Barriers Women UK Construction

Barriers to Women in the UK Construction Industry

Title: HRM Dissertation Barriers to Women in the UK Construction Industry. In the 21st Century the idea of women in the workplace has become a widely accepted notion not just by society but also being enshrined in law with the introduction of the Equal Pay Act (1970), the Sex Discrimination Act (1975), and the Equality Act (2010). As a result of this, many sectors within the UK economy have seen an increase in the equal representation of men and women in the workplace with occupations such as elementary education resulting in women forming 46% of workers, in the professional sector women make up 50% and within management and senior official roles women constitute only 33%. However, in stark contrast of these progressive figures, women form only 11% of the entire construction Industry with 80% of these roles that women occupy being in fact merely support roles carrying out things like secretarial work; only 15% of women are actually part of the professional body of employees- this constitutes just 1.5% of professionals in the entire industry.

Women-Construction-Industry
Women-Construction-Industry

In 2006, Greed went so far as to say that these secretarial roles are not contributing to, or not being part of the construction process. It appears that although the construction industry has innovated in terms of methods and practices the same old ideas of it being a male-dominated world still remains. In order for the industry to thrive and remain relevant in these modern times it must adapt itself, and let go of this man’s world culture by encouraging and recruiting more women. It is on this basis that more Investigation must be done as to why there is such a lack of female presence within the construction industry and how as an industry it can attract the young girls of today’s society so that the industry will have a more representative and diverse future.

Dissertation Aims and Objectives

The aim of this research is to look into and analyse why there is such a lack of females within the UK construction industry, what can be done to change the perception of the industry as being a man’s world and attract the future generation of women to consider the industry as a viable career choice.

  • To investigate and evaluate if there is an actual need for women within the professional sector of the UK construction industry.
  • To compare the lack of women in the construction industry with other industries in the UK, and then with other EU member countries as a whole.
  • To examine the reasons why there is a severe lack of women within the UK built environment profession in the modern era.
  • To assess how those in secondary schools view construction and ascertain if they see a future within the industry.
  • To evaluate how the industry is trying to tackle this issue and whether these are having a positive impact or if more needs to be done.

Dissertation Contents

1 – Introduction
Aim
Objectives
Proposed Methods

2 – Literature Review
The need for women in professional roles within construction
Benefits to more women in construction
Comparison within UK and EU
Profession comparison
Comparison with the medical profession
Comparison of UK construction industry to the of Europe
Hurdles to women in construction
The choice between career or children
Flexibility and maternity leave
The construction Industry as sexist
Lack of female role models
The views of secondary pupils
Efforts of the construction industry
Employers role
Female construction organisations

3 – Methodology
Primary research
Quantitative research
Qualitative research
Selected Methodology
The Questionnaire
Selection criteria
Structure
Structured interview
Selection criteria
Structure
Desk Research

4 – Data Analysis
Questionnaire results
Interview results
Background information
University Life
Social aspects of university
Post university

5 – Discussion of Results
Preconception about construction
Role models
Sexism in the industry
Efforts of the construction industry
Employers role
Female construction organisations
Enthusiasm of female students

6 – Results and Conclusions
Limitations
Analysis of Research Objectives
Final conclusion

References

Appendices
Questionnaire

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Innovation Management UK Construction

How Innovative is the UK Construction Industry?

Title: Innovation Management in the UK Construction Industry. The contemporary built environment increasingly calls for the incorporation of innovation in the agenda of Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) organisations. Being widely recognized for its vital contribution to achieve a competitive advantage, innovation is perceived as the backbone to secure survival in the dynamic construction market. However, a contradiction is created when the necessity for the construction industry to innovate meets the distinctive elements of the industry’s own nature characterized by a temporary, adversarial and fragmented culture.

Innovation Management

This is the point where the need to face innovation with a conscious and well-integrated approach is revealed. Therefore, the present work aims to discuss how AEC organisations adopt innovation management at the organisational level, where organisational variables and management interventions affect its integration in the business, and to further provide suggestions for its wider promotion in the construction industry. The research carries out an extensive literature review and a series of interviews for the elicitation of empirical data, involving professionals closely related to construction innovation.

