SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES PART TIME

MASTER OF SCIENCE DEGREE IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT

GBS630 ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

ASSIGNMENT #1
CHALLENGES OF MANAGING CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN
ZAMBIA

NAME: JANIS KABWE

COMPUTER NO: MSCPM1421617
LECTURER: MR NGOSA CHISUPA

DUE DATE: 25TH FEBRUARY, 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.

INTRODUCTION.3

2.

BACKGROUND...4

3.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM.................5

4.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES..5

5.

RESEARCH QUESTION..5

6.

RATIONALE 6

7. LITERATURE REVIEW.7-18
8. THEORETICAL AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK..19
9. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.20
10. TIME TABLE..20
11. SUMMARY 21
12. REFERENCE.22-23

1. INTRODUCTION
The Construction industry is regarded as one of the major contributors to the growth of many
nations Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In Zambia, the industry has continued to record
growth, in 2009, it registered a 15.5 per cent annual growth rate despite the global financial
meltdown; averaging to 17.5 per cent during the period of 2008-2010 (Lusaka Times, Aug
26, 2010). However, with this growth comes many complex projects, as such there a number
of challenges which come with managing these projects. There have been so many cases
where construction works mostly involving Zambian contractors have not been executed to
expected standards (Times of Zambia, May 18, 2014); which clearly indicates that the
projects are subjected to a number of challenges which affect their smooth execution. If the
challenges are not identified and managed, there is a risk of the projects failing. In addition to
this, large sums of money are invested in the industry, hence the need to safeguard this
investment. This research therefore seeks to identify, discuss and provide solutions to some
the challenges in managing projects in the Zambian construction Industry.

2. BACKGROUND OF THE RESEARCH

Govt warns shoddy contractors- ZNBC, 7 January, 2016
Contractors Shoddy Jobs Delaying Projects-Times of Zambia, 18th May, 2014

There are a number of factors which steered this research. To begin with it is important to
recognize that the Zambian construction industry is experiencing rapid growth and has since
become an area of focus; and has been drawing positive attention, to an extent where
international Construction companies are now focusing on investing in Zambia. There have
been so many new projects launched in the recent past, some of the big projects which were
launched , for instance in September 2012, Government launched the biggest road
construction project dubbed the Link Zambia 8000, at an estimated Contract sum of K31.42
billion, giving an average yearly cost of K6.28 billion (Times of Zambia, 27/12/2013),
similarly in November, 2013, the Zambian Government signed a contract with an
international Construction firm to Design and Construct the new Kenneth Kaunda
International airport for an estimated contract sum of $395Million. Another notable project is
the rehabilitation of the remaining section of the Lusaka - Chirundu Road for Development
Agency Contract worth US$ 23, 437,569.00, which was signed on 21stDecember, 2015. The
cited examples are clear indication of how the industry attracts huge expenditure and
investment. However, this expenditure can only be worthwhile if some of the challenges of
managing projects are identified, and subsequently mitigated.

There have been numerous reports in the print media as well as other notable publishers that
Zambia is facing challenges in project management despite it being the fastest growing
industry, the Times of Zambia, dated October, 2008 reported that a construction company
had abandoned their construction site, and that the Zambian government had issued a warning
to them and even considered terminating the contract. Similarly, in an article (Government
warns shoddy contractors), published on the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation
(ZNBC) website, dated 7th January, 2016, the minister of works and supply showed
extreme concern over the shoddy works and poor project management of some infrastructure
developments in one part of Zambia. There have been so many cases
where construction works mostly involving Zambian contractors had not been done to
expected standards (Times of Zambia, May 18, 2014).

3. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

There are a number of projects in Zambia that both Government and Private developers have
invested in, and the contractors have not executed to the expected standard. Some of the
Contractors have ended up abandoning the construction projects. The challenges of managing
projects in Zambia, if unmitigated, result in Poor project outcomes and a loss of investment.
4. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this research are:

To have an overview of understanding of construction Project

Management (PM);

To have an overview of the elements of Construction Project

Management (CPM);

To Discuss the Challenges of managing construction projects in Zambia;

5. RESEARCH QUESTIONS

What is Construction Project Management?

