Abstract:
Supervision practices play a crucial role in acting
as a bridge between labour and organisations in construction.
According to sources, the progress of construction projects is
negatively impacted by the inadequate competencies of construction supervisors in developing nations like Sri Lanka. This
study aims to pinpoint the critical supervisory competencies that
affect the efficiency, productivity and sustainability of road construction operations. Qualitative and quantitative methods were
applied to determine the essential supervisory competencies of
the construction industry. To analyse the necessary actions,
industry-expert discussions were held using problem-focused
communication approaches. In total, 17 cognitive elements and
25 skills/abilities of construction supervisors were identified as
being crucial according to their impact values, with the topranking cognitive domains for construction supervisors being
basic concepts of structures and performance evaluation of
labour skills, followed by their manual skills/abilities in labour
management and communication. A list of anticipated key
competency outcomes was presented for assisting the development processes of new productive construction supervisory
training components. Pertinent statistical analysis results and
the industry consultation outcomes assured the validity and dependability of the overall findings. The results demonstrate how
the significant construction supervisory competencies impact
the efficiency and sustainability of road construction operations
with the necessary quantitative measurements, and these results
will be highly useful to the industry sector skill enhancement
authorities/boards as they update their training development
practices intending to enhance the sustainability and work
culture of construction project operations. The study findings
have greatly influenced how the industry re-skills and upskills workers in terms of supervision, work culture, efficiency,
sustainability and productivity management. While Sri Lankan
road construction projects were the study’s primary focus, some
of the findings will also be tested in situations similar to those
in other developing construction industries worldwide.
