Scope of Inquiry
Risk management, trust, and relationship management are among the tasks requiring unparalleled keenness and attention for commercial and construction industries. Risk management involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating the uncertainties or hazards that deter the focus and objectives of an industry. Processes involved in risk management are critical in construction industries since they entail a myriad of problem-solving techniques and evaluation approaches to alter and minimize harm and adverse scenarios associated with a project. Relationship management creates an understanding of how participants relate and the resultant impact on the success of the organization’s project. Trust between the organization’s management and project partners contributes toward the effective completion of projects due to open communication. This section focuses on providing a risk, trust, and relationship management assessment report through an evaluation of a strategic commercial contract (SCM) case study. The report focuses on the Cardiff Millennium Stadium as the organization in a predesigned case to evaluate various concepts and aspects associated with trust, risk, and relationship management in a construction paradigm.
Reasons for Choosing the Topic
Effective and successful risk management programs help organizations consider the full range of risks. Risk management examines the underlying relationship between risks and the cascading impact they could have on organizations’ strategic objectives. Construction projects are subject to the unpredictability of emerging events that might contribute to enormous risks. Therefore, managing risk in construction projects has become a vital milestone in achieving project objectives in terms of cost, time, safety, quality, and environmental sustainability. Risk management studies will significantly aid my future career development as a project risk manager.
Presenting Needs
The pressing need for the Cardiff Millennium project is the risk of financial losses as a result of the underestimated budget that exceeded in different intervals of construction phases. The issue of financial loss was caused by the failure of the primary contractor to deliver the Millennium Stadium Project within the expected timeline and budget estimate. Another pressing issue for the Cardiff Millennium Project is the risk of transferring litigation from the primary contractor to the owner due to the border scandal between CRFC and WRU. This report suggests that the risks of financial losses could have been addressed by hiring financial experts. These professionals provide financial assessments and audits to determine estimated costs against actual expenditures. On the other hand, the problem of border litigation can be addressed by advising Millennium Stadium Plc. to hire independent design consultants for construction projects.
Significant Background Factors
Significant background factors and context to the risk management in the Cardiff Millennium Stadium include evaluation and assessment of appropriate financial and expert audits in financial expenditure and independent design consultants. I aspire to work as a financial risk manager and change organizations’ risk management approaches to different contracts and projects. I understand that risk management helps contractors to reduce the risk associated with different projects they govern and the risk of financial losses is no exemption. Overall, the risk management topic is essential because it will strengthen my future career development in identifying potential problems before they occur and leveraging losses.
Course Concepts and Models
Literature Review
This section critically identifies and analyses literature on risk management, trust, and relationship management in strategic commercial and contract management. Several articles are examined here to understand what trust, risk management, and relationship management promote in a project, particularly regarding the construction industry. Twelve publications are included in this literature review, addressing risk management, trust, and relationship management. Many publications on the subject were located and classified using Google Scholar based on the three topics mentioned above. The articles were chosen based on their depth and ability to address the inquiry topic.
Risk Management
Sarfraz and Ivascu (2021) define risk management as identifying, assessing, and controlling an organization’s capital risks. Effective risk management strategies are essential in allowing project managers to identify the project’s strengths, opportunities, weaknesses, and threats (Rendon et al., 2017). Corresponding studies by Buganová and Šimíčková (2019) and Urbański et al. (2019) state that risk management equips one with the knowledge to plan for uncertainties and unexpected events creating preparedness to respond when they occur. The success of a project is enhanced by defining how to handle potential risks so that problems can be identified and mitigated. Risk management is vital because a project’s goals depend on planning, preparation, results, and evaluation that guide the achievement of strategic goals.
Dwivedi (2021) researched the role of stakeholders in enhancing risk management in an organization’s project success. The study found that risk management was a collective responsibility of every party in a project milestone to ensure fewer losses in case an unplanned event occurs to the project partners. Hilorme et al. (2019) emphasize collaboration in finding risk-mitigating strategies by stakeholders. Collaboration and sharing of ideas between stakeholders and contractors, therefore, help to assess points of strengths and weaknesses a project could hold and provide a cushioning emergency response. Current research by Sarfaz and Ivascu (2021) on risk management asserts that organizations need to manage risks through the strategic planning of a project. Strategic planning is essential in risk management in preventing the enormous losses usually experienced when an unexpected event occurs at any given phase in a project’s lifecycle.
Rendon et al. (2019) researched the benefits of risk management in the strategic management of different projects to understand why projects differ in their success rates. Project contractors and stakeholders from five construction projects were interviewed on how risk management impacted their success. This study revealed that risk management was significant in identifying, evaluating, and mitigating the adverse impact that results from risks that arise in different phases of a project (Rendon et al., 2019). Risk assessment is necessary for contractors and industries to reduce losses that result from uncertainties (Wu et al., 2017). Commercial construction industries, therefore, need to lay down strategic plans that enhance preparedness to handle losses that arise from unexpected events.
