Verifying Strategic Human Resource Planning in Construction Project Management Performance in UAE

This paper investigates the impact of strategic human resource planning on construction project management performance, focusing on infrastructure contracting companies. Strategic HR planning plays a critical role in enhancing project outcomes by addressing key performance dimensions such as cost efficiency, timeliness, quality, and safety. Using a mixed-methods approach, the research integrates qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews with quantitative data obtained through structured surveys. The study examines how strategic HR practices influence performance, with particular attention to the mediating roles of green HR practices, innovation capacity, and demographic factors like company size, capital, and age. The findings demonstrate that strategic HR planning significantly improves project management performance. This improvement is achieved by aligning workforce strategies with organizational goals, integrating Health, Safety, and Environmental (HSE) frameworks, and adopting green supply chain management practices. Green HR practices were found to positively influence sustainability outcomes, emphasizing the role of environmentally conscious HR strategies in achieving long-term success. Similarly, the study highlights the contribution of strategic HR practices to fostering innovation capacity, which enhances the organization’s ability to generate and implement innovative solutions, particularly critical in a dynamic and competitive industry like construction. Additionally, the study identifies financial evaluations as an essential component of strategic planning. These evaluations help organizations assess project feasibility, identify potential weaknesses, and align financial strategies with HR practices to enhance project success. The influence of demographic factors, including company size and age, further underscores the importance of tailoring HR strategies to organizational characteristics. Larger and more established companies tend to exhibit stronger project performance, benefiting from their resource base and institutional knowledge. Moreover, the research offers practical recommendations for construction firms seeking to optimize their HR strategies to achieve enhanced efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness. However, the study is not without limitations. Its focus on infrastructure contracting companies in UAE limits the generalizability of findings to other industries or regions. Additionally, the reliance on self-reported data introduces potential biases, and the cross-sectional design does not capture long-term effects of HR strategies. Future research should adopt longitudinal designs to explore the sustained impact of strategic HR planning and extend the scope to include other industries and geographic contexts.