Sample Research Proposal on Risk Management in KJO

'According to their website pointing to risk management, KJO organization has undertaken to develop and implement an environmental management system for the attainment of policy objectives and targets in mitigation against the environmental effects of its activities. Thus, KJO shall comply with relevant environmental regulations and other requirements applicable to its operating activities. In particular, KJO aims to meet the environmental standards specified by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the State of Kuwait and shall develop appropriate guidelines compatible with the objectives of environmental protection prevailing in the region. Aside, every department undertakes to ensure that its facilities are designed and operated in compliance with the established Environmental Standards and, that they will continue to target zero risk to the environment or public health. Then, KJO undertakes to communicate its environmental policy to employees, vendors, customers and other interested parties'. (Cited from, KJO Website, 2007) The upheaval relating to such conditions and certain risks associated with oil and gas as global economic and business conditions and those specific to oil and gas industry; as KJO need to produce technology advances as well as operation hazards that are present in the industry, such as risks from unforeseen legal action as well as risks from continuing investigation process and such risks from global KJO operations. As KJO will then execute procedures to ensure its compliance with environmental regulations for certain liabilities with coverage against operating hazards or self-insured retentions and exclusions and whenever possible, KJO will obtain agreements from customers that limit its liability due to risks.   Aims   The study aims are to give a clear emphasis on the needed aspect of the topic in gathering coherent evidence for the validity of research information and findings integrating risk management process for KJO. There also discussion and explanation of risk theories and concepts within the study. The focus objective of the study is to be able to freely execute a fact finding ways of providing researchers appropriate and suitable research sources and materials to be used in the methodology and to give a detailed and justifiable analysis of related data and information as a part of the successful handling and realization of the research process. Research requires an organized data gathering in order to pinpoint the research philosophies and theories that will be included in the research, the methodology of the research and the instruments of data interpretation. The descriptive method of research is to gather information about the present existing condition. The purpose of employing this method is to describe the nature of a situation, as it exists at the time of the study and to explore the cause/s of particular phenomena. The researcher opted to use this kind of research considering the desire of the researcher to obtain first hand data from the respondents so as to formulate rational and sound conclusions and recommendations for the study. This study employs quantitative research method, since this research intends to find sound evidence. There are many data gathering methods which needed to be executed in completing the study.     Research Goals This study will try to achieve the following research goals: -          To be able to acquire useful research evidences and information and the finding out of certain evidences as adequate as possible -          To study, realize and apply the data collected from literatures and respondents and the searching over for relationships that are vital for understanding and recognizing the study's focus and purpose The paper will explain as well as discuss in detail possible data and knowledge explored in determining crucial risk points that are basically subject to management, execution and procurement process along with the KJO management challenges and issues in a timely manner. There has to be identification of valid assumptions in order to improve outcomes for the research study under certain risk management theories to be integrated in the study in fully understanding the importance of decisions taken in for better research models and techniques. Furthermore, there has to be assessment of the risk process by identifying the imperative theories and its variables that will have good affect to the successful completion of the study in answering its research questions and realizing such goals and objectives. Literature Search Literature search will focus on some books, articles and journals in support to the surveys developed on the studies and literatures which have focus significantly on how to manage risks on the right note given the fact that business milieu is not the same especially when it comes to culture aspects and decision making process. The search will also be focus on the literatures on the factors that have influence company behavior and the insights KJO management towards management and association of risks may deemed possible in reflection to their created concerns.   Overview of Literature Moreover, certain risk planning is developing and documenting organized, comprehensive and interactive strategies and methods for identifying risks.  It is used for performing risk assessments to establish risk handling priorities, developing risk handling plans, monitoring the status of risk handling actions, determining and obtaining the resources to implement the risk management strategies.  Risk planning is used in the development and implementation of required training and communicating risk information up and down the project stakeholder organization.  There are several key elements in successfully implementing an effective risk management process and each is necessary for risk management planning. Furthermore, risk taking is essential to progress and failure is often a key part of learning as the inevitability of risks does not imply the inability to recognize and manage risks to minimize potential negative consequences while retaining the opportunities for creating new and better software. The paradigm is represented as a circle to emphasize that risk management is a continuous process while the arrows show the logical and temporal flow of information between the activities in risk management. Communication is placed in the center of the paradigm because it is both the conduit through which information flows and, often, is the major obstacle to risk management and before risks can be managed, they must be identified. Identification surfaces risks before they become problems and adversely affect a project. There has to be developed techniques for surfacing risks by the application of a disciplined and systematic process that encourages project personnel to raise concerns and issues for subsequent analysis. Effective risk identification must cover all key development and support areas of the project. The risk identification process must create and sustain a non-judgmental and non-attributive risk elicitation environment so that controversial views are heard.  