Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Offshore Wind Industry Leaders’ Operations And Maintenance Management Strategies, Heather Louise Shimp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The difficulties offshore wind leaders have in managing operations and maintenance (O&M) costs threaten the ability to operate offshore wind farms profitably, diversify the energy supply, and reduce dependence on imported fuels. Grounded in the frameworks of Lean Six Sigma and McKinsey 7-S, the purpose of this qualitative multi-case study was to explore offshore wind farm leaders’ strategies to manage O&M costs in Europe. The participants were six offshore wind leaders who implemented strategies to successfully manage O&M costs for offshore wind farms located in Europe. Data were collected using semistructured interviews, participant observation, and reviewing public and participant-supplied documents. …

The Implementation Of Advanced Digitalization In The Oil And Gas Industry, Ensieh Rezafar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe immature advanced digitalization in the oil and gas industry can limit access to the potential value of mature progressive digitalization. Oil and gas leaders must expedite the implementation of advanced digitalization to increase organizational proficiencies and reduce costs and losses. Grounded in Pettigrew and Whipp’s dimensions of strategic change theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies some leaders in the oil and gas industry used to implement advanced digitalization. The participants were seven leaders in two oil service companies in North America involved in the successful implementation of progressive digitalization. Data were collected …

Exploring Cyber-Physical Systems’ Security Governance In The Oil And Gas Industry, Soliman Mahmoud

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Fourth Industrial Revolution, which utilizes modern communication-dependent technologies, including cyber-physical systems (CPS), has made exploration and production operations more efficient in the oil and gas industry. CPS in this industry should be secured against operational threats to prevent interruption of critical oil and gas supplies and services. However, these systems are vulnerable to cyberattacks, and many oil and gas companies have not incorporated effective cybersecurity measures into their corporate management strategies. This qualitative, multiple-case study, which was guided by the routine activity theory, explored how cybersecurity governance was applied to develop controls that stopped or mitigated the consequences of …

Knowledge Management In Engineering Companies In The Nigeria Oil And Gas Industry, Babajide Adeniran Ojuola

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Engineering companies in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry are not able to optimize their knowledge resources through the continual conversion of tacit knowledge to organizational knowledge. This is due to barriers that inhibit the holistic process of tacit knowledge conversion. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the enablers and barriers to tacit knowledge conversion in engineering companies as perceived by engineering practitioners working in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The central research questions focused on exploring the enablers and barriers to the conversion of tacit knowledge to organizational knowledge in oil and gas engineering …

Offshore Wind Industry Interorganizational Collaboration Strategies In Emergency Management, Rodney L. Brady

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some health and safety (HSE) managers within the offshore wind industry lack effective interorganizational collaboration strategies in emergency management (EM) for successful disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. The failure and the reluctance of neighboring offshore wind industry organizations to share knowledge or resources during a disaster could hinder successful disaster response operations resulting in preventable loss of life, extensive property damage, or damaged company reputations. Grounded in the interorganizational collaboration theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies HSE managers in the offshore wind industry use for successful disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. …

Challenges And Opportunities For Implementing Sustainable Wind Strategies In The Dominican Republic, Virgil J. Perez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The difficulties utility managers in the Dominican Republic have implementing sustainable wind strategies threaten the ability to diversify the energy supply and reduce dependence on imported fuels. Grounded in Rogers’s diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies utility managers use to implement renewable wind energy in the Dominican Republic. The participants were five wind energy managers in the Dominican Republic. Data were collected using semistructured, face-to-face interviews and a review of company documents. Three themes emerged through thematic analysis: deconstructing the existing regulatory legal framework for renewable energy development, the fusion …

Residential Demand Side Management: Strategies For Increasing Electric Utility Profitability, Alexandra Rose Bennett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some electric utility leaders lack effective strategies to reduce demand billing charges. Utility leaders are concerned with lowering demand billing charges, as failure to do so can negatively affect profitability. Guided by the operations management theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies that distribution electric utility managers use to reduce demand billing chargers from their power providers. The participants were three electric utility leaders working in the Midwest United States who used successful residential demand-side management (DSM) strategies. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and utility documents to address the research question. The collected …

Profitability Strategies Of Solar Energy Businesses In Lagos, Nigeria, Mayowa Ezekiel Akeju

