Empowerment in Construction The Way Forward for Performance Improvement

Covers, techniques and practical steps in applying the empowerment concept, manufacturing initiatives and new production technologies to the construction sector. Numerous practical examples of process improvement and problem solving are described. There is increasing emphasis on construction organisations to radically rethink and redesign their processes. This is due to a variety of pressures including: globalisation of the economy; greater client performance expectations; increasing competition; restructuring of work practices; and changes in industrial relations. Consequently, construction companies have to maintain organisational competence to face these challenges. The objective of the book is to improve the performance of both 'people' and 'process' aspects of the business. Poor performance of one impedes improvement of the other, such that improved quality and productivity lies in the structure of the process itself. Subsequently, improvement of processes lies in the hands of the employees who actually perform them. The result is that employees need to be empowered enabling them to improve their processes, and hence, the overall performance of their company.