Ethics Application: Digitalization Impact on Marriott International

This document presents an ethics application for a research project investigating the impact of digitalization on organizational capability changes, specifically focusing on Marriott International. The application details the project's purpose, which is to analyze how digitalization influences business operations and cost-effectiveness, supported by both primary and secondary research methods. Ethical considerations are thoroughly addressed, including participant consent, data protection, and the mitigation of risks associated with data collection. The research employs both qualitative and quantitative techniques, utilizing a Gantt chart for project management and addressing ethical issues related to data privacy, participant safety, and adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols. The application also includes details on participant recruitment, potential benefits, and health and safety measures, ensuring compliance with ethical guidelines and safety standards. The research utilizes online surveys and adheres to social distancing protocols. The application ensures that the research is conducted ethically and responsibly. The student confirms adherence to all ethical guidelines.

Introduction
An ethics application should be submitted for review and approval by anyone conducting
research at, or under the auspices of, that involves human beings, animals or personal data
relating to human beings.
The completion of this form should not be seen as an end in itself but as a vehicle to ensure that
you have gone through a process of considering the ethical implications of your research in detail
and that you are able to communicate this clearly.
Please note that you should NOT begin your project or start any data collection until your
ethics application has been given final approval by your dissertation supervisorand it is
confirmed that all conditions have been met.
If you have any queries whilst completing this form, please get in contact with your dissertation
supervisor.
SECTION 1: PERSONAL DETAILS & DECLARATION
Please complete the header with your name and Department
STUDENT’S SIGNATURE
SECTION 1b: SUPERVISOR’S APPROVAL
Dissertation supervisors, please:
 scrutinise the Ethics Application and all participant-facing documentation
 suggest and check any changes which need making before your final approval
Please tick the box to confirm that you have approved the application as ethically sound
and the participant-facing documentation as appropriate.
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SUPERVISOR’S SIGNATURE
Signature:
Print name:
Date:
SECTION 2: PROJECT DETAILS
Title of project: Impact of digitalization on organisational capability changes
Proposed start date (start
date of actual data
collection):
Please note that
supervisor’s approval can
take some time. Please
submit applications in a
timely manner. Reasons
should be given for late or
retrospective
submissions.
From July, 2020.
Duration: Up to 6 months
2.1. Purpose of the proposed investigation (300 words maximum)
This section should include the material which concisely outlines the rationale for the project, i.e.
why this study needs to be done. This should be done in a way that is both accessible and
scholarly, i.e. have proper cited sources.
As today’s world is digitalisation, where each and every organisation adopts this concept to run
business successfully. Therefore, this topic is chosen to analyse the impact of digitalization on
organisational capabilities changes. For this purpose, the company chosen is Marriott International,
that operates its business at large level in both domestic and international market. Through applying
various methodologies on making this investigation report, role of digitalisation in increasing
capabilities of business can be underpinned easily. The way this concepthelps a company in saving
cost of production and operations with minimization of wastage, proper utilisation of resources and
many more can also be evaluated. This is so because when an organization adopt digitalization they
able to conduct their work properly with minimum or no wastage which reduce cost of extra usage of
resources. Along with this, a number of facts regarding this project such as the challenges faced by
employees while implementing digitalisation in activities of Marriott International through primary
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investigation can be evaluated. Another importance in context with researchers’ point of view can be
determined in terms of way to conduct respective research that makes them able to gather
information related to the impact of digitalization on a company capability changes. This is so
because in current time it is essential to adopt digitalization in each and every sector as that will help
in conducting business operations and functions in effective manner. In respect of this research when
researcher gather information, data and statistics they able to understand about the digitalization as
well as how it impact on the capabilities and effectiveness of chosen company. In addition to this,
through making primary and secondary research, project makers can also develop better strategies to
overcome from challenges that might arise during adoption of digitalisations. Through this process, a
number of benefits that a company will get from digital technologies can also be evaluated.
2.2. Outline of the project(300 words maximum)
This section should include the details of the methods i.e. what will be done and how. Please start
by giving a brief summary (one paragraph) including how many participants there are likely to be,
where the research will take place and an indication of how long participation will take for each
section (interviews, questionnaires etc.) and in total.
