Iranian Oil Industry Research Articles

Identification and prioritization of critical success factors of knowledge management implementation using a novel hybrid group decision-making model

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to identify and prioritize the critical success factors (CSFs) of knowledge management (KM) implementation through a novel hybrid model, namely, Fuzzy Delphi method (FDM), interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and revised Simos, which is one of group decision-making (GDM) approaches.Design/methodology/approachThe CSFs of KM implementation were identified through a systematic literature review. FDM was adopted to determine the CSFs in the Iranian oil industry. Then, a novel hybrid model consisting of ISM and revised Simos techniques were used to classify and prioritize the CSFs.FindingsThe obtained results suggest that there are 13 CSFs of KM implementation. The result of ISM shows that the CSFs of KM implementation were classified into five levels. The result of revised Simos reveals that the “human resources management” obtained the highest priority and “leadership commitment and support” and “intellectual capital” ranked second and third, respectively.Research limitations/implicationsAs this research was performed in the Iranian oil industry, caution should be taken regarding the generalizability of the obtained results.Practical implicationsThe top managers of the surveyed companies could get acquainted with CSFs of KM implementation in their organization and use a GDM technique that has various advantages to solve the relevant problems.Originality/valueThis paper provides a twofold contribution to expand KM and GDM literature and to the best knowledge of the authors, it is a novel hybrid GDM model of its kind.

Knowledge management performance measurement based on World-Class Competitive Advantages to develop strategic-oriented projects: Case of Iranian oil industry

Knowledge Management (KM) is one of the main sources for achieving World-Class Competitive Advantages (WCCAs), and is also an incentive for the development of strategic-oriented projects. Because subsidiaries of the oil industry are always looking for WCCAs to implement their strategic-oriented projects, it is important to measure WCCAs-based KM performance. We offered a WCCAs-based Knowledge Management Performance Measurement (KMPM) instrument to develop strategic-oriented projects and validated it in the Iranian oil industry. Based on an in-depth review of previous studies, the indicators of KMPM that could lead to WCCAs were extracted. Then, an exploratory factor analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis were used to identify and confirm the criteria of the proposed instrument. Based on the proposed instrument, the KM performance of the subsidiaries of the Iranian Ministry of Petroleum (MoP) was assessed, and finally, strategic-oriented projects were suggested. Our proposed instrument includes four main criteria, namely “knowledge quality”, “knowledge utility”, “knowledge innovation”, and “business results”, all of which are valid in the Iranian oil industry. Our findings also present 17 strategic-oriented projects. The policymakers and the top managers of the surveyed companies could obtain more knowledge regarding measuring the WCCAs-based KM performance, and utilize it to develop their strategic-oriented projects. The present research is one of the first studies of its kind that provides a WCCAs-based KMPM instrument and expands the literature on KMPM and WCCAs.

Energy management and manufacturing strategies: the case of Iranian oil industry

PurposeIran is currently among the countries with high energy consumption levels. Based on the statistics published on the country's hydrocarbon balance sheet, the industrial sector was the largest energy user of all the sectors, followed by the household and transportation sectors. Besides, production lines account for the highest percentage of the industrial sector energy consumption. Accordingly, this paper aims to investigate the effects of coordinated energy management and manufacturing strategies to increase energy management performance.Design/methodology/approachThis paper collected the required information on energy management and manufacturing from the experts of petrochemical companies; and oil and gas refineries and then examined their relationship. Moreover, the questionnaire tool was used to measure the independent variable.FindingsThe evaluations showed that organizations with coordinated and uncoordinated strategies do not exhibit equal energy management performance. Organizations with a coordinated combination of strategies have higher energy management performance than those with an uncoordinated combination of strategies. Combinations such as 11, 22, 33 and 44 are among the more coordinated combinations, which lead to higher performance.Originality/valueReviewing the studies in this regard revealed that limited and a handful of research papers were carried out on organizations' energy management strategies. None of the existing research has considered energy management strategies as a subsystem of an organization or specified its coordination with manufacturing strategies. However, this research has delved into this issue and our findings confirm certain assumptions of past studies and contribute to evaluating its effects on energy management performance.

An appraisal of local content requirements in the Iranian oil and gas industry

Leading countries in the petroleum industry strive to maximize their benefits from exploring, developing, and producing oil and gas by setting out various policies and requirements such as local content. Iran, like many other oil and gas-producing countries, has legal and contractual local content requirements. However, the lack of transparent and integrated regulatory and contractual frameworks and fixed threshold applied for all types and life cycle of fields and operations are considered as concerns and challenges of local content policies in Iran. Determining metrics to measure local content is another issue that is not clarified as required in legal and contractual requirements. Establishing a constructive local content policy in Iran requires the active integration of factors such as actual improvements in local service or product and labor productivity. Transparent legislative and regulatory frameworks, robust performance planning, monitoring, and control mechanisms, along with precise metrics for measurement of local content, are indispensable prerequisites for realizing local content policies. The characteristics of operations and the need to implement new technologies must also be considered to design an appropriate policy. Moreover, the development of integrated approaches and congruent laws and regulations could facilitate and accelerate the achievement of development goals.

