There has been tremendous interest in blockchain technology (BT) (also known as distributed ledger technology) around the globe and across sectors. Following significant success in the financial sector, other sectors, such as humanitarian sector, have started deploying BT at various levels. Although the use of BT in the humanitarian sector is in its infancy, donors and government agencies are increasingly calling for building BT-enabled swift-trust (ST) and more collaborative relationships among various humanitarian actors in order to improve the transparency and traceability of disaster relief materials, information exchanges and flow of funds in disaster relief supply chains. Our study, which is informed by organisational information processing theory and relational view, proposes a theoretical model to understand how BT can influence operational supply chain transparency (OSTC) and ST among actors engaged in disaster relief operations. Our model also shows how BT-enabled ST can further improve collaboration (CO) among actors engaged in disaster relief operations and enhance supply chain resilience (SCR). We formulated and tested six research hypotheses, using data gathered from international non-governmental organisations with the help of the Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) database. We received 256 usable responses using a pre-tested survey-based instrument designed for key informants. Our results confirm that our six hypotheses were supported. Our study offers significant and valid contributions to the literature on ST, CO and SCR and BT/distributed ledger technology. We have also noted the limitations of our study and have offered future research directions.

Achieving sustainability-related targets in construction projects is increasingly becoming a key performance driver. Yet sustainability is a complex concept in projects and there are many diverse stakeholders. Some stakeholders are generally recognized as important, i.e., the client and main contractor, yet there are others not always perceived as such and whose absence from the decision-making processes may result in a failure to address sustainability issues. Hence there is a need for a systematic approach to engage with stakeholders with high salience in relation to sustainability. This paper reports the results of an exploratory study involving interviews with construction project practitioners that are involved in sustainability in some way. Data were collected from the practitioners in terms of the processes for engaging with stakeholders to deliver sustainability. The data suggests six steps to a stakeholder engagement process: (i) identification; (ii) relating stakeholders to different sustainability-related targets; (iii) prioritization; (iv) managing; (v) measuring performance; and (vi) putting targets into action. The results suggest that understanding the different sustainability agendas of stakeholders and measuring their performance using key performance indicators are important stages to be emphasized in any stakeholder engagement process to achieve sustainability-related goals.

Our study examines the relationship between information alignment (IA), collaboration (CO) and supply chain agility (SCAG) under the moderating effects of artificial intelligence-driven big data analytics capability (AI-BDAC) and intergroup leadership (IGL). We have grounded our theoretical model in the resource-based view (RBV) and contingency theory and further tested our research hypotheses using multi-informant data collected using a web-based pre-tested instrument from 613 individuals working in 193 humanitarian organisations drawn from 24 countries located on various continents across the globe. We tested our research hypotheses using variance-based structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Our study offers interesting results which help to advance the theoretical debates surrounding technology-driven supply chain agility in the context of humanitarian settings. We further provide some directions to managers engaged in disaster relief operations, who are contemplating using emerging technologies to enhance collaboration and supply chain agility. Finally, we have outlined the limitations of our study and offer some future research directions.

Humanitarian organizations are increasingly facing challenges in terms of improving the efficiency and the effectiveness of their disaster relief efforts. These challenges often arise due to a lack of trust, poor collaboration and an inability to respond to disaster affected areas in a timely manner. Our study attempts to understand how these challenges are overcome by seeking answers to questions related to the topics of swift-trust, collaboration and agility in humanitarian supply chains. For instance, in our study we have attempted to examine how information sharing and supply chain visibility in humanitarian supply chains improve the swift-trust among the humanitarian actors engaged in disaster relief operations. Further, we attempt to understand how-swift trust, commitment and collaboration among the humanitarian actors improve the agility in humanitarian supply chains. In our study we provide both theoretical and data-driven answers to our stated research gaps. Our theoretical model is firmly grounded in organizational information process theory and relational view. We tested our research hypotheses using variance based structural equation modelling with survey data collected using a web based pre-tested instrument from 147 NGOs respondents drawn from the National Disaster Management Authority database. Our results help to advance the theoretical debates surrounding “swift-trust”, “collaboration” and “agility” in humanitarian settings. We further provide direction to managers engaged in disaster relief operations. The humanitarian actors engaged in disaster relief often fail to understand how to build swift-trust. Moreover, how swift-trust further affects commitment and collaboration which in turn further affect agility in humanitarian supply chains. Thus humanitarian organizations must understand how information sharing and supply chain visibility is key to swift-trust among humanitarian actors and agility in humanitarian supply chains. Finally, we outline the limitations of our study and offer some future research directions for investigation.

The purpose of our study is to enhance the understanding of relationships between conflict management style, team coordination, and performance in multicultural project team contexts. We investigate how conflict management can contribute to team effectiveness through the mediation of the level of team coordination by collecting data from 126 team leaders and supervisors and 378 members nested in different multicultural projects in the construction industry. Our results show that, contrary to the findings from prior research in other team contexts, an avoiding style of conflict management can have a positive impact on the performance of multicultural project teams.

Projects are under constant pressure to improve performance, and research is needed to understand the characteristics of high-performing projects. Using the concept of organizational justice as a characteristic, we propose that the performance of projects in meeting success criteria is enhanced when there are procedures in place for the fair treatment of project team members; when resources are allocated fairly; and when the individuals interact in a way that is characterized by respect, propriety, and dignity. Structural equation analysis supports our proposition that the presence of organizational justice enhances project performance and valuable nuances in these relationships are discovered.