The Relationship Between Project Risk Monitoring, Control Practices, and Project Success in Construction Projects

Abstract

Risk monitoring and control is often poorly implemented in construction projects because of a failure to monitor and manage identified risks. Construction companies experience significant losses due to the lack of project risk monitoring and control by project managers in construction projects. Most studies have concentrated on risk identification, risk assessment, and risk analysis processes while neglecting crucial risk management processes of risk control, risk monitoring, and risk response. The lack of research on these three crucial processes highlights a gap in the literature concerning how these processes can increase the delivery of successful projects. This quantitative study examined whether the utilization of project risk monitoring and control practices (risk reassessment, risk audits, contingency reserves analysis, and risk status meetings) was related to project success in construction projects in the United States. The study’s conceptual framework was based on the enterprise risk management model. An electronic survey instrument was used to collect data from a sample of 50 construction project managers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the state of Texas, in the United States. Spearman rho correlational analysis was used to examine the relationship between project risk monitoring and control practices and project success. The results of this study indicated that all project risk monitoring and control practices including risk reassessment, risk audits, contingency reserves analysis, and risk status meetings, were significantly and positively related to project success in construction projects. One of the recommendations presented in this study was that since this study was conducted only in the United States, future research should conduct the same study in third world countries to see if the study findings remain the same and generalizable. The study concluded that construction organizations should regularly give special attention to the importance and usage of project risk monitoring and control practices to improve the success rate of a project.