Professor Will Hughes
Professor Will Hughes, MCIOB, BSc, PhD is Professor in Construction Management and Economics in the School of Construction Management and Engineering, University of Reading. He has an international reputation in the field of procurement and commercial management in construction. His PhD was on organizational analysis of building projects and he has researched and published extensively in this topic.
He has co-authored several books on construction management and contractual issues, including a best-selling text book, Construction Contracts: Law and Management that is an essential text in most universities running such courses. He is sole editor of the international refereed journal Construction Management and Economics, a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Construction Research and the Journal of Asian Architectural and Building Research, as well as an editorial adviser to Taylor and Francis. He is an active member of ARCOM (Association of Researchers in Construction Management), having completed two years as chairman 1998-2000, and remains responsible for developing and maintaining their information resources for researchers in this field.
Previous research into contractual matters has been undertaken for FIDIC (Féderation Internationale des Ingéniuers Conseils), EIC (European International Contractors), JCT (Joint Contracts Tribunal), RCF (Reading Construction Forum) and DBF (Design Build Foundation).
Professor Hughes has recently contributed an entry to the Oxford Encyclopaedia of Economic History and to a book on Procuring Complex Performance.
E-mail Professor Hughes at: w.p.hughes@reading.ac.uk
Publications list:
Article
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W. (2011) Risk and price in the bidding process of contractors. Journal of Construction and Engineering Management, 137 (4). pp. 248-258. ISSN 0733-9364 doi: 10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000293
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W. (2009) Commercial reviews in the tender process of contractors. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 16 (6). pp. 558-572. ISSN 0969-9988 doi: 10.1108/09699980911002575
Raj, S., Hillig, J.B. and Hughes, W. (2009) Responsiveness to change by standard-form contract drafters: A case study of the FIDIC White Book. International Journal of Law in the Built Environment, 1 (3). pp. 205-220. ISSN 1756-1450 doi: 10.1108/17561450911001261
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W.P. (2008) How contractors price risk in bids: theory and practice. Construction Management and Economics, 26 (9). pp. 911-924. ISSN 0144-6193 doi: 10.1080/01446190802317718
Gruneberg, S.L., Hughes, W.P. and Ancell, D.J. (2007) Risk under performance-based contracting in the UK construction sector. Construction Management and Economics , 25 (7). pp. 691-699. ISSN 0144-6193 doi: 10.1080/01446190601164097
Ndekugri, I., Smith, N. and Hughes, W.P. (2007) The engineer under FDIC's conditions of contract for construction. Construction Management and Economics, 25 (7). pp. 791-799. ISSN 0144-6193 doi: 10.1080/01446190701411216
Hughes, W.P. (2007) The future for construction professionals in Australia. Take 5. pp. 143-160.
Hillig, J.-B. and Hughes, W.P. (2007) A look back to … 2007. RICS Construction Journal, June. pp. 22-23.
Gruneberg, S. and Hughes, W.P. (2006) Understanding construction consortia: Theory, practice and opinions. RICS Research paper series, 6 (1).
Gruneberg, S. and Hughes, W.P. (2005) UK construction orders and output: A comparison of government and commercially available data 1995-2001. Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, 10 (2). pp. 83-94. ISSN 1366-4387 doi: 10.1108/13664380580001066
Gruneberg, S. and Hughes, W.P. (2004) Analysing the types of procurement used in the UK: a comparison of two data sets. Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, 9 (2). pp. 65-74. ISSN 1366-4387
Hughes, W.P. (2004) Are bidding costs wasted? Construction Manager. p. 18.
Hughes, W.P. (2004) Effective conference presentations. ARCOM Newsletter, 18 (3). pp. 6-7.
Donovan, S. K. and Hughes, W. (2004) On journal publication and professional responsibilities. Area, 36 (3). pp. 325-326. ISSN 1475-4762 doi: 10.1111/j.0004-0894.2004.00231.x
Hughes, W.P. (2003) Research tips 1: Writing a literature review. ARCOM Newsletter, 18 (1). pp. 7-8.
Hughes, W.P. (2003) Research tips 2: Writing a literature review. ARCOM Newsletter, 18 (2). p. 5.
Hughes, W.P. (2003) Review: Contracting for engineering and construction projects: Peter Marsh, 5th ed. International Journal of Project Management, 221 (3). p. 229. ISSN 0263-7863 doi: 10.1016/S0263-7863(01)00046-1
Hughes, W.P. (2003) A comparison of two editions of the RIBA plan of work. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 10 (5). pp. 302-311. ISSN 0969-9988 doi: 10.1108/09699980310502919
Hughes, W. and Maeda, Y. (2002) Construction contract policy: do we mean what we say? RICS Research Papers, 4 (12). pp. 1-25.