Relationship Management
Li et al. (2022) performed research to examine the impact of relationship-related and process-related on the success of a project. The research relied on interviews and richly available literature sources to obtain adequate and relevant information on the impact of relationship management on the success of a project. According to Li et al. (2022), an effective relationship between parties involved in a project is a sure way to transition every phase within a project’s lifecycle successfully. Further, the research found that project-related factors such as coordination and communication were deemed of important use between parties in a project for timely response to a given need in a contract. However, this study suggests that there are more effective determinants of a project’s success regarding relationship management. Multiple meditations and stimulus-organism-response paradigms also prove effectiveness in a project’s success. Thus, a robust relationship between contractors and project partners helps to provide a cohesive environment and open communication in a project (Rajhans, 2018). A healthy relationship between each party in a project helps foster a smooth and successful completion.
Ahmad et al. (2019) aimed to determine the existing relationship between managerial expertise and other project partners to determine a project’s success rates, while Briggs (2022) studied project performance. The studies show a strong correlation in communication between managerial expertise and partners for the success of a project. However, the study suggested that relationship management must be backed up by linking the project scope with its success. This link helps to achieve accurate estimates of expenditure and budgeting for a given project (Li et al., 2022). Appropriate action is determined early in every project lifecycle stage when flawless communication exists.
Trust
Trust plays a crucial role in optimizing performance by participants in a project. The research study by Li et al. (2020) shows that trust in a project serves two primary purposes that drive every party toward the primary objective of success. This study reveals that organizations that ensure high trust tend to maintain their focus on what they need without worrying about factors such as safety and security. For this reason, this research not only provides the significance of trust between parties involved in a project but also creates a distracting environment. The aspect of trust, therefore, promotes a positive impact on the general mental status and emotional well-being of parties involved in a project.
A trusted network between project participants helps create a platform through which all members can easily share knowledge. Bhatti et al. (2021) studied the impact of trust between participants on the project’s success. The research study collected 175 project team members from different industries to test whether trust played a significant role in ensuring a project’s success. The findings were analyzed by structural equation modeling to illustrate behaviors associated with parties involved in a project. The results confirmed that trust between participants in a project mediates a sound relationship between trust and the success of a project. Bhatti (2021) asserts that trust in strategic management helps solve and navigate challenges due to exceptional degrees of transparency in highlighting faults and shortcomings in an organization. Participants in a project need to understand that success is achievable through trust as it facilitates coordination and working together to increase the overall project’s success rate.
Emergent Insights and Knowledge
Organizations’ primary objective and focus are drawn toward successfully establishing a project. Project managers and organizations work effortlessly to ensure success because risks involved in different projects might lead to losses in terms of finance, quality, and competitive advantage of the industry. The concept of trust, risk management, and relationship management in SCM are significant for organizations that deal with construction projects. The construction of the Cardiff Millennium Stadium was impacted by SCM principles of trust, risk management, and relationship management before it could be accomplished. This section analyses the relationship between risk management, trust, and relationship management associated with the construction of Millennium Stadium and how the project partners and participants would have done differently to achieve success.
The construction of the Millennium Stadium was faced with financial risks and transfer of litigation between the contractor and project owner due to border rivalries. These risks slowed down the progress and pace at which the Millennium stadium was expected to be completed (Harris et al., 2021). Principles of risk management state procedures through which risks can be averted (Kim et al., 2021). It further stipulates mitigation procedures that can be followed to reduce the adversity of risk events. Like other projects, the Millennium Stadium suffered the risk of financial losses due to underestimated budget and expenditure costs. The client and the contractor of the Millennium Stadium would have managed the risk of financial losses by deploying expert audits and financial experts. These experts would have helped the Millennium project partners helped in providing financial assessments and determination of accurate expenditures and costs which would have provided strategies to avert risk.
Border disputes could have been solved by employing an independent design consultant. Moreover, assessment and evaluation procedures by risk managers, contractors, and the client could have been done before the construction of the Millennium Stadium. These procedures facilitate the timely attainment of objectives in a contract and reduce costs incurred on a project. Risk management enhances a project’s success within the time frame allocated, efficiently predicting possible risks like financial losses.
Trust is an ethical requirement that propels the success of a project in any organization. Thus, a lack of trust between participants in a project may pose risks such as wasting time and resources (Bond-Barnard et al., 2018). The contractor and the client in Cardiff Millennium Stadium’s construction lacked trust. As a result, the project was hindered by several drawbacks, including financial losses. The contractors of the Millennium Stadium showcased certain levels of discrepancies in their tendering procedures. For this reason, the trust relationship between the contractor and client in the Millennium Stadium was not established to bring the project success. The contractor and the client could have developed stringent policy frameworks to uphold every participant accountable for malpractices in the project. In addition, the contractor should have developed a framework policy incorporating independent financial auditors in evaluating financial progress.
