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There is growing recognition that effective project control systems (PCS) are critical to the success of projects. The relationship between the individual elements of PCS and successfully achieving project objectives has yet to be explored. This research investigates the enablers and barriers that influence the elements of PCS success and drive project objectives.

This study adopts a mixed approach of descriptive analysis and regression models to explore the impact of six PCS elements on project outcomes. Petroleum and chemical projects in Saudi Arabia were selected as a case study to validate the research model.

Data from a survey of 400 project managers in Saudi’s petroleum and chemical industry reveal that successful PCS are the key to achieving all project outcomes, but they are particularly critical for meeting project cost objectives. Project Governance was identified as the most important of the six PCS elements for meeting project objectives. A lack of standard processes emerged as the most significant barrier to achieving effective project governance, while having skilled and experienced project team members was the most significant enabler for implementing earned value.

The study offers a direction for implementing and developing PCS as a strategic tool and focuses on the PCS elements that can improve project outcomes.

This research contributes to project management knowledge and differs from previous attempts in two ways. Firstly, it investigates the elements of PCS that are critical to achieving project scope, schedule and cost objectives; secondly, enablers and barriers of PCS success are examined to see how they influence each element independently.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the interaction between the enablers and barriers to successful project control system (PCS) implementation in petroleum and chemical projects and to provide a knowledge-based foundation for the evaluation of the dominant factors of PCS success.

An integrated approach of interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification (Matrice d’Impacts Croisés Multiplication Appliquée à un Classement) were used. An expert group of industry professionals and academics was consulted at the initial stage as an input for the ISM methodology to explore the contextual relationships among the critical factors to PCS implementation in petroleum and chemical projects.

This study identifies three dominants enablers of PCS success: the technical skills of the project controller; explicitly defined roles of project team members; and an accurate work breakdown structure. Additionally, six dominant barriers to successful PCS implementation have been identified: lack of standard processes, vague contract deliverables, unclear project goals, unclear project milestones, disparate control system between owner and contractor and lack of information communication. Organizations in the petroleum and chemical sectors should put more effort into the development of these factors to optimize the implementation of PCS.

A limitation of this current study is its focus on the petroleum and chemical sectors in Saudi Arabia. It is expected that the findings will have wider applicability, but further studies in different sectors and geographic regions should be undertaken to validate this assumption. In this study, a second validation expert group was used to ensure the reliability of the results as much as was possible. However, further studies could be completed to evaluate alternate classification schemes and to test the robustness of the expert consensus and techniques reported, in this study, including an increased number of experts.

The present study makes some practical contributions to the project delivery process. It provides different project stakeholders with a better understanding of the factors that improve PCS outcomes and helps project owners and contractors to evaluate the PCS used by both parties to understand how they might be aligned for successful project execution.

The successful implementation of PCS is a key contributor to the total project delivery process. Although there is growing attention on PCS as a critical project management tool in petroleum and chemical projects, the literature in project management shows that PCS implementation has not been taken up as much as originally anticipated. This paper will address this gap by focusing on improving the take-up of strategical PCS implementation through the identification of six dominant enablers and nine dominant barriers as driver factors of success.

The purpose of this paper is to presents a new modeling approach that provides a measurement tool for evaluating the effectiveness of Project Control Systems (PCS) and the improvement of the project control capability as a part of an organization's project management processes.

This study used a project management maturity approach to develop a measurement model of PCS success. The key elements in this model have been identified using the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) method to analyze data from a case study involving contractor companies in Saudi's petroleum and chemical industry.

The results identified six critical elements for PCS success: (1) Change Management, (2) Earned Value, (3) Baselined Plan, (4) Resource Loaded, (5) Progress Method and (6) Governance Program. In addition, Project Forecasting and Corrective Action Verification were identified as the main areas where clients and contractors need to focus for the effective deployment of a PCS.

The results of this study were used to create a PCS Maturity Model (PCSMM) and a PCS Success Index (PCSSI). The value of this index can help project managers to identify the maturity level of their PCS and improvement areas that lead to enhanced project performance.

This research presents an alternative maturity model for PCS assessment that provides a practical tool to identify areas for improving the critical elements of PCS success. The study draws a clear distinction between overall project success and the success of the PCS.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of technology orientation (TO) on firm performance (FP). This study also aims to identify the mediating role of firm innovativeness (FI) in the relation between TO and FP.

Quantitative approach has been adopted for analyzing the impact of TO on FP in software houses located in two big cities of Pakistan. Mean, standard deviation, correlation and regression analysis were used.

Results proved that of TO predicts FP and FI mediate the relationship between TO and FP.

This study used cross-sectional further studies may be conducted using longitudinal research design for achieving in-depth insights.

Software houses should focus on TO and innovativeness for improving their performance.

This research guides the way to improve performance TO and innovativeness of software houses based on the empirical results.

This paper aims to investigate the impacts of service learning (SL) on teaching sustainability competencies in an undergraduate tourism program at Bamyan University, Afghanistan. This study reports on tourism students’ experiences in the SL course which taught five key sustainability competencies (collaboration, values thinking, action-oriented, systems thinking and integrated problem-solving).

This paper assessed students’ perceptions of their sustainability competencies gained during the implementation of the course in 2016 and 2017 through focus groups, reflective essays and participant observation.

The results demonstrate how the SL experience led students to self-discovery, strong conceptualizations of sustainability and working relationships with community stakeholders.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to assess the impacts of a SL course in Afghanistan. The analysis provides valuable information for developing effective higher education programs, relationships of trust between students and community stakeholders and the empowerment of students to contribute to local solutions which serve a role in stabilization efforts in conflict-affected contexts.

The aim of this paper is to explore issues of cultural identity of the people of Baltistan and any challenges they face in the nation state of Pakistan.

The paper uses a postcolonial lens to offer a review and synthesis of issues of cultural identity of the Balti people of Pakistan.

The review demonstrates how the historical and socio‐political context is intertwined with the Balti people's cultural identity which remains hybrid as well as contextual in its construction. It reveals that while the state of Pakistan has been able to assert its control over the Balti people and the region of Baltistan predominantly through military means, the critical issues of cultural pluralism and the basic human rights of the Balti people have remained generally ignored throughout the 63 years since partition.

The contentions offered in this paper need to be refined through in‐depth empirical studies. Future scholars may wish to examine the class and cultural politics at work in the emerging renaissance movement in Baltistan. Scholars may also examine how the lack of economic development and investment in Baltistan may be forcing the Balti people to resign (at least some elements of) their cultural identity to seek employment in urban areas of Pakistan.

The paper brings to the fore issues of cultural identity of the people of Baltistan, which have – to a large extent – remained ignored by Pakistan as well as internationally.