L-R: The Rector’s representative and Deputy Rector (Academics), Yaba College of Technology, Dr. Engr. Ismail Badmus, presenting the College’s Second Exaugural Lecture plaque to the lecturer, Dr. Alaba Adetola, at the Yusuf Grillo Auditorium.
By Peace Udugba -The Daily Torch Media
…Calls for strategic time management, effective planning to tackle project delays
A Chief Lecturer in the School of Environmental Studies, Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH), Dr. Alaba Ezekiel Adetola, has identified poor project leadership, delays in funding, industrial strikes and lockouts, ineffective communication and inadequate planning as major factors responsible for delays and failures in construction projects in Nigeria.
Adetola made this known while delivering the institution’s Second Exaugural Lecture at the Yusuf Grillo Auditorium, where he advocated effective project time-management strategies to eliminate activities that undermine project delivery, increase costs and reduce productivity.
The lecture, titled “Silver Bullets for Project Time Bandits,” examined the causes of time wastage in construction projects and proposed practical measures for addressing the challenges. He stressed that effective time management was essential to the successful execution of projects in both the public and private sectors.
Presenting findings from his research, Adetola disclosed that a survey involving 200 randomly selected construction project stakeholders across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones produced 140 completed questionnaires, representing a 70 per cent response rate.
The study, which employed statistical analysis to determine the relative importance of factors affecting project timelines, ranked global pandemics as the highest time constraint, with a Relative Importance Index (RII) of 0.989.
This was followed by industrial strikes and lockouts, delays in the release of project funds and poor project leadership, which recorded an index of 0.982.
Other significant factors included improper project planning, ineffective communication among stakeholders, inadequate technical expertise, strained relationships among project stakeholders, shortages of construction materials, equipment breakdown, poor transportation systems, labour turnover and absenteeism.
He recalled the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when construction activities across the world were disrupted by lockdowns, explaining that the experience demonstrated how external events could significantly affect project schedules and economic activities.
According to him, the research established that practical strategies exist for tackling project time bandits, contrary to the belief that project delays are inevitable.
A major recommendation was the adoption of the Urgent-Important Matrix, a time-management framework that classifies activities according to their urgency and importance.
He explained that activities requiring immediate attention should be distinguished from those that are important but not necessarily urgent, warning that excessive concentration on emergency-driven assignments often results in stress, exhaustion and reduced productivity.
Adetola urged project managers and organisational leaders to devote greater attention to important but non-urgent activities, particularly planning, goal-setting, resource allocation, stakeholder engagement and preventive measures.
He said the approach would enable managers to anticipate challenges, establish priorities and execute projects more efficiently without being constantly overwhelmed by emergencies.
The lecturer also identified procrastination, habitual lateness, excessive social media engagement, unnecessary meetings, unplanned telephone conversations, unannounced visitors, trivial discussions, laziness and avoidable distractions as common time bandits affecting individual and organisational productivity.
He urged professionals to cultivate discipline in the use of time, describing it as one of life’s most valuable resources, whose effective utilisation determines achievements in personal and professional endeavours.
Defining a project as a temporary undertaking designed to produce a unique product, service or result, Adetola explained that every project has a definite beginning and end, measurable deliverables and specific timelines.
He noted that construction projects typically pass through inception, design, tendering, construction, commissioning and handover stages, adding that poor time management at any of these stages could jeopardise the overall outcome.
He further described project management as the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to coordinate and control project activities from inception to completion, in line with established requirements for quality, cost, safety and time.
According to him, the construction industry remains a critical driver of national economic development, covering the planning, design, construction, maintenance and eventual demolition of infrastructure and facilities.
He therefore called for stronger collaboration among project managers, clients, designers, contractors and public authorities, emphasising that effective communication and clearly defined responsibilities were essential to successful project delivery.
Adetola, who has spent three decades in the service of YABATECH, joined the institution in May 1996 as an Assistant Lecturer and rose through the ranks to become a Chief Lecturer in January 2019.
He has more than four decades of professional experience in the built environment, construction project management, vocational and technical education, research, administration and human-capital development.
He holds a PhD in Construction Project Management from the University of Lancashire, United Kingdom; a Master of Project Management from the University of Lagos; a Postgraduate Diploma in Technology Management from Obafemi Awolowo University; and a BSc in Vocational Industrial Technical Education from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, among other academic and professional qualifications.
He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, United Kingdom, and belongs to several professional bodies, including the Project Management Institute, United States; the American Society of Civil Engineers; and the Chartered Institute of Building, United Kingdom.
His research interests include construction project management, public-private collaboration, infrastructure asset management, procurement, leadership, climate change, vocational technical manpower development and sustainable development.
In his remarks, the Rector of YABATECH, Dr. Engr. Ibraheem Adedotun Abdul, who chaired the occasion, was represented by the Deputy Rector (Academics), Dr. Engr. Ismail Badmus.
The Rector commended Adetola for his intellectual contribution and the relevance of the lecture to contemporary project management challenges. He stressed the importance of research, professional expertise and knowledge-sharing in advancing the institution’s academic and institutional development.
He also underscored the need to translate academic research into practical solutions capable of addressing societal and national development challenges.
The Rector’s representative subsequently presented a commemorative plaque to Adetola in recognition of his successful delivery of the Second Exaugural Lecture.
The event was attended by principal officers of the College, members of the Management Team, academic leaders, directors, deans, deputy registrars, heads of departments, members of staff, students, professional colleagues, family members, friends and other invited guests.
