The performance of a Contractor is judged from the analysis of the following factors.
- Effective communication-without communication, it is impossible to establish a relationship with anybody, communication as a factor to a healthy relationship is as important as blood is to the human body (Atuahene et al., 2017).it involves keeping clients informed in a simple language that they can understand and listening to what they have to say and providing feedback (Rahman & Alzubi, 2018).it involves adjusting the complexity of the communication to be equal to the understanding level of the client.it should adequately explain the expected quality of the finished project and service, the exact cost of the service, tradeoffs between price and service and the assurance to the client that their project will be handled with utmost efficiency.
- Professionalism-it involves abiding by the laid down procedures and ethics in the construction industry. It is an essential input in the relationship between the client and the contractor. The construction industry employs the law of contract with the aim of the client getting the best possible quality of the project from the services of the contractor and the contractor benefiting from the client by getting his pay and establishing customer loyalty (Atuahene et al., 2017).customers are always right and must be treated as much in any business.however, the law the contractor cannot get into a contract with a customer who does not redeem his part of the deal, and the customer cannot get into a contract with a contractor who does not do quality work.
- Adherence to the budget-the contractor must endeavour to stick to the budget estimate of the project from inception to completion. According to Rahman & Alzibu (2018), clients are more loyal to contractors who work within the worked out budget as this minimizes the possibility of the project from stalling.
- Adherence to schedule-the adherence to construction time is a critical determinant in the success of the project. Time performance is measured by comparing the actual and planned duration of the project.it largely depends on the early commitment of the project schedule. (Rahman & Alzibu.2018).
- Good workmanship-experience, skills, goal and commitments will influence quality services and full-service provision and consequently, customer satisfaction which is a critical component of the client contractor relationship. (Rahman & Alzibu, 2018). For proper artistry to be in place, active management is required. The dimensions of control that are of importance here include material management, workforce management, plant management, management and coordination of subcontractors, the strength of the contractor site team and proactive attitude towards problems. The management of subcontractors is particularly very crucial in determining the success of the project. The engagement of subcontractors enables the main contractor to be flexible in responding to the ups and downs of the market. Unstable demands and seasonality have led to most construction firms to split into autonomous units and therefore rely on subcontractors to take up some of the work packages (Olabosipo et al., 2011). Most construction firms have preferred to be flexible and not do all the work involved in the construction process and instead prefers to use the services of subcontractors .furthermore, due to the growth of the practice of outsourcing of labour in business, most construction firms have delinked from the physical work of the construction process and instead engage more on services. This has created room for subcontractors. The construction process also has a particular characteristics of uncertainty coupled with discontinuities and a lot of interrelated tasks which change from stage to stage and is, therefore, best handled by parties that cam best control these unique features (Olabosipo et al. 2011). All these have increased the role of subcontractors which then calls for the need of the main contractor to have more effective management strategies to oversee the functions of the subcontractors.
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Participants
Due to the limited time that was available for this study, this research was conducted with 40 respondents who are stakeholders in residential buildings in England. Participants were conveniently sampled to suit the objectives of the researcher Participants were randomly picked. Arrangements were made by first contacting the participants through phone calls for introductions and explanation of the nature of the study their participation was needed. This was followed by emailing of the questionnaires for the respondents to fill and send them back. The surveys were conveniently prepared to ensure accuracy of the data collected since they were closed-ended .since face-to-face administration of the questionnaires was not possible due to the challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, responses that were not clear were further followed up for clarification through phone calls.
Each construction firm that was selected as a representative of a category in classes A, B, C and This was done so in recognition of their financial strength. Category A had the highest resource strength. This decreases through B and C with category D having the least resource base. The respondents were senior management staff who had levels of experience, making them suitable to hold positions of project managers. All of these construction firms have worked with both private and public clients. According to Atuahene et al. (2017), this made them even more suitable for this study bearing in mind that interactions with different levels and types of clients makes exposes one to more interaction techniques hence more wealth of information on the subject of client-contractor relationship.
