Xianbo Zhao
Central Queensland University
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Featured researches published by Xianbo Zhao.
Construction Management and Economics | 2013
Xianbo Zhao; Bon-Gang Hwang; Sui Pheng Low
Construction businesses are risky ventures and enterprise risk management (ERM) has been advocated in construction companies. To ensure ERM success and the subsequent benefits, it is necessary to understand the key activities of ERM. The objectives are to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) for ERM and analyse the interrelationships among these CSFs in Chinese construction companies (CCCs). To achieve this objective, 16 CSFs were identified through a comprehensive literature review and 89 completed survey questionnaires were received. The results of the analysis show that the three most important CSFs are ‘commitment of the board and senior management’, ‘risk identification, analysis and response’ and ‘objective setting’. Additionally, the three underlying CSF groupings are (1) execution and integration; (2) communication and understanding; and (3) commitment and involvement of top management. The commitment and involvement of top management positively contributed to the communication and understanding as well as the execution and integration of ERM, while the communication and understanding facilitated the execution and integration of ERM. The proposed framework indicating the key ERM practices and the inter-grouping relationships provides an in-depth understanding of ERM in CCCs, compared with the existing not so relevant ERM frameworks in various other industries.
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management-asce | 2013
Xianbo Zhao; Bon-Gang Hwang; Sui Pheng Low
AbstractConstruction firms have been seen as prime candidates for enterprise risk management (ERM) adoption. The ERM maturity assessment helps them to identify weak areas of their ERM implementation and to prioritize resources to improve these areas. The objectives of this paper are to identify the ERM best practices and important ERM maturity criteria in Chinese construction firms (CCFs) and to develop an ERM maturity model for CCFs. Through an in-depth literature review and a questionnaire survey conducted with 89 professionals, a total of 66 applicable ERM best practices and 16 important maturity criteria were identified and thus used in the proposed model. The results indicated that commitment of the board and senior management; risk identification, analysis, and response; and objective setting were the top three most important criteria. In addition, this model adopts the fuzzy set theory to quantify the implementation levels of the best practices. Moreover, this model was applied in a CCF based in Si...
Project Management Journal | 2015
Bon-Gang Hwang; Xianbo Zhao; Yi Lin See; Yun Zhong
The objectives of this study are to identify the risks in green retrofit projects in Singapore; analyze their risk criticalities; compare the risk criticalities between conventional and green retrofit projects; and provide mitigation measures for the critical risks. Twenty risks and 37 mitigation measures were identified from a literature review. A questionnaire survey was performed with 30 professionals experienced in green retrofits, and five post-survey interviews were conducted. The results indicated “post-retrofit tenants’ cooperation risk” was the top risk, and that 19 risks were more critical in green retrofits than in conventional retrofits. Additionally, 28 mitigation measures obtained significant agreement.
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management | 2015
Bon-Gang Hwang; Xianbo Zhao; Lene Lay Ghim Tan
Purpose – The purposes of this paper are to: investigate schedule performance of new and retrofitting green building projects; identify the critical factors that influence the schedule performance of new and retrofitting green building projects; and provide solutions to improve schedule performance of new and retrofitting green building projects. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire survey were conducted and responses were received from 34 firms experienced in green building projects in Singapore. After the data from the survey had been analyzed, face-to-face interviews were conducted with two senior project managers to solicit comments on the survey results. Findings – This study identified the degree of project delay in 98 new green building projects and 51 retrofitting green building projects in Singapore. The result indicated that 22 percent of the Singaporean green building projects were plagued with delay and retrofitting projects had a significantly higher likelihood of delay and significa...
Project Management Journal | 2014
Xiaopeng Deng; Low Sui Pheng; Xianbo Zhao
This study aims to explore the variables affecting the project system vulnerability to political risks in international construction projects. A questionnaire survey was conducted and 138 responses were received from both academia and industry. The exploratory factor analysis was then adopted to uncover the relationships among these variables. The results showed that three exposure factors (i.e., attribute-based exposure, strategy-based exposure, and transaction-based exposure) and three capacity factors (i.e., core competitive capacity, relative bargain capacity, and integrate adaptive capacity) were believed to be the significant underlying factors for the project system vulnerability to political risks. Also, case studies were conducted and the results indicated that the emergent framework was suitable and tractable for application in the future. This study provides a method for measuring the project system vulnerability to political risks; thus, international construction enterprises can decrease their risk exposure and enhance their capacity for dealing with political risks in international construction projects.