Loosemore, M. and Hughes, W. (2001) Confronting social defence mechanisms: avoiding disorganization during crises. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 9 (2). pp. 73-87. ISSN 1468-5973 doi: DOI:10.1111/1468-5973.00156
Hughes, W. (2001) Evaluating plans of work. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 8 (4). pp. 272-283. ISSN 0969-9988 doi: 10.1108/eb021188
Hughes, W. (2001) What makes a good research paper? ARCOM Newsletter, 16 (3). pp. 1-4.
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P. and Murdoch, J. (2000) The impact of contract duration on the cost of cash retention. Construction Management and Economics, 18 (1). pp. 11-14. ISSN 0144-6193 doi: 10.1080/014461900370906
Hughes, W. (1999) Construction research: a field of application. Australian Institute of Building Papers, 9. pp. 51-58. ISSN 0818-0571
Loosemore, M. and Hughes, W. (1998) Reactive crisis management in construction projects. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 6 (1). pp. 23-34. ISSN 1468-5973 doi: 10.1111/1468-5973.00065
Lingard, H., Hughes, W. and Chinyio, E. (1998) The impact of contractor selection method on transaction costs: a review. Journal of Construction Procurement, 4 (2). pp. 89-102. ISSN 1358-9180
Hughes, W. (1997) Construction management contracts: law and practice. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 4 (1). pp. 59-79. ISSN 0969-9988 doi: 10.1108/eb021040
Walker, A. and Hughes, W. (1984) Private industrial project management: a systems-based case study. Construction Management and Economics, 2 (2). pp. 93-110. ISSN 1466-433X doi: 10.1080/01446198400000010
Book or Report Section
Hughes, W., Kwawu, W. and Hillig, J.-B. (2010) Contracts and incentives in the construction sector. In: Caldwell, N. and Howard, M. (eds.) Procuring complex performance. Studies of Innovation in Product-Service Management. Routledge, New York, pp. 59-77. ISBN 9780415800051
Hughes, W.P. (2008) Construction supply chain management: commentary. In: O’Brien, W.J., Formoso, C.T., Vrijhoef, R. and London, K.A. (eds.) Construction Supply Chain Management Handbook. Taylor & Francis, London. ISBN 9781420047455
Hughes, W.P. (2008) Getting your research published in refereed journals. In: Knight, A. and Ruddock, L. (eds.) Advanced Research Methods in the Built Environment. Blackwell, London, pp. 193-206. ISBN 9781405161107
Hughes, W. (2006) Contract management. In: Lowe, D. and Leiringer, R. (eds.) Comercial management of projects: defining the discipline. Wiley-Blackwell, London, pp. 344-355. ISBN 9781405124508
Hughes, W.P. and Hillebrandt, P.M. (2003) Construction industry: Historical overview and technological change. In: Mokyr, J. (ed.) The Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 504-512. ISBN 9780195105070
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P., Greenwood, D. and Kwawu, W. (2003) Developing a system for assessing the costs associated with different procurement routes in the construction industry. In: Uwakweh, B. O. and Minkarah, I. A. (eds.) Construction Innovation and Global Competitiveness, Vols 1 and 2 - the Organization and Management of Construction. Crc Press-Taylor & Francis Group, Boca Raton, pp. 826-840. ISBN 0849314496
Report
Gruneberg, S. and Hughes, W. (2011) A review of performance-based contracting. RICS Research. Report. Royal Institution of Chartered Suveyors, London. pp82. ISBN 9781842196236
Conference or Workshop Item
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W. (2011) Negotiating access into firms: obstacles and strategies. In: 6th Nordic Conference on Construction Economics and Organisation, 13-16 April 2011, Copenhagen, Demmark, pp. 577-586.
Hughes, W. (2010) Built environment education, research and practice: integrating diverse interests to make an impact. In: West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference, 27-28 July 2010, Accra, Ghana, pp. 1-8.
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W. (2009) How contractors in Ghana include risk in their bid prices. In: Procs 25th Annual ARCOM Conference, Nottingham, UK.
Ejohwomu, O.A. and Hughes, W. (2009) Incentivization and innovation in the construction supply chain: beyond the formal communication structure (A working paper). In: Qualitative data analysis for construction research: ARCOM Doctoral Workshop, Liverpool John Moores University, UK.
