Managing the Adoption of New Technology by Groundwater Development Companies in Arid Regions
[Thesis]
Sahi, Riaz A.
Ellwood, Paul
The University of Liverpool (United Kingdom)
2019
129
D.B.A.
The University of Liverpool (United Kingdom)
2019
In the last decade, water exploration companies in arid regions of the world, particularly in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, have experienced business uncertainty resulting from the impact of climate change on their operations. The combination of declining water resources and increasing water demands presents a significant challenge to business sustainability. In response to this changing environment, drilling companies have sought solutions through the adoption of new technologies to improve productivity and efficiencies. However, companies in this water sector have traditionally been slow to adopt new technology. My own company offers drilling technology to firms in this water sector, and we have observed a reticence to implement new technology. The objective of this DBA thesis is to develop an actionable framework for the adoption of new technology by groundwater development companies in arid regions; and to make use of the framework in one technology adoption project. The research draws from the academic literature related to the management of technology adoption to support an action research design conducted with the participation of six water drilling companies in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The research design was organized in two stages. In stage 1; important themes from the literature of technology adoption informed engagement with the management of six leading drilling companies. Qualitative interviews were conducted with management from a range of functions within companies, to understand their current operational performance and experience of adopting new drilling technology. A thematic analysis of the interviews was used to build an actionable framework for the management of adopting new technology in this context. In the second stage of the research design, the actionable framework model was used by one of the companies in order to create and execute a plan to implement new drilling technology. This thesis reports the development of the plan and presents an evaluation of its implementation. The thesis concludes with future implications for drilling companies, my own technology company, my own management practice as well as reflections on my own DBA "journey".