Construction

Management
Lecture one

EP
 Outline
• Fundamentals of Management
– Definition of management
– Functions of management
– Management scope and levels
• Project management
– What is a project?
– What is a project management?
• Construction management
Fundamentals of
Management
Definitions of Management
 Definitions of Management
• Management is an art, as well as science, which is concerned with the
different human efforts so as achieve the desired objective.

• Management is a comprehensive word which is used in different

sciences in the modern business and industrial world.

• Management has been defined by different authors in a number of

ways.

• Some call it a process of managing. Some call it a coordination of

resources, some call it body of personnel challenged in the task of
managing while others call it as an organized distinct discipline.
 cont’
• Management is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and
objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively.

• Management is the process of reaching organizational goals by working with and

through people and other organizational resources.

• Management involves a creation of an environment in which people can use

resources to reach stated goals.

• Management refers to the tasks and activities involved in directing an organization

or one of its units.
Functions of Management
 Functions of Management
• Managerial functions provide a useful framework for organizing
management knowledge.

• The major functions of management are:- Planning, Organizing, Procuring

&/or staffing, Leading/directing, and Controlling

Management

Procuring Leading/
Planning organizing controlling
&/or Staffing Directing
 Planning
• Planning involves setting visions, missions and objectives and the
actions to achieve them.

• Planning requires decision making i.e., choosing future courses of action

from among alternatives.

• Planning Decides what to do, when to do and how to do a job.

• Planner, decides how the project will be carried out, what material
should be used, what staff will be employed, what equipment and
machines will be utilized to do the work etc, to achieve the goals
effectively.
 Count…
Generally, Planning involves,

• Crystallizing objectives
• Collecting & synthesizing information.
• Deciding in advance what is to be done, how it is to be done, in
what order it is to be done.
• Developing alternative course of actions within specified
constraints.
• Comparing alternatives.
• Setting and scheduling the optimum course of action.
• Establishing policies, procedures, methods, schedules, programs,
systems, standards and budget. *** Discussion
 Organizing
• Organizing is the function of management which create an
organizational setup and allocation of jobs.

• Organizing is that part of managing that involves establishing an

intentional structure of roles for people to fill in an organization.

• Organizing is intentional in the sense of making sure that all the

tasks necessary to accomplish goals are assigned to people. (who can
do them best)
 Count…
Organizing involves:
• Dividing the work into component activities.
• Designing job structures
• Defining performance targets and responsibly
• Allocating Resources
• Delegating authority
• Establishing structural relationship to secure coordination ***
Discussion
 Procuring/Staffing

• Procurement involves managing and providing the right quality

resources at the right time.

• Staffing involves filling, and keeping filled, the positions in the

organization structure
 Count…
Procuring/Staffing also involves

• Developing specification for the required resources

• Preparing resource procurement schedule
• Deciding appropriate sources of procurement
• Budgeting resources & arranging approvals and purchases
• Supplying on time required quality and quantity or resources to
project construction sites.
 Directing/Leading
• Leading involves guiding, supervising, motivating and leading the
employees of the organization.
• involves influencing people so as to enable them to contribute to
organization and group goals effectively and efficiently; it has to do
predominantly with the interpersonal aspect of managing.

• involves:
✓ Providing effective leadership
✓ Motivating participants behavior
✓ Communicating instruction and orders effectively
✓ Providing suitable climate for subordinate’s development.***
 Controlling
• Controlling - controls the actual progress achieved in comparison with
the planned programme at regular intervals and also identify the areas
of deficiency and applying corrective measures.

• Controlling involves:
✓ Setting of standard against which work progress is measured.
✓ Comparing the actual performance against the standard (planned)
✓ Identifying the causes of deviations between the actual and planned
performance
✓ Evolving systems for generating performance data
✓ Monitoring the data received and formulating corrective options
✓ Re-planning if necessary ***
 Count…

• Generally, the above managerial functions are inseparable and

often performed continuously as an interactive process.

