to keep them satisfied.
1.2 Research aim:
The major aim of the research is to analyze the importance of management of project
stakeholders in context of municipality environment in South Africa.
1.3 Research objectives:
The following are the research objectives:
 To know what is importance of management of project stakeholders in public projects
 To understand the role of municipality of South Africa in the construction and
maintenance of roads
 To identify the different stakeholders involved in the project
 To identify the ways in which the stakeholders involved in the project can be managed in
order to ensure success of the project
1.4 Research questions:
 What is importance of management of project stakeholders in public projects?

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 What is the role of municipality of South Africa in the expansion and maintenance of
roads?
 Who are the stakeholders involved in the project?
 How can the stakeholders involved in the project managed in order to ensure success of
the project?
1.5. Problem statement:
The municipality in South Africa is facing several challenges in terms of rehabilitation of
the road networks. The issues faced by the Government are in terms of lack of human capital,
outdated equipments, high rate of employee turnover and lack of finance (Marks and Trapido
2014). The report addresses the issues related to the management of project stakeholders while
addressing the issues of good practices. A proper well- connected road system is necessary for
the growth and development of South Africa, which would involve proper stakeholder
management.
1.6 Structure of the research paper:
The research paper comprises of five chapters. The first chapter comprises ofvthe
introductory part, which includes the background of the study, research aims, objectives,
questions and the problem statement. The second chapter comprises of the literature review
wherein the theories, models and concepts pertaining to the research topic are explained in detail.
The third chapter consists of the research methodology that provides a systematic outline to the
researcher according to which he or she conducts the research. This chapter contains the research
philosophy, data collection methods, sampling methods, ethical issues and limitations of the
research study. The fourth chapter comprises of the findings and analysis. The findings can be

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obtained either from primary sources or secondary sources or both. The last or fifth chapter
comprises of the conclusion part wherein the summary of the entire research process is
mentioned.

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2.0 Literature review:
This section comprises of the relevant theories, concepts and models related to the
research topic. This section contains the academic evidences related to management of project
stakeholders in context of Municipality environment.
2.1 Socio- economic conditions of South Africa:
According to Marais (2013), the socio- economic conditions of South Africa have not
been in the favor of the nation over the past few years. The country has witnessed low growth
rate over the past few years, which has affected the development of the country. The country has
been facing several issues such as weak consumer demand, fall in the business investments and
unfavorable climatic conditions like drought over the past few years. The production of power
has improved in the country but the development of the country has been adversely affected due
to lack of proper infrastructural facilities and excessive costs of raw materials. The slow or rather
stagnant economy of the country has raised the number of unemployment in the country. This
has resulted in the widening of income inequality gaps among the countrymen. However, the
regional integration has provided ample opportunities to the country but the sub- regions in the
country have not been much advanced (Baker, Newell and Phillips 2014). The country has huge
growth potential but still the economic integration remains below the mark. The entrepreneurial
activities in the nation remain low and it is necessary to boost entrepreneurship in the country in
order to improve the socio- economic conditions of the country.
According to Marks and Trapido (2014), the slow growth rate of the economy has created
difficulties for the establishment of new businesses. In addition, the issue of red tape has been a

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major difficulty in setting up a new business in the area (Walker 2015). The improper quality of
education in the country has resulted in lack of knowledgeable and experienced entrepreneurs. In
order to encourage entrepreneurship within the country, the government is required to offer
financial and non- financial help to the entrepreneurs. The macroeconomic policies of the nation
are usually constrained along with the limited fiscal space. The shortage of skills in the country
has hampered the growth rate. The intra- regional trade has been low as compared to the other
communities and the non- tariff barriers have been pervasive. Another major reason behind the
slow growth rate of the country has been the weak trade and improper infrastructure. Red tape
has been adding difficulties for the entrepreneurs in South Africa since ages.
2.2 Project and Project management:
According to Kerzner (2013), project refers to a set of activities or tasks that are to be
carried out to meet some objective or set of objectives. A project usually have two parts namely
technical and functional aspects. Projects can be undertaken by both private sector and public
sector for obtaining benefits from the project. Project management refers to the application of
appropriate skills and knowledge in the execution of the projects. Project management helps in
driving a project towards the desired goals (Walker 2015). For this purpose, every project has
one or more project managers who are responsible for planning, controlling, managing and
directing the activities involved in a project. The project management involves sequence of
activities such as initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, controlling and closing. Project
management enables the project managers and the members involved in the project to ensure that
they share similar vision regarding the objectives and the ultimate goals of the project (Golini,
Kalchschmidt, and Landoni 2015).

