3. Early Stakeholder Involvement in a Renovation Project

3.2. Interview Results

A stakeholder always has some "official" role and liability in the project. Table 1 represents the project stakeholders, as well as their roles and primary liabilities in the case project from the customer's point of view. The descriptions of the "official" roles and liabilities are quotes from the interviews, and thus they describe the perceptions and opinions of the interviewees.
Stakeholder "Official" roles and primary liabilities
Customer Owner, end customer, and the final decision maker.
Construction consultant
 Mostly project manager as well. Project management and coordination with the customer.
An essential link between the customer and other stakeholder groups.
Property management Operating the property, information management, and preparation of matters.
Looks for opportunities to develop the housing company.
Planning division Key public authority. Sets frames and constraints for the project.
Architect Main designer. Responsibility for and overseeing of the architecture and designs completed by the design team.
Main contractor Has the greatest responsibility for the practical implementation.
Other designers (incl. structural) Responsible for their own core competencies and fields.
Creation of different alternatives.
Neighbors Under the influence of the project.
Subcontractors Hired by the main contractor. Implementation of small sections.
Sponsors Provides capital for the project's implementation. Usually not very interested in the project's design and implementation.
Material/solution suppliers May offer design and/or building solutions that differ from traditional solutions (i.e., modular construction).

Table 1 The roles and liabilities of the project stakeholders.

Renovation projects face huge problems when it comes to defining and completing projects, and therefore, in reality, the stakeholders' roles and responsibilities are not always as plain and unequivocal as Table 1 suggests. The problems reflect the fact that the roles get mixed up, and therefore, the roles and responsibilities vary and differ from the "official" ones. According to the interviewees, the common problems of this renovation project are (1) the customer's organization has a vague decision-making process, (2) customers are rarely experts in construction and building, (3) the inadequate collection of source information and customer needs, (4) unclear roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders, (5) differing objectives and purposes among the project stakeholders, and (6) a lack of comprehensive renovation concepts and practices.

Many of the problems have come from using the wrong methods, because the renovation does not have established practices, and therefore, the project cannot be managed effectively. However, many of the problems occur because the customer's special status is not understood. The customer organizations (housing companies) in renovation are rarely an expert in construction, and they do not necessarily know their ultimate needs. Furthermore, the customer's vague decision-making process causes the project to not have a clear direction, and it is not concretized at all. Thus, it is possible that the other stakeholders do not know what is wanted, who is responsible for what, who takes care of what, and who has the competency to perform the task. The aforementioned problems create a treadmill where the project's purposes and objectives are often defined without the customer having a voice.

Often, stakeholders stick too much to conventional roles. This may lead to a situation where the wrong solutions or means are exploited, because there is a lack of information and knowledge. If a difference between the official and the practical roles occurs, this may cause problems during the project. Table 2 illustrates those differences in the case project. In addition, the table points out why each stakeholder should be involved early in the renovation project in order to avoid problems. The descriptions are quotes from the interviews.
Stakeholder Roles and responsibilities in practice Why involve early?
Customer The board and the shareholders can have different views on the company's future and development. In the Finnish housing companies, decision making requires unanimity or at least two-thirds majority. Renovation projects are mainly started by the customer. The project fulfills and puts the customer's needs in practice, and therefore, the needs should be mapped right in the beginning.
Construction consultant/project manager Should go according to the interests of the customer, but sometimes consultants fall into a trap of self-interest. Typically, housing companies are not experts in construction, and therefore, a consultant can help with his expertise.
Property manager The same property manager can work in the same post for several housing companies, which can cause a conflict of interests. A property manager usually has the best knowledge and information about the property and what we are trying to achieve. Provides source information for designing.
Planning division No difference. Works under the law and regulations. Frames and constraints set for the project are binding, which must be obeyed if the project is carried out.
Architect (main designer) As the main designer, the architect can push design solutions that are not optimal relative to the project. The main designer is in charge of the completion of the designs and the project. The main designer must find the most economical solutions, which are prefaced in the early phases of the project.
Main contractor If they stick to their role as a builder, there is no chance to innovate or express their practical experience. The good and bad experiences (i.e., solutions, constructability) gained from the previous project are the most useful things to be exploited.
Other designers (incl. structural) Renovation projects can be very complex, and if the designer does not have enough expertise the solutions can be bad. If it is presumed that some specific competence is required, then early involvement should be considered (i.e., the structural designer is a key stakeholder if there is no precise information about the foundations).
Neighbors Showing sympathy for the project can have a positive impact on their own prospective projects and vice versa. It is necessary to check that the requirements and objectives are not inconsistent with each other.
Subcontractors No big difference. In some cases, they could express their core competencies. If it is presumed that some specific competence is required, then early involvement is important.
Sponsors No difference. Access to credit should be checked if external funding is needed.
Material/solution suppliers No big difference. If the proposed solutions are state of the art, they could express and bring out their experience and expertise better.

Table 2 Why should stakeholders be involved early?

Actually, differences in the roles and responsibilities and the unestablished practices should be the main reasons why stakeholders should be involved early. For example, the customer's primary role is to be the final decision maker, but typically, the customer's organization (housing company) consists of shareholders who are residents or private lessors. Therefore, the customer does not often have a sufficient understanding of what the short- and long-term effects of the different options are, or the customer has unrealistic impressions about the project and its outcomes. Because customers rarely have experience in project management and completion as a whole, they must involve stakeholders who have the expertise. In addition, renovation projects contain a lot of uncertainty (i.e., preexisting hidden conditions or the absence of the old designs) compared to new construction production. It is a challenge to find stakeholders and solutions that fit well on a project. Naturally, complexity and unforeseeability increase the risk of rising costs, which in turn complicate the customer's decision making, further increasing the need to involve experts.

There are many reasons why different stakeholders should be involved in the early phases of projects. Basically, renovation projects cannot be initiated without a customer, but there are many others to be involved as well. As mentioned, the customers are rarely experts in construction, and thus, the construction consultant is usually the first one hired. Because of that, the customer, consultant, and property manager act together as a developer, where the customer expresses the practical needs and the consultant transforms them into the requirements. The property manager provides accurate source information and a maintenance viewpoint.

On the other hand, some stakeholders can remain unnoticed during the early phase of a project. This does not mean that the project will fail in that case, but the solutions and the outcomes might have been better if those stakeholders were involved. A good example of this is the main contractor and the structural engineer. The main contractor can help the designers to use solutions that have been proven to work in practice. In turn, the structural engineer can have a very vital role in a renovation project. For example, in Joensuu, the soil is a former riverside, and its texture is very unstable. Hence, the structural engineer emphasized that the carrying capacity of the foundations must be carefully examined and the solution must be dimensioned accordingly.

On the whole, the importance of the source information is emphasized in renovation projects, because otherwise the designs and the solutions do not reflect reality. This leads to redesign and/or changes and, ultimately, rising costs. In addition, renovation projects are usually of such a nature that the designs cannot be finished off at a clip, because there are always surprises revealed during the project. In particular, that is why the majority of the interviewees stressed that renovation projects offer favorable opportunities for stakeholder integration, because the detailed designs are many times advanced simultaneously with the project's implementation. If the uncertainty of the renovation project supports stakeholder integration and collaboration, then early involvement ensures that the project gets the best possible project team. Best of all, the expertise can be utilized right from the start.