The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has often been accused of being slow to adopt change. Yet the breadth of available technology solutions in the modern AEC industry continues to grow. Companies therefore must be adept at organizational change management; otherwise, the full benefits of technology solutions may never be realized when a company fails to achieve successful change adoption. The objective of this study was to identify the relationships between specific change management practices and organizational adoption of new technology solutions. An industry-wide approach was taken, wherein an online survey methodology was used to collect 167 cases of organization-wide change from AEC firms across the United States and Canada. The method of analysis included a correlation analysis between change management practices and change adoption. Reliability testing and principal components analysis were used to extract a single construct measure of change adoption. Rank-based nonparametric testing investigated if there are statistically significant differences between different groups of participants and technologies. Results include a rank-order of specific change management practices most associated with successful technology adoption. Change-agent effectiveness, measured benchmarks, realistic timeframe, and communicated benefits are the four change management practices that had the strongest association strength with successful change adoption. The discussion addresses how these leading change management practices compare with previous literature. Also, it was found that organization type and job position were correlated with the levels of change-adoption success compared to other listed factors. This study contributes an industry-wide view of change management practices within the context of technology-based change adoption and may assist practitioners to better manage technology adoptions in their organizations.

Although a main goal of low-bid procurement is to maximize project value, the approach can actually increase project cost and duration if construction document deficiencies are not resolved early on. This study examined in which construction phase (before or after contract execution) contractors discover document deficiencies, when owners learn of and resolve document deficiencies, and how document deficiencies affect project cost and duration. Data from 159 contractors and project owners indicate that 38% of all construction document deficiencies are discovered by the low-bid contractor before the owner has executed the contract. Conversely, owners reported learning of document deficiencies only 19% of the time before contract execution and 81% of the time after contract execution. These findings suggest a delay in communication between contractors and owners, resulting in asymmetrical information—a practice that industry professionals are aware of but that is often not openly discussed. This knowledge motivated contractors to delay reporting the deficiencies until after the contract was awarded. Furthermore, road projects and constructability concerns were found to be significantly associated with increased project costs.

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study on the application of the Lean Six Sigma (LSS) quality improvement methodology to facilities management (FM) services at a healthcare organization. Research literature was reviewed concerning whether or not LSS has been applied in healthcare-based FM, but no such studies have been published. This paper aims to address the lack of an applicable methodology for LSS intervention within the context of healthcare-based FM. The Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC) framework was followed to test the hypothesis that LSS can improve the service provided by an FM department responsible for the maintenance and repair of furniture and finishes at a large healthcare organization in the southwest United States of America. Quality improvement curricula and resources offered by the case study organization equipped the FM department to apply LSS over the course of a five-month period. Qualitative data were gathered from pre- and post-intervention surveys while quantitative data were gathered with the Organization's computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) software. Overall, LSS application proved to be useful for the intended purpose. The authors proposes that application of LSS by other FM departments to improve their services could also be successful, which is noteworthy and deserving of continued research.

Few studies have investigated best practices for organizational change management (OCM) within the electrical contracting industry. This study had two research questions: first, to determine whether there is a relationship between electrical contractor usage of OCM practices and successful change adoption; second, to identify whether electrical contractors have recommendations for how to effectively implement OCM practices within their companies. The first research question was assessed via a national survey of 94 electrical contractors who had recently adopted an organizational change. The second question was explored through 11 in-depth interviews of electrical contractors who had implemented organizational changes such as prefabrication, management team realignment, new software, paperless mobile technology, payroll automation, and entering into a new market. Results showed OCM practices were associated with successful change adoption. OCM practices that had a direct association with successful change adoption included change agent effectiveness, a realistic timescale, providing change-related training, senior leadership commitment, measuring performance benchmarks, providing sufficient resources, and effective change message communication. Interviewees recommended best practices for executing these OCM practices. Contributions include being the first study to investigate OCM practices specifically within the electrical contracting industry and identification of how practitioners can implement OCM practices for their change initiatives.

The purpose of this research is to better understand the current state of US healthcare FM industry hiring practices from FM academic programs. A national survey was distributed to healthcare FM directors to collect quantifiable information on healthcare organizations and their hiring practices from FM academic programs. Survey respondents that hired directly from an academic program were contacted for phone interviews. Results indicate that the healthcare FM industry is hiring very few college interns and new college graduates for entry-level management jobs. This paper is valuable in establishing the current state of the US healthcare industry's hiring practices from FM academic programs. Results will be used to better understand the needs and barriers of entry-level FM employment from FM academic programs as a potential source for new talent to the healthcare FM industry.