Designing Levels for A/E Consultant Performance Measures

Research has identified many success factors that are associated with project performance, but mostly they are conceptually described. They need to be operationally defined to be properly measured and used. This paper defines the operational levels for the qualitative architect/engineer (A/E) consultant performance measures, proposed in a previous paper (Chang & Ibbs, 1998). These levels, represented by descriptive conditions, were acquired by analyzing performance norms from research studies and by comparing data from 8 design project documents and interviews. These levels were then used to evaluate A/E consultant performance. The evaluation results show that the scores derived from the defined levels effectively differentiate performance, which means the levels were well designed. By using these performance levels, A/E consultant performance can be evaluated more accurately and systematically, which allows the owner to better manage the A/E project.