Integrating Project Management: Arab Emirates Oil Companies - Research Proposal Example

Integrating Sustainable Project Management in UAE Oil Companies for Improved Profitability Name of University Submitted by Names: Tutor: Date Integrating Sustainable Project Management in UAE Oil Companies Introduction Project management has been defined as the process by which an activity is planned, organized, motivated, and its resource, procedures and protocols controlled, to achieve specific goals (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011) . A project is therefore a program that an entity designs to produce a unique service or commodity, with a defined period of time, and resource constraints (Bender 2009; Helderman 2011; Knap Pmp, and Knapp 2010). Therefore, International Institute for Sustainable Development defines project sustainability as adopting activities and strategies that will meet the needs of the organization and those of stakeholders, while caring/ protecting, sustaining and enhancing natural and human resources, which may be needed in the future (Abramson, 2009; Rouse 2008). Otherwise, the International Institute for Sustainable Development has also proposed three Ps for sustainability that involves caring about People, Planet and Profit (Rouse 2008). It has been noted that oil and gas companies generate a large amount of methane gas that can cause severely harmful effects to the environment and therefore to the climate (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). Moreover, since the resources extracted themselves can be depleted, it is important that governments and international authorities, institute sustainable management procedures in the sector (Abramson, 2009).Recently, major oil comp anies like Shell and ExxonMobil have been caught in various scandals that involved large-scale spillage of the petroleum product, causing huge environmental adversities. In this regard, therefore, by taking a sample of 10 oil companies in the UAE the study will explore why and how they have been integrating sustainability programs. The research will assess their 10-year period sustainability programs and their impacts on profitability. Literature Review Sustainability as a Strategic Area for Profitability Joel Makower, in his Strategies for Green Economy has noted that if a company wants to succeed in the eyes of its customers and the community at large, its projects must espouse sustainability and therefore its strategies should be integrated in the way a business works (Project Management Institute 2014; Rouse 2008). Although it may seem not nice to adopt them because CEOs expect positive returns from them in the short run, they only do so because it is one of the strategic investment (Bender 2009; Helderman 2011; Knap Pmp, and Knapp 2010). In this regard, although the management may not earn from it in its initial stage, it will enable the company to reap the true reward in the future (Local Government Association of NSW 2014; Rouse 2008).Customers are greatly becoming attracted to socially responsible projects. In this regard, in this competitive world, any organization not functioning very well may find itself struggling against competitors who are much stronger because of their passionate strategies of sustainable business (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). Sustainability in Oil corporations will provide management with tools to achieve in future (Project Management Institute 2014; Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). Most companies have indicated that sustainability have become part of the project design (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). Although, initially, project management had to do with engineering tasks, they have come to find their importance even in oil firms because environmental considerations are applicable across the board (Local Government Association of NSW 2014; Rouse 2008). According to some of the CEOs who were interviewed, they note that the next generation of business will not just be valued on profit and loss alone, but on sustainability, which will have to play a bigger role in its analysis and valuation of success (Project Management Institute 2014; Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). This has already started happening, as it was realized when customers boycotted the Shell Company’s products after a huge oil spill. In this regard, next project managers will have to be encouraged to develop benchmarks of their strategic management so that they can ensure sustainability in their organization(Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). In general, financial performance is becoming much tagged to the level of sustainability (Local Government Association of NSW 2014). Integration and Cost areas of Sustainability in Oil Projects and program life cycle/ timeline It is important to note that incorporating tasks of sustainable development in any project demands a lot and may involve the company incurring lot errors, in some occasions (Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). This is because, it involves translating environmental issues into costs or bringing them to be analyzed for risk so that the whole process may continue sustainably. What matters is the management to propose innovative solutions (Eid 2014; Silvius, Brink and Kohler 2014). The company should espouse sustainability in its strategic statements by taking into account that it is both long term and short term. Secondly, the next theme will be proposing the company themes of sustainability (Tasmania eGovernment 2014). The manager concerned will also have to plan thoroughly so that he can be aware of the themes he wants to realize his goals (Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). Governance is also much important whereby, one will have to define various roles and responsibilities of the project team have (Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). The next task will involve assessing risks that the project may espouse, before beginning to implement it. Furthermore, the company will be tasked to make the internal stakeholders become experts in implementing and disseminating knowledge about the project sustainability itself (Tasmania eGovernment 2014; Silvius, Brink and Kohler 2014). However, working with the community is also much required so that the project