Hughes, W. and Laryea, S. (2009) Standardization of procurement: National or international? In: Procs of CIB Joint International Symposium: Construction facing worldwide challenges, Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Ejohwomu, O.A. and Hughes, W.P. (2008) Incentivization and innovation in construction supply chains. In: CIB2008: Transformation through Construction, Dubai.
Kwawu, W. and Hughes, W. (2008) Strategies for aligning organizational incentive systems through contracts. In: 24th Annual ARCOM Conference, Cardiff, UK, pp. 831-840.
Chan, D.W.M., Chan, A.P.C., Lam, P.T.I., Chan, J.H.L., Hughes, W.P. and Ma, T. (2008) A research framework for exploring risk allocation mechanisms for target cost contracts in construction. In: CRIOCM2008 International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Beijing, China.
Hughes, W. and Ma, T. (2008) A research framework for exploring risk allocation mechanisms for target cost contracts in construction. In: The CRIOCM2008 International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Beijing, China.
Kwawu, W. and Hughes, W.P. (2007) Are relational and formal contracts implemented as substitutes in the UK construction industry? In: 23rd Annual ARCOM Conference, Belfast, UK, pp. 97-106.
Hughes, W. P., Yohannes, I. and Hillig, J.-B. (2007) Incentives in construction contracts: Should we pay for performance? In: Procs of CIB World Building Congress: Construction for development: Document Transformation Technologies, Cape Town, South Africa, pp. 2272-2283.
Laryea, S., Badu, E. and Hughes, W.P. (2007) The price of risk in construction projects: Choosing of an appropriate research methodology. In: CIB World Building Congress: Construction for Development, Cape Town, South Africa, pp. 51-62.
Ndekugri, I., Hughes, W.P. and Smith, N.J. (2006) Dispute boards on international infrastructure projects: Implications for the construction industries in developing countries. In: Procs W107 Construction in developing countries: international symposium on construction in developing economies: new issues and challenges, Santiago, Chile.
Hughes, W. (2006) Keynote paper: The impact of on-line manuscript management on the management of a peer-reviewed journal. In: Procs International CIB Symposium: Construction in the 21st Century - Local and Global Challenge, Rome, Italy.
Laryea, S. and Hughes, W. (2006) The price of risk in construction projects. In: 22nd Annual ARCOM Conference, Birmingham, UK, pp. 553-561.
Hilburn, H. D. and Hughes, W. (2005) Regulating professions: Shifts in codes of conduct. In: Combining Forces, Advancing Facilities Management and Construction through Innovation, Helsinki.
Shearman, J., Hughes, W., Gilchrist, R. and Elwazani, S. (2005) Strategies for reducing construction problems on archaeological sites. In: ARCOM, School of Oriental and African Studies, London.
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P. and Greenwood, D. (2005) The impact of procurement method on costs of procurement. In: Combining Forces, Advancing Facilities Management and Construction through Innovation, Helsinki.
Kwawu, W. and Hughes, W. (2005) The impact of relational contracting on the construction industry. In: ARCOM, School of Oriental and African Studies, London.
Gruneberg, S. and Hughes, W.P. (2004) Construction consortia: Do they serve any real purpose? In: Proceedings 20th Annual ARCOM Conference, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
Hughes, W. P., Ancell, D., Gruneberg, S. and Hirst, L. (2004) Exposing the myth of the 1:5:200 ratio relating initial cost, maintenance and staffing costs of office buildings. In: Proceedings of the 20th Annual ARCOM Conference, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
Hughes, W.P. (2004) PhD studies in the built environment. In: 4th International Postgraduate Research Conference, University of Salford.
Hughes, W. P. (2003) Comparative costs of the commercial process in different construction procurement methods. In: Joint International Symposium of CIB Working Commissions (W55; W65; W107), Singapore.
Hughes, W.P. (2003) PhD supervision in the built environment. In: Building Education and Research Conference, Salford University.
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P.M., Greenwood, D.G. and Kwawu, W.E.K. (2002) Developing a system for assessing the costs associated with different procurement routes in the construction industry. In: CIB W-65 Organization and Management in Construction, 9-13 September 2002, Cincinnati, pp. 826-837.
Mutti, C. d. N. and Hughes, W. (2002) Cash flow management in construction firms. In: 18th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 Sep 2002, University of Northumbria, pp. 23-32.
