Kelly Strong, Scott Glick and Gazala Syhail
This study aims to focus on the factors influencing project cost at US public universities and compares them to similar projects in the US private sector. It also presents an…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to focus on the factors influencing project cost at US public universities and compares them to similar projects in the US private sector. It also presents an analysis of the potential reasons for the difference or similarities in the two sectors.
Design/methodology/approach
This study utilized an exploratory, comparative case study methodology performed on a small sample of public university projects and two sources of private sector cost data.
Findings
The results infer that most of the US public projects have comparable costs to that of their US private sector counterparts. The cost data from the university projects were further examined to explore if there were any possible relationships between the types of delivery methods used, sustainability certifications achieved and two project performance indexes – cost and duration.
Research limitations/implications
A more thorough analysis with a larger dataset is required to make generalizable conclusions. However, the process used in this study does provide a good overview of how facility managers could organize their own cost comparison study to evaluate their project expenditures.
Practical implications
This research provides a starting point for future research into the topic of US public sector project costs when compared to US private sector counterparts and the impact of delivery system and sustainability on cost of US public sector projects.
Originality/value
Research on this topic is scant; as such, this paper provides a starting point for future research and offers insights into the potential impacts of project delivery method and choice of following a sustainability certification option.
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Scott Glick, Caroline Clevenger and Peter Watson
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the complexities of grant writing to fund sustainable upgrades to historical properties. Highlighted are the complexities of melding…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the complexities of grant writing to fund sustainable upgrades to historical properties. Highlighted are the complexities of melding grant solicitations, identifying potential partners, defining project scope, securing matching funds, identifying institutional barriers, and the importance of collecting actual building performance data.
Design/methodology/approach
A case study was used to document the process of funding energy efficiency upgrades at a national historic landmark.
Findings
Grant writers need to look for non‐traditional partners and funding sources. Historic preservation and energy efficiency can be achieved while meeting the Secretary of the Interior's Standards on Sustainability. The importance of funding to conduct field research is discussed relating to the development of measurable outcomes.
Research limitations/implications
The ability to conduct long‐term field‐based research is dependent on funding. Policy and funding decisions in the future would be enhanced by applied research with measurable outcomes.
Practical implications
Grant sponsors need to broaden the scope of historical preservation grants to include energy improvement research. Capacity building in the area of field‐based measurement will ensure that grant funds meet stated expectations while increasing historic building performance.
Social implications
Sustainability is the focus of legislation, building performance tools, and is economically important. This research would help shift the perception that old buildings cannot perform efficiently once classified as historic.
Originality/value
This paper provides information to preservationists, builders, homeowners, grant sponsors, and policy makers in the form of a multifaceted approach to using grant monies to improve the outcomes of monies spent on historical preservation.
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Aaron Kemp-Hesterman, Scott Glick and Jennifer Eileen Cross
– The purpose of this paper is to look at the effect of human behaviour, and efforts to change that behaviour, on electricity consumption in a high school setting.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to look at the effect of human behaviour, and efforts to change that behaviour, on electricity consumption in a high school setting.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a mixed methods design of interviews and historical electrical use data to assess two treatments impacts on electrical consumption over time at two Fort Collins high schools.
Findings
Both treatments, the energy efficiency awareness campaign and the energy efficiency charrette, were found to have a positive impact on decreasing levels of electricity consumption. Unfortunately, these decreases lessened over time. The key attributes of communication, motivation, and leadership were identified as necessary at the high school facilities level to ensure long-term success in decreased electrical consumption.
Research limitations/implications
The implications of this research focus on awareness of energy use in public schools and how to use awareness as a cost-effective tool in decreasing electrical consumption. The limitations are the inability to isolate HVAC consumption loads and the small study size. However, this is one of, if not the first, effort to use awareness campaigns and charrettes in a high school setting to decrease electrical use. Additional research would answer questions like: how to increase the charrette impact time; could these programs be adopted district wide at all grade levels; how could energy awareness be institutionalized so periodic charrettes are not necessary? Limitations include the inability to isolate heating and cooling electricity loads from the data.