manager can ask the community leaders about sustainability activities they want to be prioritized. Communication and promotion are also relevant and the manager will use them to articulate sustainability themes and project successes (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). It also requires capacity building in terms of knowledge acquisition and experience administration (Tasmania eGovernment 2014). Like any other project program, sustainability to ensure that every aspect moves well will be implemented by evaluation and monitoring (Tasmania eGovernment 2014). However, since oil companies are normally perennial/ long term, the sustainability program should always be futuristic and therefore the manager should be required to arrange succession plans among others for its continuity (Tasmania eGovernment 2014; Silvius, Brink and Kohler 2014 ). Impacts of Integrating Sustainability in Project Management It should be noted that the impacts of the projects would be translated into various indicators. However, taking in mind that the impacts on environment and society will have a major influence on economic wellbeing of the firm, the expected major impact is the firm’s profitability(Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). However, according to the Global Reporting Guidelines, the impacts should be biotic and abiotic. In this regard, for economic factors, there should be increased earnings for both the company and the employees (NSW Government 2012). On environment, there should be reduced environment degrading activities and increased conservation activities. Nonetheless, on the social scene, there should be respect for human rights, production of health products and compliance to the laws of the country (Silvius, Brink and Kohler 2014; Labuschagne, and Brent 2006). Indicators of Sustainability in a Project Indicators of sustainability are measures that show how the organization is taking the three issues of sustainability seriously (Rouse 2008). Importantly, the indicators also depend very much on the kind of the project, so that certain kinds of sustainability can be derived, though they espouse aspects of economic, social and political measurements (Labuschagne, and Brent 2006) The case for UAE Energy Sector In UAE, it has been noted that there have been much slow growth, for companies to integrate sustainable development in its oil projects. Although the Masdar project had been projected to be the centre for developing alternative source for renewable energy, it has been slow (Berkun 2005; Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). Apart from providing renewable energy, this was also slated to release clean energy. The same has been the case with its wind projects whose development has been much slow (Bender 2009; Helderman 2011; Knap Pmp, and Knapp 2010). On the same note, since the country has been highest among those that consume a lot of energy, its carbon footprints are climbing very first. This is because, apart from normal usage, the country uses 40% of its hydrocarbon products to obtain clean water for consumption (Kloppenborg 2014; Meredith, and Mantel, Jr 2011). Hypothesis The study will be testing the hypothesis that, current profitability in oil corporate industry is becoming much determined by costs of sustainability strategies. It has been determined that the more diverse and spirited strategies the company ventures in attaining the sustainability objective, the more costs it incurs. In this regard, independent variable will be costs for sustainability, while dependent variables will be profitability. Research questions Does your petroleum company practice any sustainable development activities? If yes, what are the sustainable activities that your company espouses? Why are they done/ in your program ( state also profitability level due them) What strategies (and their costs) do you employ to make sure that you achieve maximum results in the program of sustainability? What index of measure your program plans espouse to show that you have succeeded? What have been the impacts of the project including the general public level of appreciation to your project? How do you manage your project life cycle/ timeline? Objectives of the Research To realize the number of UAE petroleum companies appreciating the concept of sustainable project management To realize activities and scope of sustainability that the companies’ management bring forward To identify motivating reasons for appreciating sustainability in oil projects and business in general, such as profitability To assess the strategies the companies employ to attain their sustainability goals and their costs. To determine the kind of indices that can aid in measuring the company’s success in its sustainability. To assess the project impacts including general public awareness and appreciation of the company’s sustainability activities To find out how managers manage the sustainability program life cycle and timeline. Methodology In this review, the study will be using Primary data: data generated from an original source such as tour own experiments, surveys, interviews or focus groups and Secondary data that are data collected from an existing source, such as database, internal records and publications (Abramson et al. 2009). Qualitative Research Qualitative data are data in a nominal form. Qualitative research seeks to investigate how individuals interpret, view, understand and/or create social reality. From the researcher’s perspective, the purpose of qualitative research is to “increase understanding of a particular issue”. Qualitative research questions tend to ask ‘how’ and ‘why’ in order to understand individuals’ motivations, whilst quantitative research questions are more likely to be closed (Patton & Cochran 2002). In this regard, the project managers of UAE oil companies will be asked to determine why they have decided to incorporate elements of sustainability in their project. There will also be themes of how they feel pressured on implementing sustainability in their project. Therefore, on this particular approach, it will seek open answers on factors that influence their interest in incorporating sustainability in their project. Quantitative Research In this regard, the researchers will have to seek from sources of 10 oil corporations in UAE to get measures of profitability due to the