Exploring the Project Risk Management: Highlighting the Soft Side of Project Management

The majority of the approaches to managing project risk follow the logic of process groups. Project Management Institute (PMI) has 29 tools and techniques related to risk management process groups. Consequently, engineering and business schools have been accused of educating managers with sharp analytical skills but little understanding of social problems. The literature suggests that too much attention is focused on learning the techniques and formalities of risk management but not enough on the advanced issues of management. Also, the literature argues that there are two approaches to project management (hard and soft). The hard side only covers part of the managerial aspects which helps to manage foreseeable uncertainties. However, unforeseeable uncertainties need skills that related to soft side approaches such as emotional intelligence, navigating the organization’s culture, risk attitude, participative leadership style, and managing the relationship with stakeholders. This study provides an intensive review of the literature to discuss the need for integrating the hard and soft sides of management to achieve an effective risk management process. In addition, it proposes a conceptual framework that provides guidelines to enhance overall risk management efficiency.

THE CONCEPT «БЭЮМЭКИТ / HUNT» IN THE EVENKI LINGUISTIC PICTURE OF THE WORLD

Preserving the Evenki concept sphere is one of the most important tasks of modern Evenki studies. The current study is a contribution to the task. This article considers the linguocultural concept of Beyumekit 'Hunt' in the linguistic picture of the Evenki world. Material for analysis was selected from bilingual dictionaries, a comparative dictionary of the Tungus-Manchu languages, as well as from texts written from modern Evenki speakers. More than 200 lexical units representing the concept were analyzed and distributed into 6 groups: 1) hunter, 2) fur animals; 3) hoofed animals, 4) hunting place, 5) dog (hunter assistant), 6) verbs denoting hunting process. Groups 2 and 3 turned out the most frequent. The results showed that the concept is basic in the consciousness of the Evenki, reflecting their worldview. It is concluded that hunting is perceived as one of the most important traditional activity, and the concept of Beyumekit 'hunt' is the basic one in the linguistic picture of the Evenki world as well as in the speakers of other Manchu-Tungus languages.

The Dilemmas of Training, Trauma, and Culture

Looking closely at the dynamics of the process groups, many aspects of Chinese culture are revealed: the focus on privilege within systems, the ubiquity of intergenerational trauma in individuals, the denial of historical trauma. These are detailed stories that do not lend themselves well to being abstracted, but there are stories of abusive childhoods, forced abortion, and the great need for maternal love. As we began to teach supervision, we struggled with the tension between competition and collaboration in co-therapy teams. It was hard initially for them to work together when each of the co-therapists wanted to be the best.

Critical assessment of construction contract administration using fuzzy structural equation modeling

PurposeThis paper covers the development of a multidimensional contract administration performance model (CAPM) for construction projects. The proposed CAPM is intended to be used by the industry stakeholders to measure the construction contract administration (CCA) performance and identify the strengths and weaknesses of the CCA system for running or completed projects.Design/methodology/approachThe research design follows a sequential mixed methodology of qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis. In the first phase, contract administration indicators were collected from relevant literature. In the second phase, an online questionnaire was prepared, and data were collected and analyzed using the crisp value of fuzzy membership function, and structural equation modeling (SEM). The fuzzy set was chosen for this study due to the presence of uncertainty and fuzziness associated with the importance of several key indicators affecting the CCA performance. Finally, SEM was used to test and analyze interrelationships among constructs of CCA performance.FindingsThe data collected from 336 construction professionals worldwide through an online survey was utilized to develop the fuzzy structural equation model. The goodness-of-fit and reliability tests validated the model. The study concluded a significant correlation between CCA performance, CCA operational indicators, and the process groups.Originality/valueThe contribution of this paper to the existing knowledge is the development of a fuzzy structural equation model that serves as a measurement tool for the contract administration performance. This is the first quantitative structural equation model to capture contract administration performance. The model consists of 93 Construction Contract Administration(CCA) performance indicators categorized into 11 project management process groups namely: project governance and start-up; team management; communication and relationship management; quality and acceptance management; performance monitoring and reporting management; document and record management; financial management; changes and control management; claims and dispute resolution management; contract risk management and contract closeout management.

Study to Apply Project Management and Fundamental Competencies for Improvement of Project Activities in University

The present study proposes an idea for project management and fundamental competencies to improve project activities in university. Considering that students are beginners in terms of project activities and that the project term is limited, effective ideas and tools are needed for projects to succeed. In this study, Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide (PMBOK), a well-known reference in business world, is applied to improve project activities. In addition, performance is also critical for ongoing projects. To satisfy this requirement, a definition of “Fundamental Competencies for Working Person” is applied to project activities. A change of students’ recognition from this perspective through the project activities is evaluated. The students felt the lack of making careful planning during their project activities. Moreover, they wish to acquire execution skill to improve their project quality. A two-dimensional map with process groups and knowledge areas defined by PMBOK and competency factors defined by “Fundamental Competencies for Working Person” is proposed to improve the prospects for project execution. This map becomes the useful tool as a procedure and the instruction guide for the project students and the teaching staff, and facilitates improvement in the quality of the project products and the process.