Transformational Leadership in Projects

Introduction

Studies into the role of transformational leadership in project bases companies have basically focused on project managers who oversee several projects to attain the business objectives. This is because there is a need for organizations to respond rapidly to the transforming and often conflicting expectations from customers and still remain relevant in the recent harsh economic surrounding, thus calling for continuous finding for innovative methods aimed at promoting performances of projects. Battersea Power Station is recently undergoing technological innovation due to concern about the liberalization of supply of electricity, free competition as well as international influence on the environment, securing a dependable power supply has become a significant social need in the globe. Thus transformational leadership to include artificial intelligence has been a crucial aspect the project managers are imposed with the immense responsibility to attain this objective in Battersea Power Station.

Background Information of Battersea Power Station

Battersea Power Station that was fully decommissioned back in the year 1983 and branded grade two building status is being renovated as part of the seven-phased of eight billion euros worth renovation project. Allen (2014), points out that the project is situated opposite Chelsea, stretching four hundred miles from River Thames and about a mile from the House of Parliament. Project managers from the Battersea Power Station Development Company as well as the Malaysian Consortium in which they are expected to complete the entire project in the year 2025 are undertaking the project.

Garrett (2014) assert that the renovation of the power plant intends to complete projects of riverside park, the construction of three thousand residential homes, restoration of the power station itself, construction of the contemporary tube station, new offices, library, medical center as well as childcare facilities are expected to be completed by the year mentioned above. In that case, Transformative leadership is, in particular, has been emphasized as an important factor to influence the innovation and performance in the projects.

For these projects to be completed, Kissi et al. (2013), depict that the focus has been on the senior management and less on the middle-level managers, since such a mega project projects managers are considered important personnel in facilitating improved project performance. While there is a portfolio manager under the project manager whose roles is to overview the projects led by various project managers which are not axiomatically inter-related. The basic objective of all the senior and middle-level project managers is to make sure that the artificial intelligence, as well as construction workers, are working towards the improving the productivity of the projects and the general completion of the projects before the stipulated time.

Case Study of Transformational Leadership in Battersea Power Station

While the United Kingdom focuses on recruiting about four hundred thousands of individuals in the architecture companies by the year 2021, Battersea Power Station has managed to recruit a hundred and ten thousands of people alone. Since the commencement of the renovation of the Battersea Power Station back in 2016, the company has focused on transformative model of the industry by seeking ways unto which it can offer its clients modern housing and designs meant to meet their expectation and at the same time meet the UK expectations of employing its indigenous people in construction companies. In that case, Clavero (2018), identified that project managers were included in designing transformative leadership in which artificial intelligence (AI), as well as construction workers, can both be included in the vital times of assembly on sites and the completion of the project.

The case of machines in the construction sites had proven in several cases that the robots are capable of increasing quality and efficiency whilst reducing waste and errors. Arun Kumar and Mohan (n.d), claim that the integration of AI had proven that it could increase productivity in the construction process of the Power Plant. As more reliant of the AI that fostered efficiency, it was identified that cases of safety and health had reduced among construction workers at the site, such as a pair of e-gloves were adopted and alerted the wearer when he experienced vibrations that would probably cause conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome due to strenuous activities.

Project managers had the responsibility of managing projects across the entire phases of the Power Plant in which various groups of employees of related and unrelated projects were coordinated to attain benefits not possible in managed individually. In this case, Ghinn (2017), claim that AI was designed and delegated specific roles thus could not solve issues outside their programmed fields, and it was impossible to predict what would happen in such a fast-moving construction project.

Project managers had to rely on the skilled manpower to facilitate the accomplishment of the projects through a slow adoption of the technology in the construction job site. Kissi et al. (2012a) discovers that the adoption could not have been capable of if not for the transformative leadership roles the project managers from various sites undertook. They trained some of the staffs on how to handle various AI devices that could help them ensure that the roles undertaken were effectively undertaken. This involved the individual’s considerations in which the project managers had to attend every staff member’s needs and coach in regards to the concerns he or she rose. So the project managers had a role of empathizing and supporting where necessary to ensure that the communications between the two are open at all times. Issues of concern that were common were the long shifts, and lack of off days.

Transformative leadership could not have been achieved if the project managers did not encompass the need for reverence and honor each foreman’s contribution that was made to the entire team in the renovation of the power plant. Out of such move made by the project managers, Kissi et al. (2012b) claim that the staff had an easy induction to the AI in which they per took the roles with aspirations for self and team development. It was where they indicated an intrinsic motivation for their various roles in different phases of the Battersea Power Station. According to Verdict Designbuild (n.d), the adoption of the contemporary technology to facilitate the renovation of the renovation of the Power Plant could not have been successful too without the project managers challenged certain assumptions. In addition there was taking of some risks and pleaded for the construction workers’ ideas on the implementation of technology in various construction sites that were assumed could not be undertaken by robots.