Understanding job stress in The Iranian oil industry: A qualitative analysis based on the work systems model and macroergonomics approach

The aim of this study was to understand why and how working in the oil industry causes job stress. Using the work-systems model as a guiding framework, we conducted 15 in-depth interviews with employees of an oil company located on an island in the Persian Gulf to investigate work system-related stressors. The interviews were audio-taped, and qualitative content data analysis was carried out continuously and simultaneously with data collection over a 12-month period. 1118 meaning codes were extracted which could be understood though fourteen categories of stressor associated with the five themes of the work system. Employees reported the job was stressful primarily because of organizational structural problems and management attributes, although aspects of living and working on the small island were also difficult. These results provide direction for intervention that can dovetail with risk assessment of occupational health of workers.

Prioritizing Strategic Innovative Energy Technologies for Development by a Novel Fuzzy Approach Based on Distances from Ideals (Case Study: Upstream Technologies of Iran's Oil Industry Fields)

Previous empirical research about the functions of innovative systems has been less enabled to present practical strategies for managers' decisions. The main purpose of this paper is to prioritize strategic innovative upstream technologies in the oil industry for policy-making and commercializing within the framework of energy technological innovation systems. This paper proposes a novel fuzzy approach based on distance from ideals to scrutinize the effects of effective criteria on the policy-making process and rank new and essential technologies in various fields of the oil industry namely materials, services, and equipment. The developed fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method is applied to select the best strategic innovation technology. Due to the importance of selecting the best technology, several decision-makers (DMs) who are experts in their areas of expertise are applied. In order to increase the accuracy of the results, a new subjective and objective approach is introduced to calculate the weight of DMs' opinions. One of the advantages of this approach is considering both DMs’ resume and opinions in the decision-making process. It should be noted that due to the management of real-world uncertainty as well as increasing the accuracy of results in applying DMs’ opinions in computations, trapezoidal fuzzy sets are used in all stages of computation. A case study about upstream technologies of Iran’s oil industry is introduced and solved by the presented method. To demonstrate the accuracy of the results and review the advantages of the presented approach, a comparative analysis with a recent literature study is performed.

An Assessment Model of McKinsey 7S Model-Based Framework for Knowledge Management Maturity in Agility Promotion

In today’s knowledge-based advanced world, pioneer organisations emphasise more on knowledge orientation, being leaders in knowledge management (KM) implementation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the key factors influencing the successful implementation of each KM process in Iranian Oil and Gas Industry, specifically about operational projects which are classified based on the McKinsey 7S model as KM enablers, namely, strategy, structure, system, skill, style, staff and shared values. Then the paper assesses the KM maturity level to categorise and prioritise the KM enablers in each level. Moreover, a conceptual model is proposed to theorise the relationship between organisational agility and each KM process, namely, knowledge creation, storage, sharing and utilisation. Data analysis and statistical tests are concluded using structural equation model through the combination of confirmatory factor and path analysis. The results show the validity and fitness of the proposed model and verification of all the hypotheses, i.e. there are positive relationships between each KM process and agility.

A Model for Development Planning Process Based on the Sustainable Development Approach in the Iranian Oil Industry

A Model for Development Planning Process Based on the Sustainable Development Approach in the Iranian Oil Industry

Complexity management of corruption in Iran’s oil industry applying soft system dynamics methodology (SSDM)

