Understanding enterprise risk management maturity in construction firms

Enterprise risk management (ERM) has been practiced in a wide variety of industries, and construction firms have been seen as prime candidates for ERM adoption. The objectives of this study are to develop a computerized knowledge-based decision support system (KBDSS) for ERM and to investigate the ERM maturity in Chinese construction firms (CCFs) based in Singapore. The KBDSS allows users to assess the ERM maturity of their organizations using a fuzzy model and performs the perceptibly complicated mathematical calculations. By conducting a questionnaire survey with 35 Singapore-based CCFs and inputting the relevant data into the KBDSS, the ERM maturity of these firms was assessed. The results suggested that these CCFs had a low level of ERM maturity and that the weakest criterion was the application of a risk management information system. The results also indicated positive association between ERM maturity and firm size, and significant agreement on the ranking of the maturity criteria among all the survey CCFs. The ERM maturity of Singapore-based CCFs can serve as a benchmark, with which the other firms can compare, and the methodology adopted is applicable to other construction firms, thus contributing to the body of knowledge relating to ERM.