Innovation Management UK Construction Industry
Innovation Management UK Construction Industry

The findings revolve around the examination of the construction-tailored concept and context of innovation and proceed to the investigation of the organizational dimension represented by strategies and techniques, as they are suggested by the literature and actually embraced by the interviewed construction firms. The synthesis of the innovation management interventions enable their suggestion to AEC companies, provided that they are critically assessed to their individual needs and capabilities. Consequently, this study can be a useful instrument for organisations that wish to contribute to promoting innovation in the construction industry.

Dissertation Aim and Objectives

The aim of this research is to discuss how AEC organisations adopt innovation management in the contemporary built environment and provide recommendation in order to promote and integrate innovation in the construction industry. In order to achieve the stated aim the following objectives are set:

  • Examine the current state of innovation in UK construction
  • Explore the role of innovation management and the organisational dimension of innovation in construction industry
  • Investigate the approaches of AEC organisations to strategically and tactically promote innovation
  • Identify effective strategies and techniques and provide suggestions for the adoption of innovation management by AEC firms

Dissertation Contents

1 – Introduction
Rationale
Research Aim and Objectives
Research Methodology
Structure of the Dissertation

2 – The Concept and the Context of Innovation in Construction
Defining innovation
Innovation in construction
Influencing factors on construction innovation
The role of the client and manufacturers
The structure of production
Industry relationships
Regulations/Standards
Organisational resources
Innovation performance of the construction industry

3 – Innovation Management at Organisational Level in a Construction Firm
Innovation management in construction
Organisational variables and management interventions
The role of leadership
The organisational environment
The business environment
Management approaches

4 – Research Methodology
Research Approaches
Quantitative Research Method
Qualitative Research Method
Research method selection
Methods of data collection
Literature Review
Interview
Synthesis exercise

5 – Data Analysis and Discussion
Classification of results
Background of the sample
Definition of innovation
Perception of in-house innovation
Barriers to innovation
Strategic approach to innovation
Tactical approach to innovation
Role of the construction sector
Synthesis of the findings

6 – Conclusions, Recommendations and Further Research
Aim and objectives restated
Recommendations
Limitations
Further Research
Summary

References

Appendix
Interview Transcripts

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Forecasting Stock Price

Finance Dissertation Forecasting Stock Price Volatility

Title: Forecasting Stock Price Volatility – This dissertation addresses the question of whether there might exist a more accurate method of forecasting volatility that those in common use today. More specifically the project restricts its scope to stock prices since historical data, including pricing, for these assets are transparent, readily available and voluminous. Before moving on to the research hypothesis, however, a final general observation about volatility is, perhaps, in order.

Volatility is a useful proxy for risk and it is commonly treated as such in the financial literature and mathematical models. However there is a countervailing viewpoint that volatility is not exactly the same thing as risk. A stock that rises exhibits high volatility, but if that rise is based on business fundamentals then the underlying risk may not have moved. The research hypothesis for this dissertation is that recent advances in machine learning and deep neural nets allow the construction of a high performance volatility forecasting model that is easier to configure correctly and more stable against changes in model hyperparameters or inputs.

An LSTM based recurrent neural network architecture is proposed as suitable for time series forecasting. Data from the CRSP US Stock Database and Google Trends is used to construct training patterns and testing patterns and the model is subjected to fifteen different training scenarios. These scenarios vary the model hyperparameters and inputs, and compare the consequent performance against three common benchmark forecasting models.

The model is found to perform well in most scenarios, be easy to configure and demonstrates good resilience to hyperparameter and input changes. In the highest performing configurations, the model demonstrated an RMS error rate less than 50% of the next best performing benchmark.

