An Index to Assess Project Management Competencies in Managing Design Changes

Design changes, whether voluntary or imposed, are common and inevitable in oil and gas projects. These changes are significant sources of cost growth and time delays in projects. As a result, identification of the factors contributing to design changes concerns a number of researchers and professionals in the industry. One of the main factors is project management competency, which significantly contributes when dealing with design changes. This study aims to develop an index for assessing the competency level of a project management team through identifying and rating the main skills and characteristics attributed to team members. The data was acquired through a questionnaire survey along with a series of interviews and brainstorming sessions with practitioners in the industry. The Project Management Competency Index provides a common forum for all project participants to assess and rate the competencies of a project management team. Knowing the composition of a PM team, the team members' background and work experience, and their skills and characteristics constitutes an important step in evaluating and monitoring the performance of a PM team handling design changes at different points during project execution. This is crucial for selection of an effective team able to control and manage all issues related to project design changes. The PMCI, when combined with other key factors, can also greatly improve the predictability of design changes. The result of this study forms part of the authors' ongoing research which focuses on developing a predictive model for pattern recognition of the impact of design changes on project performance.