Hvad Gør De Bedste Bedre?: Undersøgelse af nordjyske bygge- og anlægsvirksomheders konkurrenceevne

Abstract

I forbindelse med tidligere studieprojekter i byggeledelse, er det særligt virksomheders evne til såvel internt som ekstern at skabe en god forretning, som har været i fokus. Dette har gentagende gange affødt spørgsmålet om hvorvidt de bedste virksomheder har noget særligt til fælles? Det er således denne undren, der har drevet specialet: Hvad er det, der i en krise, gør nogle virksomheder i stand til at klare sig bedre end andre? I søgen efter litteratur på området er der kun i et begrænset omfang fundet litteratur, der med baggrund i empiriske studier forklarer, hvorledes nogle virksomheder evner succes hvor andre fejler. Megen af den fundne litteratur beskæftiger sig med teoretiske fremstillinger fx SCM, Balanced Scorecard, TQM etc.. Det synes bemærkelsesværdigt, at der ikke er udarbejdet mere litteratur på baggrund af empiriske data, hvor gode virksomheders erfaringer på vejen til succes videreformidles, således at andre kan lære af dette. Det er derfor i forbindelse med den trykkende finanskrise fundet særlig aktuelt at overveje mulighederne for at øge sin konkurrenceevne, i en så markant grad, at der kan styres sikkert gennem krisen. Idet den finansielle krise både nationalt men også international har stor indflydelse, er det interessant at se på, om der i internationale sammenhænge er foretaget undersøgelser af, hvorvidt nogle virksomheder gør det bedre end andre og om der viser sig en tendens. I denne søgen blev der fundet to udviklingsrapporter, der begge undersøger effekten af innovative aktiviteter. Undersøgelserne konkluderer i korthed at der er sammenhæng mellem størrelsen af en virksomhed, virksomhedens innovations evne og virksomhedens evne til at skabe økonomisk stabilitet. Det findes derfor højaktuelt at se på hvorledes disse tendenser også gør sig gældende i den danske byggebranche. Findes der virksomheder i den danske branche, som klarer sig bedre end andre? Dette bringer os til en problemstilling, som det allerede i indledningen er valgt at præsentere: Hvad gør de bedste bedre? Følgende afsnit skal understrege aktualiteten og vigtigheden i undersøgelse af denne problemstilling. Der vil blive argumenteret for at byggebranchen er præget af, at være for konservativ og traditionsbunden, og at branchen herfor bliver en hæmsko for sig selv, hvorfor det er nødvendig med innovativ tænkning for at bryde med traditionerne. For at underbygge dette redegøres der for den økonomiske situation. Herved styrkes argumentationsgrundlaget for undersøgelsen, da det i krisetid er vigtigt at tænke nyt. Yderligere behandles branchens konkurrencemiljø for at se på de udfordringer, som særligt gør sig gældende inden for byggebranchen. Heraf vil vigtigheden af udvikling og innovation fremstå endnu tydeligere. Innovation er i sig selv ikke vejen til succes. Det er derfor relevant at se på, hvor de innovative tiltag har størst effekt, og dermed hvad de bedste gør bedre.

This is a short master's thesis concerning competitive advantage in the construction industry. The subject is inspired by previous student projects, which mainly had a focus on companies' particular ability to create a good business both internally and externally by altering strategic processes, which repeatedly led to the question of whether the best companies have something special in common? The Danish construction industry has for years been criticized for poor productivity and ineffective efficiency improvements compared to other Industries and European countries, even though many initiatives have been introduced to improve the situation sufficient results have not yet been achieved. These considerations let to formulation of the main problem: What makes the best better? (Inspired by the book “In Search of Excellence” written by T. J. Peters & R. H. Waterman Jr.) The problem was hereafter analyzed to emphasize the timeliness and importance in the investigation of this problem. It is argued that the construction industry in lack of innovation can be characterized by being too conservative and tradition‐bound, why this therefore becomes a hindrance to the prospect of success. Due to the oppressive financial crisis it is also particularly relevant to consider the possibilities of increasing competitive advantage, it is necessary with innovative thinking to break with tradition. Uninhibited innovation is not the path to success, the right innovative approaches carefully selected is. This underlines the relevance and importance of investigating the issue further to find out which innovative approaches have the greatest effect, and thus what the best do better. In the methodological considerations a technical/social science methodologies approach where chosen when selecting the following three methods: quantitative questionnaire, comparative analysis and a flexible design case study. The empirical study was geographically bounded only to consider members of The Benchmarking Centre for the Danish Construction Sector (BEC) in North Jutland, and further more to the construction, carpentry‐, and masonry contractors. In elaboration of the comparative analysis using data from questionnaires, mark sheets from (BEC) and financial ratio analysis, which based on the detected contexts i.e. between economy and quality, it was possible to explain how these factors are linked with the use of innovative strategies within the company. The study showed a pattern indicating correlation between size, level of innovation in chosen focus areas of the organization and the ability to provide a more stable economical performance without larger deviations both before and after the financial crisis. A final verification where undertaken using a qualitative empirical study performed on selected cases in the best performing segment involved in the comparative analysis, determine underlying elements and factors in the focus areas of the firms. It was found that innovation had a tendon positive effect on economic stability and customer satisfaction. It became clear that companies with a special focus on Business Environment, Marketing & Advertising, Employees, Applied Technologies, Work methods and Sources of information were the most successful of all involved companies. The key words that characterize the best performing companies in the north of Jutland are: superior service, always the best quality, the perfect employee, shared values and a strong culture. These things create competitive advantage and long‐term survival benefits for the successful companies in this study.

A master thesis from Aalborg University

Hvad Gør De Bedste Bedre?: Undersøgelse af nordjyske bygge- og anlægsvirksomheders konkurrenceevne

[The search for excellence in Construction industry: A Study on the Factors of Regional Competitiveness in the Danish Construction industry]