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2.3 Municipality or public projects:
According to Kelly, Male and Graham (2014), the projects initiated and governed by the
Government of a nation are known as municipality or public projects. These projects may
comprise of launching of a new product or service by the Government of a nation such as
construction of new roads or initiating a road safety campaigns. These projects usually involve
infrastructure projects that are financed and built by the government. These may include
construction of roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, parks, railroads, dams, and several others. The
public projects are usually long- term projects that require huge finance and human resource.
Similarly, there are several projects initiated by the Governments of the nations to improve the
socio- economic conditions of their respective nations (Inam et al. 2015). The public projects are
usually initiated with the objective of the welfare of the common masses. The Government does
not derive any quick benefits of profits from such projects but receive long- term benefits from
such projects (Mir and Pinnington 2014).
2.4 Stakeholder management:
According to Weiss (2016), stakeholder refers to the group of individuals without whose
support, an organization would cease to exist. Stakeholders are mainly those individuals or group
of individuals who have the capability of affecting the success or failure of an organization or
project. Stakeholder management refers to the management of the stakeholders in such a manner
that the organization derives the maximum benefits from them. Stakeholder management is an
important part of any project or activity. However, project stakeholders are those individuals or
group of individuals who are actively involved in a project and take active participation in the
project activities (Mok, Shen and Yang 2015).

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According to Fassin et al. (2017), the project stakeholders are affected by the success or
failure of a project and also have the capability to drive a project towards success or failure. In
case of construction projects, the stakeholders are those individuals or group of individuals who
have their interest or some form of ownership in the projects and contribute either their skills and
knowledge or monetary support in the project. Effective stakeholder management helps in the
formation of cordial relations with the stakeholders by understanding and managing the
expectations of the stakeholders. Stakeholder management is a systematic procedure of
managing the stakeholders that helps in achieving the objectives of the projects or activities in an
efficient manner (De Brucker, Macharis and Verbeke 2013).
2.5 Role of stakeholders in success or failure of a project:
According to Verbeke, and Tung (2013), stakeholders have a significant role in the
success or failure of an organization or project. Stakeholders usually invest money or their skills
and knowledge in an organization or project with the motive of obtaining benefits therein. The
actions of the stakeholders help in determining the quality of decisions taken by the
organizational managers or the project managers. Stakeholders may have the voting powers as
well as certain decision- making powers. The stakeholders elect the management and the major
business decisions are dependent upon the quality of decisions taken by the management.
Therefore, the stakeholders indirectly influence the decision- making process within an
organization or project (Fooks et al. 2013).
2.6 Types of project stakeholders:
According to Kazadi, Lievens and Mahr (2016), there are several stakeholders involved
in a project. The top management includes the directors, president, division managers and the

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operating committees that are usually involved in the process of strategy formulation. The top
management is usually responsible for developing in- depth plans and approving plan designs
formulated by the other project members. The other team members are required to report the
project status to the top management. It is necessary to keep the top management informed
regarding the risks involved in the projects and their impacts on the project. Another major
stakeholder in a project is the project team (García-Nieto et al. 2015).
According to Abidin (2015), the project team comprises of the individuals who are
involved in the activities of the project. They can be both full time and part time employees. The
project team is usually headed by a project manager, who directs them towards the achievement
of the objectives of the project. The project manager is responsible for guiding the project
members and solving their issues. Other stakeholders are the peers, who work at the similar
designations within an organization. Resource managers are the ones who borrow resources and
manage them. These resources can be both in terms of financial resources and human resources.
The internal customers are those people within an organization, who are the customers and their
demands are met internally. External customers are those people who do not belong to the
organization but derive benefits from using the products or services obtained from the projects.
The government is also an important project stakeholder as the projects managers are required to
deal with several government regulators and the government has the great powers to influence
the projects. The contractors and suppliers provide raw materials and human resources to the
project managers that help in improving the quality of work and reducing the wastages. The
other stakeholders involve creditors, community and trade unions (Hammerschmid, Van de
Walle and Stimac 2013).