Critical challenges in management of heritage conservation projects in India
Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development
ISSN: 2044-1266
Article publication date: 14 September 2017
Issue publication date: 18 September 2017
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify factors affecting performance of heritage conservation projects in terms of project management parameters of time, cost, and quality.
Design/methodology/approach
An exploratory study was conducted in India, wherein 41 conservation professionals were interviewed. The method adopted for the study was unstructured interviews, wherein the respondents were asked open-ended questions about the issues faced in such projects and factors affecting project performance.
Findings
The interview recordings and notes, made during the exploratory study, have been manually coded to identify the most frequently mentioned problems, group them into categories, and assess their relative importance.
Research limitations/implications
This paper has presented a broad overview of the challenges faced by heritage conservation projects in general. Further research is necessary to analyse if the challenges depend on factors like type of heritage, project delivery model, and stakeholders involved, and to develop mitigation strategies for these challenges.
Practical implications
The findings from this study can be used by practitioners to improve performance of heritage conservation projects in terms of time, cost, and quality.
Originality/value
The findings of the exploratory study help to better understand the reasons of poor performance of heritage conservation projects in terms of time, cost, and quality. The paper has identified major challenges of the sector, and assessed their relative importance, which can help in developing project management strategy for future projects.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This exploratory study was funded by National Centre for Safety of Heritage Structures (NCSHS) at IIT Madras, India. The authors would like to thank Dr Arun Menon, Assistant Professor, IIT Madras and Convenor, NCSHS, for his valuable advice and help in establishing contact with the conservation professionals; and Dr Kirti Rajhans, Associate Professor, NICMAR, Pune for copy-editing the manuscript.
Citation
Roy, D. and Kalidindi, S.N. (2017), "Critical challenges in management of heritage conservation projects in India", Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, Vol. 7 No. 3, pp. 290-307. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCHMSD-03-2017-0012
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited