Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.

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  Strategic Information Systems Planning (SISP) in the banking sector: An Investigation of Strategic Information Systems Planning (SISP) in the Saudi Banking Sector

  Taylor, Andrew W.; Hussain, Zahir; Al-Faidi Al-Juhani, Mohammed H.

  The improvement of SISP practices has rapidly become one of the most critical issues facing many organisations, including banks. Globally, the banking sectors, including the Saudi one, have developed and implemented many IS strategies. Several systems have been executed to support the countries’ economies which have benefited from the increased trading resulting from the greater flexibility in time and costs associated with banking transactions. To continue these achievements and to improve SISP processes, several factors require careful investigation based on their relationship to SISP success; which include SISP objectives, SISP internal factors, external consultant functions, SISP external factors, measurements of SISP success, key stakeholders’ roles, and triggers. Therefore this study investigates the impact of these factors on SISP success. Data were collected in three phases. Phase 1 was an initial study with one or two interviews with the IT directors of each bank in the Saudi banking sector comprising the central bank and 11 commercial banks. The outcomes informed the development of a survey that was used in Phase 2; to investigate a sample containing a central bank, a domestic commercial bank and a domestic-foreign commercial bank to determine their SISP processes. 157 completed questionnaires were returned from the bank executives, business and IT directors and consultants. In Phase 3, 57 interviews confirmed and explained the quantitative results from Phase 2. Therefore, an in-depth case study was made in the three banks during Phases 2 and 3. The research results support previous findings on the SISP’s seventeen objectives collected by several researchers across different industries and in various countries. Furthermore, the research condenses these seventeen objectives into five more practical and achievable objectives for the banking sector. These are: 1) planning and deployment of information systems; 2) leading organisation changes; 3) improving stakeholders’ involvement and communication; 4) achieving the strategic priorities; and 5) alignment of organisational policies and architecture for business and IS. In addition, the findings identify the factors according to their relationship with SISP success and therefore explore several elements with positive, negative or no impact on SISP success in the banking sector. The thesis presents conclusions and suggests areas for further research.
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  Capacity building of human resources in the oil and gas sector in Ghana: An exploration into the public-sector capacity building of human resources in the emerging oil and gas in Ghana

  Analoui, Farhad; Lawler, John A.; Amenshiah, Ambrose K.

  This empirical research explored the capacity building of human resources in the emerging oil and gas sector in Ghana. Ghana’s oil and gas were discovered in commercial quantities in 2007 by GNPC and its partners in Jubilee field in the Cape Three Point in the western region, which signified a turning point in the development effort of the state. Local skills shortage perceived as a significant challenge. Thus the government envisaged the need to build local skill capacity which attracted an initial grant of US$38 million from World Bank to facilitate the implementation of oil and gas capacity building project in 2010. The study adopted a mixed method approach for primary data collection. Matched samples of employees (226) working in four public sector organisations in the oil and gas sector were surveyed using the simple random technique, while human resource/training and development directors (9) were purposively sampled and interviewed on the human resources capacity building to assess and corroborates the survey data. The study findings confirmed shortcomings in local skills in the public organisations in the petroleum industry. Comparatively, the results suggested that the performance appraisal tools could be further improved. The study also found local skills mismatch. It revealed that inadequate funding and delays in the release of funds affected local skill capacity building in the public-sector organisations in the industry. Originality, this is one of the very few studies to explore the shortcomings of local skill capacity in the selected organisation including the strategies used in addressing the skill gap. Research implications, more matched-sample studies are necessary to understand further how private companies (IOC’s) contributing to local skill capacity building. Practically, the study is of significance to the policymakers to address the skill gap in the energy sector. The main contribution of the research is to conceptualise the concept of HRM in Ghana’s context. The thesis, therefore, is an essential contribution to our understanding of the skill gap in the oil and gas industry in Ghana and the role of HR in this field.
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  Strategic Management Practices. An Investigation of Public Sector Organizations in the Kingdom of Bahrain

  Abdi, M. Reza; Abushabab, Wajdi (University of BradfordSchool of Management, 2016)

  Over more than three decades, there has been a sustained interest in strategic planning in the public sector to secure positive outcomes and long-term growth. However, several authors argued that strategic planning is limited, costly, time consuming and not producing the needed outcomes. Previous research has focused almost upon developed, and not on developing countries, for instance, the Kingdom of Bahrain. This gap in the knowledge provides the justification for this research. Using survey method, this research aims to explore strategic management practices in the public sector of Bahrain. Using both interviews and questionnaires as the mixed methods was more convincing and produced more comprehensive findings and hence stronger credibility. The findings reveal that the strategic management process was not effective in the researched organizations in the strategic formulation stage, the strategic implementation stage, and the strategic evaluation stage. The findings also reveal that there is a low satisfaction level with strategic management process within most of the organizations surveyed. Moreover, the findings revealed that the progress in the transition from strategic planning to a strategic management approach was limited. However, some of the organizations were found to be at the start of such a transition and this may be a good sign. Additionally, the findings reported many leading edge elements that are closely related to this transition, and help to successfully implement organizational objectives. Finally, the present research is proposing a strategic management model to increase the ability to formulate, implement and evaluate better future governmental strategic plans.