The international journal of construction management | 2016
Xianbo Zhao; Bon-Gang Hwang; Hong Ning Lee
In recent years, green building construction has been earning a significant place in Singapores construction industry. The success of a green building project is inevitably associated with the leadership of the project manager. This study attempts to identify the leadership characteristics and styles of project managers in Singaporean green building projects. Conducting a questionnaire survey with 30 project managers experienced in green construction, this study identified 13 leadership characteristics, among which ‘strive for work performance and productivity’ was ranked top. Additionally, the 13 characteristics were categorized into two groupings: (1) directive and task-oriented leadership and (2) relationship-oriented leadership. The results indicated that the leadership style of the project managers was more towards directive and task-oriented leadership but did not overlook their relationships with subordinates. Therefore, this study provides an understanding of leadership characteristics and styles of project managers in green building projects for both practitioners and researchers.
Journal of Management in Engineering | 2015
Bon-Gang Hwang; Xianbo Zhao; Shi Ying Ong
AbstractValue management (VM) has been recognized as an effective method for achieving best value-for-money for clients in the construction industry. This study aims to investigate the VM implementation status in building projects in Singapore, to identify the critical success factors for VM, and to assess the potential risk factors associated with VM studies. To achieve these objectives, a comprehensive literature review was carried out and a questionnaire survey was performed with 50 professionals. The analysis results indicated that VM implementation was relatively low in the Singapore building projects and was significantly associated with project size. In addition, this study reported “communication and interaction among participants” as the most important factor for VM success. Furthermore, potential risk factors were assessed in different VM phases, and the analysis results suggested that “inadequate experience in VM” was the most critical risk factor and that there was agreement on the risk rankin...
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management-asce | 2014
Xianbo Zhao; Bon-Gang Hwang; Sui Pheng Low
Enterprise risk management (ERM) has been practiced in a wide variety of industries, and construction firms have been seen as prime candidates for ERM adoption. The objectives of this study are to develop a computerized knowledge-based decision support system (KBDSS) for ERM and to investigate the ERM maturity in Chinese construction firms (CCFs) based in Singapore. The KBDSS allows users to assess the ERM maturity of their organizations using a fuzzy model and performs the perceptibly complicated mathematical calculations. By conducting a questionnaire survey with 35 Singapore-based CCFs and inputting the relevant data into the KBDSS, the ERM maturity of these firms was assessed. The results suggested that these CCFs had a low level of ERM maturity and that the weakest criterion was the application of a risk management information system. The results also indicated positive association between ERM maturity and firm size, and significant agreement on the ranking of the maturity criteria among all the survey CCFs. The ERM maturity of Singapore-based CCFs can serve as a benchmark, with which the other firms can compare, and the methodology adopted is applicable to other construction firms, thus contributing to the body of knowledge relating to ERM.
Journal of Civil Engineering and Management | 2015
Bon-Gang Hwang; Xianbo Zhao; Gwendolyn Shiyun Yu
AbstractInternational construction joint ventures (ICJVs) have been widely used in large-scale infrastructure projects all over the world. This study aims to investigate the factors affecting adoption of ICJVs for underground rail construction projects, to identify the critical risks faced by parties that perform the projects under ICJVs, and to examine the obstacles to appropriate risk allocation among the parties under ICJVs. To achieve these objectives, an in-depth literature review was carried out and a questionnaire survey was conducted with 33 contractor firms as well. The survey results reported “sharing of project risks” as the top attractive factor of ICJVs and “differences in culture and working style” as the top negative factor. In addition, both foreign and local contractors considered “partners disagree over some conditions in contract” the most critical risk to the parties involving projects under ICJVs. While risk allocation was perceived to be very important for ICJVs, “unclear division of...
Project Management Journal | 2014
Bon-Gang Hwang; Xianbo Zhao; Thi Hong Van Do
This study aims to investigate the influence of coordination problems in glass and metal curtain wall (GMCW) installation on project productivity in Singapore. Trade-level coordination problems in GMCW installation were identified through literature review and included in a survey questionnaire. The survey results indicated that, on average, 66.5 days of rework and 52.5 days of waiting resulted from coordination problems, and that “last-minute changes in design by the client” led to the longest rework and waiting time. Additionally, the rework and waiting time caused by trade-level coordination problems were correlated with the total rework and waiting time.