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Recent literature has proposed many theoretical methods to help decision makers choose an appropriate project delivery system (PDS) in a rational manner. None of these articles however systematically compare and systematize the available PDS selection methods and guide decision makers in choosing a method that best meets their PDS decision‐making circumstances. This paper aims to bridge this gap.

Four groups of PDS selection methods, namely, guidance (e.g. decision charts and guidelines), multi‐attribute analysis (e.g. multi‐attribute utility theory and analytical hierarchical process), knowledge‐ and experience‐based (e.g. case‐based reasoning), and mix‐method approaches are reviewed, compared and systematized.

The discussed methods vary in their underlying concepts, complexities of implementation and levels of required information. They also differ in the ways how decision makers' preferences are elucidated, expressed and measured. A conceptual framework is proposed to help decision makers match a PDS selection method with their decision‐making circumstances.

The paper highlights limitations of the discussed methods, and presents areas for future research.

This paper helps decision makers develop a fundamental understanding of the available PDS selection methods, and match a PDS selection method with their unique decision‐making circumstances. Using a suitable method will improve the decision‐making efficiency.

The purpose of this paper is to present a novel version of Dunning’s eclectic paradigm of internationalisation (OLI framework) to explain both inbound and outbound Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in multinational contracting.

The OLI factors and hypothesis are significantly developed to address a weakness in the OLI framework in its application to settings, such as multinational contracting, with extreme heterogeneity arising from extreme location specificity.

These developments advance Dunning’s seminal contribution and bring this to life in construction research that has barely applied the framework and, when doing so, has focused only on outbound FDI by multinational contractors (MCs).

The power of the OLI framework is increased on explaining and predicting FDI in contexts that exhibit extreme heterogeneity associated with extreme location specificity. Furthermore, the operationalisation of key theories representing the framework’s OLI factors is made far more precise.

Engineering, construction and architectural managers, can now more reliably apply the OLI framework both in MCs’ outbound FDI decisions and in governments’ decisions to attract new MCs – or inbound FDI.

A significant advance is made in the OLI framework in settings with extreme location specificity, along with the operationalisation of key theories associated with the OLI factors, including the first steps to operationalise Coase’s Nobel prize-winning transaction cost thesis.

The purposes of this paper is twofold: first, to assess the risks associated with the international construction joint ventures (ICJVs) between Singapore and developing countries and second, to investigate the risk allocation preferences in these ICJVs.

A questionnaire survey was conducted and responses were received from 38 firms that had participated in ICJVs with developing countries. A risk criticality (RC) index was adopted to evaluate the criticality of each risk.

The survey results reported “political instability” as the most critical risk and market-level risks were less critical than country and project-level risks. Additionally, the results showed agreement on the risk ranking between building and infrastructure ICJVs, despite significant differences in the criticalities of five risks. Furthermore, five risks were preferably allocated to host and foreign partners, respectively, while 13 risks could be shared among partners.

First, due to the sample size, one should be cautious when interpreting and generalizing the results. Second, the RC index proposed in this study was subjective as it was influenced by the individual experience and risk attitude of the respondents. Also, the RC values were calculated without considering the weights of the respondents. Lastly, the questionnaire survey, which has been widely used in identifying risk allocation preferences, may not identify the insights of practitioners into the risk allocation practices.

This study provides a clear understanding of the risks associated with forming ICJVs with developing countries and the preferred risk allocation. Although, this study is focused on the risks faced by the Singapore-developing country ICJVs, the identification of the potential risks allows companies from other countries to customize their risk profile and assess the risks before they form ICJVs with developing countries.

As few studies have explored the risk allocation preferences in ICJVs, this study expands the literature and provides practitioners with important information for preparing joint venture contracts or agreements. Thus, this study can contribute to the literature relating to ICJVs.

Knowledge is a fundamental source for sustainability and transfer as it plays a vital role in gaining and maintaining competitive advantage; thus it is imperative to investigate the factors that might impact knowledge transfer (KT). Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the association between knowledge enablers (organizational culture (OC), information technology (IT) knowledge leadership (KL) and knowledge strategy (KS)) and KT in the Jordanian construction industry.

A quantitative research approach was adopted, and structured questionnaire was sent to the employees in the construction industry. An aggregate of 250 surveys were distributed and out of them 195 were obtained, which represented a response rate of 78 percent.

The results of this paper showed that KS, OC, IT and KL has positive and significant impact on KT.