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some solar energy companies in Nigeria are not profitable because of ineffective marketing and sales strategies on the part of the business leaders and challenging operating environments. The ability to craft strategies that ensure the adoption of solar energy solutions by households is pertinent to the profitability of the solar energy business. Grounded in Rogers’s diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies solar energy business leaders in Lagos, Nigeria, use to maintain a profitable business. The participants included six solar energy business leaders in two companies from Lagos, Nigeria. Data were …

Strategies To Control Costs At U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power Plants, Gregory J. Lindamood

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Commercial nuclear power plants in the United States are not cost competitive because of high operating and maintenance costs and historically low natural gas prices, resulting in the potential for premature plant closure of up to 25% of the operating power plants by 2025. Premature plant closure could impact the consumer through higher electricity rates, increased air pollution, and electric grid instability from increased renewable usage. Grounded in the behavioral decision theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore successful strategies nuclear leaders used to control costs and ensure competitiveness. Data were collected through semistructured interviews …

Operational Strategies For Nigerian Refineries’ Business Sustainability, Nosa Omorodion

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractInefficient operations strategies can negatively impact refinery operations output. Refinery senior leaders who struggle to achieve operations efficiency are at high risk of failure. Grounded in Ulrich’s model of competency, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore operations strategies leaders of oil and gas refineries in Nigeria used for business sustainability. The participants comprised five senior leaders in five refineries in Nigeria who demonstrated success in using operational strategies for business sustainability in oil and gas refineries. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and company documents consisting of the annual business plan, strategy document, and financial …

Small And Medium Enterprises’ Green Energy Strategies For Profitability, Ekok Ajom Okpokam

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Lack of business strategies can negatively impact the generation of green energy, which may hinder business profitability and growth. Managers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) who struggle to generate green energy to increase profitability are at high risk of their business failure. Grounded in the diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the business strategies managers of SMEs use to generate green energy to increase profitability. The participants were three SME managers in three energy companies in Lagos, Nigeria, who effectively used business strategies to generate green energy to increase profitability. …

An Analysis Of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Adoption For Household Cooking In Nigeria, Saheed Olanrewaju Lasisi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Nigerian government established a domestic liquefied petroleum gas penetration program (DLPGPP) to support Nigerian households that still use traditional fuels, which are inefficient and hazardous for users while polluting and degrading the environment. Little is known about the relationships that exist among liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) accessibility, LPG affordability, and LPG adoption to guide DLPGPP implementation. Narrowing this gap was the purpose of this study using the general framework of consumer theory. The study's research questions addressed the effects of LPG affordability and LPG accessibility on LPG adoption for cooking in Nigeria’s households. A cross-sectional, correlational survey was employed …

Strategies To Maintain Profitability When Crude Oil Prices Fluctuate, Yussif Sulemana

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Rapid and sustained fluctuations in the crude oil market have remained a threat to the financial performance of national and multinational oil and gas corporations. Such fluctuations can reduce the profitability of national and multinational oil and gas corporations. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive single case study was to explore strategies oil production leaders used to maintain profitability when crude oil prices fluctuate. The participants included 6 senior oil production leaders in a national oil corporation in Ghana who employed successful strategies to maintain profitability. Kraus and Litzenberger’s trade-off theory of capital structure served as the conceptual framework for …

Risk Assessment Strategies To Reduce Profitability Losses From Pipeline Accidents In The Natural Gas Industry, Cynthia Hurdle

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Ineffective risk assessment strategies can negatively impact the natural gas industry.

Engineer project managers who struggle to maintain a risk assessment plan are at high risk of failure, which could result in devastating consequences for the business and environment. Grounded in the theory of risk assessment, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies engineer project managers in the natural gas industry use to improve risk assessment planning to reduce pipeline accidents and improve profitability. The participants comprised of 5 engineer project managers in Virginia, who effectively use risk assessment strategies to promote safety metrics and …

Effectively Managing Energy Costs In The Resort Industry, Justin Whitesides

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hawaii's commercial consumers pay the highest electricity rate in the United States;these costs are expected to rise 3-3.5% in 2021. Management in the Hawaiian resort industry that lacks adequate knowledge of controlling these rising costs is at a competitive disadvantage. Utilizing the diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore strategies used in the resort industry to control energy costs. The participants comprised of 10 energy management professionals with successful experience managing energy consumption in the resort industry. Data were collected through telephone interviews, archival documentation, and field notes. Using Yin's 5-step process of …

