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This study aims to examine how embeddedness influences consultants' information seeking when making decisions within a social network of relationships, and how these social networks evolve throughout the project delivery stages. The study is grounded in social network theory and examines embeddedness from three perspectives: structural (network cohesion), relational (tie strength in terms of friendship and knowledge awareness) and actor prominence.

A social network analysis (SNA) questionnaire was administered to a team of consultants working on a management consultancy project in Shanghai, China. The SNA measures of density, degree centrality and betweenness centrality were used to analyse relationship patterns among project team members, permitting comparison between the networks. Networks were also compared across the three project delivery stages of collect, consider and create.

Structural embeddedness was observed in the active information seeking behaviour among consultancy team members. The moderate network density of the self-organising information seeking networks across the project delivery stages ensures that the team remains connected but avoids information redundancy and overload. Relational embeddedness was evident through the multiplexity of ties among team members with overlapping friendship and information seeking relationships. The knowledge awareness network's sparseness indicates a team of autonomous knowledge workers with distributed expertise. Project managers were the most prominent actors across the three project delivery stages, underlining these actors' relational leadership role.

The study provides a deeper understanding of collaborative decision-making behaviours in dynamic-project environments. Limited attempts have been made to visualise and analyse the relationships involved in small consulting teams. The novelty of the network approach adopted stems from its ability to offer a structural view of the relationship among consultants, thus offering a distinctive and arguably more complete picture of consultancy team dynamics.

The study validates the social network theory of embeddedness in a real-world collaborative decision-making setting and provides a deeper understanding of information seeking behaviours for decision-making in dynamic-project environments. From a project management process viewpoint, the evolving nature of the information seeking network as it changes across the project stages with associated actors' roles was also visualised graphically, offering a distinctive and arguably more complete picture of consultancy team dynamics.

This paper explores the impact of multiple team membership (MTM) on the productivity of team members in engineering consulting firms. MTM refers to employees participating concurrently in multiple teams, a concept closely linked to projectification. Despite the fact that this concept can enhance collaboration, it also introduces coordination challenges that may negatively affect productivity.

Through an inductive approach involving 12 semi-structured interviews with engineering consulting professionals specializing in water and energy infrastructure projects, this paper examines the factors affecting team member productivity in an MTM setting. Following the interviews, a Delphi technique was employed, engaging 16 experts to rank the factors and sub-factors identified from the interview data. This two-stage approach ensured a comprehensive and validated assessment of productivity factors.

This study develops 8 factors process model grounded in structuration theory to explain the socio-technical mechanisms by which multiple team membership shapes productivity outcomes in engineering consulting firms specialized in water and energy infrastructure projects. Key findings surface micro-foundations, tensions in technology provisions, planning processes, and career development that inform theoretical advances and practical improvements.

This research contributes empirically insights into managing MTM in expert service contexts. Applying Giddens' structuration theory, this study reveals how agency and structures shape productivity across organizational, team, and individual levels. In practice, this study provides recommendations for improving productivity within projectified environments, mainly for team members working in an MTM environment in engineering consulting firms specializing in water and energy infrastructure projects.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of benefit to learning through developing strong links between universities and industry, and to suggest a methodology for building bridges between university and industry that provides a full learning experience for students.

A case study approach which included the development of interactive projects that join students with industry, and follow‐up questionnaire surveys of the outcomes, carried out among students and businesses.

It was found that both parties feel that they benefit from building bridges between universities and industry, and data from this research are reported on in greater detail in the latter part of this article

Research is limited to students following the Manufacturing Management and Quality Systems courses within the Industrial Engineering Department of the Tecnologico de Monterrey, Mexico, over a one year period.

Provides evidence for a positive factor that linking university students and industry in joint projects increases the potential for a fuller learning experience for the students.

The paper is based on actual experience of students, teachers and companies who participated in this experimental learning process.

Observes that a group of seven undergraduate consultancy project team members, studying in the final year of a business degree, greatly benefited from utilizing Meredith Belbin’s team role theory. Notes that Belbin’s approach was particularly useful in identifying strengths and weaknesses; enabling tasks to be allocated based on competence. Also that a method for retrospective analysis of the team’s performance was developed using Belbin’s framework. In some cases the perception of self differed significantly from the observed actions and behaviours. Points out that each team member completed Belbin’s psychometric test at the outset of the project and that these results were then tested through peer assessment at the end of the project, using a hypothetico‐deductive method. Uses an analogous framework to illustrate the level of cohesion and team role balance necessary for the team to perform effectively. Concludes that the learning potential of students can be maximized by enabling them to experience and reflect on the realities of team working for themselves.

This research aims to assess how marketing-related projects with small- and medium-size enterprises act as a form of experiential learning and help develop entrepreneurial and employability attributes for students in higher education (HE).

The research is based on published material and an evaluation, within HE, of consultancy projects as a final assessment option alongside the well-established dissertation.

