Influence of Organizational Characteristics on Construction Project Performance Using Corporate Social Networks

Abstract

This exploratory research examined the relationship between project performance and organizational characteristics in constructioncompanies. Nine Chilean construction firms were involved in this study. Key performance indicators (KPIs) were introduced to periodicallycapture the project performance of 41 projects in these companies. Furthermore, their organizational characteristics were evaluated usingsocial network analysis metrics. A correlation analysis revealed the relationships among four metrics from six social networks and nine KPIs.Significant correlations were found between the density, average degree, diameter, and average path length of social networks and the mediansand standard deviations of KPIs. The results confirmed that a relation exists between high connectivity and short communication paths withinthe social networks of a construction company and high KPIs of construction project performance. Additionally, high inverse correlationswere observed, suggesting that connectivity may be a consequence of poor project results, such as for the accident KPI. The results indicatethat high connectivity and closeness inside corporate social networks are not necessarily related to good performance in construction projects.Thus, corporate social networks do not possess an ideal condition that enables optimal company performance in all areas. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000612. © 2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.