The relationship between pre-project planning effort and success for capital construction projects

Pre-project planning for capital projects can be defined as the process of developing sufficient strategic information with which owners can address risk and decide to commit resources to maximize the chance for a successful project. This process develops a comprehensive framework for executing the project and lies within the project life cycle between business planning and project execution. The four primary functions in pre-project planning are: (1) Organize for pre-project planning, (2) Select project alternatives, (3) Develop a project definition package, and (4) Decide whether to proceed with the project. Sixty-two capital construction projects provided the data for this research effort. Industry practices for pre-project planning were evaluated and a methodology was developed to quantify pre-project planning effort. The level of success attained for each sample project was quantified by development of a composite measure comprised of four objective performance measures. Subsequently, the correlation between success and pre-project planning effort was revealed through bivariate regression analysis. This research contributes a unique body of knowledge to the public domain. Industry best practices for pre-project planning of capital construction facilities were identified. A measurement system was developed providing the industry with a tool to evaluate their pre-project planning practices. This research was sponsored by the Construction Industry Institute.