Project management and the private finance initiative

5.1 Introduction
chapter five
Conclusions and recommendations
This research was undertaken to determine for the first time the
number of Project Management Faculty members involved in PFI,
their roles and responsibilities, and their background, skills and
experience. The aim of the research was to acquire a better
understanding of these issues, as a prerequisite to engendering
increased awareness of PFI within the surveying profession, as
well as developing and expanding project management skills
and competencies.
In order to satisfy the aims of this research, the research has:
• Reviewed the background to PFI and its implications for project
management in the UK construction industry.
• Examined the role of project managers in the PFI process.
• Determined the extent to which Project Management Faculty
members are involved in PFI and in what capacity.
• Reviewed the background, skills and experience of Chartered
Surveyors involved in PFI projects.
• Identified instances of best practice project management in
PFI projects.
This final section of the report therefore draws together the
main findings of the research, identifies key themes and makes
recommendations as to how the management of PFI projects can
be improved, and how the scope for more Chartered Surveyors to
become involved the PFI process can be increased.
5.2 Project management
opportunities in PFI
Results from the online questionnaire survey showed not only
that PFI work is an important part of Project Management
Faculty members’ work, but also that there are opportunities
for further growth in the field.
For example, some 64% of respondents (the majority of whom
are based in the public sector) worked for organisations that
29 chapter five Conclusions and recommendations Project management and the private finance initiative
have been involved in PFI projects. However, a smaller proportion
have actually been personally involved in one or more PFI projects
(48%). Those respondents who are active in PFI tend to be working
as consultants and executives, and also tend to be older.
Similarly, the interviews revealed that those involved in
managing PFI projects in both the public and private sectors
were often drawn from a variety of professional and educational
backgrounds, and none of the interviewees had formal project
management qualifications. This was borne out in the online
survey where, surprisingly, overall only 7% of respondents had a
formal project management qualification. The figure for PFIactive
respondents was less than 8%.
5.3 Managing the PFI process
In terms of management structures in PFI, the interviews showed that:
• All six case study projects have similar management structures
which follow the conventional PFI model comprising the
awarding authority, the SPV and funders;
• All the organisations have a project sponsor, and this tends to
be the Chief Executive in the NHS and a Project Board/Steering
Group in the other public sector projects;
• The Project Director oversees the project manager who is
responsible for the day-to-day detail and is directly accountable
to the project sponsor; and
• The traditional boundaries between in-house and external
consultants are becoming blurred within PFI structures.
In terms of the skills required at the project director level, the role
is to co-ordinate the involvement of the various stakeholders and
bring in the requested skills at appropriate stages of the project.
One respondent (project sponsor in the central government
judicial sector) described the key skill as ‘Stakeholder
Management’, because the project director is the co-ordinator
and the buffer between the end users, contractors and the SPV.
The interviews also showed that the project manager’s role is
changing within PFI. Traditionally four separate project