Effects of Boundary-Spanning Roles and Interface Management Practices on Inter-organizational Communication in Construction Projects: Perspective of the Owner

Interface management (IM) has been viewed as an emerging strategy for improving communication in construction projects. The implementation of IM involves boundary-spanning roles across organizations. However, previous studies shed little light on how boundary spanners and IM practices facilitate inter-organizational communication in construction projects. Built on boundary-spanning theory, this paper aims to empirically investigate the relationships between different IM practices and boundary-spanning roles, and their impacts on inter-organizational communication effectiveness in construction project networks. Using data from eight large-scale construction projects in Ningxia that are managed by the same owner, a social network analysis was performed to examine the structural characteristics of inter-organizational communication networks. Results show that both boundary-spanning roles and IM practices have positive effects on inter-organizational communication effectiveness. These findings provide insights for developing strategies to improve inter-organizational communication.