Many of the big problems facing construction are to do with people rather than bricks and mortar. These 'softer' questions need a different form of enquiry, and often more sophisticated answers. CAR has unpacked a series of different issues to do with how individuals and organisations acquire and manage information.

Two other issues linked to construction also merit more attention: sustainable management and management in smaller organisations. Ensuring lifestyles change to become more sustainable is one of the most pressing problems of our age, and buildings are a major factor shaping the way we live. CAR has examined how construction firms can adopt a more structured approach to sustainability, addressing environmental, social and financial issues together.

Small and medium construction firms make up more than 99% of construction businesses. Yet they are a difficult audience to reach and hard to influence from outside. They are often fiercely independent and as different from large firms as a tadpole is from a frog. How can government agencies and others seeking to work with SMEs communicate successfully with these firms?

CAR is uniquely well placed to answer questions like this that rely equally on understanding the construction industry and management in theory and practice. If you seek to find out more about a specific aspect of learning or management related to building, contact us to find out how we can help.

Projects

• Project Faraday CAR wrote up the findings from this project in a book which showcases designs for science facilities in schools. Client: Department for Education. [Read more »]
• Business Case for Knowledge Management The most difficult step for a construction firm wishing to start work on KM is often trying to tie it into core business objectives. Knowledge is intangible and notoriously difficult to measure. CAR has developed a toolkit to help individuals win corporate backing for KM: how to justify the resources required, and how to assess the benefits. Client: CIRIA/DTI. [Read more »]
• Evidence-based Support for SMEs CAR worked with Eclipse to carry out a large-scale survey of small construction firms on behalf of CITB-ConstructionSkills. We sent postal questionnaires to a sample of 4410 firms, asking them what business support they had received in the past, and how they would like support for the future. We summarised findings for business support organisations, local advisors, and SMEs themselves. Client: CITB-ConstructionSkills. [Read more »]
• How Small Firms Learn and Change CAR also collaborated with Eclipse to explore how to support small firms seeking to change: what triggers the desire to change, why many government schemes are unsuccessful in reaching small companies, and how to identify small firms that are likely to change from outside. Our report includes a 'litmus test' to help those working with SMEs decide which firms are worth supporting. Client: Construction Best Practice.
• Start-up Training for SMEs Eclipse and CAR were commissioned to conduct a state of the art review of evidence about training aimed at new businesses in any sector. We identified the major gaps in knowledge, and recommended a research methodology that would help the government to understand how successful such training is. Client: DTI/Small Business Service.
• MaSC: Managing Sustainable Companies Working with the BRE and Eclipse, CAR developed a set of tools to help firms from construction and other sectors to improve performance by moving towards more sustainable approaches to building. The tools include a matrix that provides an intelligent route to managing change. [Read more »]
• Management Database CAR designed a survey for 45 local offices, guiding the local sales manager through a process of defining market needs in each territory, and choosing products to be targeted. A calendar of activities helps the manager to promote these products and finally, using data from the previous five years, sales of each product are forecast for the coming year. Client: Cambridge University Press.
• Team Building Stephen Platt, a CAR director, is the author of Teams, a management game published by Gower. The game was developed to help clarify individual team skills and select people who will work together. Using this game approach, CAR offers in-house workshops to help organisations improve team performance. [Read more »]

Publications

CAR and Eclipse. Survey: How to engage with small-medium construction firms: Summary findings for strategic decision-makers in business support organisations, CITB, 2003. [Download (PDF, 100K) »]

CAR and Eclipse. Survey: How to engage with small-medium construction firms: Summary findings for intermediaries and local advisors, CITB, 2003. [Download (PDF, 100K) »]

CAR and Eclipse. Survey: Providing information for small-medium construction firms: Summary of findings for small-medium construction firms, CITB, 2003. [Download (PDF, 120K) »]

CAR and Eclipse. How Small Firms Learn and Change, Construction Best Practice, 2003. [Download (PDF, 100K) »]

CAR and Eclipse. Start-up Training for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. Prepared for the Small Business Service, DTI, 2004. [Download (PDF, 164K) »]

CAR in association with BRE and Eclipse. Managing Sustainable Construction: Profiting from Sustainability, CRC Ltd, 2002. [Download (PDF, 780K) »]

J. Palmer & S. Platt. Business Case for Knowledge Management in Construction, CIRIA, 2005. Available from [CIRIA »]

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