3.2 Data collection Method
Data was collected through interviews and administration of questionnaires of the randomly sampled participants. Due to the challenges brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, these tools were electronically administered to minimize contact and prevent possible transmission. Qualitative data was collected since the research questions did not require the collection of numeric data. The questionnaires used to obtain data in this exercise were closed-ended. These questionnaires were developed based on the relationship indicators that were identified in the literature review. They were comprised of two sections; the first section sought demographic information from respondents. The demographic information the questionnaire asked to find out included firm ownership, firm classification, industrial experience and potential clients of the company. The second section in the survey sought to find out the views of the respondents on the measures for improving client-contractor relationships. On a score of 1to 5 on the Likert scale (where one equates to highly insignificant and five relates to highly significant), the respondents were asked to score the significance of the identified measures in improving the relationship between clients and contractors in projects. The identified measures which the respondents were asked to grade on their level of significance included professionalism of both parties (clients and contractors), contractor and client satisfaction, effective communication between the client and the contractor, commitment of both parties, ensuring trustworthiness, flexibility in terms of the project contract, conformance of contract agreement from both parties, attaching importance to the project by both parties to ensure continuity, achieving fairness from both parties, ensuring good health and safety practice, adaptation to change, the achievement of justice from both parties, interdependence, proper contract development and developing shared goals and objectives.
This research was specific to residential housing projects in England and targeted key participants, i.e. project contractors and clients.
3.3 Research Strategy
The research strategy is broadly divided into two, namely, quantitative and qualitative approaches. Let us first look into what qualitative approach is; according to Zikmund (2010), ‘it is a research that addresses business objectives through techniques that allow the researcher to provide elaborate interpretations of market phenomena without depending on numerical measurement. Its focus is on discovering true inner meanings and new insights.
Research strategy provides a set of procedures or logic that are used to answer research questions, mostly the why and what questions. A process of reasoning whereby a logical conclusion is drawn from a set of general premises is known as a deductive research strategy. Deduction in the methodological literature is a data analysis, theory and explanation approach that looks at empirical social research as conducted based on a hypothesis derived from social theory, this is ten tasted against empirical observation and then used to confirm the original theoretical proposition.
On the other hand, quantitative research addresses research objective by using empirical assessments which involves numerical measurement and analysis approaches. Quantitative research requires less interpretation, so therefore it can stand on its own. For instance, in a case where a research objective involves a managerial action standard, quantitative research is most appropriate. I.e. a restaurant that is considering changing its recipe, the new method will be tested by some consumer and by using numeric scales, each consumer will rate the original product if the consumers estimate the new product higher than the old product by a certain percentage than the new product will replace the old product. A project like this can use both quantitative analyses in the form of applied statistical procedures and quantitative measurement in the way of numerical rating scales.
A critical and thorough literature review is essential to be done by the researcher to understand the background of the research area fully. This helps to identify the relevant frameworks and theories needed to carry out the said research. This background study will direct the researcher to regulate if he needs to adopt either primary or secondary data collection or both in most cases. Meanwhile, before administering the questionnaire, the experience of the respondents must be considered. This is to make sure that the respondents have the required knowledge to respond to the survey. However, this could be very tricky as there are no recognized and acceptable evaluation tools or framework to determine the level of knowledge of the respondents (Saunder et al., 2019).
3.3 Research design
The cross-sectional research design was employed in this research. This was preferred because it is relatively quick to carry out. The study adopted an inductive approach instead of a deductive approach. This is because the area of interest for the research did not require the development of theory but rather the testing of a method. Plano and Clark (2011) opined that the inductive approach does not require an existing theoretical position, but the deductive approach does. By contrast, the inductive approach uses the data collected to extract patterns to test a theory, but this does not mean that arguments should be ignored while drafting the research question and objectives. This can be interpreted as good knowledge of appropriate methods, and previous literature should be acquired by researchers to understand the most appropriate approach to adapt adequately.
CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS
4.1 Introduction
The purpose of this chapter is to include a description of the target population and an overview of the data collected from the survey process. Data as per the answers to the questionnaires are presented, followed by an interpretation of the data and then a discussion. The topic included supporting studies that confirm the results of the current study.
The analytical technique appropriate for data analysis is determined by the required information, characteristic of the research design and nature of the gathered data. Statistical analysis may range from portraying a simple frequency distribution to more complex multivariate analyses, i.e. multiple regressions (Zikmund, 2010).
The Cronbach reliability test was run in this study and data was analyzed using mean score ranking with a test value of 3.5 (P < 0.05) to identify significant factors for building the relationship between clients and contractors in UK residential buildings. The test value of 3.5 was chosen because the most critical factors that can improve the client-contractor relationship were sought after. The data collected was subjective because the researcher was the instrument.
4.2 Sampling technique
Sampling is the process of selecting an individual from a large population, and the outcome drawn from the sample is generalized to the whole community (Bhattacharyya, 2006). A good example should be a true representative of the general population since it can be used to describe the characteristics of the general population.
Convenient sampling technique was used. The researcher chose to work with the respondents that are well known to him to collect as much data as possible. This also helps to maximize the response rate and minimize or even avoid the attrition rate. These participants were also selected because of their known location. The researcher preferred working with respondents nearby to reduce expenses that could be incurred in movement and travelling. Other respondents referred to some of the respondents; hence it also took the form of snowball sampling technique. Balter & Brunet (2012) supports this by suggesting that critical participants can be used to access other suitable respondents. The latter fit the required profile for better reliability of data that will be collected. Snowball techniques also allow the researcher to employ their judgment in the selection of suitable respondents who can be relied on to give accurate data.
4.3 Ethical consideration
The confidentiality of the participants concerning the information they gave was protected since no name of any participant was recorded in this dissertation. The responses that they provided were also not disclosed .information collected was reported in such a way that it was no possible to identify the respondents, especially those that gave their personal opinions. This ensured anonymity and conformed to the internationally accepted ethical standards. The consent of the respondent was asked before the interview was conducted. Therefore, the industry was protected as the researchers held the highest integrity while doing the research. The participants of the researchers also played a significant role in making sure the data provided by them were accurate enough to initiate the possibility of better products to all the other consumers. Excellent professional ethics were followed in the treatment of the researchers and the research results (Zikmund, 2010). The aim of the research was well explained to the respondents, and they fully understood it before engaging in the study. No compensation of money, gifts or any other form was given to the respondents as this would have made the willingness of respondents to provide information appear bribed. The consent and desire of the respondents to participate in the study was out of their own free will and were never coerced by the researcher .they even had the option of dropping out of the process of giving information although this was not encouraged. The style and approach that the researcher had for the respondents were professional; there was no emotional harm that was caused the minds of the respondents in the course of collecting the data. Ethical clearance was also obtained from the school authorities to not only make an introduction to the respondents easy but also to assure them that the information they would give was going to be treated with utmost confidentiality and integrity.
4.4 Research timeframe
The diagram shows the timeframe that was used by the researcher. It cuts across online lectures, drafted aims and objectives, meetings with supervisors, submission of concluded proposal, submission of ethical approval, data collection, emailing of questionnaires, conducting interviews, collection and compilation of surveys, data analysis and discussion, presentation of a draft to the supervisor, final submission.