What are the sources and characteristics of the challenges typically found in managing

construction projects?
What are the current industry practices and researches in regards to managing
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construction projects?
6. RATIONALE
The result of this study will be valuable to the contractors as well as related Construction
services providers in developing better practice for managing projects. The research, through
literature review and recommendations, will add to the body of knowledge in as far as project
management is concerned, so that future project managers can understand the challenges of
managing construction projects, and ensure that they are able to mitigate these challenges in
order to safeguard the investment of the parties involved.

1. LITERATURE REVIEW

If a building looks better under construction than it does when finished, then it's a failure.
(Doug Coupland)

Construction projects are a means of creating new value (Winch, 2010). All societies and
economies invest in construction in order to bring development and to invest in physical
assets which can then be exploited to provide the goods, services and symbols that society
needs. Governments invest in construction of schools to provide education services and in
bridges/roads to provide transport services; firms invest in shops to provide retail services
and in houses to provide homes. Increasingly, these investments are made by partnerships of
the public and private sectors. What all these investments have in common whether directly
for profit or not is that they create something where there was nothing, create new assets to
be exploited for private benefit and public good. It is in this sense that construction. Projects
are about the creation of new value in society.
UNDERSTANDING PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Construction projects have been managed since time immemorial. Traditionally, this was the
responsibility of the master of the works a concept retained in the modern French matre
doeuvre but the emergence of a concept of project management is a phenomenon of the
nineteenth century. Project management emerged as industrial societies started to build
complex systems such as rail and power networks. This concept was adopted by the US
aircraft industry in the 1920s, came to maturity in the US defence programme in the 1950s
and gained international attention with the space programme in the 1960s. Project
Management is essentially an organizational innovation the identification of a team
responsible for ensuring the effective delivery of the project mission for the client (Winch,
2010). To understand project management it is important to understand the term project.
1. A unique endeavor to produce a set of deliverables within a clearly specified time, cost
and quality constraints. (Project management guidebook, empowering managers to succeed
2003, PMG 2003)
2. A project is a series of tasks, arranged in a defined sequence or relationship that produces
a pre-defined output or effect. A project always has a start, middle and an end (Project
management Institute, Body of Knowledge 1999, PMBOK)
Projects differ from other business activities in the following ways:
Unique in Nature: They do not involve any repetitive processes. Every project undertaken is
different from the last, where as operational activities often involve undertaking repetitive

(identical) processes.
Have a defined timescale. Projects have a clearly specified start and end date within which
the deliverables must be produced to meet a specified customer requirement.

Have an approved budget:

Projects are allocated a level of financial expenditure within which the deliverables must be
produced to meet a specified customer requirement.
Have limited resources:
At the start of a project an agreed amount of labor, equipment and material is allocated to the
project.
Involve an element of risk. Projects entail a level of uncertainty and therefore carry
business risk.
Projects seek to achieve beneficial change:
The purpose of a project, typically, is to improve an organization or country through the
implementation of business change
Moving on, it is important to look at how some other authors define project management. For
instance, Peter Morris (1994) argues strongly that project management is about the total
process, not just about realizing a specification to time, cost and quality. For this reason, he
distinguishes the management of projects as a strategic approach from project
management as a toolbox approach to delivering the project mission. He further mentioned
that Effective Management tools are vital but they are no substitute for a strategic overview
of the process of realizing a constructed asset, and skills in managing the disparate
Stakeholders in the project. Indeed, tools alone are not enough to ensure projects success,
especially if the tools are in the hands of those who are not skilled to use them. There is need
for proper strategic planning and many other principles which need to be addressed when
executing construction projects; in fact, this research is not just about the activities of the
designated project management team, but about all those who are responsible for ensuring
that the project mission is achieved including project architects, site supervisors and
contracts managers as well as client representatives. To be effective, the principles of the
management of projects need to infuse the project process construction project managers
cannot operate effectively as an external add- on harrying those responsible for actually
adding value.

