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The purpose of this paper is to improve construction project planning capabilities. As project management is a core capability in the construction industry, high‐quality project planning processes are necessary for project success.

This paper involves data collected from 555 project managers across four industries spanning three different countries. The project planning capabilities of construction project managers are compared with other industrial sectors. In addition, critical project planning processes for the construction industry are identified.

It is found that, relative to other industrial sectors, organisations belonging to the construction sector obtain a high quality of project planning and the highest success rate. In comparison with other sectors, schedule, quality, and procurement planning are most frequently executed in construction projects. Finally, the impact of the different planning processes on project is success are investigated. The processes that have the greatest impact on project success in the construction sector are “activity definition” and “project plan development.” However, construction project managers do not always invest enough effort in these critical planning processes.

Construction project managers wishing to improve project performance at the planning phase of a project should concentrate more on the accurate identification of all project activities. They should focus on the development of a high‐quality project plan that can be approved by key stakeholders.

This paper identifies the most critical planning processes in construction projects. This represents new information for the construction management body of knowledge.

The purpose of this paper is to improve understanding and practice of project management by assessing whether two of its core myths also prevail in international development (ID): first, that project managers (PMs) plan fully for project success, including implementation success and end‐user satisfaction; and second, that they can focus on “getting things done”, free of concern for strategic issues.

The analysis of a high‐profile World Bank project and of the policies and rules under which their PMs operate serves as a means to carry out the research. The authors uncover certain “facts” that challenge the myths that prevail in standard project management. Furthermore, they examine how these facts and the corollaries they produce guide the behaviours of PMs differently in the ID field.

In the ID field, and contrary to the standard practice in project management, it is found that: PMs are not involved in overall planning, and are limited to implementation planning, because they lack the necessary latitude. Hence, they practice project implementation as the art of avoiding making mistakes as they juggle donor procedures and guidelines. Second, PMs are well informed about the overall strategy of their project, which is articulated by the donors and the beneficiary country, but they are limited in their ability to contribute directly to its success. Thus, they may fail to deliver the intended development strategy even if they “get things done”.

This paper argues that these two core PM tenets are convenient myths at best, given the asymmetrical distribution of power, the strong front‐end activity, and the procedures orientation of international development projects.

This paper addresses questions regarding the nature and the content of the work of PMs in the context of ID. In contrast to other sectors, projects are found to be linked more clearly to the higher strategic issues, and yet PMs are less empowered to contribute to them. Thus, all stakeholders may have to revise their expectations regarding what PMs can realistically do in ID. These findings are relevant to scholars and practitioners alike.

The value of this paper lies in examining the basic question of “what PMs do”. Although ID has been project‐oriented since the 1950s, this question has not received much attention in standard PM literature. In assessing “what PMs do”, the paper also brings into question “what project management is”.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate an effective project management practice focusing on planning and control. By doing so, it contributes to the debate on rethinking traditional project management practices and accentuates the need for adjustments based on the project context.

This paper extends the project management theory by proposing a lean project planning (LPP) and control framework, developed and tested in collaboration with ten engineer-to-order (ETO) companies. By following a design science research approach, elements from lean thinking and current project planning and control practices are combined into a maturity model (MM).

ETO project characteristics are identified, and their implications for planning and control are discussed. Nine enablers that transform current project planning and control approaches into a lean approach are defined, allowing the analysis of the underlying complexity of planning and controlling ETO projects and thus facilitating the determination of the actions required to improve project performance.

Once fully embedded in an organization, the presented MM can provide a safe framework for self-criticism and can be used to conduct self-assessments without the need for an external facilitator. Thus, this paper is of particular interest to practicing project managers who aim to implement LPP and control.

To the authors’ best knowledge, this paper is the first to empirically examine the journey toward LPP and control from a MM perspective. This research attempts to describe the enablers of LPP and control.

The purpose of this paper is to address calls from within the existing literature for a planning model that can provide both control and flexibility in dynamic environments.

This research adopts a two-phase grounded theory methodology. Phase I tests a hypothesis through a structured online survey. Phase II tests a new planning model through a focus group and an online survey.

This research finds that client-side project managers misapply rational planning tools when managing construction projects. It also finds that the planning artefacts created in the initial stages of a project are used as a communication tool, rather than a controlling or monitoring tool. These findings provide an opportunity for new planning models, such as the (next decision node) NDN model, to be adopted. These planning tools can create new levels of transparency and accountability within the planning process – as well as provide a model which is more closely aligned with the practitioners “lived experience”.

The NDN model provides a foundation for further research into the micro-mechanisms of organisational ambidexterity in projects and refinement of the NDN model.

This research presents a new planning model which practitioners can adopt when delivering construction projects.

This paper presents a new, ambidextrous planning model grounded on the “lived experience” of client-side project managers.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how certain limitations of the current approaches to planning and scheduling of aircraft heavy maintenance can be addressed using a single integrated framework supported by unified data structures.

The “unitary structuring technique”, originally developed within the context of manufacturing planning and control, is further enhanced for aircraft heavy maintenance applications, taking into account the uncertainty associated with condition‐based maintenance. The proposed framework delivers the advanced functionalities required for simultaneous and dynamic forward planning of maintenance operations, as well as finite loading of resources, towards optimising the overall maintenance performance.

Execution of maintenance operations under uncertainty involves materials changes, rectification and re‐assembly. It is shown that re‐scheduling of materials (spare‐parts), resources and operations can be taken care of by simultaneous and dynamic forward planning of materials and operations with finite loading of resources, using the integrated framework.

