Making client values explicit in value management workshops

TLDR

Value management is a project‑focused process that explicitly appraises functional benefits within a client‑determined value system, requiring performance variables beyond the usual time, cost, and quality, and current theory is critically examined in this context. The study proposes that by making the components of time, cost, and quality explicit, clients can articulate satisfaction through a finite set of variables, thereby enabling explicit client value statements in workshops. The action research identified nine non‑correlated discretionary performance variables—capital expenditure, operational expenditure, time, esteem, environment, exchange, politics/community, flexibility, and comfort—as the components of client value in early construction projects.

Abstract

Value management is a project‐focused process that makes explicit and appraises the functional benefits of a product, process or service consistent with a value system determined by the client. The value system of the client necessarily requires a method for value setting using harder performance variables than the commonly described facets of time, cost and quality. Current value theory is critically appraised in the context of current value management practice. The research proposition is that the constituent parts of time, cost and quality can be made overt enabling a client to express satisfaction in terms of a finite number of variables enabling the explicit statement of client value within a value management workshop. An action research study into the discovery of the component parts of the client's value system at the early stages of construction projects concludes that the variables are the nine non‐correlated, high order, discretionary performance variables of capital expenditure, operational expenditure, time, esteem, environment, exchange, politics/community, flexibility and comfort.