Strategies For Small Energy Consulting Business Survivability, Scholastica Nwabueze

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses are critical to economic development. Small businesses create job opportunities and training and innovative products and services, but they encounter significant challenges and many fail in the first 7 years due to lack of sustainable strategies. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies owners used to sustain small energy consulting businesses for longer than 7 years. The population in this study consisted of 5 senior executives of a small energy consulting firm in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. The conceptual framework for the study was the transformational leadership theory that deals with vision and …

Potential Solar Consumers' Understanding Of Energy Policy Development In Hawai‘I, Kristin Li Mcgill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hawai‘i has implemented renewable energy goals that assume continued investments by solar consumers who seem unaware of their role in the policy's success. Without the renewable resource generation that will come from these investments, the state will be unable to achieve its energy mandate. Using Sabatier and Jenkins-Smith's advocacy coalition framework and Ajzen's theory of planned behavior as the foundation, the purpose of this study was to better understand the perspectives of potential solar consumers on the Island of O‘ahu regarding the state's renewable portfolio standards, their level of knowledge regarding consumer impact on this policy, and their perceptions of …

Success Factors For Power Project Development Businesses In Sub-Saharan Africa, Kodjo Galevissi Afidegnon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the financing gap in the sub-Saharan Africa power sector, private investors struggle to capitalize on the opportunity because of the high failure rate of power project development companies. Using the conceptual framework of the behavioral finance theory, this multiple case study was conducted to explore the strategies used by executives of 4 companies in sub-Saharan Africa who successfully developed power projects within the last 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and a review of government and institutions' websites. Yin's 5-phased cycle for analyzing case studies provided the guidelines for data analysis. Three themes emerged from data analysis: …

Retention Strategies For Oil And Gas Industry Managers, Faye Gerard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The turnover cost of specialized employees in the oil and gas industry can exceed 400% of an employee's annual salary. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore successful strategies that oil and gas company managers used to retain specialized employees. The specific population for the study was 8 managers from 4 oil and gas companies in a metropolitan city in the southern United States, which included 5 hiring managers and 3 engineering managers who had demonstrated success in retaining specialized employees. The conceptual lens used in this research study was the job embeddedness theory. Study data were …

Small Business Sustainability Strategies, Wayne A. Fillingim

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses provide 48% of private-sector jobs in the United States and play a vital role in the country's economic growth and development. Only half of U.S. small businesses survive for longer than 5 years. The purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore sustainability strategies managers of small oilfield service companies used to sustain their business for longer than 5 years. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with 10 managers--one manager from each of 10 different oilfield service companies located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States and from review of publicly available documents and archived …

Transportation Electrification And Hospital Emergency Planning, Nathaniel Winfield Skinner

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Because transportation in the San Francisco Bay Area is increasingly dependent on electricity, factors such as limited electricity storage capacity and nontransferability of batteries between vehicles need to be considered by emergency response planners (ERPs). The purpose of this study was to investigate planning for providing the power to provide emergency transportation for hospital staff/administration and those injured after earthquakes. The research questions of transportation need of emergency staff and patients after an earthquake and differences between Bay Area cities and counties in considering transportation needs were addressed in this qualitative study utilizing a collective case study to assess electric …

Phenomenological Study On Female Engineering Leaders In The New York Utility Industry, Shelanda Gonsalves

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This qualitative phenomenological study explored the development of women with an engineering background who became leaders. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of female engineering leaders in the New York utility sector. The research problem was why few women with engineering degrees obtain leadership positions. Women comprise half the total working population, yet few hold leadership positions, especially in the utility sector. In this study, 28 women in the New York utility sector shared experiences on their progression from engineer to leadership. The conceptual framework was the Moustakas phenomenological approach, investigating the humanistic properties of …

Strategies For Improving Energy Conservation On A Military Installation, Samuel Francis Richardson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Energy is an essential component required to execute missions throughout military organizations. Failing to sustain energy efficiency in military units could cause mission failures throughout the Department of Defense. As a result, efficient energy management has become a major priority for Air National Guard units as well as other military organizations around the globe. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to gain an understanding of strategies used by front-line military supervisors to reduce energy consumption through behavioral change on a military installation located in Maryland. The central question explored strategies that front-line military supervisors use to change …

