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Generally every customer‘s objective is to have defect free product/service at a reasonable cost ... more Generally every customer‘s objective is to have defect free product/service at a reasonable cost and almost every company‘s objective is to remain competitive, satisfy its customers and maximize its profits by producing at a minimum cost.. It can only be achieved by producing efficiently using TQM and keeping the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) to minimum level. Built-in quality in products and services is now a prerequisite to remain competitive and thus no longer a differentiator in today‘s cut throat competitive business climate. The COPQ can substantially increase the cost of production/service including inflicting loss to reputation, good will and business. COPQ is inversely proportional to profits. Conventionally it includes appraisal, prevention and failure costs (internal & external). COPQ remains hidden and cannot be determined or identified from current accounting practices and therefore mostly remains unattended. It is a new concept in the developing countries especially for public sector due to which most of the business persons/managers do not realize the adverse effects of COPQ on their investments and returns. Most of the research so far carried out has mainly focused on the cost of poor quality in private sector born by the client, contractor and customer. This research has established a new dimension of ―indirect‖ COPQ especially in public sector projects of developing nations, in which the general society is also a major stake holder, who bears the indirect cost of poor quality. It has been established in this research paper with the help of a case study of a public sector project, that the COPQ indirectly borne by the general society on account of traveling longer distances due to closure of a major intersection, loss of man hours and health/environmental problems, was more than the project cost. The case study relates to construction of an interchange at one of the existing and busiest intersection of Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan. The project had a direct link with the public inconvenience because; it disrupted the traffic and created environmental problems along with other issues pertaining to COPC during the construction phase. COPQ is required to be identified measured and eliminated from all phases and processes of construction projects that is from project inception, defining objectives, planning, designing, procurements, execution, controlling and monitoring etc along with minimum disturbance to environment and general public. Results of this research would help the public sector organizations to reduce the COPQ in their future construction projects especially keeping in view the indirect COPQ due to public inconvenience.

ABSTRACT Transparency, accountability, efficiency and fairness are the main features for good gov... more ABSTRACT
Transparency, accountability, efficiency and fairness are the main features for good governance. It is presently lacking in most of the public sector departments of developing countries. The existing system of land record keeping of agricultural and residential land especially in rural areas is highly unscientific. Centuries old drawings produced with inaccurate survey methods and drawn on piece of cloth are kept by a very low level employee. He can abuse his powers due to lack of knowledge by the common/illiterate people. Land grabbing mafia uses them to misuse the property of poor/weak people. In order to know about the owner of a piece of land we have to dig the record kept in files, which are not accessible to every body. The record keeping and land transactions are therefore not transparent; it leads to inefficiency, misuse of powers (unfairness) by the land management staff and corruption without any accountability.
Technology can resolve this problem. Land Information System (LIS), a computer software can provide complete information about any piece of land with location, sizes, owner‟s information etc. LIS is updated, in case of any land transaction/change of tenure. It is also connected to the central data base, which is helpful to implement land reforms, prepare land use plan, raise the state revenues and find the tax evaders etc. Therefore it serves the purposes of good Governance.
The problem areas faced in adoption of LIS have been identified in a case study of public sector organization and there solutions have been suggested.
Key words: Transparency, accountability, efficiency, fairness, good Governance, Land Information System.

The construction industry is an important sector of any economy and has multiple bac... more The construction industry is an important sector of any
economy and has multiple backward and forward
linkages
with other sectors. This
industry contributes significantly t
o
socio
-
economic development
,
along with
creating
employment
opportunities
. Construction companies are the
building blocks of construction industry and their success or
failure significantly affects the construction industry. There
are many factors that in
flue
nce the success
or
failure of
c
onstruction companies
and projects
.
Since
the stake holders
involved in a project have different needs and expectations,
therefore
they interpret project success
according to their
own perception.
Th
e objective of th
is study
was to
find
replies for
the questions
, h
ow we define
success and what
criteria should organizations use to identify success?
Which
factors lead to success of
construction
project
s
and
compan
ies
?
T
his
study has focused to identify the
Critical Su
ccess
Factors (CSFs)
of the construction companies working in
and around Islamabad.
The survey data
has been
collected
through a questionnaire
from
36
construction companies
.
The
results have been analyzed by using descriptive
analysis, frequency analysis and the relative importance
index (RII) technique. The research has identified
35
CSFs
and they have been ranked as per evaluation on RII
and
weighted average of Likert scale
. Th
e
most significant
CSFs
have been identified and analyzed for the
consideration
of
management
of construction companies
to
address these
issues for
increas
ing
chances of their success at the
construction projects.
Construction companies therefore
need to r
e
-
visit their existing policies and positions with
respect to CSFs identified in this study
.
It would
not only
enhance their profitability, productivity, compatibility and
quality but
would
also enhance the
sustainability of
national
economic growth and st
rength of construction industry.
KEYWORDS
:
Construction
Companies
, Critical
S
uccess
Factors, Construction I
ndustry
, C
ost of Poor Quality