Still on the definition of project management, Robert K. Wysocki, in his 2013 book,
Effective Project Management defined Project Management as an organized common-sense
approach that utilizes the appropriate client involvement in order to meet sponsor needs and
deliver expected incremental business value. He further pointed out Business value is the
responsibility of the client through their requirements statements. The project manager is
responsible for meeting those requirements. Meeting requirements is the cause and
incremental business value is the effect. Second, and equally important in the definition
through the common-sense term is the implication that effective project management is not
aone size fits all approach. Because it is a common-sense approach, it must adapt to the
changing project conditions; the rules of engagement for effectively managing projects are
learned. The Project Management Institute (PMI) formally defines project management as
The application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet the
project requirements.
Looking at the various definitions, it is evident that Project Management is very important to
the construction industry. This is because all construction projects have set goals; they have a
life span, they have a budget and have expected standards. Managing these aspects would
certainly require experience, training as well as the set of right skills on the part of the project
manager. Without the knowledge and principles of PM, a construction, if not any project is
likely to fail; the key to success is Planning.

CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT

According Wikipedia, Construction Project Management (CPM) is the overall planning,

coordination, and control of a project from beginning to completion. CPM is aimed at
meeting a client's requirement in order to produce a functionally and financially viable
project. The construction industry is composed of five sectors: residential, commercial, and
heavy civil, industrial, and environmental. A construction manager holds the same
responsibilities and completes the same processes in each sector. All that separates a
construction manager in one sector from one in another is the knowledge of the construction
site. This may include different types of equipment, materials, subcontractors, and possibly
locations.

In the above definition, the key words are overall planning, coordination and control of a
project from beginning to completion. The question is do the Zambian Construction
companies apply this knowledge, if so then why do we have so many reports of contractors
failing to meet deadlines, failing to budget and execute the project as per specifications? This
research will look into the general practices of the Zambian contractors, to determine if their
practices could be a contributor to the poor performance and ultimately poor project delivery.
Another key thing to note in the definition above is that fact that Construction centers on the
satisfaction of a client; as such if the client is not satisfied, that projects will be considered a
failure. The onus then is on the Project Manager to ensure that all things are in place during
a running project, to this effect, it is very important that Contractors or Construction
companies employ Project Managers who are trained and have the necessary experience to
undertake a given Project. In this research there will be a stage at which a review of the
common practices in Zambia and look at the quality of project managers running some of the
existing construction projects.

10

In 2014, Jeff Collins published an article; The Importance of Construction Project

Management, on www.ims-web.com, where he stated that Construction project
management isnt a simple task and it becomes even more complicated when there are
dozens of firms involved in the construction process. An example of the results of poor
construction management is the newly constructed World Trade Centre One in New York
City; and the adjoining PATH station which thousands of commuters rely on to commute to
the Financial District every day. The World Trade center PATH station originally had a price
tag of $2 billion and was slated to be completed in early 2013. However, due to issues in the
supply chain from steel providers, a lack of communication between government agencies
and developers, and not adhering to construction deadlines; the PATH station at World Trade
Centre is now slated for an opening of early 2014 at a cost of $4 billion. For the same money,
New York City and the state of New Jersey could have built additional commuter rail lines,
increased capacity along the new Second Avenue subway; and improved roadways. Most
cities could build an entire rail line at that cost. This shows how poor project management can
result in additional costs on a project.
CHALLENGES OF MANAGING PROJECTS
Balancing the elements of a complex project - time, money, scope and people - is one of the
jobs of a Project Manager. Project management training is an essential step for managing the
unexpected obstacles project managers can face on a daily basis. To help put things in
perspective, Villanova University, on their website, published an overview of the top 10
project management challenges that project managers can encounter on the job, and these are:
Project Management Challenges within Corporate Projects
1. Undefined Goals When goals are not clearly identified, the whole project and team
can suffer. When upper management cannot agree to or support undefined goals, the
project in question typically has little chance of succeeding. The project manager must
ask the right questions to establish and communicate clear goals from the outset. This
is typical of some of the Projects in Zambia, the project goals tend to change as the
project progresses.
2. Scope Changes Also known as scope creep, this occurs when project management
allows the project's scope to extend beyond its original objectives. Clients and
supervisors may ask for changes to a project, and it takes a strong project manager to
11