Forecasting Stock Price Dissertation
Forecasting Stock Price Dissertation

Dissertation Contents

1 – Introduction
Hypothesis

2 – Research Goal

3 – Theory
Stochastic Volatility
Volatility Forecasting
Artificial Neural Networks
Recurrent Neural Networks
Long Short-Term Memory
Tensors

4 – Data Sources

5 – Model Design
Basic Architecture
Input/Output Transformation
Training
Input Features
CRSP Features
Google Trends Features
Input Tensor
Output Tensor
Implementation Outline
Model Visualisation

6 – Experimental Results
Analysis of Scenarios

7 – Analysis

8 – Conclusions and Future Directions

References

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I hope you enjoyed reading this post on Forecasting Stock Price Volatility. There are many other dissertation titles available in the Finance Dissertation Collection that should be of interest to finance students and practitioners. There are many dissertation titles that relate to other aspects of finance such as Financial Management, Global Finance, International Banks, Foreign Direct Investment, FDI, Investment Banking, Corporate Strategy, Risk Management, Finance Portfolios, Share Prices, Capital Investment, Financial Planning and Micro-Finance to name a few. I would be grateful if you could share this post via Facebook and Twitter. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments section. Thank you.

New Rules Measurement Quantity Surveying

Is New Rules Measurement A Real Success Story?

Title: NRM – Is New Rules of Measurement A Real Success Story? There has been many pieces of literature in the UK construction industry which say the implementation of NRM has been successful however there has been very little surveys carried out which provide true data not opinions. Through analysing NRM in depth looking at the perceived advantages and barriers to their adoption it provided a better understanding of what the RICS were trying to achieve with New Rules Measurement. The dissertation aimed evaluate the impact of New Rules Measurement has had on the UK construction industry and how well the suite of documents were understood and utilised.

The method of data collection used in this research dissertation was questionnaires; this provided quantitative data which there was a lack of on this subject. This data was collected through the questionnaire which was sent to various companies to gain a greater understanding of the impact of New Rules Measurement across the industry. The main findings in the research were that many QS’s surveyed had not been given any training on New Rules Measurement as there was a small number of projects requesting its use. Quantity surveyors surveyed also believe there are benefits to using New Rules Measurement however they are not willing to seek training without a higher demand in New Rules Measurement use from clients.

NRM New Rules Measurement Dissertation
NRM New Rules Measurement Dissertation

A conclusion that can be drawn from the dissertation is that New Rules Measurement has yet to impact the industry as a whole, as many quantity surveyors do not fully understand what the documents are or what they are trying to achieve. The RICS should endeavour to keep promoting this publication to ensure the benefits are realised across the industry so that it becomes industry standard. The aim of this dissertation is to investigate the impact of New Rules Measurement and how it is being utilised in the UK construction industry and to evaluate the impact and utilisation. This research hopes to identify any barriers that may hinder the full integration of New Rules Measurement and therefore allows any issues to be clearly identified for the UK construction industry.

Research Objectives

  • Investigate the need for the UK construction industry to update from SMM7 to New Rules Measurement
  • Critical appraisal of New Rules Measurement to produce an understanding of its contents
    Identification of barriers that hold back New Rules Measurement
  • Evaluation of New Rules Measurement’s potential benefits
  • What are the opinions of those in industry on New Rules Measurement and how it is being used

Dissertation Contents

Introduction
Rationale
Hypothesis
Research Aim Research Objectives
Research Method and Scope
Structure

Analysis of NRM and its impact
Background Information
Historical Role
Problems in current Quantity Surveying Practice
The need for NRM
Barriers to use of NRM in UK construction industry
Advantages of NRM
Updated
Global Appeal
BIM integration
Innovation in the construction industry

Research Methodology
Research Aim
Research Methodology
Research Approaches
Quantitative
Qualitative
Questionnaire Aim
The Participants
Response Rate
Questionnaire Structure
Rational for Questionnaire
Data Analysis

Data Analysis
Questionnaires
Participants
Experience of Participants
Knowledge of Current Industry Standards
Use of Current Industry Standards
Knowledge of NRM
Use of NRM
Training on NRM
NRM being beneficial
Projects that used NRM in 2015
Projects that will use NRM in 2016
Barriers to NRM
NRM providing cost consistency and accuracy
Opinions on NRM
If it were your choice would you use NRM
Advantages of NRM

