Management of institutional differences in international construction projects

An empirical study from Chinese contractors

Chinese contractors are playing an increasingly important role in international construction markets and account for a greater share of international market revenue than any other country’s international contractors. Differences in regulative, normative and cultural-cognitive institutions between host countries and domestic markets can pose great challenges for international project delivery. The differences can cause additional transaction costs and misunderstandings between project participants, which can further lead to time delay and cost overrun, or even project failure.

This research aims to investigate:

  • The impact of institutional differences on Chinese contractors’ international project performances.
  • Their lessons and experience in dealing with the challenges from the perspectives of scope management and workplace learning.

Project team