AS 2006 Volume 13 Issue 2

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http://hdl.handle.net/11660/6891

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Browsing AS 2006 Volume 13 Issue 2 by Subject "Empowerment"

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    The development and assessment of an integrated skills development model for emerging construction contractors
    (University of the Free State, 2006) Lazarus, Spencer; Hauptfleisch, Dries; Verster, Basie
    English: Many strategies for emerging contractor development that are based on instruments such as targeted procurement have generally failed to empower emerging contractors because they are implemented without well-defined skills transfer frameworks. The sector continues to be regarded by construction clients and suppliers as a high commercial risk and this presents further barriers to meaningful development. Related to this is the lack of clear policy targets against which to measure the effectiveness of contractor support programmes. Furthermore, the majority of current support initiatives lack an integrated programme strategy. Interventions tend to be characterised by inadequate preparations, poor needs assessments and an inadequate understanding of the development needs of emerging contractors. This is evident by discontinuances, unstructured training approaches, ad-hoc mentorship, inadequate monitoring and evaluation that promote unsustainable skills transfer. The Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) has put in place a training and mentoring programme that would result in the development of emerging contractors into sustainable business enterprises. The impact of the programme may be measured to determine the overall effectives of the programme in delivering developed and sustainable contractors to the construction industry. The above mentioned factors identified lead to the following problem that is addressed by the research: The problem statement addressed by the study is how to develop a holistic approach towards integrated skills development for emerging construction contractors, leading to a model that can be managed with quantitative and measurable outcomes.