Risk assessment The first step in risk assessment is risk identification. In risk identification, the team looks at all of the items and events within the project from the perspective of the various risk categories and identifies those that could potentially have a significant negative impact on the project. Then, the team considers the potential consequences if the risk should occur. For example, in a digital imaging project that is reliant on vendor provided software, a delay in the delivery of the software is a potential risk and the potential consequence of this would be the delay of many, if not all, subsequent project tasks. Bear in mind that if a risk is related to one or more other risks, i.e. if risks have dependencies, good practice dictates that the related risks should be evaluated together as one. Proposed Theories Understanding the process of risk management entails understanding the underlying factors that contribute to project risks. The project management literature is strewn with investigations into project risk factors and repeatedly investigators find many of the same risk factors, regardless of the nature of the project. As Keil et al. (1998) have noted the most common risk factors are remarkably consistent across projects: -          lack of top management commitment to the project -          failure to gain user commitment -          misunderstanding the requirements -          lack of adequate user involvement -          failure to manage end user expectations The process of its procurement ways can be realized through providing leadership and building capacity for procurement though effective management, training and support. Aside, it is useful to have better process delivering excellent structures and procedures to facilitate effective procurement process and compliance. There has the environment stimulating the way it deals to the procurement matters working with the organizations both internal and external to execute and apply best practice of the procurement strategies involved. There should be certain guidelines as contained elements of strategy but the authority for the development of best practice and the utilization of procurement skills may possibly be an unclear notion. (Akintoye, 1994) There has to be a well developed strategy providing: -          A clear description of its procurement arrangements -          Authority for the timely application of procurement expertise -          Development of supplier base and modern procurement practice -          Restriction of right to negotiate prices, enter into contracts and to amend contracts -          Management and enforcement of contracts to completion -          Standards and behavior in connection with procurement -          Setting of targets and performance monitoring   Moreover, it can be proper to imply good procurement planning and enough strategic ways to achieve good tendering as well as payment strategy reflected in the situation.   Procurement Planning Identify all potential acquisition transactions; discuss contracting approach, administrative requirements, and lead-times for each contract action. Develop list of procurements; identify cost, schedule, type and quality requirements; and performance, specification, administrative, and delivery issues. Develop structured approach for incorporating procurement management tasks into project plans, schedules, and budgets; include procurement issues in risk assessment and risk management plan. Identify all contract actions, requirements, dollar estimates, lead times, issues, and risk management actions; obtain sponsor approval for plan; use peer review to verify realism and identify additional risks.       The bottom line, effective procurement planning provides avenue for those strategies to advance such objectives and the procurement planning must focus on: (Akintoye, 1994) -          Advancing priorities of development and goal process -          Achieving value for cost, time and quality -          Ensuring probity and accountability The purpose of procurement ways is to enable the development to meet its specific objectives as the strategy measures includes the following activities: (Chan, 2000). -          Specifying the objectives to be achieved in development techniques -          Identifying several procurement risks being associated with constraints   Research Methods   Survey interview will be conducted to the management of KJO especially to those involved parties for KJO's business operations and corporate governance in order for the study to have better risk management assessment through direct responses from the management. This technique allows participants to respond in their own words (Stewart and Shamdasani, 1990, p. 13). People are often more amenable to answering questions in person than on paper; there is greater spontaneity in the responses; and answers are more complete and revealing than questionnaire answers. A sample test will be taken from different organization and will be tested against several criteria, such as the hypothesis, the demographical data and any other factor that would have effect on the final outcome.   RESEARCH DESIGN Data Collection Method A research on secondary sources will be use to identify the baby boomer group and what the group is composed of. An interview will be conducted to know some risks they observe in KJO that needs to be addressed by the management and the board. Thus, through personal or a computer assisted telephone interview will be used to collect data from the respondents. Interview is used because it is more personalized to know what the respondents' needs and what their personal knowledge on the organization is.  There will be employment of a five point Likert response format based on this short scale (5 = strongly disagree; 4 = agree; 3 = neutral; 2 = agree; 1 = strongly agree)     Sampling Method A random sample will be conducted, with a sample frame providing the names and addresses of the respondents. The names, addresses, and phone numbers of households will be loaded into a spreadsheet and randomized. The Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing program will then randomly assign numbers to each interviewee. The formula for sample size calculation will be taken from Czaja and Blair (1996, p. 126) which would cut the total number of interviewees to a retained final number. Proposed Analytical Method Simple comparisons such as averages, distribution of responses and a survey response rate will be accomplished. Some useful tools used in analysis and for presenting and interpreting statistical data including percentage, average and median as employed.   Anticipated Results and Conclusions   For the purpose of statistical ways and its analysis, the Likert scale method produces means and standard deviations for the responses given. It also prints the minimum and maximum value. Likert scale questions are appropriate to print means for since the number that is coded can give us a feel for which direction the average answer is. The standard deviation is important as it give us an indication of the average distance from the mean. A low standard deviation would mean that most observations cluster around the mean. A high standard deviation would mean that there was a lot of variation in the answers. A standard deviation of 0 is obtained when responses to a question are the same. Henceforth, prior to computing a scale that is the mean of a series of questions, first assign points to each question so that the reverse wording questions will be assigned the opposite number of points than the positively worded questions. The range is an important measurement, for figures at the top and bottom of it denote the findings furthest removed from the generality. However, they do not give much indication of the spread of observations about the mean.   The standard deviation is a summary measure of the differences of each observation from the mean. If the differences themselves were added up, the positive would exactly balance the negative and so their sum would be zero. Consequently the squares of the differences are added. The sum of the squares is then divided by the number of observations give the mean of the squares, and the square root is taken to bring the measurements back to the units we started with. The division by the number of observations of the number of observations itself to obtain the mean square is because degrees of freedom must be used. The research study anticipates discovering such realization and actualization emphasizing as well as implying generalizations in providing basis for supporting the point of the study, finding empirical knowledge and evidence that will involve its corporate and risk management plans as to how they can be successful as there involves KJO participation and the determining of research techniques and methods that can be effective for in-depth understanding of the study and its essential focus in serving the utmost purpose. The risk study for KJO will assimilate the knowing process and realizes imperative and critical points to be reflected in the research analysis and discussion of research findings and be able to meet the guidelines and procedures recommended by the management involved. Finally, one will see how KJO can be aware and get rid of such risks within the organization and from careful analysis and planning, there can arrive to better risk management programs as well as its respected procurement so that growth and success will continue. Developing effective methods of managing risks and its proper dissemination will yield great benefits to the organization.