Journal of Structural and Construction Engineering

Journal of Structural and Construction Engineering

Using the Method of Simultaneous Assessment of Criteria and Alternatives (SECA) to Optimize the Evaluation of the Financial Performance of Iranian Construction Companies

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
FARHAD EGHBAL 1
Mohammad Ehsanifar 2
S.Mohammad Mirhosseini 3
hosssein mazaheri 4
1 Ph. D Candidate, Department of Civil Engineering, Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University, Arak, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Department of Industrial Engineering, Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University, Arak, Iran
3 Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University, Arak, Iran
4 Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Arak Branch, Islamic Azad University, Arak, Iran
10.22065/jsce.2024.450014.3378
Abstract
The construction industry plays a major role in the economic activities of developing countries. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the financial performance of construction companies is an important step for their improvement, which is inevitable. The aim of this study is to develop a decision-making method in order to optimize the evaluation of financial performance and determine the most successful construction company in Iran. Therefore, the current research is mixed (qualitative-quantitative) in terms of its development goal and from a methodological point of view, and in the first stage, the key criteria effective on the financial performance of construction companies are analyzed with the qualitative method, reviewing the previous literature. were extracted. To validate the key criteria, expert opinions were used in the Delphi method, and the model was grouped into 5 dimensions and 12 indicators. Then, in a quantitative stage, data collection of construction companies was done. For this purpose, a stratified sampling technique was adopted to select a number of first-ranked construction companies based on scope, sub-sectors, age, registration in the National Stock Exchange and the availability of financial ratio data for each company in the codal database. Data were collected for 10 consecutive years from 1392 to 1401 from the codal site. Finally, by using the method of simultaneous evaluation of criteria and alternatives (SECA) first, the most optimal year was selected among the years and then the successful company was determined in that year as well. The results of the survey showed that the developed optimization method helps the relevant stakeholders to take appropriate steps to improve financial performance by presenting the financial trends of the company with respect to time, without adopting a cumbersome methodology.
Keywords
Evaluation of Financial Performance
Optimization
Construction Companies
Method of Simultaneous Evaluation of Criteria and Alternatives (SECA)
Iran

Subjects

[1] Sebt, M. H., & mokhtariani, M. (2016). Analysis of construction industry in Iran and giving recommendations for improving its competitiveness. Amirkabir Journal of Civil Engineering, 48(2), 111-120. doi: 22060/10/ceej.622/2016. (in persian)
[2] Sohrabi, H., & Noorzai, E. (2023). Risk assessment in Iranian oil and Gas construction industry: a process approach. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 40(1), 124-147.‏
[3] Dehghani, M., Piwowar-Sulej, K., Salari, E., Leone, D., & Habibollah, F. (2023). The role of trust and e-WOM in the crowdfunding participation: the case of equity crowdfunding platforms in financial services in Iran. International Journal of Emerging Markets, (ahead-of-print).‏‏
[4] Katsarakis, Y., Rezk, A., Sazak, E., Shaydullin, H., & Yadikar, B. (2007). Turkey & the construction services cluster. Microeconomics of Competitiveness-Spring.‏
[5] Nakhai, H; Yaqoubi, M; Haydarzadeh, S. (2021). A comprehensive review of traditional and modern financial performance evaluation criteria.  Journal of Accounting and Auditing Studies. 10 (37). 73-94. (in persian)
[6] Jardioui, M., Garengo, P., & El Alami, S. (2020). How organizational culture influences performance measurement systems in SMEs. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 69(2), 217-235.‏
[7] Chih, Y. Y., & Hsiao, C. Y. L. (2023). Brace for Another Crisis: Empirical Evidence from US Construction Industry and Firm Performance during and after 2007–2009 Global Financial Crisis. Journal of Management in Engineering, 39(1), 04022069.‏
[8] Orr, S., & Jadhav, A. (2023). The effect of construction sustainability system interactions on financial performance: a sociotechnical perspective. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management.‏  Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print.
[9] Vibhakar, N. N., Johari, S., Tripathi, K. K., & Jha, K. N. (2023). Development of financial performance evaluation framework for the Indian construction companies. International Journal of Construction Management, 23(9), 1527-1539.‏
[10] Vibhakar, N. N., Tripathi, K. K., Johari, S., & Jha, K. N. (2023). Identification of significant financial performance indicators for the Indian construction companies. International Journal of Construction Management, 23(1), 13-23.‏
[11] Anthony, P., Behnoee, B., Hassanpour, M., & Pamucar, D. (2019). Financial performance evaluation of seven Indian chemical companies. Decision Making: Applications in Management and Engineering, 2(2), 81-99.‏
[12] Abdel-Basset, M., Ding, W., Mohamed, R., & Metawa, N. (2020). An integrated plithogenic MCDM approach for financial performance evaluation of manufacturing industries. Risk management, 22, 192-218.‏
[13] Aldalou, E., & Perçin, S. (2020). Application of integrated fuzzy MCDM approach for financial performance evaluation of Turkish technology sector. International Journal of Procurement Management, 13(1), 1-23.‏
[14] Siew, L. W., Fai, L. K., & Hoe, L. W. (2021). Performance evaluation of construction companies in Malaysia with Entropy-VIKOR model. Engineering Journal, 25(1), 297-305.‏
[15] Yen, P. T. H., Tien-Chin, W., Hoa, N. T. H., & Anh, N. T. N. (2023). An evaluation of financial performance of Vietnam textile and apparel industry using the entropy-TOPSIS method. Journal of International Economics and Management, 23(1), 1.‏
[16] Lam, W. H., Lam, W. S., Liew, K. F., & Lee, P. F. (2023). Decision Analysis on the Financial Performance of Companies Using Integrated Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model. Mathematics, 11(2), 397.‏
[17] Azbari, K. E., Ashofteh, P.-S., Golfam, P., & Singh, V. P. (2021). Optimal wastewater allocation with the development of an SECA multi-criteria decision-making method. Journal of Cleaner Production, 321, 129041.
[18] Keshavarz-Ghorabaee, M., Amiri, M., Zavadskas, E. K., Turskis, Z., & Antucheviciene, J. (2018). Simultaneous evaluation of criteria and alternatives (SECA) for multi-criteria decision-making. Informatica, 29(2), 265-280.
[19] Güngör, H. Y. (2024). Analysis of Financial Performance of Public Sports Clubs in Türkiye via CRITIC-Based SAW Method. MANAS Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 13(2), 499-509.‏ 

  • Receive Date 03 May 2024
  • Revise Date 08 September 2024
  • Accept Date 24 August 2024