To conduct this investigation and make entire report in a proper way, techniques or tools which
are going to be adopted by a project manager include both primary and secondary sources. As both
sources will help in attaining predetermined objective as well as target effectively within desired
period of time. Primary method helps in collecting first hand information due to which it makes
research expensive and consumes much time. But it helps in taking perspective of employees for
generalising better result outcomes to meet research objectives. For this purpose, random sample
sampling method will be applied to select respondents from large population, because through that
they can select respondents by giving them proper opportunities. In addition to this, secondary data
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provides published articles, book, newspaper and journal reports etc. to collect large information on
chosen topic in the section of Literature review. Furthermore, in order to meet deadline of the
project, Gantt Chart technique will be used, as it enables researchers to specify time period of each
activity, so that entire tasks could be completed in given duration. Along with this, project manager
will adopt both qualitative as well as quantitative research technique as through that they able to
gather more authenticate and reliable information related project topic. As paradigm is considered as
combination of assumption as well as perceptual orientations which is generally shared by research
community. Through this a project members able to determine how members of the research
community are viewing the phenomena to their specific community evaluation as well as research
method which should be adopted in order to selected phenomena. There are two kinds of research
paradigm that will implement while conducting study that are interpretative as well as positive.
You should attach all the research instruments you are planning to use in your research, e.g.
interview questionnaire, online questionnaire template, etc. These should be checked by your
supervisor prior to Ethics application approval.
Please tick the boxes to confirm that
1) you have attached all research instruments you intend to use ✓
2) you will notify your supervisor of any major changes
2.3. Ethical issues raised by the project and how these will be adressed(500 words
maximum)
Ethical issues raised by the project and how these will be addressed:
Points that should be considered include:
 Participants and consent
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 Confidentiality and anonymity
 Right to withdrawal
 Deception
 Permissions from organisations involved
 Whether any vulnerable populations are involved (including under 18s) (also see Section 6)
This section should have some comment and not left blank.
Please refer to the Ethics Guidelines for more information.
It is essential for the researchers to conduct their work in ethical manner because through that they
able to gather authenticate as well as reliable information related to the project topic. Moreover, it
will also help them in avoiding chance that may leads to legal action on them and impact on the
outcome. There are several ethical aspects which need to be consider such as information, data and
statistics must be gather from the authenticate site or sources as well as it is also necessary to not do
any illegal activities while gathering information related to topic. In context with present project,
ethical issues might raise when primary research is conducted, where participation of employees of
Marriott Hotel is included. This issue is related with disclosure of their personal information that
might affect their job as well, in case of they answered such question which impact on brand position
of this firm. Therefore, Data Protection Act 1998 is applied in the research and consent form is also
undersigned by each respondent to give them assurance that no private information will be disclosed
during this project, not even after publication of the same as well. Another main issue that goes
beyond ethics is keeping the social distancing during project, due to rule imposed by UK
Government to reduce spreading of Covid-19 virus. Therefore, all participants are recruited through
online procedure and their interview is also conducted by online platform. Furthermore, to develop
and maintain authenticity as well as reliability of research data, only those sources are chosen in
which copyright has been given.
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SECTION 3: RESEARCH INVOLVING PARTICIPANTS
 You should download the Participant Consent Form template and amend as required (you
can also find it at the end of this document).
 You should also attach any other information to be given to participants.
 You should consider carefully what information you provide to participants, e.g. scope of
study, number of participants, duration of study, risks/benefits of the project. It is
recommended that the participant has two copies of the consent form so they can retain one
for information.
 If images or anything else which might allow the identification of participants is to be publicly
accessible (e.g. on the web), further written consent must be secured. A separate section
regarding this should be included on the participant consent form.
3.1. Give details of 1) the method of recruitment and 2) potential benefits or
incentives to participants if any
Please mention whether there will be any financial benefits and give details of amounts involved.
(NB: Please remember that written permission – or in some cases ethics approval – will have to be
sought from any organisations where recruitment is carried out or posters placed (e.g. if you recruit
in GP’s surgeries you may require NHS approval)
1) No
2)
Please tick the box to confirm that you have attached written permission from any organisations
where recruitment is carried out or posters placed
3.2. Under18s and Vulnerable Participants – DBS
Students are NOT advised to carry any research that involves participants who are aged
under 18 or considered to be vulnerable.
Please tick the box to confirm that you understand that you should not carry out any research
involving participants who are aged under 18 or considered to be vulnerable ✓
Please note that you will need to apply for DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) clearance if you
decide to conduct research that involves participants who are aged under 18 or considered to be
vulnerable. Please seek advice from your supervisor.
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SECTION 4: HEALTH AND SAFETY
4.1. Please give a brief overview of the main risks involved in the project and what
will be done to mitigate them
Health & safety issues raised by the project, including any risks to participants and/or researcher
and sole working. Think of hazards, who can be harmed, how can someone be harmed, number of
people affected, what are the consequences, what are the existing or possible control measures.
You should clearly indicate how these H&S issues will be addressed. This section should have
some comment and not left blank.
