Determinants of project schedule control during project implementation in Kenya. A case of nongovermental organisations' projects in Mbeere North district, Embu county
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Date
2013
Authors
Nthiga, Josphat Njeru
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
Schedule control is a project management tool that enables project managers to verify the
project schedule status, influence proposed changes to the schedule and manage changes
to the schedule. Schedule control during project implementation enables project
managers to handle schedule slippage so that the project is executed within the planned
timeframe. It has been observed that approximately 80% of all projects overrun baseline
schedule during implementation. The purpose of conducting this research is therefore to
study the factors determining project schedule control during project implementation.
Various factors namely; project manager's expertise, donor policies, project complexity
and risks arising during project implementation determine the level of schedule control
during project implementation. In conducting this research descriptive research design
was applied. The target population comprised all the sixty NGOs projects carried out in
Mbeere North District, in Embu County within the time frame 2008-2012.Sample
selection was done through stratified random sampling. The strata were set to represent
various categories of project stakeholders namely; project management, donors, project
implementers and beneficiaries. To ease data collection the district was divided into four
clusters. These clusters were the four administrative divisions in Mbeere North
District.Data was collected using questionnaires, focus group discussions and document
review schedules from twenty (20) projects which were sampled across the study area.
The response rate was 66.7%, 75% and 50% respectively for the above data collection
instruments. Data was then analyzed through descriptive statistics for quantitative data
and content analysis for qualitative data. From these data analysis, it was observed that
project managers' expertise during project implementation was not a main cause of
schedule slippage. It was also established that donor policies, project complexity and
project related risks affected projected schedule control during project implementation.
Donor policies, project complexity and risks were identified as the main determinants of
project schedule control during project implementation. It is recommended that project
plans and designs should factor in these determinants at project formulation phase. The
inclusion of these determinants in the initial project plan should be a participatory process
for all project stakeholders. Further research is recommended to enable quantification of
project loss when projects are over schedule.
Description
Department of Business Administration, 62p. 2013, HD 69 .P75N73