The Impact of Technological Changes on Project Management at a Company Operating in the Construction Industry

Abstract

This study investigated the impact that technological changes have on the construction industry. In recent years, the construction industry has been forced to investigate ways to improve the delivery of projects. Construction projects are becoming more and more complex and clients are demanding improved products and services. The construction industry experiences inefficiency problems that are caused by the dispersed nature of the organisations in the industry. This leads to poor communication and insufficient transfer of information when it is needed. This has challenged the construction industry to be more efficient, innovative and to implement and use Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools to facilitate the improvements required. However, due to the dynamic changes in technology, many organisations have implemented ICT solutions that do not meet their needs. Project managers are expected to integrate the work of all the companies involved in a project. As a result, there is a constant need for information throughout the lifecycle of a project. Therefore, communication of project information a project is critical. This study was conducted using a single method approach focusing on collecting and analysing quantitative data. The survey strategy, through the use of questionnaires, was the design used in the study. Random sampling was used to sample 20 employees out of a population of 87 employees. The findings from the literature review and the data analysis revealed that communication is a problem in the industry and exerts an influence on project management. Furthermore, the findings showed that the implementation of ICT tools greatly improves the delivery of projects, but more needs to be done to improve the adoption of ICT by employees and organisations.