Application of Information Technology System in Office Risk Management in Contemporary Organizations in Rivers State

Abstract

This study investigated the application of information technology systems in office risk management in organizations in Rivers State. The population of the study comprised 10 insurance companies in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area of Rivers State made up of 350 members of staff. These insurance companies are UNIC, Zenith, Royal Exchange, NEM, Leadway, Guaranty Trust, Equity Life, Cornerstone, Consolidated Hallmark and NAICOM. The sample consists of 161 members of staff selected from the 10 insurance companies in Port Harcourt City L.G.A of Rivers State. The sample was selected through simple random sampling and constituted 46% of the total population of 350. A self-structured questionnaire titled: Office Risk Management Assessment Questionnaire (ORMAQ) was the only instrument used in this study for data collection. The reliability test of the instrument yielded a reliability index of 0.85. Out of the 161 self-administered copies of questionnaire, 150 of them were properly filled, retrieved and used for the study. Mean was used as a method for analyzing the four research questions. The results revealed that the insurance companies in Rivers States apply the majority of the lectronic data processing, storage and transmission systems in managing their office risks, but they have not gone completely digital in terms of managing the same risks using digital security systems. The study recommended as follows: insurance companies in Rivers State should completely embrace digital technologies for effective management of office risks, integrate digital risk management into their operational policies and review these policies annually, acquire more infrastructures which encourage the use of information technology systems (ITs) in managing office risks, prioritize ITs-based office risk management through robust budgetary allocation and implementation and government should create enabling environment through the provision of infrastructural facilities and legislative backings for effective office risk management.

Keywords: Information Technology, System, office Risk management and contemporary organizations