As part of adopting the proposed framework in practice, it needs to be guided by an overall methodology appropriate for application‐specific contexts.

The potential direct benefits of adopting the proposed framework include on‐time project completion, reduced inventory levels of spare‐parts and reduced overtime costs.

Existing approaches to aircraft maintenance planning and scheduling are limited in their capacity to deal with contingencies arising out of inspections carried out during the execution phase of large maintenance projects. The proposed integrated approach is, capable of handling uncertainty associated with condition‐based maintenance, due to the added functionalities referred to above.

Previous research regarding shaping factors and major causes behind accidents in the construction field is reviewed. In particular, a hypothetical model is established to correlate activity time, cost and safety in the context of construction activity acceleration planning. Two demonstration cases are presented to illustrate the proposed theoretical model in the context of critical activity expedition planning. Further, a third case uses a 100-activity project to perform the global level total project time and cost analysis, identifying specific activity acceleration plans that would materialize the shortened total project time at the lowest total project cost.

This research proposes a safety-centric application framework to guide construction acceleration planning at both activity and project levels while taking sufficient preventive measures against safety hazards and accidents. As planning construction acceleration by factoring in safety constraints inevitably drives up cost, it is imperative to control increases in activity costs at the local level in connection with schedule acceleration planning while at the same time not compromising on safety. This research also addresses this critical question through performing global level total project time and cost analysis.

An application framework is proposed for guiding a planner through identifying accident shaping factors, obeying schedule acceleration rules and accounting for safety-related costs in attempts to mitigate hazardous situations on-site at both activity level (local) and project level (global), resulting in (1) minimizing the increase of total project cost in schedule acceleration while at the same time not compromising on safety at individual activities; (2) producing specific execution plans on each individual activity in terms of the amount of time to crash and the associated activity cost.

This study is original in developing theories and methods for evaluating the impact of safety constraints upon construction time and cost in activity acceleration planning and project time-cost analysis. The research fills a gap in knowledge in terms of how to factor in sufficient safety constraints while achieving project time and cost objectives on construction acceleration planning at both activity and project levels.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing the Last Planner System (LPS) to improve construction planning practice and enhance site management in the Saudi construction industry.

LPS was implemented in two large state-owned construction projects through an action research process. The data collection methods included interviews, observations and a survey questionnaire.

The findings identify benefits including improved construction planning, enhanced site management and better communication and coordination between the parties involved. The paper describes the critical success factors for LPS implementation. The paper also describes barriers to the realisation the full potential of LPS, including the involvement of many subcontractors and people's commitment and attitude to time.

The work reported in this paper is limited to two case studies.

The study has thus contributed to improving management practice and may aid the establishment of a basis for the development of further research in the area of lean construction. The research outcomes can inform practitioners of the opportunity to implement alternative management methods in construction, and give a good account of the opportunities and challenges. Beside the direct benefits to managerial practice, the study also contributed to practice by offering practical recommendation that can assist in the achievement of the full potential of lean and LPS in Saudi Arabia.

This is the first comprehensive academic study in the Saudi construction sector concerning the application of lean construction principles and techniques. The study has thus contributed to practice and developed a basis for the development of further research in the area of lean construction. It may help construction organisations to establish a new strategy and policies to improve their managerial practice. The outcomes of the case studies can be used as a reference for organisations seeking to improve their managerial practice.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and validate executive sponsor behaviors necessary for successful project implementation during project planning.

A survey of 145 executives and managers interested in project management was conducted. Data were analyzed using principal components analyses with varimax rotation for both behavioral‐ and outcome‐based items. Relationships between variables were analyzed via path analysis.

In total, five sponsor behavior factors were identified including: ensure planning, clarify outputs, stakeholder relationships, support project, and appoint project manager. Additionally, three outcome factors were found: firm's future, meeting agreements (e.g. budgets, scheduling expectations), and customer success. An estimated path model testing the effects of sponsor behaviors on project outcomes indicated six significant paths.

This paper empirically identifies behaviors sponsors may use during project planning and the impact such behaviors have on project success measures. The exploratory nature of this study suggests further research to confirm findings.

This paper provides executive sponsors with a focus during the planning stage when various stakeholders are determining many project details.

The paper adds to the limited body of research on the role of project sponsors. The investigation indicates that as sponsors spend more time performing the three behaviors of ensuring planning, managing stakeholder relations, and appointing the project manager; project success increases as measured by outcome factors.

The purpose of this paper is to describe an approach to information technology (IT) strategic planning for libraries and institutions of higher education.

The “why, what, and how” of IT strategic planning for libraries is explained, to show the efficacy and value of long‐term IT planning and budgeting. The organization, design, processes, templates, and methodologies of IT strategic planning practices that have been proven and constantly refined through projects with academic, public, and national libraries are described.

Principles described for IT strategic planning as a team‐based enterprise learning process apply as well to the design and conduct of major IT procurements, where the organization also seeks best value IT outcomes for the long term. The approach is scalable with respect to the human resources and time required (e.g. three months, six months); the design and steps of the process; the methodologies employed; and the number, design, format, components, and contents of internal working documents and the published report(s).

IT strategic planning educates the institution about choices and consequences, decides on technology priorities and investments, makes informed decisions with confidence, and delivers consensus‐based outcomes and stakeholders' buy‐in.