The influence of stakeholders' relationship on project success

The quality of the relationship between critical stakeholders (client, consultant and contractor), in a typical construction project, influences the progress on the project. If this relationship is impaired, it may lead to disputes of varied degrees; which usually culminate in litigation. The objective of a typical construction project is to strive to improve on the relationship between the stakeholders through effective communication, cordial information sharing and timely response to enquiries. When this is done, the stakeholders at variance with others are politely educated and re-aligned towards achieving the project's objectives. The effective management of relationships in a construction project can be achieved through the contextual use of the Johari's model. The action research approach was adopted, examining the actions of each stakeholder for a longitudinal period of twelve months in the life of a construction project. The findings revealed that the contractor's actions, in many instances, displayed acts of ignorance, while the consultants were seen to be economical with details; these are referred to, in the Johari's model, as acting in the blind area and façade respectively. The use of the Johari's model has helped in ameliorating disputes between stakeholders; improved on in their relationship and facilitating progress in the construction project.