scholarly journals Social network analysis of construction companies operating in international markets: case of Turkish contractors

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 327-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bartug Kemal AKGUL ◽  
Beliz OZORHON ◽  
Irem DIKMEN ◽  
M. Talat BIRGONUL
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
International Markets ◽  
Project Networks ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
International Construction ◽  
Multiple Partners ◽  
Complex Projects

Investigation of market entry strategies is critical for the success of international contractors. Establishing partnerships is among the most effective vehicles of operating in international markets. The major objective of this paper is to analyze the partnership behavior of contractors in overseas projects. In this respect, social network analysis (SNA) was used to better understand the collaborative project networks in different markets and for projects of differing sizes. A database was developed based on the collaborative international construction projects where Turkish firms and their non-Turkish partners were involved. A total of 449 projects carried out in 46 countries were used for the analysis. The findings of the study suggest that contractors adopt different strategies depending on the market and project character­istics. The majority of the companies tend to remain in the same markets; they keep working with the same partners or choose local partners; and engage with multiple partners in more complex projects. This study is expected to help contractors reflect on their internationalization decisions and devise appropriate strategies to establish project networks.

Current Trends and Future Directions in Knowledge Management in Construction Research Using Social Network Analysis

Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 599
Author(s):  
Sepani Senaratne ◽  
Muhandiramge Nimashi Navodana Rodrigo ◽  
Xiaohua Jin ◽  
Srinath Perera
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Knowledge Flows ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Current Trends ◽  
Improved Performance

The growing interest in Knowledge Management (KM) has led to increased attention to Social Network Analysis (SNA) as a tool to map the relationships in networks. SNA can be used to evaluate knowledge flows between project teams, contributing to collaborative working and improved performance. Similarly, it has the potential to be used for construction projects and organisations. This paper aims at identifying current trends and future research directions related to using SNA for KM in construction. A systematic review and thematic analysis were used to critically review the existing studies and identify potential research areas in construction specifically related to research approaches and explore the possibilities for extension of SNA in KM. The findings revealed that there are knowledge gaps in research approaches with case study-based research involving external stakeholders, collaborations, development of communication protocols, which are priority areas identified for future research. SNA in KM related to construction could be extended to develop models that capture both formal and informal relationships as well as the KM process in pre-construction, construction, and post-construction stages to improve the performance of projects. Similarly, SNA can be integrated with methodological concepts, such as Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), knowledge broker, and so forth, to improve KM processes in construction. This study identifies potential research areas that provide the basis for stakeholders and academia to resolve current issues in the use of SNA for KM in construction.

scholarly journals The Interaction of Civil Engineering Students in Group Work through the Social Network Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9847
Author(s):  
Tito Castillo ◽  
Rodrigo F. Herrera ◽  
Tania Guffante ◽  
Ángel Paredes ◽  
Oscar Paredes
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Civil Engineering ◽  
Soft Skills ◽  
Informal Conversation ◽  
The Social

A sustainable approach in the construction industry requires civil engineering professionals with technical and soft skills. Those skills complement each other and facilitate the professional to work effectively in multidisciplinary groups during the development of construction projects. Universities apply collaborative learning methods such as group work (GW) in the classroom to achieve these skills. There is disagreement on the best way to select the members of the GW to achieve their best performance, but it is clear that it should favor the interaction of diverse actors to promote the development of soft skills. A random or criteria-based selection could bring groups of people very close together, leading to the academic homogeneity of GW members and impairing performance and learning. Even the most alert instructors lack information about the closeness of their students, so they rely on their intuition without having tools that allow them to confirm their assumptions or relate them to GW performance. The objective of this paper was to discover the social structures within the classrooms and to identify the groups of people close by trust, knowledge, and informal conversation to relate them to their GW performance. For this purpose, a social network analysis (SNA) was applied to Civil Engineering degree students. In addition, a correlation analysis between SNA metrics and GW grades was performed. The results show that beyond the way in which members are selected, there is a social structure that affects such selection and GW performance. This study presents information that can be used for instructors for a better GW selection that propitiates the development of soft skills in Civil Engineering students.

Social network analysis for social risks of construction projects in high-density urban areas in China

2018 ◽  
Vol 198 ◽  
pp. 940-961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingfeng Yuan ◽  
Kaiwen Chen ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Chuang Ji ◽  
Zhiru Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
High Density ◽  
Social Risks
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