Human Resource Local Content In Ghana's Upstream Petroleum Industry, Papa Benin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Enactment of Ghana's Petroleum (Local Content and Local Participation) Regulations, 2013 (L.I. 2204) was intended to regulate the percentage of local products, personnel, financing, and goods and services rendered within Ghana's upstream petroleum industry value chain. Five years after the inception of Ghana's upstream oil and gas industry, a gap is evident between the requirements of L.I. 2204 and professional practice. Drawing on Lewin's change theory, a cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the extent of differences between the prevailing human resource local content and the requirements of L.I. 2204 in Ghana's upstream petroleum industry. The extent to which training …

Leadership Strategies For Maintaining Profitability In A Volatile Crude Oil Market, Lucky Anderson Braimoh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Volatile crude oil prices significantly affect the profitability of crude oil firms. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies some crude oil and gas business leaders used to remain profitable during periods of crude oil price volatility. The target population comprised 8 crude oil and gas business leaders located in Calgary, Canada, whose company remained profitable despite crude oil price volatility. The transformational leadership theory formed the conceptual framework for the study. Data were collected through the use of semistructured face-to-face interviews, company reports, and field notes. Data analysis involved a modified Van Kamm method, which …

Relationship Of Solar Energy Installation Permits To Renewable Portfolio Standards And Insolation, Kirt Gordon Butler

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Legislated renewable portfolio standards (RPSs) may not be the key to ensure forecast energy demands are met. States without a legislated RPS and with efficient permitting procedures were found to have approved and issued 28.57% more permits on average than those with a legislated RPS. Assessment models to make informed decisions about the need and effect of legislated RPSs do not exist. Decision makers and policy creators need to use empirical data and a viable model to resolve the debate over a nationally legislated RPS. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine if relationships between the independent variables …

Dynamically Hedging Oil And Currency Futures Using Receding Horizontal Control And Stochastic Programming, Paul Edward Cottrell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a lack of research in the area of hedging future contracts, especially in illiquid or very volatile market conditions. It is important to understand the volatility of the oil and currency markets because reduced fluctuations in these markets could lead to better hedging performance. This study compared different hedging methods by using a hedging error metric, supplementing the Receding Horizontal Control and Stochastic Programming (RHCSP) method by utilizing the London Interbank Offered Rate with the Levy process. The RHCSP hedging method was investigated to determine if improved hedging error was accomplished compared to the Black-Scholes, Leland, and Whalley …

Strategies Utility Managers Used To Implement Renewable Energy Technologies In The Caribbean, Nneka Cori-Anne Archer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Government officials in the Caribbean are encouraging the production of electricity from renewable energy sources to reduce the impact of high electricity rates to customers due to region's dependency on imported fossil fuel. The purpose of this single-case study was to explore the strategies electric utility managers in the Caribbean used to implement renewable energy technologies. The diffusion of innovation theory served as the conceptual framework for the study. Three managers of an electric utility in the Caribbean, who had created strategies to implement renewable energy technologies, participated in face-to-face semistructured interviews. These managers provided in-depth information on approaches used …

Applying The Analytic Hierarchy Process To Oil Sands Environmental Compliance Risk Management, Izak Johannes Roux

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Oil companies in Alberta, Canada, invested $32 billion on new oil sands projects in 2013. Despite the size of this investment, there is a demonstrable deficiency in the uniformity and understanding of environmental legislation requirements that manifest into increased project compliance risks. This descriptive study developed 2 prioritized lists of environmental regulatory compliance risks and mitigation strategies and used multi-criteria decision theory for its theoretical framework. Information from compiled lists of environmental compliance risks and mitigation strategies was used to generate a specialized pairwise survey, which was piloted by 5 subject matter experts (SMEs). The survey was validated by a …

Using Sustainable Development As A Competitive Strategy, Pat Spearman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sustainable development reduces construction waste by 43%, generating 50% cost savings. Residential construction executives lacking adequate knowledge regarding the benefits of sustainable development practices are at a competitive disadvantage. Drawing from the diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore knowledge acquisition within the bounds of sustainable residential construction. The purposive sample size of 11 executive decision makers fulfilled the sample size requirements and enabled the extraction of meaningful data. Participants were members of the National Home Builders Association and had experience of a minimum of 5 years in residential construction. The research question …