Originality/value
This study is the first of its kind and has value to facilities management personnel, custodians, faculty and administration members, particularly in a high school setting. This research provides a framework and potential guidance for a school organization to conserve electrical energy and achieve cost savings and environmental benefits.
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Matt Feuer, Scott Glick and Caroline M Clevenger
The purpose of this paper is to explore how implementing a standardized/owner-mandated template for Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) contract amendments can…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how implementing a standardized/owner-mandated template for Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) contract amendments can minimize errors. The focus is on public owners who manage multiple CM/GC projects at any one time.
Design/methodology/approach
A case study format was used to compare contract amendments errors using a baseline project, transition project and best practices project. Six metrics were identified, including factual recital errors, summary formatting errors, schedule of values errors, construction services fee errors, allowance schedule errors and data consistency errors.
Findings
The baseline and transition projects both had an average of seven errors per amendment, while the best practices project produced zero errors. The amendment template creation process helped design out common errors. The use of the template can be contract-mandated, while transition projects require owner commitment.
Research limitations/implications
Future research should focus on completed projects’ closeout data that have been consolidated since the transition project was in its final stage and the best practices project was relatively early in the construction process.
Practical implications
The findings of this research indicate that by implementing a mature owner-mandated CM/GC contract amendment template, owners can greatly reduce errors that arise during the amendment process. It should be noted, however, that challenges will most likely occur during the implementation phase.
Originality/value
No similar studies were found and the results of the research informs Facilities Management departments that they can significantly reduce errors by utilizing a mature, owner-mandated template for CM/GC contract amendments.
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Steve Simonson, Scott Glick and Mary Ellen C. Nobe
The purpose of this paper is to measure student perceptions of accessibility at a public university based on campus, new building, and old building accessibility and perceived…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to measure student perceptions of accessibility at a public university based on campus, new building, and old building accessibility and perceived impacts this may have on the student's quality of education.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was administered to students registered with the office of Resources for Disabled Students at a large university. ANOVA and regression were used to evaluate the survey results.
Findings
The campus was found to be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant, with several areas identified for improvements based on disabled students' reported perceptions. Many of the improvements were between groups with cognitive and mobility impairments. All groups reported a positive relationship between improved accessibility and improved educational experience.
Research limitations/implications
The study focused on one institution but the results and existing literature may be useful to other facility management departments.
Practical implications
The results of this work may help facility managers and resource for disabled student groups target limited resources to improve the quality of education at public universities.
Social implications
The ability to fine‐tune institutional facilities to improve the experiences of disabled persons improves the outcomes and stated goals of the ADA.
Originality/value
This work supports many previous studies while expanding the population studied to include looking at building users on a college campus with both physical and mental impairments. This helps facility managers increase their understanding of the accessibility issues that may still remain on college campuses that are technically ADA compliant.
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Ron van Oers and Ana Pereira Roders
This article is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 3, Issue 1 and aims to provide an overview to its selection of papers.
Abstract
Purpose
This article is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 3, Issue 1 and aims to provide an overview to its selection of papers.
Design/methodology/approach
The article builds upon a previous editorial on the implementation of the new UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL). It discusses a research and training programme under development by the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research in Asia and the Pacific (WHITRAP) and Tongji University's Advanced Research Institute for Architecture and Urban Planning, in Shanghai, China, to help determining a strategy for the application of the HUL approach in China.
Findings
The HUL approach facilitates a structuring and priority setting of competing needs and demands for the integration of urban development and heritage management processes, which is perhaps most pressing in the current Chinese context of rapid and large‐scale urbanization. However, its precise meaning, and therefore its merit, is still poorly understood in China due to confusing conceptual foundations and interpretations, primarily related to the terminology of “cultural landscape”.
Originality/value
This research paper outlines a series of pertinent issues and questions as part of a critical path –a “road map”– for the application of the HUL approach, as promoted by UNESCO, in China and it outlines key areas for further research, in particular as concerns the development of a toolkit.
