Analyzing Barriers to Sustainable Enterprise Risk Management in the Construction Sector: A Delphi Method and Interpretive Structural Modeling Approach

Raghad Almashhour (), Abroon Qazi, M. K. S. Al-Mhdawi, Abdelkader Daghfous, Bilal M. Ayyub and Alan O’Connor
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Raghad Almashhour: Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management, School of Business Administration, American University of Sharjah, Sharjah 26666, United Arab Emirates
Abroon Qazi: Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management, School of Business Administration, American University of Sharjah, Sharjah 26666, United Arab Emirates
M. K. S. Al-Mhdawi: Department of Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, D02 PN40 Dublin, Ireland
Abdelkader Daghfous: Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management, School of Business Administration, American University of Sharjah, Sharjah 26666, United Arab Emirates
Bilal M. Ayyub: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Center for Technology and Systems Management, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
Alan O’Connor: Department of Civil Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, D02 PN40 Dublin, Ireland

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-27

Abstract: Although sustainability has become a central concern in project management research, its integration into enterprise risk practices in construction remains limited. This study investigates the complex set of barriers preventing effective implementation of Sustainable Enterprise Risk Management (SERM) within the construction industry of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). SERM focuses on maintaining the system’s long-term effectiveness, adaptability, and resilience. As projects across the region expand in scale and complexity, the need for resilient and sustainability-aligned risk practices has become increasingly urgent. To address this gap, a structured four-stage methodology was adopted. A Systematic Literature Review identified 28 potential barriers, which were refined through a Delphi process to 16 validated barriers. Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) and MICMAC analysis were then used to explore their hierarchical relationships and mutual influence. The ISM–MICMAC results showed that weak governance and limited organizational awareness reinforce communication and procedural challenges, while technology-related constraints remain highly dependent within the hierarchy. The sixteen barriers were categorized under four dimensions: leadership, culture, resources, and technology to clarify their structural relationships and dominant influence levels. Among these, the lack of senior management commitment (C01) emerged as the most influential barrier, exerting the strongest driving power (16) and lowest dependence (1), positioning it as the root cause affecting the rest. These findings highlight the need for leadership-driven strategies to embed long-term sustainability within organizational risk governance. The study offers practical direction for policymakers, contractors, and project leaders seeking to strengthen resilience and sustainable risk practices in the UAE construction sector.

Keywords: sustainable enterprise risk management (SERM); barriers; UAE construction industry; hierarchical structure; interpretive structural modeling (ISM); matrice d’impacts croisés multiplication appliquée à un classement (MICMAC) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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