The study contributes to the literature by empirically testing the antecedents of KT in the Jordanian construction industry. To the best of authors’ knowledge, there are not many studies that incorporate these factors in single model, especially in Jordan.

Before attempting to decide what are and what are not legitimate constituents of toilet and domestic soaps, it is necessary first to touch upon another question to which in some way it is more difficult to give a definite and satisfactory reply—namely, to what is the cleansing power of soap due? The answer to this depends a good deal upon the standpoint from which the matter is viewed. To the chemist the exact explanation is hardly yet entirely forthcoming, and he can at present only answer in a general way by saying that the chief value of a soap is owing to its power of dissolving or emulsifying fats; but why it does so is still more or less under discussion. It has been shown that a solution of a neutral soap when largely diluted with water is decomposed into free alkali, and a fatty acid which is precipitated.

The growth of organized labor during the latter part of the nineteenth century triggered an organizational impulse on the part of employers across the country. Although some employers’ associations began as “negotiatory” bodies engaged in collective bargaining, the vast majority of them shifted toward a more “belligerent” approach. Academic scholarship has generally focused on the belligerents at the national level. Recently, some scholars have begun to study organized employers at the community level, but they continue to feature the more typical staunchly anti-union associations. This study of Columbus, Ohio's master printers’ association reveals a different pattern of local labor relations during the years between 1887 and 1960 – an association that had generally smooth bargaining relationships with craft unions. Columbus’ conservative and sheltered economy enabled the longstanding cooperative shared printing craft culture to thrive. But changes in Columbus’ economy, shifts in larger patterns of industrial relations, the hard-line influence of the national employers’ association, and technological changes altered the context of local labor relations. The result was that, by 1960, the Columbus association sought the upper hand in labor relations by becoming a more traditional and belligerent employers’ association. This story of “latecomers” adds to our understanding of organized employer behavior under different historical periods and circumstances.

The building industry, through its structure and its mandate, faces endemic information problems; expert systems are expected to impact positively. Expert systems are suited to situations of uncertainty; knowledge and reasoning are separated, allowing easier updating. Knowledge acquisition from human experts is difficult and problems of information reliability arise, suggesting the scope for cooperation between knowledge engineers and documentalists familiar with the domain. In building, prevailing conditions seem to indicate the appropriateness of expert systems, particularly during the design phase; however, written documentation and general research results are rarely consulted. This highlights the need for an information ‘refining’ stage between production and use. It is easier to set up expert systems for specialised sub‐domains; however, on‐going research is attempting to develop a comprehensive approach to project‐specific information that would be operational from initial design through to completed construction. Criteria for a comprehensive design information system can be listed.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate an effective project management practice focusing on planning and control. By doing so, it contributes to the debate on rethinking traditional project management practices and accentuates the need for adjustments based on the project context.

This paper extends the project management theory by proposing a lean project planning (LPP) and control framework, developed and tested in collaboration with ten engineer-to-order (ETO) companies. By following a design science research approach, elements from lean thinking and current project planning and control practices are combined into a maturity model (MM).

ETO project characteristics are identified, and their implications for planning and control are discussed. Nine enablers that transform current project planning and control approaches into a lean approach are defined, allowing the analysis of the underlying complexity of planning and controlling ETO projects and thus facilitating the determination of the actions required to improve project performance.

Once fully embedded in an organization, the presented MM can provide a safe framework for self-criticism and can be used to conduct self-assessments without the need for an external facilitator. Thus, this paper is of particular interest to practicing project managers who aim to implement LPP and control.

To the authors’ best knowledge, this paper is the first to empirically examine the journey toward LPP and control from a MM perspective. This research attempts to describe the enablers of LPP and control.

‘Living is learning,’ Konrad Lorenz once remarked, to which multimedia system designers might add that the more life‐like the educational tools, the better the learning. Hence, the growing interest in combining interactive training and educational programs with music, moving images, colour and sound.

Considers why different explanations of the same event can be produced and discusses the characteristics of a good explanation. It identifies and analyses a wide range of different published explanations of a seminal public administration policy‐change. It separates those accounts of that event into families of explanations and describes their common underlying presuppositions. These shared presuppositions are used to construct four models of public policy‐making: sovereign policy‐makers; policy‐makers as relays; policy‐making as the personal; and the discursive construction of policy. Each explanation (and its conceptual model) is challenged by historically grounded counter‐evidence. Based on this analysis the paper suggest ways in which analysis of public management changes might be more fruitfully orientated.