Identifying Team Selection and Alignment Factors by Delivery Method for Transportation Projects
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 145, Issue 10
Abstract
One critical antecedent to project success is team alignment. Industry professionals should focus on practices that can improve project team selection, team building, and identifying challenges to the team and project, hence improving alignment. This paper provides a summary of key findings of a national study of transportation projects, identifying current practices of industry professionals for the selection and alignment of project teams for transportation projects. Current team selection practices, the most beneficial team alignment practices, and the greatest challenges to team alignment are identified in the study. These practices are also analyzed and reported by project delivery method, and the results presented in this paper add to the body of knowledge by identifying current alignment practices, successful practices, and challenges specific to each delivery method. Among the findings are that overall project teams are selected primarily based on project experience and ability to meet schedule, regardless of the project delivery method chosen. Successful teams with good alignment were found to be characterized by having established expectations, team trust, honesty within the team, shared values, and good communication. No notable differences were found among delivery methods, demonstrating that the principles of team alignment are not dependent on the project delivery method. Challenges that cause adversarial relationships in the team include issues of constructability, schedule availability, and project complexity. The study also identified transportation-specific alignment challenges such as public involvement. The greatest challenges specific to each delivery method include team coordination for construction manager at risk (CMAR) projects, constructability procedures for design-bid-build projects, and environmental impacts for design-build projects.
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Data Availability Statement
Data generated or analyzed during the study are available from the corresponding author by request.
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Information
Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 145 • Issue 10 • October 2019
Copyright
©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 22, 2018
Accepted: Mar 7, 2019
Published online: Aug 14, 2019
Published in print: Oct 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Jan 14, 2020
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