• The managers at every level carryout all the managerial functions

but, their extent to manage and the time spent to perform these
functions would vary. ***
Management Scopes
and Levels
 Management Scopes and Levels
• Levels are hierarchical arrangement of managerial positions in an
organization.

• The extent to which the managers perform the functions of

management – planning, organizing, procuring, directing and
controlling – varies by level in the management hierarchy.

• Managers could be classified either Functional or General

managers depending on the nature and scope of the job
managers are performing.
 Count…
• In organizations, there are generally three different levels of
managers:

1. First-level/first line/operating level/supervisory level

managers: Responsible for day-to-day operations. Supervise
people performing activities required to make the good or service.

2. Middle-level managers: Supervise first-line managers. Are

responsible to find the best way to use departmental resources to
achieve goals.

3. Top-level managers: Responsible for the performance of all

departments and have cross-departmental responsibility.
Establish organizational goals and monitor middle managers.
Hierarchy of Management (Levels)
 First-line/operating/first level managers

• The major functions of operating level management are:

✓ Planning daily and weekly activities and accomplishment based on

the monthly, quarterly and yearly plans.
✓ Assigning operating employees to specific tasks.
✓ Issuing instructions at the work place, following up, motivating and
evaluating workers and reporting to their supervisors.***
 Middle-level managers
✓ Acting as intermediary between top management and operating level
management.
✓ Translating long-term plans into medium range plans.
✓ Achieving objectives set by top level management.
✓ Designing and implementing effective group and intergroup work and
information systems.
✓ Defining and monitoring group-level performance indicators.

✓ Diagnosing and resolving problems within and among work groups.

✓ Designing and implementing reward systems that support cooperative

behavior. ***
 Top-level managers

• Top-level managers- mainly responsible for controlling and overseeing

all the departments or major part in the organization.

• Top-level managers - develop and define goals, strategic plans, and

policies for the company, as well as make many decisions on the direction
of the business.

• Top-level managers - play a significant role in the mobilization of

outside resources and are for the most part responsible for the
shareholders and general public.*** Discussion
NB: All Effective Managers Carryout Essential
Functions
Time spent in carrying out managerial functions
 Managerial Roles and Skills
Managerial Roles:
• Role: is an organized set of behaviors.

• There are 10 roles identified that project managers undertake to

accomplish management functions. These ten roles, generally,
classified into three major categories; (advocated by Henry
Mintzberg).

• Interpersonal role
• Informational role
• Decisional role
 Interpersonal Roles
• Interpersonal Roles are related to formal authority base of
managers.
1. Figurehead
2. Leadership
3. Liaison

1. Figurehead
• The project managers, is the legal & social head of the project.
• S/he is the single focal point for making decisions, ceremonial
functions and symbolic duties.
 cont’…
2. Leadership
• Direct the inter-functional efforts and ensuring achievement of
goals.

• Influence, initiate & motivate the subordinates so that subordinate

achieves organizational goals.

3. Liaison
• Roles related to communication with internal and external
stakeholders to develop favorable relationships and networks.

• Dealt with those activities which may involve correspondence.

• Like contact with concerned government officials contract vendors,
professionals & top persons of construction industry. ***
 Informational Roles
• Informational Roles are related to availing sufficient information to
carryout jobs effectively.

• Because they are information centers for information and communication

source. (Handling, Sharing & Analyzing information).
• Refers to - 1. Monitor 2. Disseminator 3. Spokesperson

1. Monitor
✓ Roles related to scanning internal and external environments of their
organizations for selecting useful information.
✓ Read and talk to others to receive information.
✓ Involves seeking out, receiving & screening information.
 Count…
2. Disseminator
✓ Roles related to sharing and distributing relevant information (From
internal or external) to employees or other concerned people (in work
place).
✓ Information may be formal or informal, written or verbal.