Conclusion and Recommendation
Hypothesis
Aims & Objectives
Comments on objectives
Investigate the need to update from SMM7 to NRM
Critical appraisal of NRM
Barriers of NRM
NRM’s benefits
Opinions on NRM and how it is being used
Conclusion
Recommendation
Limitations
Future Research

References

Appendix
Questionnaire

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I do hope you enjoyed reading this post on New Rules Measurement and Is New Rules of Measurement A Real Success Story? There are many other titles available in the construction dissertation collection that should be of interest to construction management students and building professionals. There are many dissertation titles that relate to other aspects of construction such as project management techniques, environmental management, building and construction methods to name a few. It took a lot of time to write this post and I would be grateful if you could share this post via Facebook and Twitter. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments section. Thank you.

Customer Buying Behaviour Dissertation

Customer Buying Behaviour Towards Store Own Brand Products: A Case Study Of Tesco

This dissertation aims to address and understand how customers behave when they are aware of store own brands. What types of customer buying behaviours are commonly observed in this situation? For this purpose, three specific questions were made that included What are the factors affecting consumers’ buying behaviour towards store brands, particularly offered by Tesco? What kinds of effective strategies (marketing and distribution) can be adopted by the management of Tesco and other retailers to sell store brands selling in order to fascinate buyers? And what is the buying behaviour/attitude of customers towards purchasing of Tesco own or store Brand and what types of buying attitudes are used by the people for purchasing process? Using the quantitative research approach, the data was collected from 50 participants and analysed through SPSS.

Buying Behaviour Dissertation
Buying Behaviour Dissertation

The results of the study highlighted that customers’ behaviour is changing over time towards Tesco store brands. These changing customers’ behaviours belong to different types such as dissonance behaviour, complex buying, variety seeking, and habitual attitude. The results concluded that price, innovation, quality, brand image, and customers’ age and gender consideration are the key factors influencing customers’ buying attitude. The study suggests that improvement in innovation, high promotion through different mediums, effective pricing (element of marketing mix approach) and business extension can be adopted as influential strategy to attract customers more towards Tesco store brands.

Dissertation Objectives

  • To explore the attitudes (types of behaviours) of buyers towards Tesco Own/Store Brands and to reveal some important aspects behind buying trends
  • To find the factors affecting consumer behaviour of people towards store brands
  • To evaluate the effective strategies (marketing and distribution) that must be considered or continued by store brands selling retailers like Tesco in order to fascinate buyers towards store brands

View This Dissertation Here

Dissertation Contents

1 – Introduction
Background and Rational to the Study
Problem Statement
Research Aim(s) and Objective(s)
Research Question(s)
Main Question
Sub-Question(s)
Potential Contribution of the Study/Significance

2 – Literature Review
Customers’ Behaviour and Store Brands’ Buying
Store Brands or Own Brands
Customer Behaviour in the Context of Store Brands
Types of Customer Behaviour and Store Brands
Complex Buying Behaviour
Dissonance-Reducing Buying Behaviour
Habitual buying behaviour
Variety Seeking Behaviour
Factors Affecting Consumer Behaviour (Positive/Negative Determinants)
Impact of Influencing factors on Store Brands’ Demands and Businesses
Effective Strategies to Fascinate Customers towards Buying of Store Brand

3 – Methodology and Design
Research Philosophy
Research Design and Strategy
Research Approach
Data Collection Method
Sample Population
Data Analysis
Ethical Consideration

4 – Case Study

5 – Findings and Analysis
Participant Details
Descriptive Results

6 – Discussion
Discussion Based on Research Questions

7 – Conclusion

References

Appendix
Questionnaire

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I hope you enjoyed reading this post on Customer Buying Behaviour Towards Store Own Brand Products. There are many other titles available in the Marketing Dissertation Collection that should be of interest to marketing students and practitioners. There are many dissertation titles that relate to other aspects of marketing such as branding, corporate advertising, marketing strategy and consumerism to name a few. I would be grateful if you could share this post via Facebook and Twitter. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments section. Thank you.