cost they spend on programs of sustainability. They will also be have to access external determinants on their sustainability indices by consulting records from organizations such as World Health Organization and the UAE government Department of Commerce, among others. The quantitative method will enable researchers to confirm the levels profits due to sustainability in various individual oil corporations in UAE. Data Collection and Manipulation Participants and Research Ethics Twenty senior project managers of major oil companies in UAE will be selected. Their contacts will be got from company websites or national registry of companies. Ethical Considerations Taking into account the importance of ethics in any research, the researchers, will institute the ethical principles that are acceptable in current modern scientific research. Therefore, basic policies and procedures will be designed to ensure that the research subjects are safe and that sloppy or irresponsible behaviors are prevented. Owing to the fact that ignorance is not the defense here, the researchers will have the duty to seek out and understand the theories and policies that are designed to bring upstanding research practices. These would then enhance the trustworthiness, and considerations that the researchers will be socially responsible to provide valuable results. It is important to note that this will involve submitting them for peer review to be considered ethically and socially accepted. As widely noted, just when one part of the project is unethical the entire project may be considered to be in a sham (Centre for Bioethics 2003). As regards the authorship of the project, the researcher will take a lot of considerations regarding the responsible authorship practices (Centre for Bioethics 2003).Taking into account that this study will involve human subjects from diverse backgrounds, the researcher will have to be careful with topics ranging from fair selection, voluntary participation and human justice (Centre for Bioethics 2003). Materials and Procedures After participants have read online consent forms and agreed to participate, they will submit their occupational information regarding companies in which they work and their positions. Questionnaires that require sustainability indices as accredited by various organizations and verifiable organizations’ spending on the programs, will be used. Using the linear regression model, the study will have to test relationship between specific sustainability determinants, and profitability. In this regard, the determinants will be both internal and external. Internal determinants will be cost incurred by the firm, in its strategies; to achieve its sustainability objectives. External determinants will include the rankings of the organization as determined by the level of the indices in three facets: economic, social and legal. Therefore, the overall equation will have to include all determinants, so that the linear progression model will be as below: Pqt = C +Σαi Bqjt +Σ βiXkt + Uit In this case, Pqt= Profit made by the selected oil corporation for the last 10 years Bqj = Internal determinant/ determined by organization at time t Xkt = K –th external determinants/ outside the organization at time t Uit = Error terms Given that all assumptions have been, met Ordinary Least Square method has been chosen so that to give the best fit coefficients for the better future predictions. Results Each company’s data will be manipulated independently by correlation and integration. Moreover, the study results of the 10 companies will be grouped into various matrices to find their means. These will be used to determine the sustainability level of the UAE Oil sector. Negative or positive relationship between effects of the determinants of sustainability (anxiety) will be by correlation matrices, found by pairing them against 10-year accumulative profits of the firm. Moreover, to evaluate unique potential results of the determinants on firm’s profitability, the study will conduct regression analyses. There will be tables and figures in the appendices section to summarize and expound on major ideas in key results. Discussion Various relationships will be drawn from the data as regards each firm’s sustainability. It is expected that the cost of each firm will reveal the kind and magnitude of strategies each firm employed. On the other hand, profitability has been also noted to be the most motivating factor why the companies are taking sustainability as their strategic area. Nonetheless, there will be a discussion to relate current research results with previous studies. Recommendations that can easily be applied will be proposed to various stakeholders so that the UAE firms can change their habits, to embrace sustainability in their oil projects. Furthermore, the study will outline why researchers’ work seems different from others and how they have contributed to the recently emerged issue. Nevertheless, limitations such as employing a sample of 10 managers from UAE only will be disclosed. This will pose questions for future researches to use samples from the whole of Gulf region or other places so that they can be more representative. 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Knap Pmp, BW and Knapp, BW 2010, A Project Manager's Guide to Passing the Project Management, (Pmp) Exam, www.pmexam.com, 2010. Labuschagne, C, and Brent, AC 2006, Social Sustainability, Springer. Local Government Association of NSW, 2014, Ten Project Management Tips from Sustainability Project Managers, viewed 11 April 2014, Meredith, JA, and Mantel, Jr, SJ 2011, Project Management, 8th ed. New York: Wiley and Sons. NSW Government, 2012, Measuring Outcomes in Community Care: An Exploratory Study, CHD. Patton,Q M, and Cochran M 2002, A Guide to Using Qualitative Research Methodology, Medecins San Frontieres. Project Management Institute, 2014, The Bottom Line on Sustainability: White Paper.PMI 2(11). Sage Pub, 2010, Introduction to Quantitative Research. Silvius, A.J.G., den Brink, J., and Kohler, A 2014, The impact of sustainability on project management, Monash University Publishing, viewed 11 April 2014 Sustainable Development, 2014, Sustainable Measures, viewed 11 April 2014, Rouse, M 2008, Project Management, SearchCIO, viewed 11 April 2014. Tasmania eGovernment, 2014, Risk Management, viewed 11 April 2014, . Read More