scholarly journals An exploration of funds management by emerging contractors

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Andisa Avuyile Merana

Finance is a critical aspect that needs to be closely monitored in a business and during the lifespan of a construction project. Emerging contractors need to develop and run sustainable businesses in the construction industry. The extent of expertise in funds management by emerging contractors directly relates to their development. Therefore, all efforts must be geared towards their expertise, development and sustenance. Emerging contractors need to manage their finances, be competitive, and deliver projects in the required quality, time and within the allocated budget. This study aims at determining challenges faced by emerging contractors, the root causes of challenges of emerging contractors in funds management, the impact of emerging contractor challenges on project delivery time. Further, the study aims to develop a flow chart that will mitigate emerging contractor challenges in funds management. The study was conducted in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa using a questionnaire. Questionnaires were distributed in two phases and respondents to the study included emerging contractors and industry stakeholders. Random and systematic sampling techniques were employed in the selection of samples. A total of 85 questionnaires were analysed for the study. Inferential statistics was employed for analysis of data. Findings include late payment for completed work which ultimately causes delays; interference with project performance; inadequate planning; unskilled site manpower; late delivery of material; late identification of errors and resolution of drawings, specification errors and omissions; community unrest, militancy and communal crises and interference by political leaders are some of the key factors that negatively affect emerging contractors’ funds management. When adequate attention is given to these factors, it results in project success. In addition, improvement of contractor performance and quality of work; involvement of tribal authorities, provision of finances for project by funders, securing finances and materials credit; successfully managing project finances from inception to completion leads to profits being made and projects are completed successfully and within budget when payment for work done is effected on time. Recommendations include ensuring that sufficient finances are secured, allocated and properly managed from inception to completion of a project; payments are prepared, submitted and paid on time. Planning is improved to combat project delays including ordering materials in advance, identifying design and specification errors early, engaging all project stakeholders to avoid disputes and attending formal training courses to acquire skills that will assist in running projects and managing successful and sustainable businesses. It is also recommended that the new proposed programme and flowchart be adopted to assist the South African construction industry in improving the financial management practices and develop skill of emerging contractors; its adoption will alleviate challenges facing emerging contractors in funds management.

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-223
Author(s):  
Abdulmalik Sa'eed ◽  
Nuru Gambo ◽  
Ibrahim Ibrahim Inuwa ◽  
Innocent Musonda

Purpose The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of financial management practices of small-scale building contractors on the technical performance of the contractors in the northern part of Nigeria with international best practices. Previous studies argued that the technical performance of small-scale building contractors in developing countries is poor because of insufficient cash to acquire strategic resources at the outset of a project. This continues to pose a challenge to the sustainable development of the construction industry, particularly in developing countries like Nigeria. There is, therefore, a need to identify, assess and compare the effects of financial practices of the contractors with technical performance best practices. Design/methodology/approach The technical performance of each contractor was evaluated using a five-point Likert scale. This is used to obtain the mean technical performance levels of the contractors. A questionnaire survey was administered to the professionals in the industry who were selected by using a proportionate stratified random sampling technique. The contractors’ performance was compared using ANOVA with post hoc, and the effects of contractors’ financial management practices were determined using multiple regression analysis. Findings The results of this study indicated that the contractors in Nigeria were average technical performers and there were large effects of financial management practices on the technical performance of contractors in building projects. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to small-scale building contractors in northeast Nigeria. One of the implications of this study is that it provides the criteria for an evaluation of small-scale building contractors’ technical performance in Nigeria and other developing countries that faced similar problems. Practical implications The practical implications of this study are that it establishes the current level of contractors' technical performance and serves as an awareness of contractors' current financial practices. Social implications This study created bases for self-evaluation of contractors’ technical performance and competition among small-scale contractors in Nigeria for the enhancement of productivity particularly in rural areas for national development. Originality/value This study emanated from the government reports and past studies in the area of performance management based on the persistence of poor technical performance of small-scale contractors in the construction industry.


Author(s):  
Michael Bowe

This article provides a selective, critical survey of the academic literature on the financial management policy of multinational enterprises (MNEs). The focus of much current research interest can be captured in two major themes which also dominate this analysis. The first is financial management policy in relation to the increasing volatility of real and financial asset prices in the international financial environment within which MNEs operate. This dictates one theme of this article: the impact of financial risk, in particular market risk, on MNEs and an appraisal of evolving financial risk management practices. The second theme is international market segmentation. The globalization of international business activity has evolved along with a trend towards increasing financial market integration, particularly in capital markets.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4608
Author(s):  
Manel Elmsalmi ◽  
Wafik Hachicha ◽  
Awad M. Aljuaid