WEEKS
JUNE-SEPT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
online lecture
drafted aims and objectives
meeting with the supervisor
concluded proposal
submission
of proposal
submission of ethical approval
start data collection
distribution of questionnaire
conduct interview
collection of questionnaire
data analysis and discussion
submission of draft to my supervisor
final submission
Demography of Respondents
Demography details
Options
frequencies
Percentage
Ownership of construction firm
Indigenous
Foreign
Both
20
10
10
50
25
25
Total
40
100
Firm classification
Category A
Category B
Category C
Category D
10
20
10
0
25
50
25
Total
40
100
Experience in the construction industry
0-5 years
5-10 years
10-15 years
More than 15 years
0
20
20
0
0
50
50
0
Total
4
100
Clients
Private
Public
both
0
20
20
0
50
50
Total
40
100
50% of the selected firms had relatively large resource base indicating their ability to accommodate the clients’ needs and preferences better.25% of the firms had a large resource base. This reflected their dominant nature in terms of their financial and technical abilities in attending to the needs of the clients. A further 25% were in the category of low resource base hence were limited in terms of financial strength. Furthermore, 50% of the construction firms had 5-10 years of experience in the construction work, and a further 50 % had between 10-15 years of experience in the construction business. This is fairly long enough time to build a culture of positive customer relations for the satisfaction of both parties. Half of the construction firms selected (50%) had dealt with both private and public clients. This shows that they have developed diverse ways of dealing with the varying levels of need and preferences of the clients. 50% of the selected construction firms that took part in the study had the status of indigenous ownership, further boosting their ability to respond to the needs of the clients, the majority of who are locals. This is because they better understand the culture, suitable locations and are better placed to select sub-contractors and other stakeholders in the construction industry for more efficient partnering to deliver the objectives of the construction project. 25% had the status of foreign ownership, and another 25% was a mixture of both international and indigenous purchase.
According to Olabosipo et al., (2011), the main contractor engages other stakeholders in the construction industry, including subcontractors, equipment dealers, financial institutions and many others. This is especially true when the project requires special skills and inputs that are best provided by a specialist in that particular area. Subcontractors, therefore, play an essential role in the construction business in responding to the emerging needs and challenges of the construction business.
4.5 Reliability test
Conducting reliability test on the Likert scale set of questions creates room contributes in determining the credibility of the results, (B. K Baiden et al., 2018)This informed the running of the Cronbach alpha test on the responses that were received from the respondents. A coefficient of 0.835 was recorded. The various factors used in the measurements of the client-contractor relationship recorded a ratio of between 0.813 to 0.846.these coefficients recorded were within the levels of acceptability. All the factors that affect the client-contractor relationship were recorded and graded according to their mean score.
Factors
Mean score
Standard deviation
Ranking
Professionalism from both parties
4.2797
1.0441
1
Achieving client and contractor satisfaction
4.200
0.8866
2
Effective communication between parties
4.1034
1.0255
3
Ensuring commitment from both parties
4.0900
1.0535
4
Attaching importance to the project by each party to ensure continuity
4.0276
0.9926
5
Ensuring trustworthiness between the parties
4.0138
1.1055
6
Conformance to contract agreement from both parties
4.0069
1.0411
7
Achievement of fairness from both parties
3.9379
0.9518
8
Ensuring good health and safety practices
3.8276
1.2153
9
Proper contract development
3.7103
1.0796
10
Adaptation to change
3.5793
1.0971
11
Ensuring flexibility in the terms of contract between the parties
3.5211
1.1091
12
Interdependence
3.3103
1.0770
13
Development of common goals and objectives
3.2621
1.0867
14
10 of the 12 factors ranked were marked as significant, i.e. they had values higher than 3.5.from the analysis provided, it was proved that seven of these factors were substantial critical factors in the maintenance of relationships between the client and the contractor. These are professionalism from both parties at 4.2797, achieving client and contractor satisfaction at 4.2000, effective communication between parties at 4.1034, ensuring commitment from both parties at 4.0900, attaching importance to project by each party to ensure continuity at 4.0276, ensuring trustworthiness between parties at 4.0138 and conformance to contract agreement by both parties at 4.0069.however there were other significant measures included providing excellent health and safety practices at 3.8276, proper contract development at 3.7103, ensuring flexibility in terms of the contract between the parties at 3.5211, interdependence at 3.3103 and development of common goals and objectives at 3.2621