PurposeOil is the natural resource recognized as the most important source of revenue in oil-dependent countries and is most often referred to as being susceptible to corruption owing to its strategic importance. A major challenge in addressing and encountering the problems in complex social systems, such as corruption, is how to structure the problematic situation and how to capture mental models of the stakeholders involved in the situation, and also how to identify the system’s behavior in response to various policy intervention attempts in the long run. This study aims to shed new lights on modeling and simulating corrupt system of the oil industry, as a complex social system needed to be structured according to social system theories’ principles.Design/methodology/approachParson’s theory is applied as a basic framework to capture the complexities of a corrupt system, dividing the system into political and structural, economic, legal and judicial and cultural and social sub-systems. Then soft system dynamics methodology, which is a combination of the two well-known methodologies, soft system methodology and system dynamics, is applied to model and simulate the complexities involved in the oil industry of Iran, which owns the second-largest oil reservoir in the world and its economy is much dependent on the oil revenue, struggles with corruption, and plans for a large amount of anti-corruption activities.FindingsAfter simulating and calibrating the model, three groups of policies, namely, “reducing corruption opportunities,” “reducing corruption demand,” and “increasing anti-corruption capacity” are implemented in the model. As to the simulation results, due to the mutual inter-causality of opportunity and demand for corruption, individual application of each group of policies will not be helpful for long, rather a combination of policies will conduce to substantial improvements in declining corruption in the oil industry.Originality/valueThe developed model addresses the dynamics of the complex socio-economic system of corruption in the system of oil industry via modeling and simulation. The developed four-dimension system dynamics framework could be considered as a guidance for corruption modeling in general and as a basic model for corruption modeling of oil-dependent countries’ systems in particular.

Identifying Key Factors Related to the Resource Allocation in the Health Sector of the Iranian Oil Industry: Application of DEMATEL Method

Background: Resource allocation is one of the major challenges of health systems. Various criteria are used to allocate health resources worldwide. Objectives: The current study aimed to identify and prioritize key factors related to the resource allocation in the health sector of the Iranian Oil Industry using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) method. Methods: This cross-sectional case study was conducted in two main phases during 2017. In the first phase, the literature review and interviews with experts (n = 6) were used to identify initial criteria for resource allocation. Then, considering the views of high and middle managers in the health sector of the Iranian Oil Industry, the final criteria were selected. In the second phase, the DEMATEL technique was used to assess the interactions among the selected criteria. Results: A total of nine criteria were entered into the DEMATEL final questionnaire. Criteria were divided into two main groups of influencing and influenced factors. The high-level documents and general policies of the health system (C1), the burden of diseases (C2), the number of population covered (C4), the infrastructure of the covered regions (C5), and population health needs (C8) were among factors that influenced other factors. Factors such as current budget (C3), the expected benefits of people (C6), the expected benefits of policymakers (C7), and the financial returns of the resource allocation (C9) were among the factors that were influenced by other factors. The number of covered population (C4) and the infrastructure of the regions (C5) were not influenced by other factors but could affect other factors. High-level documents (C1) and the burden of diseases (C2) were identified as independent factors. Conclusions: While allocating resources, policymakers should pay particular attention to influencing factors. The number of population covered in each region and the infrastructure available in each region were identified as key and important criteria in the resource allocation process. It is suggested that these factors be considered while allocating resources to different regions of the country.

The role of project management office in developing knowledge management infrastructure

PurposeKnowledge management (KM) is regarded as an essential factor in project-based organizations (PBOs), leading to organizational learning across projects. Over recent years, most PBOs have inserted project management offices (PMOs) into their hierarchical charts to manage their projects much more coherently. These offices can correspondingly provide KM facilities in PBOs. Thus, this study aimed to analyze the relationship between PMO functions and KM infrastructure, as KM enablers in organizations, in Iranian oil and gas upstream PBOs.Design/methodology/approachA two-phase quantitative survey strategy was exercised in this research. The first phase was to investigate the relationship between PMOs and KM infrastructure and to prioritize PMO functions and KM infrastructure based on their existing implementation/establishment status in Iranian oil and gas upstream PBOs. The research participants, identified through the website of the National Iran Oil Company (NIOC), were comprised of 46 oil and gas upstream PBOs which applied for exploration and production (E&P) certificate in Iran in 2016 and 2017. Accordingly, a total number of 46 questionnaires were submitted to the aforementioned companies with a return rate of 41 cases. The second phase was fulfilled questioning 19 Iranian oil and gas industry experts to determine the one-to-one effect of PMO functions on KM infrastructure and to verify the first-phase results.FindingsThe results indicated a strong relationship between PMO functions and KM infrastructure. This relationship was significant with regard to “practice management” and “technical support”, having the most considerable connections with KM infrastructure. According to the first-phase results, the main functions of PMOs in Iranian oil and gas industry were “practice management” and “technical support”. Considering KM infrastructure, “structure” showed the lowest mean value while “culture”, “human resources” and “processes and procedures” obtained the highest scores. The results also demonstrated that PMO functions could lead to more improvements in “processes and procedures”, as a sub-component of KM infrastructure, compared with other sub-components. Furthermore, the oil and gas industry experts believed that “organizational culture” in KM could be shaped by most of PMO functions.Originality/valueThis study fulfilled the need for exploring the relationship between PMO functions and KM since academic literature lacked a thorough investigation, to the best of authors' knowledge, pertaining to the effects of PMO functions on KM development in oil and gas PBOs.

