Critical Factors Contributing to Budget Overruns in Ghana’s Telecommunication Industry Construction Projects

Abstract

This study sought to examine the occurrence of, and the most critical factors that cause, budget overruns in Ghana’s telecommunications industry construction projects by applying an exploratory sequential mixed method approach. A multiple case study approach was initially adopted to ensure a greater understanding of the differences and similarities between four cases drawn from companies engaged in the construction of network expansion projects. This was followed by a survey of 230 practitioners responsible for managing construction projects within the industry. The software programs, Atlas ti, SPSS, and AMOS version 25.0, were used in the data analysis. An exploratory factor analysis and a structural equation modelling were performed to test and validate the hypothetical model developed to illustrate the most critical factors that cause budget overruns. The findings resulted in the final model dubbed ‘Budget Overrun Flowerpot’, provides practitioners with better understanding of the most critical causal factors that need to be managed appropriately to improve project efficiency and budget performance.