A sustainable infrastructure delivery model: value added strategy in the Nigerian construction industry

The current economy reforms strategy by the Nigerian government promotes competition among private contractors, which are comprised of local and foreign contractors, in order to achieve value added infrastructure delivery. Resulting competitive bidding processes between multinational construction corporations (MCC) and local construction contractors (LCC) has had mixed comments among stakeholders, with a need for a more sustainable and holistic value approach identified. The aim of this research is to develop a sustainable infrastructure delivery model (SID). The key research methodology is based on extensive literature review and questionnaire survey. SID is developed on the principles and philosophy of soft system methodology (SSM) and analytic network process (ANP). In order to evaluate the significance of MCC and LCC through SID model, questionnaire surveys were conducted. Feedback was collected from experts in the Nigerian construction sector who assessed the relative importance of formulated decision criteria, which were sought under 7 key factors. Data simulation revealed that, through competitive bidding, significant achievements have been made in the delivery of constructed facilities. It was also found that the policy lacked holistic value principles that integrated ethical stance and monetary returns on investment. In this study, SID framework has been presented, clearly showing needs for integration of economic and ethical stances in order to achieve a sustainable infrastructure delivery

Expanding to outward foreign direct investment or not? A multi-dimensional analysis of entry mode transformation of Chinese private exporting firms

This research examines the factors determining whether or not exporting firms expand to outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) as part of their internationalisation strategy, using a recent survey of Chinese private-owned enterprises. We carry out a multi-dimensional analysis to investigate the impact of firm productivity, internal resources and the external environment on OFDI decisions, including both the decision to undertake OFDI and the volume of OFDI flows. It is found that productivity, technology-based capability, export experience, industry entry barriers, subnational institutions and intermediary institutional support affect firms’ OFDI decisions. The findings have important policy and managerial implications

Electronic information sharing in local government authorities: Factors influencing the decision-making process

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in International Journal of Information Management. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2013 Elsevier B.V.Local Government Authorities (LGAs) are mainly characterised as information-intensive organisations. To satisfy their information requirements, effective information sharing within and among LGAs is necessary. Nevertheless, the dilemma of Inter-Organisational Information Sharing (IOIS) has been regarded as an inevitable issue for the public sector. Despite a decade of active research and practice, the field lacks a comprehensive framework to examine the factors influencing Electronic Information Sharing (EIS) among LGAs. The research presented in this paper contributes towards resolving this problem by developing a conceptual framework of factors influencing EIS in Government-to-Government (G2G) collaboration. By presenting this model, we attempt to clarify that EIS in LGAs is affected by a combination of environmental, organisational, business process, and technological factors and that it should not be scrutinised merely from a technical perspective. To validate the conceptual rationale, multiple case study based research strategy was selected. From an analysis of the empirical data from two case organisations, this paper exemplifies the importance (i.e. prioritisation) of these factors in influencing EIS by utilising the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique. The intent herein is to offer LGA decision-makers with a systematic decision-making process in realising the importance (i.e. from most important to least important) of EIS influential factors. This systematic process will also assist LGA decision-makers in better interpreting EIS and its underlying problems. The research reported herein should be of interest to both academics and practitioners who are involved in IOIS, in general, and collaborative e-Government, in particular

Construction costs and value management: study of multinational practices in Nigeria

The practice of multinational construction corporations (MCC) in Nigeria construction industry has been viewed as a value for money approach through construction cost management. Assessment of the opportunity cost of the initiatives is equally important in order to gauge the progress of millennium development goals (MDGs), set up by the United Nations in 2000 on human development in developing countries. The study is aimed at the evaluation of current infrastructure procurement framework, introducing novel sustainable infrastructure delivery (SID) model as a holistic value management methodology and a decision making technique. Key components of the model are Checkland’s soft system methodology (SSM) and analytic network process (ANP) by Saaty. SID input data is collected from the pilot questionnaire with the professionals in Nigeria’s construction industry, reinforced by a thorough literature review. Questions sought paired comparison judgements on key aspects of project management and implications on sustainable infrastructure procurement. The concept is discussed in the methodology section. Preliminary findings reveal that current practice lacks a holistic decision making technique, reflected in divergent value interests among stakeholders on infrastructure procurement through different views on the constitution of values. Though there is practical evidence regarding the growth in the construction sector, quantification of the implications on local economy and human development are less visible and require further investigations

Polish and Russian rural areas in transition. Land and demography

Rozdział z: Functioning of the Local Production Systems in Central and Eastern European Countries and Siberia. Case Studies and Comparative Studies, ed. Mariusz E. Sokołowicz.The aim of this article is to present the main changes in the structure of the space and demographic processes of rural areas in Poland and Russia, taking place after 1990. Though both countries are completely different (e.g. as for the perspective of scale, the position in the international arena, the forms of agricultural production, etc.), they were subjected – within a similar period of time – to the systemic change and are faced with multiple problems of the socio-economic transition period. The terms of the environment, including mainly political, but also historical and cultural factors, caused that Poland and Russia have chosen other paths of transformation, yielding diverse results. Above all, the two countries perceive the role of the rural areas in the society in a different way.Monograph financed under a contract of execution of the international scientific project within 7th Framework Programme of the European Union, co-financed by Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (title: “Functioning of the Local Production Systems in the Conditions of Economic Crisis (Comparative Analysis and Benchmarking for the EU and Beyond”)). Monografia sfinansowana w oparciu o umowę o wykonanie projektu między narodowego w ramach 7. Programu Ramowego UE, współfinansowanego ze środków Ministerstwa Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego (tytuł projektu: „Funkcjonowanie lokalnych systemów produkcyjnych w warunkach kryzysu gospodarczego (analiza porównawcza i benchmarking w wybranych krajach UE oraz krajach trzecich”))

Social Entrepreneurship and Social Transformation

This study provides a comparative analysis of seven cases of social entrepreneurship that have been widely recognized as successful. The paper suggests factors associated with successful social entrepreneurship, particularly with social entrepreneurship that leads to significant changes in the social, political and economic contexts for poor and marginalized groups. It generates hypotheses about core innovations, leadership, organization, and scaling up in successful social entrepreneurship. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for the practice of social entrepreneurship, for further research, and for the continued development of support technologies and institutions that will encourage future social entrepreneurship.This publication is Hauser Center Working Paper No. 15. The Hauser Center Working Paper Series was launched during the summer of 2000. The Series enables the Hauser Center to share with a broad audience important works-in-progress written by Hauser Center scholars and researchers