Companies attempt to improve the performance of their supply chain (SC) by distinguishing and presenting feasible sustainable development practices (SDP). Considering SDP without focusing on sustainability risks may disturb the company’s future. Very few studies in the extant literature have dealt with the impact of (SDP) on the supply chain risk management (SCRM). In fact, the aim of this paper is to classify and prioritize SDPs according to their priority for better risk management and effective SC performance. The proposed approach comprises two phases. First, 14 SDPs are identified and selected from the literature. Second, MICMAC (Matrice d’impacts croisés multiplication appliquée à un classement) method as a structural analysis method applies to identify and assess sustainable supply chain risk management (SSCRM) practices which reduce risk in the SC. The input data for each phase are based on Delphi technique, which is a process group used to collect the opinions of experts in the field. The aim of the proposed approach is to prioritize SSCRM practices and classify them into influential, non-influential, independent and dependent practices and their mutual relationships. The six key findings SSCRM practices from direct and indirect classification include the following elements: (1) Delayed differentiation, (2) Information sharing with upstream and/or downstream partners, (3) Simplification of product dismantling/anticipation of product end of life, (4) Supplier/subcontractor’s performance assessment, (5) establishing shared supply management and (6) establishment of contracts with transporters.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saqib Muneer ◽  
Rao Abrar Ahmad ◽  
Azhar Ali

The importance of Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) towards economic development and growth is considerable. Some SMEs are facing difficulties to their development due to the lack of financial resources and management experience. The objective of this study is to check the relationships of financial management practices on profitability of small and medium enterprises and also to check the impact of agency cost on this relationship. This study consists of data analysis of two hundred SMEs from Faisalabad Pakistan. The study used primary data predominantly. SPSS 23 is used for descriptive analysis and Structural Equation Model (SEM) through Partial Least Square (PLS) 3 for hypothesis testing. The findings of this study indicate the presence of positive relationship between financial management practices and SMEs profitability but agency cost as a moderator has no effect on this relationship. The study strongly recommends higher adherence to financial management practices. Policy makers, developments partners, owners, and managers of SMEs may use these findings for sustainability of their business in Pakistan.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Killingsworth ◽  
Mohammed Hashem Mehany ◽  
Jeff Kim

Purpose The apparent lag between macro-economic behavior and financial implications in the construction industry is yet to be examined. The purpose of this paper is to understand the nature of the lag and the relationship between economic changes from year-to-year and the impact on the financial status of construction companies. Design/methodology/approach Correlation was made between US economic growth and construction industry financial indicators over a 28-year period. Cumulative per cent growth in US GDP was considered an independent variable, while nine financial ratios were calculated and considered dependent variables in this study. Findings The results of this study found that correlation improved when considering lag of two, three or sometimes four years after the economic event. Some financial ratios proved more sensitive than others, supporting the hypothesis of this study. Research limitations/implications The practical application of this study for construction companies is to understand how the construction industry lag impacts financial behavior. It therefore informs managerial decisions related to solvency, liquidity, equity structure and managerial practices; all of which are measured by financial ratios. Practical implications This study was intended to advance the research in this area and also to serve to strengthen industry members in their financial management of construction companies. Economic dynamics have long-lasting implications, which can be addressed through an increased focus on managing financial health. Originality/value Though the lag is intuitively known and has been studied from market perspectives, there is a lack of empirical study evaluating the impact of lag on financial key performance indicators.


2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Korutaro Nkundabanyanga ◽  
Brendah Akankunda ◽  
Irene Nalukenge ◽  
Immaculate Tusiime

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of financial management practices and competitive advantage on loan performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs). Design/methodology/approach In this cross-sectional study, the authors surveyed 70 MFIs in Kampala, Uganda. The authors applied principal component analysis to reduce the number of factors and identify the important elements that capture financial management practices, competitive advantage and loan performance of MFIs. The authors put forward and tested three hypotheses relating to the significance of the relationship between these three variables of MFIs using the statistical software package, SPSS and also apply the normal theory approach developed by Sobel (1982) and Baron and Kenny (1986) in testing the mediation by competitive advantage. Findings Robust financial management practices are associated with better loan performance of MFIs. Results also reveal a significant positive relationship between the competitive advantage of the MFIs and their loan performance. Furthermore, a significant positive relationship between competitive advantage and loan performance is found. Moreover results also show a full mediation effect of competitive advantage on the association of financial management practices and loan performance, implying that the association of financial management practices of the MFIs on their loan performance is entirely through their competitive advantage. Research limitations/implications Although there is plenty of literature on loan performance, financial management practices and competitive advantage, there is scarce literature on their effective conceptualization. This together with the imprecise definition of competitive advantage may have affected conceptualization of the authors study. Thus, in this study, the authors do not claim highly refined measurement concepts. Moreover, many of the extant studies for instance have measured loan performance quantitatively, yet process factors which are inherently qualitative in nature can better explain variances in loan performance concept. More research is therefore needed to better refine qualitative concepts used in this study. Practical implications Efforts by the MFIs management to improve loan performance must be matched with adoption of financial management practices that provide MFIs with sustained competitive advantage over their rivals. Originality/value In order to explain loan performance of MFIs, and drawing from social economics, management and accounting strands, this study shows that assessing the role of competitive advantage in the relationship between financial management practices and loan performance is imperative. Also, many of the extant studies have measured loan performance quantitatively, yet process factors or antecedents which are inherently qualitative in nature can better explain variances in loan performance concept. Thus this study calls for the refinement of loan performance concept and accounting for endogeneity.


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