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Alexandra E. MacDougall, John E. Baur, Milorad M. Novicevic and M. Ronald Buckley
On many occasions, organizational science research has been referred to as fragmented and disjointed, resulting in a literature that is, in the opinion of many, difficult to…
Abstract
On many occasions, organizational science research has been referred to as fragmented and disjointed, resulting in a literature that is, in the opinion of many, difficult to navigate and comprehend. One potential explanation is that scholars have failed to comprehend that organizations are complex and intricate systems. In order to move us past this morass, we recommend that researchers extend beyond traditional rational, mechanistic, and variable-centered approaches to research and integrate a more advantageous pattern-oriented approach within their research program. Pattern-oriented methods approximate real-life phenomena by adopting a holistic, integrative approach to research wherein individual- and organizational-systems are viewed as non-decomposable organized wholes. We argue that the pattern-oriented approach has the potential to overcome a number of breakdowns faced by alternate approaches, while offering a novel and more representative lens from which to view organizational- and HRM-related issues. The proposed incorporation of the pattern-oriented approach is framed within a review and evaluation of current approaches to organizational research and is supplemented with a discussion of methodological and theoretical implications as well as potential applications of the pattern-oriented approach.
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George B. Cunningham and Christina A. Rivera
The purpose of this paper is to (a) distinguish the structural designs, and (b) examine the relationship between structure and effectiveness in American sport organizations…
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to (a) distinguish the structural designs, and (b) examine the relationship between structure and effectiveness in American sport organizations. Formalization, centralization, and specialization were examined to determine the structural designs. Senior level administrators from National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I (N = 86) departments completed an electronic questionnaire. Cluster analysis was used to group departments according to the three dimensions of structure. Results demonstrated the presence of two structural designs—the Simple Structure and the Enabling Structure. MANCOVA procedures showed differences between departments in athletic achievement, but not in the education of student athletes. Discussion of the findings and future directions are presented.
Research has found that stereotypes affect occupational choices, but there has been almost no research on how they specifically affect the choice of becoming an entrepreneur. This…
Abstract
Research has found that stereotypes affect occupational choices, but there has been almost no research on how they specifically affect the choice of becoming an entrepreneur. This study bridges different fields of research by combining theories on entrepreneurial intent, self-esteem, and stereotypes. The author argues that in situations of insufficient information individuals assess prospective careers in commercial and social entrepreneurship by means of stereotypes, and the author is the first to explore the influence of commercial and social entrepreneurial stereotypes on an individual’s intention to start a commercial (for-profit) or social (not for-profit) venture. The author uses the framework outlined by the stereotype content model to disclose the existence of distinct stereotypes for commercial and social entrepreneurs exist and, thereafter, the author analyzes the influences of both entrepreneurial stereotypes on the specific startup intentions. The author test the hypotheses with unique survey data from a sample of German non-entrepreneurs which reveals that commercial entrepreneurs are seen as competent but cold, whereas social entrepreneurs are regarded as warm but incompetent. Using structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis, the data implies that higher levels of perceived warmth and competence of commercial entrepreneurs have a positive indirect effect on commercial startup intentions. No such effect was found for social startup intentions; however, the results indicate that a higher societal status of social entrepreneurs exerts a positive indirect impact on the intention to start a social business. The author discusses the practical implications of our approach and point out avenues for future research.
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John E. Kello and Joseph A. Allen
Previous research on workplace meetings identified critical design features, leader behaviors, group dynamics, post-meeting actions, and other factors which help determine the…
Abstract
Previous research on workplace meetings identified critical design features, leader behaviors, group dynamics, post-meeting actions, and other factors which help determine the effectiveness of the meeting. But as much as the authors acknowledge that meetings may differ from each other, much of the research appears to assume that it is meaningful to talk about “the meeting” as a single, generic entity (most commonly, the regularly scheduled staff or department meeting). In fact, though, there are several common types of meetings which vary among themselves in terms of a number of measurable parameters such as structure, meeting members, meeting leader, timing and duration, and scope. It is a gratuitous assumption that what the authors know about workplace meetings based on one especially common type applies to all workplace meetings. This chapter offers a historical review of previous attempts to classify meeting types; it then overviews several common types which deviate from the standard staff meeting paradigm, including project team meetings, debrief meetings, committee meetings, site-wide meetings, shift change meetings, and crew formation meetings. In comparing these types to the staff meeting, the authors identify some of the critical differences, thereby providing a first step toward a true taxonomy of meetings.