EVALUATING QUALITY OF PROJECT PLANNING BY CONTRACTORS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

Modern projects are increasingly complex and dynamic, and project managers are continually challenged to complete the projects according to the desired outcomes. More often than not, due to resource and time constraints, project managers are unable to properly perform all the planning processes adequately to improve project performance. Based on the research problem, the research had three objectives: (i) to determine the quality of project planning by investigating the extent of use of planning products by and top management support products for project managers; (ii) to investigate the association between quality of project planning and project success parameters of time performance, cost performance, and customer satisfaction; and (iii) to suggest an appropriate framework which underlines key planning and support products which improves the quality of project planning. A literature review showed that construction project planning significantly influences project performance, and the Project Management Planning Quality (PMPQ) model has been validated to be an effective tool to evaluate the quality of project planning in organisations. Thereafter, 41 data sets were collected using a structured questionnaire adapted from the PMPQ model as the main data collection instrument. The One-sample T-test of the mean found that 12 planning products were used by project managers to a significant extent, whereas seven of the top management support products were observed to be significantly implemented in projects. Through a Pearson’s Correlation test, various planning and top management support products were found to significantly correlate with the project performance parameters. Based on the findings, a Contractors’ Project Planning (CPP) Framework was formulated, which establishes essential planning and top management support products that positively correlate with project performance parameters. The CPP Framework contributes to practice as it can be used by construction firms in Singapore as a lean project planning strategy to enhance the quality of project planning.