15.1 Introduction

Successful project management of the delivery of a building involves managing the three elements of time, cost and quality to the satisfaction of the Employer. Conversely, a perceived shortcoming in one or more of those elements in the procurement of a building project will be seen by the Employer as a “failure” – “an unacceptable difference between expected and observed performance”.2 That is, an Employer may perceive the outcome of a building project to be a failure if the project cost more than anticipated, took longer to complete than anticipated or the final quality fell below expectations.