Implementing the NSGA-II genetic algorithm to select the optimal repair and maintenance method of jack-up drilling rigs in Iranian shipyards

Iran is the world's fourth-largest oil producer and 25% of Iranian drilling rigs are of a jack-ups type most of which require repair. Choosing the right repair and maintenance method for the Iranian oil industry is critical. The existence of different R&M methods and the need to taking cost, time of maintenance, human resources, and environment-health criteria into account make this problem a multi-objective optimization problem, which depends on the quantitative and qualitative criteria. The main purpose of the paper is to develop a tool that can introduce an efficient solution to the multi-objective problem of selecting a jack-up and R&M method based on an efficient technique. In this study, the NSGA-II genetic algorithm was used as an optimization tool to determine the proper R&M method according to characteristics of the jack-ups and effective criteria. The results were computed for a sample jack-up based on determining Euclidean distance between the optimum and sample jack-ups for each method. The results show which method best for the jack-ups. The results of this research help the experts of the Jack-up R&M make the right decision according to the available assets, cost, and time of the jack-up.

Analysis of the Casing Collapse in Terms of Geomechanical Parameters and Solid Mechanics

Casing collapse is one of the major problems in oil fields, imposing a lot of costs on oil companies. This problem occurs not only at drilling times in some formations but also after the completion and production can lead to many problems. Analysis of the behavior of casing collapse in terms of geo-mechanics and solid mechanics could significantly meet the needs of the oil industry of Iran. In this study, at first, casing collapse behavior is investigated by considering the formation creep and casing production defects using numerical methods. Then, the effect of some solid mechanics parameters on the casing collapse is investigated. The results showed that casing construction defects, such as ovality and eccentricity and residual stress, could greatly reduce the casing collapse resistance. The resistance reduction of the casing is about 30.37, 9.65, and 46.87 percent respectively, so that when the casing is placed into the well, it undergoes high strain and finally could be reached to collapse. In addition, it was found that the construction defects show a higher effect on casing collapse than the salt rock creep.

Nessacities of Studying HSE Management Position and Role in Iran Oil Industry

Today, diseases and accidents on one of the social concerns of workers and those involved in occupational safety and health issues has become. In addition to the general culture of health and safety factors related to non-compliance with relevant laws and regulations and lack of education can be a lack of planning and attention to occupational health and safety of workers in most industries, including the reasons for the high rate of accidents and work-related disease outlined. Due to the importance of the health of workers in all countries need to manage to achieve a coherent approach to improve working conditions, more than ever appears. Safety position in the heart of the organization's current management and its elements such as organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities specified in the methods of work according to the resources available to maintain the policy of health, Safety and the environment is working. Maybe HSE management concept is abet complex in first glance. But this is simple concept and it has close relationship with us and we understand simple city. Maybe hygienic, security and environment concepts and not simple for you. HSE management increase hygienic awareness, security and environment level and decrease dangerous factors and event occurrence and it is possible with workspace security. HSE position is in the organization current heart and elements like organizational structures, activities planning, determine responsibility in methods for doing and try for hygienic way maintain, security and environment. In this paper discussed HSE significance in Iran oil industry.

OCCUPATIONAL RISK FACTORS FOR DEMENTIA IN A SAMPLE OF OLDER ADULTS COVERED BY THE IRANIAN OIL INDUSTRIES’ HEALTH CENTERS, 2018

Here is a new case of dementia in the world every three seconds. It kills more people in the US than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined, while it is the number one killer in England and Wales. The current cost of the disease is about a trillion US dollars a year, and that is forecast to double by 2030.Object: The aim of this study was to determine the probable occupational and environmental risk factors of dementia among the retirees of Iranian oil industries. Methods: A case-control study of 551 randomly selected older adults, all aged 60 and above including 180 demented and 371 nondemented retirees, pair matched for education and gender, was conducted. We evaluated the adjusted associations between dementia risk and the probable occupational and environmental variables through multiple logistic regression.Results: A history of exposure to air pollution (Adjusted OR=2.00, 95%CI= 1.00-7.00), head injuries (Adjusted OR=2.00, 95%CI= 1.00-6.00) and more than 20 years of work in the operational fields (Adjusted OR=5.00, 95%CI= 3.00-8.00) was significantly correlated with an increased risk of dementia. We could not find any significant associations between dementia risk and exposure to fossil fuels, solvents, noise pollution and or a combination of occupational risk factors. Conclusion: The results propose that long-term exposure to field occupational risk factors is likely to increase the risk of dementia. We suggest simultaneous serial oil industries’ particulate evaluations with proper cognitive assessments for the pre-retired staff