Mutti, C. and Hughes, W. (2001) Contemporary organizational theory in the management of construction projects. In: 17th Annual ARCOM Conference, 5-7 September 2001, University of Salford, pp. 457-468.
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P.M., Lingard, H. and Greenwood, D.G. (2001) The impact of market and supply configurations on the costs of tendering in the construction industry. In: CIB World Building Congress 2001: Performance in Product and Practice, 2-6 April 2001, Wellington New Zealand.
Hillebrandt, P. M. and Hughes, W. (2000) What are the costs of procurement and who bears them? In: 2nd Int. Conf on Construction in Developing Countries, 15-17 November 2000, Gaborone, Botswana..
Doyle, A. and Hughes, W. (2000) The influence of project complexity on estimating accuracy. In: 16th Annual ARCOM Conference, 6-8 Sep 2000, Glasgow Caledonian University, pp. 623-634.
Hughes, W. and Shinoda, H. (1999) Achieving satisfactory contractual terms for the engineer's role. In: 15th Annual ARCOM Conference, 15-17 September 1999, Liverpool John Moores University, pp. 597-606.
Hughes, W. (1994) The PhD in construction management. In: 10th Annual ARCOM conference, 14-16 September 1994, Loughborough University, pp. 76-87.
Hughes, W., Gray, C. and Murdoch, J. (1994) Construction subcontracts: for what we are about to receive. In: 7th Annual Construction Law Conference, "Risk, Management and Procurement in Construction", September 1994, Centre for Construction Law and Management, King's College London, pp. 413-442.
Hughes, W. (1993) Architects as conflict managers. In: CIB W-96 Architectural Management, Practice and Research, Faculteit Bouwkunde, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, pp. 33-39.
Book
Laryea, S., Leiringer, R. T. F. and Hughes, W., eds. (2011) Proceedings of the West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference 2011. Proceedings of the WABER Conference 2011. West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference, Accra, Ghana, pp991. ISBN 9780956606013 (In Press)
Laryea, S., Leiringer, R. T. F. and Hughes, W., eds. (2011) Keynotes, programme and abstracts of the West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference 2011. West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference, Accra, Ghana, pp141. ISBN 9780956606020
Laryea, S., Leiringer, R. T. F. and Hughes, W., eds. (2010) Proceedings of the West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference 2010. Proceedings of the West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference 2010. West Africa Built Environment Research (WABER) Conference, Reading, UK, pp670. ISBN 9780956606006
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P.M., Greenwood, D. and Kwawu, W. (2006) Procurement in the construction industry. Taylor and Francis, pp224. ISBN 9780415395601
Hughes, W. and Murdoch, J. R. (2001) Roles in construction projects: analysis and terminology. Construction Industry Publications, Birmingham, pp176. ISBN 1852638982
Gray, C. and Hughes, W. (2001) Building design management. Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford, pp177. ISBN 0750650702
Hughes, W. (2001) Construction management abstracts : cumulative abstracts and indexes of journals in construction management, 1983-2000. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Reading, pp487. ISBN 0953416151
Hughes, W. (2000) ARCOM construction management abstracts : cumulative abstracts and indexes of journals in construction management, 1999 update. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Reading, pp97. ISBN 9780953416134
Murdoch, J.R. and Hughes, W. (2000) Construction contracts: law and management (3rd edition). E & F N Spon, London, pp381. ISBN 9780419261704
Hughes, W., ed. (1999) ARCOM construction management abstracts 1983-1998. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Reading, pp336. ISBN 0953416119
Hughes, W., ed. (1999) Procs. 15th annual ARCOM conference Proceedings of the fifteenth annual conference 1999, September 15-17, Liverpool John Moores University. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Reading, pp777. ISBN 9780953416127
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P.M. and Murdoch, J. (1998) Financial protection in the UK building industry: bonds, retentions and guarantees. Taylor & Francis, London, pp208. ISBN 9780419242901
Hughes, W., ed. (1998) Proceedings of the 14th annual ARCOM conference. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Reading, pp687. ISBN 0953416100
Hughes, W., Hillebrandt, P. and Murdoch, J. R. (1998) Financial protection in the UK building industry: a guide for clients and the construction supply chain. Thomas Telford Publications, London, pp24. ISBN 0727727176
Hughes, W., Gray, C. and Murdoch, J. (1997) Specialist trade contracting: a review. CIRIA Publications, London, pp104. ISBN 9780860174653
Murdoch, J. and Hughes, W. (1996) Construction contracts: law & management. 2nd edition. Spon Press, London, pp448. ISBN 9780419207603