evaluate each request and decide how and if to implement it, while communicating
the effects on budget and deadlines to all stakeholders. Several projects in Zambia
have encountered this, sometimes due to political interference. It is common for
different authorities to want their own vision on the project, especially if there is a
change of office. Sometimes this is as a result of inadequate planning on the design
team as well as the issuance of unfinished designs to the contractors.
Working with a Team: Challenges for Project Managers
3. Inadequate Skills for the Project A project sometimes requires skills that the
project's contributors do not possess. Project management training can help a project
leader determine the needed competencies, assess the available workers and
recommend training, outsourcing or hiring additional staff.
4. Lack of Accountability A project manager's leadership qualities can shine when
each member of the team takes responsibility for his or her role in achieving project
success. Conversely, a lack of accountability can bring a project to a complete halt.
Finger-pointing and avoiding blame are unproductive, but all-too-common features of
flawed project management. Learning to direct teams toward a common goal is an
important aspect of project management training.
Project Management Challenge: Dealing With Risk
5. Improper Risk Management Learning to deal with and plan for risk is another
important piece of project management training. Risk tolerance is typically a desirable
project manager trait because projects rarely go exactly to plan. Gathering input,
developing trust and knowing which parts of a project are most likely to veer off
course are aspects of the project manager's job.
6. Ambiguous Contingency Plans It's important for project managers to know what
direction to take in pre-defined "what-if" scenarios. If contingencies are not identified,
the entire project can become mired in an unexpected set of problems. Asking others
to identify potential problem areas can lead to a smoothe and successful project.
Project Management and Communication Challenges
7. Poor Communication Project managers provide direction at every step of the
project, so each team leader knows what's expected. Effective communication to
everyone involved in the project is crucial to its successful completion.
o Project management training includes an emphasis on written and oral
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communication skills
o Proper communication can help increase morale by establishing clear
expectations
o Good project managers keep communication and feedback flowing between
upper management and team leaders
Managing Expectations: An Important Project Manager Attribute
8. Impossible Deadlines A successful project manager knows that repeatedly asking a
team for the impossible can quickly result in declining morale and productivity. The
odds of successfully completing a project under unreasonable deadlines are generally
not feasible expectations.
9. Resource Deprivation In order for a project to be run efficiently and effectively,
management must provide sufficient resources. Project management training shows
how to define needs and obtain approval up front, and helps project managers assign
and prioritize resources throughout the duration of a project.
10. Lack of Stakeholder Engagement A disinterested team member, client, CEO or
vendor can destroy a project. A skilled project manager communicates openly and
encourages feedback at every step to create greater engagement among participants

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CHALLENGES OF MANAGING PROJECTS IN ZAMBIA

A woman with organizing skills can run a construction company without ever picking up a
hammer and nail. (Warren Farrell)

Zambia is one of the countries in Africa whose construction industry is seeing a huge
increase; however some of the projects have been poorly managed and raises so many
questions among stakeholders. Some projects have been a total confusion right from
inception, and have ended up in very unsatisfactory works. According to
constructionreviewonline.com, despite Africa being the fastest developing continent, there
is no doubt the industry still faces plenty of challenges and both big and small companies are
still struggling to counter the challenges. Some of the challenges listed on the website are as
follows:
1. The Constant rising of Project Costs:
This is one of the problems in Zambias construction industry; there is a constant rise in
project costs. This is practically due to the rise in prices of steel and oil, caused by the
weakening of local currency against the dollar. Most companies give a quote for a project
only to realize the project has cost more than they budgeted for. Furthermore, some
companies quote low due to their desperate need for a construction project, which in turn
results in a lot of variations in scope, and ultimately cost.
2. Corruption Issues
When talking of developing countries such as Zambia, corruption is a term that has to appear
as a factor that is causing development to lag behind. The construction industry is one of the
industries in Zambia where also corruption plays a role like the rest of the world and has
suffered a lot at the hands of corrupt individuals. Some companies for instance are allegedly
paying top government officials to receive tenders which have brought the construction
industry into major problems. Dixon Bwalya, featured an article in the Times News Paper
date, 17th July, 2014, in which he mentioned that Single sourcing is still used in procuring
services in the construction industry only this time round it is sometimes dressed in sheeps
clothing where those in need of services go through all the routines associated with open
tender processes to give an impression of transparency meanwhile they have already
14