The transformative process and the adoption required the input of the designers of the technological devices and the training of the construction workers. According to Kissi et al. (2009), it is meant to capture the material, labor hours, tools used and others in deeper analysis, to promote the capacity unto which these AI could perform tasks at a faster and more accurate way than construction workers could do to make the project a success. According to Kissi et al. (2010a), this intellectual motivation by the project managers to the construction workers had them learn hidden insights into data that construction workers did not possess, thus promoted creativity among them. According to Wang et al. (2011), independence thinking was nurtured, in which unexpected situations such as those, construction workers perceived them as opportunities that they learn and put the new knowledge and understanding that promoted the various functions of the construction site. It was where both the new devices and the workers made tremendous improvement in productivity, speeding up the renovation of the Power Plant, but at the same time heightening safety and quality of the work that was undertaken.

Kissi et al. (2010b), claim that the residential project manager at Battersea Power Station articulated a vision to the construction workers that was inspiring and appealing to them. One could have thought that the residential units that were to be undertaken were to be inhabited by the construction workers themselves. The project manager had to challenge and motivate the workers with high standards, communicate optimism concerning future goals and provide meaning for the construction of smart homes, that according to Ukconstructionmedia. (2017), integrates technology in the designs of eight hundred and sixty-six apartments, clubs and bar as well as private cinemas. You could find the construction workers as well as the project manager stayed for a workshop and discussed for long hours the development of technology that was required for increased acceptance and that to provide meaning for the entire project.

The project manager seems to be aware that the subordinates require a strong sense of purpose if they are to be stimulated to undertake their respective roles. It is because He understood that purpose and meaning offered the energy that motivates the workers towards the attainment of the general objective. The project manager supported the various skills that each contractor possessed to make the vision comprehendible, powerful, precise and intriguing. For that reason, Garfield (2016), saw the undertaking of the project and incorporation of AI in various sub-projects had the construction workers willingly invest more effort in their tasks, whereby they were encouraged and optimistic concerning the outcome of the mega project thus believed in their capabilities.

Some of the project managers that were provided with the undertaking of the Battersea Power Station redevelopment were of high experiences and qualification. LinkedIn (n.d), label project managers such as Damien Bettles, currently a Project Director of the redevelopment of the Power Station had tremendous achievement as a Director of Gardiner and Theobald LLP, a consultancy construction firm that has earned a great reputation in the application of digital future for the infrastructure industry who believe that construction site will be free of human and only interaction will be through robotics. Wang et al. (2011), depict that such role models have instilled pride among construction workers, respect and trust the project manager increasing their anxiety in working with such an individual, who on the other hand took upon himself to apply a deep lead model as a primary solution of its leadership training and growth, thus promoting an easy accommodation of AI in contemporary ways of working, with potential to advance accomplishment and efficiency. A lot has been accomplished in the phase of apartments development in the Power Station, where the knowledge the project manager brought in has managed to mitigate the issues of skill gap in which beside undertaking major projects such as Battersea Power Station, they make effort in recruiting and training the next generation of engineers, by future-proofing the workforce which is form of the idealized influence of the project managers.

Issues of Transformative Leadership

During the entire project undertaking of the construction of the Battersea Power Station, project managers have been under constant pressure of leading and motivating a diverse group of construction workers, work across the boundaries of the construction companies, improve efficiencies and attain growth. Basically, according to Garrett (2014), they have faced an external, complex and globalized environment in which they had to work with the Malaysian based Construction Company and at the same time meet the expectations of the British government. For that reason, there have been cases where project managers were accused of rapidly changing the structural plan of work thus affecting the construction workers and failure of the AI mitigation. There were instances where training and motivation of the workers failed due to the range of complexity of the changing condition of the project and the leadership.

Recommendations

Due to the dynamism of the workforce and the demanding objectivity of the project of Battersea Power Station, Yadav and Agrawal (n.d), proposes project managers have to distribute their anatomical power to lower manager such as portfolio managers, across the organization, where empowerment could be reached at all levels in making decisions. The potential for distributing of responsibility providing potential for transformational leadership, therefore, enabling easy induction of AI when taking risks. It also promoted collective intelligence, flexibility, and pliancy of the mega construction project over time, by exploiting the wisdom of those outside the established decision-making order in the engineering.

Conclusion

Transformational leadership has been widely been applied within the mega construction and renovation of the Battersea Power Station. It could be effectively been identified as AI and workers are undertaking various projects divided into phases that are to be completed latest on 2025, with a majority of them competing in the year 2021. As there is an accumulation of skills acquired via practices, project managers have faced challenges in dealing with diverse skilled and knowledgeable personnel thus are recommended to shove some of their power to project managers at the lower level to enable the potential for transformational leadership through distribution of responsibilities enabling them take risk in the induction of contemporary engineering technology.

References

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