Key performance indicators for regional construction supervision systems in China

Abstract

This article aims to build a model to identify key performance indicators for regional supervision system performance in China. A quantitative model consisting of performance indicators using discriminant analysis method was developed using regional data from 2005 to 2009. Validity of the identified key performance indicators was verified using classification analysis and group membership prediction based on 2010 data. The results show, first, that the differences between groups arise from the scale, structure, and human resources of regional supervision systems. Second, regional supervision systems are labor intensive instead of knowledge intensive, no matter which group they belong to. Third, it may be appropriate to merge developing and underdeveloped regions. This implies that practicing engineering managers could play an even more significant role in these markets. Practicing engineering managers could provide knowledge-intensive services, such as design supervision and life-cycle cost supervision so that global consulting competitors could enter the Chinese supervision market and sustain a competitive edge. There are also lessons from China that there is a need for professional supervision engineers, which should be distinct from other engineering managers.