An analysis of decision strategy as applied to construction portfolios

The objective of this dissertation was to provide a conceptual and analytical framework for understanding and analyzing the economic and competitive aspects of construction projects. The central argument developed is that fluctuating competitive ability and optimal markup present the construction firm with major challenges across the cost, time, and coordination elements of projects, and require contractors to increasingly evaluate their projects as an integrated collection of elements, in order to manage more effectively their projects in the short run, and strengthen their competitive position in the long run. The thesis establishes the significance and uniqueness of a portfolio of projects for the firm and studies the applicability of financial theory in analyzing and modeling construction bidding behavior. Most significantly, a framework for understanding the impact of capital cost on the construction firm's competitiveness is discussed. This thesis shows how resource restraints and capital cost should be included in these competitive bid analyses, so that a contractor's decisions concerning the overall firm or its individual projects reflect a broad view of the firm's market position. It is shown how markup decisions and predictions of corresponding expected values can be taken into consideration of other possible preference orders. It also can take into account estimated project costs that differ from the historical base. Consideration of capital costs for a portfolio of projects integrates data and decisions for greater understanding of a firm's competitive position and its business decisions. The impact of firm's utility and the risk of return is also examined in this thesis. Finally, an overview of portfolio cases emphasizes the criticality of decision making in construction bid.