External initiatives that embrace experiential learning have helped students develop a better appreciation of client needs, while enhancing their confidence and team-working skills. The institutional degree programme studied is in its seventh year and more than half of students have chosen the project option so far. One key finding is the pivotal role of the academic supervisor and a need for that person to have suitable industry and sector knowledge, as well as effective and empathetic client relationship management abilities.

The study is limited to one programme at one university but, as it encompasses a very broad definition of marketing-related activities, covers several years and is part of a longer-term longitudinal study, it constitutes research from which some conclusions can be drawn.

In addition to enhancing the students’ entrepreneurial and employability attributes, outward-facing activities help enrich the overall student experience and also offer HE institutions an opportunity to raise their profile with external organisations.

With graduate employability rising in importance, initiatives such as these can help develop important graduate attributes and capabilities.

The principal originality and value is that this is a starting point for a potential longitudinal study of the impact of experiential learning and client-orientated projects on graduate career development.

The building sector is one of the main contributors to carbon dioxide emissions in Singapore. Over 90 per cent of life-cycle carbon emissions are due to the operations phase of buildings, and 90 to 98 per cent of the building cost is associated with operation, maintenance and personnel costs. Hence, occupants have a major role in achieving environmental sustainability objectives. This study aims to understand the awareness level of potential homeowners and real estate agents concerning environmental sustainability issues in the built environment, to identify the types of green features required by potential homeowners and to understand real estate agents’ perceptions of the types of green features required by the homeowners in a green condominium.

The features of the Green Mark (GM)-awarded buildings, as well as the benefits derived by homeowners were identified from the literature. A survey of a group of potential homeowners and real estate agents was carried out in Singapore to analyse the gap, if any, between the potential homeowners’ needs and expectations and real estate agents’ perceptions of these needs and expectations with respect to the green features in the homes.

The results indicate that potential homeowners are more aware of environmental sustainability issues in the built environment than are real estate agents; potential homeowners seem to be more supportive of environmentally sustainable development than the real estate agents are aware of, despite the fact that the price of the apartment remains an important deciding factor; and potential homeowners are more concerned about the ease of maintaining green homes and paying greater attention to green features in the areas most heavily promoted by the government. However, green features do not constitute the main considerations of potential homeowners when making the decision to buy a green home.

To close the gaps identified in the analysis, recommendations are suggested, including having public education and awareness campaigns to emphasize the long-term energy savings of green homes, conducting GM courses for real estate agents and involving real estate agents in the developers’ project consultancy team.

As there has been no prior research in this area, this study serves to provide fresh perspectives on how developers can better select the types of green features to be included in the green homes, so as to meet the potential homeowners’ needs and expectations and, at the same time, balance mandatory GM requirements with such demands. Choosing the right type of green features to incorporate in a residential development for homeowners to utilize increases the owners’ satisfaction level and allows them to reap the intended benefits of green features.

In recent years, augmented reality (AR) has shown its potential to assist various construction activities. Its use commonly requires additional refinement to be integrated into the building information modeling (BIM) process. Nevertheless, few studies have investigated AR implementation in BIM-enabled projects because of numerous challenges related to its implementation. This study aims to investigate the implementation of AR in construction and identify the critical mechanisms for implementing BIM-AR successfully.

A mixed methodology was adopted for this study. First, this work presents a bibliometric analysis covering articles obtained from Scopus database published between 2000 and 2022. A sample size of 65 research papers pertinent to AR in construction was analyzed using VOSviewer software. Second, a participatory case study was conducted for a BIM-enabled project in China to gain insight into how BIM-AR implementation in construction is achieved.

The findings from the bibliometric analysis show an increasing interest in AR research within construction. The results indicate that AR research focuses on four clusters: real-time communication, project management, construction activities and education. Findings from the case study provide an empirical experience of AR application scenarios in a BIM-enabled project. Concomitantly, 15 critical success factors that influence BIM-AR implementation were finally identified and demonstrated.

This study provides a rich insight into the understanding and awareness of implementing AR. First, the findings are beneficial to construction practitioners and researchers because they provide a concentrated perspective of AR for emerging activities in the construction industry. Second, the results obtained from the case study could provide a useful guide for effectively implementing AR in a BIM-enabled construction project. Overall, this study may stimulate further research on AR-related studies in construction, such as BIM integration, factor analysis and construction education.

Discusses, in this special issue, material grouped under four main headings: tomorrow’s executive challenges; effective organizational learning; the virtual university model; and effective training capabilities. The items included are brief and to the point allowing the reader to take on board ranges of ideas and issues. Includes studies on IKEA; mentoring; Whitbread; Polaroid; BAA; Sema Group; Starbucks and McDonalds, among others.

Advances in technology and changes in economic factors have resulted in a steady shift towards greater flexibility in working and employment patterns. Argues that this is not a new phenomenon, but the changes do mean that the human resource management function within an organization does need to recognize and implement the changes that are necessary to ensure that organizations and individuals get the support they need to cope with such change.