Imad B. Ghantous, PE

Developing nations around the world are realizing the importance of National Project Management Organizations to the development of their vision for economic diversification, better return on investment, job creation, efficiency, auditability and standardized processes and procedures. Analysis of NPMOs around the world indicate a wide range of involvement ranging from an advisory role to a more proactive role. Based on their mandate and authority their effectiveness in the enablement of project delivery varies. The organizational structure, role and responsibility and accrued benefits are analyzed. Recommendations based on lessons learnt are included to drive and inform a better configuration and mandate for NPMOs.

The evolution of Affordable Housing initiatives around the World suggests that while in the early stages the government plays the role of the developer supplying affordable housing units to a growing population, a transition from the Supply side to the demand side, providing financing solutions and products as well as becoming the regulator of housing activities, must happen expeditiously to avoid imposing dead weight on the private sector. Different countries around the world have had different success rates. While some were successful in evolving from a supplier of affordable housing to a regulator of housing initiatives, others have failed to do so with drastic consequences. This paper demonstrates the various journeys undertaken by various countries in the Affordable Housing Initiatives.

I’m always amused when I meet a few of my developer friends for Friday coffee. The conversation inevitably turns to project delays and cost overruns—always blamed on someone else: architects, engineers, specialty consultants, operators, interior designers, contractors, and, of course, the project management consultant. The question is always the same: what penalties, legal measures, contract terms, or limits of liability can ensure everyone “plays nicely in the sandbox”? In short, how do we upgrade from a cane to a baseball bat—or even a prehistoric club?

No one likes surprises in business, especially real estate developers undertaking large, complex projects with significant capital and leverage. Price and cost certainty are critical from the outset. Traditionally, that’s meant fixing service costs with a lump-sum fee or a set number of person-months tied to a schedule. The conventional wisdom says cost certainty comes from locking in the number—and then holding people’s feet to the fire. Some go further, insisting the risk be cascaded down to every team member.

The Housing Initiative in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia faced several barriers over the past decade. Demand- and supply-side issues led to an acute shortage of affordable housing. On the demand side, the absence of a mortgage law—and the difficulty of Sharia-compliant workarounds—delayed the creation of financial products for eligible first-time buyers; this has since been resolved, and several products now support homeownership. On the supply side, large tracts of “white land” and limited private-sector interest created long waiting lists and reduced GDP contribution; these were addressed through the white lands tax and PPP projects. The debut of Roshn as a community development company offers promise for placemaking and the creation of sustainable neighborhoods across the Kingdom.

You get an overseas call from a potential client asking if you would participate in a design competition and he says, “Do not worry, everybody who has been invited will be of the same caliber as your esteemed company. The evaluation criteria will be fair, and we will have a competent set of highly respectable jurors, the decision will be quick, and it will all be above the table.”

It is a big project, and you have eager staff that have been chomping at the bit to get the opportunity to show what they could do. So, you decide to move forward. A high degree of excitement engulfs the studio that is working on it. You go as far as diverting people that are billable to work on this competition.

In an exclusive interview with Arabian Business, Imad Ghantous, Senior Vice President of Hill International, emphasizes his firm’s goal to become a thought leader in construction industry having delivered some of the most complicated and challenging projects in the Middle East and North Africa.

Thought Leadership is an important topic that is, perhaps, not given its fair share of recognition in our industry.