Project manager plays a very important role in the success of any project. The primary duty of the project manager is to combine the outcomes or results of the various processes and activities of project management into a systematic project management strategy or plan for the project. In the construction industry, a lack of motivation is an urgent problem for many project managers in construction and engineering projects. Lack of motivation affects the quality and productivity of jobs, reducing profits and growth for companies, businesses, contractors or organizations that rely on human resources. The reasons for this lack of motivation are diverse ranging from salary to culture to life and working environment, among others. Through surveys and data analysis using Cronbach’s Alpha reliability and EFA (Exploratory Factor Analysis), our research scaled the factors affecting work motivation of project managers in the construction industry in Vietnam. The research results identified six major groups of relevant factors including (i) salary and benefits, (ii) work environment, (iii) promotion opportunities, (iv) organizational culture, (v) interest in the job, and (vi) relationship with the organization. From there, this paper contributed useful information as well as measures for businesses, companies, contractors or organizations in the construction industry.

This study aims to empirically examine the effect of foreign direct investment (FDI) and corruption on the development of public-service sectors in 10 ASEAN countries. It then investigates whether this relationship is different between two FDI compositions including greenfield FDI and FDI in the form of cross-border merger and acquisitions (M&As). Using a panel database of 10 ASEAN countries during the period 1996-2015 from various sources including the World Development Indicators of the World Bank and UNCTAD, we first find that FDI strongly and positively contributes to the development of the public-service sectors in the recipient nations, except for the electricity sector. However, we show that this relationship is dependent on the type of FDI modes of entry. Specifically, while greenfield investment exerts a beneficial influence on the development of telecommunication and transportation sectors, cross-border M&A has no effect on these sectors, perhaps because of the distinct differences among three public service sectors. Finally, we found that in a highly corrupt environment, aggregate FDI might have no influence on all three public-service sectors, possibly because the two contradictory influences of the interaction terms between corruption and two FDI sub-types seem to cancel each other out.

The research postulates the conceptualization of talent in the Vietnamese banking sector via examining the factors pertaining to the concept of talent and talent management (TM) in the sector. This study applied qualitative research methods. A total of 20 managers and directors of ten banks (three public, four private and three foreign banks) were recruited for semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that a combination of interconnected soft skills, learning ability, flexibility, technology adaptability, integrity and risk management skills contributes to talent identification. Managers in some private banks construed talent to be commensurate with high performance and high potential, whereas managers in public banks and foreign banks mainly relied on performance results in talent recognition. Moreover, talented employees holding sales-related jobs are given the most attention by management in the studied banks. Regarding practical implications, the banking community and practitioners’ focus should be imparted to soft skills development and integrity control in order to foster employee performance and attitudes. Attention should be paid not only to sales positions, but also to other positions within the bank. This study is one of a few which explores talent concepts and TM approaches in the banking sector in general and Vietnamese banking field in particular.