The priority weight of factors enhances the project manager’s motivation

Human resources management plays a principal role in construction projects that are intensive knowledge environments where the job involvement of project managers and project teams is influenced by their motivation in improving project performance. To reduce the lack of motivation effects, construction companies should concentrate on encouraging the behavior and attitude of all employees and project managers who have decision responsibility in the construction process. This study explores the strategy that improves the motivation of project managers in the construction industry via the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach. The result indicates that the top five factors should be considered based on weights that relate to their importance for the strategy including promotion (1), work environment (2), culture (3), salary (4), and relationships (5). The higher weight of the activities, the more concentration the managers should take on them. In addition, the results indicate that not only human resources strategies but also other factors have effects on the motivation of project managers. Thus the strategies should be considered in terms of organizational budgets, employee personality, negotiation ability, and other related factors. This study’s contributions give some recommendations for human resources management of the construction industry in a developing country.  As applied to practice, construction organizations should use these results with some specific adjustments that are suitable for practical environments.