Best practices of contract management approach towards excellent service culture in construction project

Abstract

The effective contract management is an important aspect of the excellent governance in public sector organizations. Through efficient contract management, the construction organization is able to maintain the excellent quality of service to stakeholders, especially in terms of successful delivery of construction projects. Therefore, this paper aims to appraise the best practices of successful construction projects from the contract management perspective rather than the project management perspective alone. Best-practised contract management is defined as a certified statement of effective contract administration procedures through systematically excellent service culture, where an on-time and within-budget construction is a major criterion of project success and client satisfaction as a whole. Via comprehensive literature review, this paper materializes its objectives of reviewing the contract management concepts in construction projects, assessing the formal process of contract management carried out by the contracting parties in ensuring the successful delivery of the construction project and proposing the strategies in improving the current contract management process for construction project. This paper reveals the basic concepts of contract management of construction projects, the principles of legality and accountability as well as the provisions of the laws and regulations that must be followed by the contractual parties. Furthermore, the strategies that can be implemented by organizations in improving the effectiveness of contract management aspects are discussed. Ten key strategies proposed, namely managing contracts based on strategic goals of the organization; developing standards, procedures and guidelines; implementing standards and benchmarking; improving financial management training; utilizing technological capabilities; zero financial mismanagement (ZFM); dealing with misconduct and fraud; establishing key performance indicators (KPI); implementing risk management; and applying values and ethics. This paper is very significant in achieving the excellent service culture in construction project without neglecting the substantial principles of project management that drive the project towards ultimate success.