Client attributes that motivate contractors' bid decision

PurposeThis study aims to investigate clients' attributes, their key decision variables and causal relationships between the decision variables. In addition, the purpose of the study is to map-out from these analyses, the attributes of project clients that motivate contractors' bid decision.Design/methodology/approachA total of 50 responses were obtained from a questionnaire survey. 50% of participants are contractors. 44% are claims consultants, whilst 6% are manufacturers and clients. Beyond measures of central tendencies, analysis focussed on causal relationships by way of correlation, analysis of variance and reductionism.FindingsAll 20 factors considered have significant correlations with at least one other factor. Findings also show the factors can be clustered into six: reputation, financial strength, relationship with the bidder, organisational attributes, history with project attributes and project organisation.Practical implicationsEvidence suggests stakeholders have often struggled to consider the many decision factors reported in normative literature, numbering hundreds. By clustering the factors into sub-themes, bid decisioning has been made more efficient. The study also explains how client attributes could determine project success and contractor participation. Different stakeholders can use findings of this study for training and further studies.Originality/valuePrevious studies have considered bid decisioning indexically – factors were long, analyses were largely inconclusive, and causal relationships are orthogonal. Findings in this study have shown depth: 20 originating client-specific factors were clustered into six sub-themes, and correlations were established. The methodology used for the study is confirmatory and conclusive.