3. Spokesperson
✓ Roles related to information communications to external stakeholders.
✓ Managers play spokesperson role when they provide information to
people to outside the organization.
✓ S/he acts as the sole representative through whole all communications
with the client.***
 Decision Roles
• Decision Roles are related to processing information to reach
conclusions: 1.Entrepreneurial , 2.Disturbance Handler, 3.Resources
Allocator, 4.Negotiator

1. Entrepreneurial
✓ Roles related to initiating new developments.
✓ Seeks and identify opportunities, improvements and needed change.

2. Disturbance Handler
✓ Roles related to conflict resolution and problem solving.
✓ Maintain organizational harmony by resolving conflicts and diagnosing
organizational behavior on time.
✓ Applies corrective actions when the organization faces important
unexpected disturbances.
 Count…
3. Resources Allocator
✓ Roles related to distribution, assignment and alerting of different
resources to projects.
✓ The manager oversees allocation of all resources. This involves scheduling
on time, programming work, authorizing actions.
✓ Calls for developing & monitoring budgets and predicting future resource
needed.

4. Negotiator
✓ Roles related to win comparative & competitive advantages to achieve
goals.
✓ Reaching agreements between other managers, unions, customers, or
shareholders.
✓ Role in which managers work with suppliers, distributer and labour
unions to reach on agreements about the quality and price of inputs,
technical & human resources.***
 Managerial Skills
1. Technical skill
2. Human skill
3. Conceptual skill
4. Design skill

1. Technical skill (deals with things): The specific knowledge and

techniques required to perform an organizational role.
✓ It is knowledge of and proficiency in activities involving methods,
processes, and procedures.
✓ Supervisors need technical skills to manage their area of specialty.
✓ Thus it involves working with tools and specific techniques.
 cont’…

2. Human skill (deals with people): is the ability to understand, alter, lead,
and control the behavior or other individuals.

✓ it focuses on working with people;

✓ it is cooperative effort;
✓ it is teamwork;
✓ it is the creation of an environment in which people feel secure and free to
express their opinions.
 cont’…
3. Conceptual skill (deals with ideas): is the ability to see the "big
picture," to recognize significant elements in a situation, the ability
(or mental capacity) to conceive and manipulate ideas & abstract
relationships among the elements.

4. Design skill is the ability to solve problems in ways that will

benefit the enterprise.
 Project
Management
WHAT IS A PROJECT?
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Organizations perform work.
• Work generally involves either operations or projects, although
the two may overlap.
• Operations and projects share many characteristics;
for example, they are:
• Performed by people.
• Constrained by limited resources.
• Planned, executed, and controlled.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Operations and projects differ primarily in that operations are
ongoing and repetitive while projects are temporary and
unique.

• A project can thus be defined in terms of its distinctive

characteristics—a project is a temporary endeavor undertaken
to create a unique product or service.

• Temporary means that every project has a definite beginning

and a definite end.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Unique means that the product or service is different in some
distinguishing way from all similar products or services.

• Projects are undertaken at all levels of the organization. They

may involve a single person or many thousands.

• They may require less than 100 hours to complete or over

10,000,000.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?

• Projects may involve a single unit of one organization or may

cross organizational boundaries as in joint ventures and
partnering.

• Projects are often critical components of the performing

organization’s business strategy.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Examples of projects include:
• Developing a new product or service.

• Effecting a change in structure, staffing, or style of an organization.

• Designing a new transportation vehicle.

• Developing or acquiring a new or modified information system.

• Constructing a building or facility.

• Running a campaign for political office.

• Implementing a new business procedure or process.

 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Temporary
• Temporary means that every project has a definite beginning
and a definite end.
• The end is reached when the project’s objectives have been
achieved, or when it becomes clear that the project objectives
will not or cannot be met and the project is terminated.
• Temporary does not necessarily mean short in duration; many
projects last for several years.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Temporary…
• In every case, however, the duration of a project is finite;
projects are not ongoing efforts.
• In addition, temporary does not generally apply to the product
or service created by the project.
• Most projects are undertaken to create a lasting result. For
example, a project to erect a national monument will create a
result expected to last centuries.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Temporary…
• Many undertakings are temporary in the sense that they will end at
some point.