Improvement of Safety Performance of Nurses Using a Participatory Ergonomics Approach: A Case Study in a Hospital Affiliated to the Iranian Oil Industry

Improvement of Safety Performance of Nurses Using a Participatory Ergonomics Approach: A Case Study in a Hospital Affiliated to the Iranian Oil Industry

Factors affecting the company's staff turnover in the 6 provinces of Iran's oil industry

In management literature, it is always insisted that the rate of leaving the service, is indicative of undesirable performance of management of organization in keeping and preserving the human power. Motivational factors involved in reduction of employee turnover were classified in Oil Refining and Distribution Company in selected cities of Iran. Methodology: For this purpose, we reviewed the literature and concepts of turnover. Primary Questionnaire was designed and Distributed in statistical population to identify the effective factors involved in reduce of turn over. Results: Main factors determined by using Minitab15 software and Pareto charts. Reliability of Questionnaire measured by retesting method. In order to classify of the identified factors, TOPSIS method was used. Then second questionnaire developed to evaluation of impact of each factor in selected cities. Conclusion: Data collected and purified to make a decision matrix. Finally, effective factors classified according to weights and importance of each factor.

Iran’s Oil and Gas Legal Framework: from Exploration to Revolution

The main purpose of this article is to examine Iran’s legal and contractual framework for their petroleum, oil and gas industry. Basically, the legal and contractual framework of the Iranian oil and gas industry has been classified into three periods. The first period is from the exploration and discovery of oil in Iran to nationalisation (1901-1951), the second period is from nationalisation to revolution (1951-1979), and the third period is from revolution to the present day (1979-20016).Because each period has its own features and importance two articles will examine this topic. The first period (from exploration to nationalisation, 1901-1951), and second period (from nationalisation to revolution, 1951-1979), has been examined in this article with legal and comparative analysis, and the third period (1979-2016) will be covered in a later article.It should be mentioned that each contractual framework was a turning point regarding to opportunities and circumstances that they have been in that time and also each of those petroleum contractual regimes were a step toward to contractual framework evolution in Iran.

Identification and Ranking Effective Factors Transferring Technology in Iran’s Oil Industry Using by Fuzzy Analytic Network Process

The purpose of this study was to identify and rank the effective factors transferring of exterior and interior technologies to the Iranian oil industry using the DEMETL method and The FANP Analytic Network Process. Using appropriate review of theoretical literature related to study, the factors and indicators that affect the transfer of technology from outside to the inside of the oil drilling industry were extracted. The FANP model was designed, and the basis of the study was confirmed by the experts in this field. The relationship between identifying and influencing factors was determined using the data analysis technique. Then, by solving the FANP network model, the above factors were ranked. Ultimately, the overall outcomes and key elements of transferring technology are in ordered by the importance such as; 1. Technology transfer capacity, 2. Government cooperation, 3. Technology Transmitter, 4. Technology transfer environment, 5. Learning Capacity.

Organizational Change in IRAN Oil Industry: A Model for Creating Knowledge-Based Organizations

تحول سازمانی یکی از کلیدی‌ترین تصمیمات هر شرکت است که بدون توجه به منابع سازمانی، به‌ویژه منابع سازمانی غیر‌مشهود همچون دانش، نوآوری و مدیریت مالکیت فکری امکان‌پذیر نیست. با توجه به ضرورت این امر، این مقاله با هدف ارائه الگویی برای تبدیل سازمان‌های کنونی فعال در صنعت نفت و گاز به سازمان‌های دانش‌بنیان با تأکید بر منابع مختلف سازمانی تدوین شده است. برای این منظور ابتدا درباره مهم‌ترین الزامات و ضرورت‌های دانش‌بنیان‌شدن صنعت نفت ایران بحث و در گام بعد تلاش شده است تا سازه‌های مورد نیاز برای ارائه الگوی مدنظر تعریف شوند. الگوی تحقیق بر مبنای این ایده حرکت می‌کند که برای ایجاد مزیت رقابتی، سازمان‌های فعال در صنعت نفت باید بتوانند متناسب با شرایط موجود، در استراتژی مدیریت سرمایه‌های نامشهود خود، از بین سه نظام مدیریت دانش، مدیریت نوآوری و مدیریت مالکیت معنوی یکی را در اولویت قرار دهند و بر آن تمرکز کنند. درنهایت با تلفیقی از این مبانی و مفاهیم، الگوی پیشنهادی برای ایجاد تحول سازمانی در صنعت نفت و حرکت به سمت دانش بنیان‌کردن سازمان‌ها در این صنعت ارائه و شش گام لازم برای طی این مسیر تشریح شده است.