Water supply system of Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan is being managed by a public sector o... more Water supply system of Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan is being managed by
a public sector
organization,
Capital Development Authority
(CDA
.
Water obtained from multiple sources is
treated
and
supplied to consumers through a pipe network
.
A quality audit of its water supply system has been
carried out by
exploring historic data,
visiting sites, quality
testing and
unstructured interviews
.
Historic hospital data of water borne diseases has revealed problems in
the
water quality.
Main
pr
oblems are 55% water wastage
and
water borne diseases due to contaminated water.
Water is being
supplied on subsidized rates, whereas, a
very high cost is b
eing
paid
for water treatment and supply
by
CDA
.
Cost of Poor
Q
uality
to the extent of
US
$ 25.719 million
was borne by the general society and
national economy
in one year
as a result of
internal and external failur
es of water supply system
.
Consumer confidence is very low (27%) on the drinking water quality being supplied
to them through
pipe network
.
Some preventive measures have been suggested to reduce the Cost of Poor Quality.
Key words:
Cost of poor quality, water contamination, water q
uality, water supply system

The aim of this research paper was to investigate the major factors that contribute to the shifti... more The aim of this research paper was to investigate the major factors that contribute to the shifting of career of an engineer to management, the challenges faced by them while working in the management field and how this relates to their job satisfaction after the shift has taken place. Having highly technical background, Engineers have great potential of learning new skills. Respondents of this study consisted of professionally certified engineers who have accepted the managerial role in their existing organizations or at any other company. The survey found that natural career path and better job opportunity were the two main factors that contributed to shift of careers from engineers to management. These results can be used to improve the quality of curriculum and education in engineering schools to produce engineers with diverse capabilities. A need has also been established to improve Human Resource planning and development in public sector organizations to stop brain drain and keep their engineers motivated and associated with their professional work.
Keywords: Career Shifting, Engineering Management, Engineering education; Human Resource Development; Management education, Job Satisfaction.

Procurement system being exercised in public sector of developing countries like Pakistan is base... more Procurement system being exercised in public sector of developing countries like Pakistan is based on award of work to the lowest evaluated bidder. Bids for the proposed work/supply are invited through press or from pre-qualified suppliers/contractors who so ever quotes the lowest rates/amount, wins the tender.
The projects are normally awarded to the lowest bidders irrespective of their capacity to deliver, and workability of quoted rates. It is a bit natural that unreasonable rates meant to win the bid, ultimately lead to below specification work or poor quality of both product and service.
The existing procurement system has failed to deliver the projects, with in required cost time, scope and quality; it has been proved with the help of case studies. Therefore, an alternate procurement system has been suggested to improve the procurement system and get value for money for all the stake holders. Suggested procurement system would ensure the execution of projects for completion within the given time, cost and scope including improvement in quality of output.
Key words: Procurement system, Lowest bid, Quality, Performance, Public sector.

Communication is the life blood of every organization; most of the public sector organizations ha... more Communication is the life blood of every organization; most of the public sector organizations have a pyramid like organizational structure with long communication channels. Decision making powers are usually centralized due to which cases are referred to the highest authority for even petty decisions. It requires plenty of paper and file work to explain the problem with suggested solution for the decision of higher authorities. The case file keeps reciprocating up and down for clarification of objections/observations of various level officers, due to which decision making gets abnormally delayed. As it is said that Justice delayed is justice denied, so is the effect of delayed decisions. It also leads to misuse of powers for personal gains. Poor communication creates misunderstanding due to which the final decision might not be the one which was requested by the formation concerned. It adversely effects the execution of projects by delaying their completion along with affecting the quality of work, because there is no consistency and motivation left in the supervisory staff and contractors.
Use of information technology in business communication has changed the scenario altogether. Fast means of communication like fax, E-mail, E-filing, paper less working has enhanced the speed of communication and decision making along with making the processing of cases transparent. The file can be monitored on its way to decision making authority; anybody in the communication channel causing delay can be detected. It not only saves precious time but also affects the work quality positively, because timely decisions are always favorable and helpful for execution of the projects.
This study has evaluated the existing business communication system in a public sector organization and carried out a survey to evaluate the acceptance level of employees towards emerging information technologies. Evaluation has also been carried out to see the trend of said public sector organization towards adoption of internet communication technology for improvement of business communication and quality of their out put/service.
A case study has been carried out for the Engineering wing of Capital Development Authority, Islamabad. Recommendations have also been given for improvement of the communication system.
Key words: Business communication, information technology, quality, effective decision making,