• For example, assembly work at an automotive plant will eventually

be discontinued, and the plant itself decommissioned.
• Projects are fundamentally different because the project ceases when its declared
objectives have been attained, while non-project undertakings adopt a new set of
objectives and continue to work.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Unique Product or Service
• Projects involve doing something which has not been done before
and which is, therefore, unique.

• A product or service may be unique even if the category it belongs to

is large.

• For example, many thousands of office buildings have been

developed, but each individual facility is unique—different owner,
different design, different location, different contractors, and so on.
 WHAT IS A PROJECT?
• Unique Product or Service…
• The presence of repetitive elements does not change the
fundamental uniqueness of the overall effort.

• For example:
• A project to develop a new commercial airliner may require multiple
prototypes.

• A project to bring a new drug to market may require thousands of

doses of the drug to support clinical trials.
What is project Management?
 Project Management
• is an art (use behavioral & judgmental skills – cannot quantified))
and science (uses logics & analyses and uses computers and
quantitative formulas) of mobilizing & managing people, materials,
equipments and money to complete the assigned project work on
time within budgeted costs & specified technical performance
standards.

• aims at achieving the specified objectives efficiently and effectively

by managing human energies and non-human recourses placed at
their disposal.
 Count..
• In general, the management :
✓ towards coordinating different workmen,

✓availing the required machinery & materials at the right time,

✓executing the project economically & successfully, and

✓controlling over the quality, time & sequence of flow of

construction in a well planned & organized manner
 Count…
• Mostly in construction industry:

✓resources are scarce,

✓hard to obtain easily and
✓becoming expensive every day
…in spite of the fact that their demand is high.

• It is this reality which obliged us to utilize them efficiently and

effectively.

…….that is the basic reason why construction industry needs to be

managed.
Construction
Management
 Construction Management
• defined as the management in which group of people works
together, to execute the project economically without affecting the
quality in a well planned and organized manner.

• is the practice of managing construction in place of the owner while

also serving as the construction consultant to its design and other
aspects within the project.

• construction managers direct, coordinate and brainstorm a wide

variety of the construction projects, even the selection and hiring of
contractors and finances.
• The term construction management may be confusing since it has
several meanings. As explained earlier, it may refer to the
contractual arrangement under which a firm supplies construction
management services to an owner. However, in its more common
use, it refers to the act of managing the construction process.

• The construction manager, who may be a contractor, project

manager, superintendent, or one of their representatives,
manages the basic resource of construction. These resources include
workers and subcontractors, equipment and construction plant,
material, money (income, expenditure, and cash flow), and time.
Skillful construction management results in project completion time
and with in budget.
 Needs of Construction Management

FOR-
• The proper planning and organization of the works,
• The effective use of resources,
• The completion of works within estimated budget and specified time,
• The timely delivery and utilization of materials,
• The necessary quality of the work,
• The proper usage of equipment and latest methods of construction and
technology,
 Count…

FOR-
• The building up of reputation for high quality of workmanship,
• The controlling over the contract agreed upon and specification,
• The proper communication and reporting of the works executed,
• The provisions of safe and satisfactory working conditions for all workers,
• The monitoring of the works to be executed against planning,
 Count…

• The motivation of people to work to their best and creating an

organization that works as a team,

• The taking of sound decisions at the lowest practical management

level through delegation of authorities,

• The proper sequence of flow of construction, and

• The proper coordination of the resources to create an organization

that works as wholesome to fulfill the objectives.***
 Assignment 1

1. Write a short note on the following:-

• Nature of Construction industry

• Its role in the national economy
• Parties in construction industries
• The development of Ethiopian construction industry
Thank You!!