PhD Thesis of Management Sample

PHD THESIS OFMANAGEMENTSAMPLE IMPLEMENTING EFFECTIVE RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

AbstractThe existence of uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity in thebusiness environment promotes the need to establish a dependablerisk governance. The use of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) hasalso been considered as an effective method to attain good riskgovernance in order to deal with both upside and downside ofuncertainty and risk. ERM treats all of the risks holistically in order toachieve organization aims in volatile, normal and crisis situations. ThisPhD thesis will discuss issues related to the ERM implementation andhow it has been adapted and implemented in the insurance market ofboth India and UK. Mixed methods for research have also beenemployed coming from a qualitative stand point in order to exploreresearch issues, consisting two surveys in both countries, with morethan 50 interviews, as well as two case studies in the country’sinsurance markets. The study revealed that an ambiguity is presentwhen it comes to understanding all definitions of ERM, as well as therisks involved across both of the countries.Background of the StudyIn the current environment of business, corporations facedambiguity, volatility, and uncertainty. Understanding uncertaintyand risk has posed a number of challenges, and a cleardistinction between uncertainty and risk is not clear. Ramir(2000) separates uncertainty and risk according to both factorsas measurability and immeasurability. It also highlights theimpact of individual characteristic involved in the situation interms of probability determination. Bernel (1998) alsoconnected the importance of conditions to uncertainty whereboth measurement and rationality are vital to the process ofdecision making.

Research FocusThe currently existing regulations in the financial industry require ahigh level of transparency among institutions. Terrorist attacks, cyber-attacks, as well as increased volatility in the financial markets,including the bailout of the companies including the AmericanInternational Group (AIG), in the recent past, leading companies toadopt their approaches beyond the Traditional Risk Managementprocesses. Just recently, ERM has introduced a shift from a separatistapproach, converting to an integrated approach in order to includeboth risks in a holistic way, considering them as a way to implementeffective risk governance in the field of financial industry.Recent financial issues have further raised concerns for exigency inorder to deal with the challenges in a holistic way. The financialmarkets have also become more volatile, which means that thecompanies has to prepare accordingly in order to deal with suchcrisis and volatile situations. The adoption of a higher standard of riskgovernance through ERM practices may offer plausible assurance tocompanies starting from the downside of challenges and risks,though the implementation will not be easy (Charter & Pucer, 2007).By adopting the Institutional Theory, the study will offer comparativehighlights on the specific aspects of ERM that is needed tounderstand risk governance completely. Unfortunately, a wideambiguity involved in the understanding of ERM surfaced. Thecorporates are struggling in terms of the definition of ERM, includingits goals and scope. Some definitions have also been proposed,without any requirements of standardization. As such, corporatescannot find the right strategies which can deal with uncertainties andrisks in order to enhance risk governance.

Future ResearchFuture research covering the jurisdiction at a local, industry, as wellas international level would be enough basis for worthwhile effort.The understanding of the concept of ERM needs the completion ofmore case studies which will help in understanding the institutionalchange, as well as its impact on strategies. There would beadvantages that can be expected from presenting an internationalcomparative study that compares ERM practices of local partnershipand joint venture partnerships between India and the UK.ReferencesBernel, G. (1998). The rise and introduction of the Chief Risk Officer:risk management at enterprise level. Applied Corporate FinanceJournal, 12(3), 45-67.Charter, G. & Pucer, G. (2007). Investigating the evolution ofenterprise risk management in the insurance sector. Risk andInsurance Reports, 2(1), 23-34.Ramir, G. (2000). The relevance of disclosing risk factors in corporateyearly reports. UK Accounting Review, 34(2), 45-56.