PROJECT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES AND DELIVERY OF ROAD CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN AKURE, NIGERIA

Project success is largely determined by the effective application of various project management techniques, encompassing comprehensive planning, scheduling, effective control, and proper project closure. This study evaluated the effectiveness of project management techniques employed in road construction projects within Akure, Nigeria. The study utilised a descriptive survey research design, which involves the use of structured questionnaire for data collection. This study targeted a finite population of 70 active project professionals, from which a sample size of 60 respondents was derived. Stratified random sampling method was employed to select the respondents. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics (multiple linear regression and hierarchical moderated linear regression) with the aid of Microsoft Excel and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 17.0. Findings revealed a high overall adoption of project management techniques (Grand Mean = 4.12), led by resource planning and allocation (Mean = 4.32) and stakeholder engagement (Mean = 4.20). Collaborative scheduling methods, specifically the Last Planner System (Mean = 3.97), were the least utilised. Direct effects regression (Model 1) showed that project management techniques are strong and statistically significant predictors of road construction project delivery, explaining 90.2% of the variance (R Square = 0.902, F = 533.982, p < 0.001). The moderated regression (Model 2) confirmed that government policy plays a significant moderating role in their effect (joint R Square = 0.918, R Square Change = 0.016, joint F = 209.902, p = 0.006). Mean-centering completely resolved severe uncentered multicollinearity, reducing the Condition Number from 1,650 to 5.17, and verified significant direct effects for techniques (B = 0.955, t = 11.970, p < 0.001) and policy (B = 0.157, t = 2.941, p = 0.005). The study concludes that project management techniques have a significant predictive effect on the delivery of road construction projects in Akure, and the relationship is significantly moderated by government policy. Hence, the study recommends that professional and regulatory bodies should strengthen contractors’ management capacity through continuous training in advanced and lean construction techniques.