identified who is ultimately to be awarded the contract, at a fee of course. It is the abuse of
the single sourcing process which is used by those in charge of the procuring of goods and
services to corruptly raise funds for themselves or even raise contributions to fund political
parties. He further added that sometimes the consultants have a tendency of turning a blind
eye to either defective work or not following contractual obligations, at a fee.
Ray et al. (1999) stated that there are many ethical issues associated with tendering that are
not supported by law. These include failing to disclose conflict of interest; equitable tendering
practices; and rights of disclosure to the declaration of conflicts of interest. Osei-Tutu et al.
(2010) also identified manipulation of laid down procedures, kick backs and politicians
influencing the choice of contractors as some of the unethical practices at tendering stage.
These are some of the few corrupt practices which pose great challenges in managing
construction projects. In some instances, the lowest bidder who has been awarded the
construction projects usually ends up being the highest bidder due to the numerous changes in
design as well as basically corrupt practices. This is a great challenge in managing
construction projects.
3. Lack of Skilled Labour
Lack of skilled labor cannot be underestimated when talking about the problems facing the
Zambian as well as the African construction industry in general, for instance when
construction opportunities rise; some contractors are forced to go looking for skilled labour
from other counties who always demand too high salary wages.
Currently the continent is unable to produce enough skilled labour or professionals who have
the ability and knowledge to handle the job. The latest incidence is in the construction of East
Africas standard gauge railway where the Chinese contractor was forced to bring over
10,000 workers on board from China to help the locals in building the railway. The skilled
labour force is slowly diminishing with the growth of the youths desire for higher education,
as well as other qualifications away from construction.

15

4. Safety On Site:
Several cities and towns across Zambia have seen commendable developments in road
infrastructure, undoubtedly resulting in greater comfort and joy in driving, cycling or walking
along these roads. The joy of this new infrastructure is, however, causing new challenges,
particularly that of safety. If not managed properly, these new roads could become death traps
as already evidenced by some overzealous drivers who drive at reckless speeds. Safety on
site is another crestfallen problem that the Zambian construction sector is encountering.
There is high demand for insurance and compensation claims from serious injuries caused on
sites. Since the industry is spending more on insurance and compensation, there will not be
enough funds to boost productivity.
5. Occupational Safety and Health (OSH)
The building construction industry in Zambia has been identified as a potential driver for
economic growth. However, the sector is poorly regulated in terms of occupational safety and
health (OSH). According to the ILOs 2012 Zambia Country Profile on Occupational Safety
and Health, the building construction industry reported 58 occupational fatalities between
2003 and 2007. This high number of fatalities, which ranked third behind the mining and
quarrying and chemical sectors, can be attributed to, among other things, the structure of the
industry and poor working conditions. Subcontracting is very common, which heightens the
pressure of meeting deadlines, and increases the difficulties of coordinating work and
ensuring site safety and health. Most of the workers are on temporary contracts, which
compel them to work long hours in order to increase their earnings while work lasts.
Compared to their counterparts on permanent contracts, workers on temporary contracts
rarely have sufficient training or the experience necessary for the hazardous working
environment on most construction sites. Furthermore, these workers often cannot refuse to
work under unsafe conditions. The ILO estimates that 95% of accidents involve workers
employed by subcontractors.
5.1 OSH challenges in the building construction sector
5.1.1. Low levels of awareness and skills
The Zambia green jobs programme reported that, a lack of familiarity with existing OSH
16

frameworks among employers and workers has been identified as one of the main causes of
(i) low rates of compliance; (ii) the high incidence of occupational accidents; and (iii) the
lack of safety precautions in the workplace. In addition, most employers in the sector view
OSH as a cost rather than an investment and thus pay very little attention to either its legal
provisions or promotional aspects.
5.1.2. Inadequate coverage of OSH in vocational and technical courses
The majority of vocational and technical training institutions responsible for training artisans
in various aspects of building construction have yet to integrate OSH into the training
modules offered. Where such modules do exist, their coverage of important, relevant subject
matter is scant. Consequently, artisans graduating from vocational training institutions have
low levels of OSH awareness and do not have the necessary skills to conduct risk
assessments and manage identified risks.
5.1.3. Outdated legislation
OSH in the construction sector is covered under the Factories Act, Act No. 2 of 1966. The
Construction (Safety and Health) Regulations under the Act have not been reviewed since the
Act was first implemented and consequently do not address the challenges and realities posed
by current practices in the construction sector. In particular, subcontracting is a grey area in
terms of duty-of-care for OSH.
6. Capital Supply Constraints
Capital is an essential component of project delivery, poor capital on the project is a source of
problems, and a great challenge in managing project. Many are the times that projects are
halted due to poor capital. In Zambia this is a major challenge on project management.

7. Capacity Building for Project Managers/Contractors

One of the Challenges of managing projects is the lack of capacity building.
BusinessDictionary.com defines capacity building as Planned development of (or increase
in) knowledge, output rate, management, skills, and other capabilities of an organization

17

through acquisition, incentives, technology, and/or training. Some contractors have not been
building capacity in the area of project management, and have huge challenges in executing
construction projects, after winning the much needed bid. Because of this, they end up
mismanaging the whole project and eventually abandoning the works. This is one of the
major challenges that the Zambian construction industry is facing. Construction companies
must always try to be increasing their capacity building so that they prepared to take on new
and more complex projects.
8. Uncertainty
This consistent lack of alignment demonstrated between owners, architects and contractors
about these extremely important aspects of project control, execution and team
performance highlights a challenge of perceptions within the industry. Every project will
likely run into some amount of unforeseen uncertainty whether its a design error or
emission or something like a weather event. This is another major challenge in managing
projects in Zambia.

2. THEORETICAL AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR CHALLENGES OF

MANAGING PROJECTS IN ZAMBIA
The concept of this research therefore is that, in any given construction project there are
project management challenges. However if the challenges are not mitigated this will result in
18

poor project outcomes, such as the client being unsatisfied with the project, Poor Quality and
ultimately loss of investment.

CONSTRUCTION PROJECT

UNMITIGATED PROJECT
MANAGEMENT

CHALLENGES

LOSS OF INVESTMENT

POOR PROJECT OUTCOME

Unsatisfied Client

Poor Quality

Fig.1: Conceptual framework, Janis Kabwe, 2016

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Literature review
Internet research
Interviews

4. Time Table
ITEM

WORK TO BE DONE

NOTES

19

Days (Covered)

COMMENT

ASSIGNMENT ONE
Submission Date

25/02/20
16
Done

RECEIPT OF ASSIGNMENT &

15/01/20

STUDY
1

16

PRELIMINARY RESEARCH

8 DAYS

Done

20 Days

Done

10 Days

Done

-Introduction
-Research Background
-Research Questions & Objectives
-Problem Formulation
-Conceptual framework
-Rationale
2
LITERATURE REVIEW
6

Done
FILING AND SUBMISSION

2 Days

7
TOTAL DAYS COVERED

40 days

SUMMARY
In summary, the above literature has provided a general overview of project management
as well construction project management. The definition of a project as an endeavor
undertaken to achieve set goals and objectives is very relevant to Project management. It
has been established that every project is unique and that it has unique challenges. If these
challenges are not adequately addressed this results in poor project management and in
poor project outcomes and loss of investment. The above literature confirms that there are
Challenges in managing projects in Zambia.
REFERENCES

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20/02/16

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http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/construction.html#ScDEkAyvGjtfGdsC.99
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