Relationship management is a strategic factor that helps to build a lasting relationship between organizations. Success is more likely to be achieved in a cohesive and open union than independently and in a loose organization (Kamiya et al., 2021). Various literature has suggested the need for a successful relationship between parties in contract management. The relationship between contractors and clients in the Millennium Stadium was ineffective in helping the project milestones succeed. There was a lack of communication and sharing of knowledge concerning the project from the management. As a result, the collaboration between contractors and the client was insignificant during the project implementation. However, there is more that the parties involved in the project could have done to oversee all stages of the contract to increase efficiency and reduce risk.
Four suggestible steps would have been taken to successfully implement the Millennium Stadium project. These steps would have included connecting change management to the project’s goals and successes, making change credible for project leaders and team members, communicating effectively, and proactively addressing concerns in the contract. The role of risk management would have, thus, effectively been played by enabling each team member in the project to become a student of the project.
Due to inefficient risk aversion approaches, drawbacks in projects are not surprising in the current world and the past histories of project implementation. However, available literature by different scholars suggests the need to learn from past experiences and failures to plan for appropriate mitigation ways of managing risk. Hitches showcased in the Millennium Stadium can be reframed to fit into the role played by early strategic planning in organizations. When success objectives are viewed from the strategic perspective, project participants will quickly identify, evaluate, and assess possible harm a risk may cause if not prevented. However, project stakeholders in a contract should focus more on change in management to prevent more delays and waste of time and resources. Risk aversion methods were not easily implemented from past experiences, which posed a great risk to many projects. However, there exist numerous aspects, specifically technology-guided techniques, which manage risk in the world today. Innovation and losses resulting from risk should not be a problem affecting the organization’s duties in project management.
The literature review on risk management, trust, and relationship management has promoted the understanding of the critical aspects and concepts in strategic contract management. These principles and concepts direct project managers toward successful implementation (Shamim, 2022). The sources used in this report’s literature review have still left some questions unanswered. For instance, ways in which change management is easily implemented in the contract without altering the project’s lifecycle to avoid future delays in projects such as the Millennium Stadium. The strategic contract management concept of risk, trust, and relationship ensures full portfolio delivery in its full value, effective team operation, and protection of organizations from potential risks (Shamim, 2022). Organizations, contractors, and clients need to prioritize the role of technology, high-value tasks, and cross-functional collaboration in projects to manage risk effectively. Generally, the literature boosted my past understanding of risk management approaches by deploying risk aversion tools.
Key Learning and Action Points
Lessons Learnt at Individual, Team, and Organization Levels
Strategic contract management is a central part of implementing a project’s success. It helps individuals focus on project success and stay guided by various objectives set in a contract (Shamim, 2022). Trust, risk management, and the relationship between the project’s team members promote quality work and save time and resources. Assessment of resultant risk in a project in a team helps to share knowledge that contributes towards reduced losses (El-Sayegh et al., 2021). Employers should develop trust as it is an ethical requirement in strategic contract management (Yu et al., 2021). Trust guides leaders to avoid discrepancies in the use of resources, allocation of contracts, and hiring process.
Recommendations at the Individual, Team, and Organizational Levels
The case of the Cardiff Millennium Stadium is a vivid example that brings revelation of the significant lapses in the appropriate tendering and management of projects. However, ineffective communication and understanding of processes involved in the project’s lifecycle and success lead to most projects’ financial losses (Rajhans, 2018). There are numerous potential routes for the implementation of recommendations. These recommendations have a significant impact that varies from individual, team, and organizational levels.
I would recommend that individuals develop positive relationship ties with their fellow project members to enhance collaboration. Leaders should be consistent with their ethical skills that involve trust, communication, and timely sharing of knowledge with their sub-contractors to avoid losses that arise from risks. Partnering teams in a project need to effectively follow the process of systematically and efficiently managing contract execution and analyzing the need to maximize operational and financial performance and minimize risk. Unlike in the past, the role of risk management and mitigation procedures has been simplified, and risks have become manageable with tools such as risk registers and SWOT analysis for businesses and projects. Further, project participants need to enhance social responsibility and collaboration in organizations.
Critical Reflection
Analyzing the relationship between risk, trust, and relationship in the case study of constructing the Millennium Stadium has impacted and developed my competence in managing and mitigating financial risks and losses in the future. This experience has inspired me with a different perspective on how to approach the process involved in managing financial and other future risks. I was inspired by how this assessment shed light on numerous approaches to managing financial loss risks as my future career role. I discovered and learned that I could bring changes in organizations by suggesting appropriate models and principles that reduce the effects of risks.
I will utilize the knowledge I have gained in risk management in my career and daily life, specifically in managing unexpected events such as accidents while touring different places and places of work. This case study has influenced me to develop a positive mentality towards teamwork cooperation, trust between team members, and a healthy relationship between contractors and clients to facilitate projects’ successes. I look forward to perfecting my skills and role in financial risk management by adapting to modern methods and approaches to managing risks in projects I will be in charge of in my future career.
Reference List
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