Business Alignment Strategies for Middle East Real Estate Construction Projects

Business Alignment Strategies for Middle East Real Estate Construction Projects by Ali Chiri MBA, University of Manchester, 2011 BS, BAU, 1997 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration Walden University December 2017 Abstract In the Middle East real estate industry, 46% of projects fail in terms of strategic dimensions. Based on the dynamic capabilities approach and contingency approach, the purpose of this exploratory multiple case study was to identify the successful strategies project leaders used to improve the alignment of projects with business strategy. Data were collected from 7 Skype semistructured interviews with real estate construction project leaders from 3 real estate organizations ranked among the top 10 in the Middle East. Public organizational documents were used for methodological triangulation. A thematic coding approach was adopted following a nonlinear sequential process that involved four stages: (a) reading and preparing the collected data, (b) coding, (c) abstracting the codes into conceptual categories, and (d) identifying the themes’ relationships and patterns and creating a thematic map. The 4 themes identified were the (a) flow of strategy, (b) governance of projects during the development phase, (c) governance of projects during the delivery phase, and (d) measurement of project performance and strategic success. The results confirmed the idiosyncratic nature of the selected contexts and the need to increase some dynamic capabilities’ dimensions. TheIn the Middle East real estate industry, 46% of projects fail in terms of strategic dimensions. Based on the dynamic capabilities approach and contingency approach, the purpose of this exploratory multiple case study was to identify the successful strategies project leaders used to improve the alignment of projects with business strategy. Data were collected from 7 Skype semistructured interviews with real estate construction project leaders from 3 real estate organizations ranked among the top 10 in the Middle East. Public organizational documents were used for methodological triangulation. A thematic coding approach was adopted following a nonlinear sequential process that involved four stages: (a) reading and preparing the collected data, (b) coding, (c) abstracting the codes into conceptual categories, and (d) identifying the themes’ relationships and patterns and creating a thematic map. The 4 themes identified were the (a) flow of strategy, (b) governance of projects during the development phase, (c) governance of projects during the delivery phase, and (d) measurement of project performance and strategic success. The results confirmed the idiosyncratic nature of the selected contexts and the need to increase some dynamic capabilities’ dimensions. The contribution of this study to positive social change includes improved community lifestyle and environmental quality. Business Alignment Strategies for Middle East Real Estate Construction Projects by Ali Chiri MBA, University of Manchester, 2011 BS, BAU, 1997 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration Walden University December 2017 Dedication To dad; your soul was always there to protect and inspire me. To mom; you are always keeping me in your prayers and care. To Racha; no words could describe you, my other half. Acknowledgments I am ever grateful for the encouragement, support, and guidance from my research committee. Special thanks to Dr. Charlotte Carlstrom, the committee chairperson; you were always there to provide me extensive professional guidance and taught me a great deal about research. Thanks to the second committee member, Dr. Jorge Gaytan, and the university research reviewer, Dr. Scott Burrus, for the good care and significant observations that contributed to the best results of my research. Also, I appreciate and thank Dr. Gail Ferreira for her involvement during the proposal stage. Nobody was more important to me in the pursuit of this research than my great small family. I wish to thank my loving, supporting, and sacrificing wife Racha; you are the best grace that God has given to me. To the bouquet of my life, Hossein, Reine, and Abdallah; I wish you a prosperous life full of achievements more than what your mom and dad did. Praise to God, all greatness belongs to Him in the heavens and earth, He is Almighty, the All Wise.