 Please discuss these with your Supervisor
Risks and mitigation:
1) Due to Covid-19, primary research is conducted through online survey, where each
participant provides a self-questionnaire form through emails.
2) Social distancing has been properly recognised while working on this project to protect from
spreading Covid-19
4.2. Research outside the UK
Students are NOT advised to carry out any travel to conduct research outside the UK.
If your dissertation will focus on a country outside the UK and employ qualitative research methods
(e.g. interviews), you are advised to use technology to collect your data, e.g. Skype or WhatsApp.
Please tick the box to confirm that you understand that you should not carry out any travel to
conduct research outside the UK ✓
If you decide to travel outside the UK (including your home country or the country in which you
reside), please note that you will need to:
1) refer to the relevant section of the Ethics Guidelines
2) complete the Overseas Background Information form
3) consultwith the Health &Safety office
4) adhere to the University’s Travel Safety Advice
5) submit an ATO (Authority to Travel Overseas) and ensure that travel assistance and medical
cover is in place.
Please seek advice from your supervisor.
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SECTION 5: PUBLICATION AND IMPACT OF RESEARCH
The research you are conducting should only be for undergraduate dissertation purposes. You
should not seek to publicly disseminate your research findings in any other way.
Please tick the box to confirm that you have read and understood the above ✓
SECTION 6: DATA PROTECTION
Before completing this section of the form, you should read the Data Protection and Storage
Guidance for Researchers. It is the responsibility of researchers to ensure that they comply with the
University’s policies and procedures regarding data protection.
Please confirm that you have read the Data Protection and Storage Guidance for Researchers,
including dissertation students ✓
All research data must also be processed in line with the University’s IT Policy, which states,
“You must not, unless exempted through the University’s ethics procedures, create, download,
store or transmit unlawful material, or material that is indecent, offensive, threatening or
discriminatory or extremist. Following such approval, the University of Roehampton has
procedures to enable staff and students to access and store downloaded research materials
and data into a specially provisioned university secure safe storage area.”
6.1.Personal data processing
1. Will the research project involve collecting, storing or processing personal data relating to
research participants? ‘Personal data’ is defined as, “Any information relating to an identified or
identifiable person (a ‘data subject) or from which a person can be identified either directly or
indirectly.” Examples of personal data include:
 Name
 Age
 Address
 Job title
YES NO N/A (no human participants)
If yes, other than signed consent forms, please give details of the types of personal data to be
collected/ stored/ processed as part of the research project.
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2. Will the research project involve collecting, storing or processing special categories of personal
data or criminal convictions relating to research participants?
Special categories of personal data include the following: Racial or ethnic origin, Political opinions,
Religious or philosophical beliefs, Trade union membership, Health, Sex life, Sexual orientation,
Biometric data, Genetic data, Criminal convictions data (More information can be found in the
Guidance, section 7)
YES NO ✓
If yes please give details
Students are expected to anonymise personal data, or where this would be impractical they are
expected to use pseudonymisation as standard practice (see Section 16 of the Guidance).
3. Will the data you collect be Anonymised✓ Pseudonymised Neither
(Please see the Guidance for definitions)
If anonymised or pseudonymised, please explain how exactly you willanonymise/pseudonymise
personal data?
If neither please give details:
Please note: If your participants do not wish to remain anonymous and thus waive their right to
anonymity you must obtain their written consent – perhaps by adding a tick box to the consent form.
Even in cases where anonymity has been waived, you must still ensure compliance with all relevant
data protection policies and legislation.
6.2. Information provided to research participants
All research participants should be provided with information about how their personal data will be
used. The Participant Consent Form template has been designed to include the necessary
information where personal data is collected directly from a research participant.
1. Will the Participant Consent form and Data Privacy Notice be handed out as a hard copy?
(You will also find the templates at the end of this document)
YES NO ✓
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2. If no, please explain why not.
Consent form has been undersigned by e-mail
3. If your research is being conducted in any other language than English, will the Participant
Consent form and Data Privacy Notice be translated into the native language?
YES NO ✓
4. If no, please explain why not.
The entire project is made in English Language only therefore, there is no need of further translation
as all chosen respondents were comfortable with it.
6.3. Personal data transfers BY Roehampton students
Students should NOT transfer personal data to any party or organisation outside of the
University.
Please tick the box to confirm that you will NOT transfer personal data to any party or organisation
outside of the University ✓
6.4. Record retention
1. Will the research data be stored and destroyed in line with the University’s Record Retention
Schedule (this states that data subject consent forms for trials and studies should be stored for 6
years after the completion of the project and that research data produced through the life of the
project (including audio files) should be stored for 10 years after the completion of the project.
Anonymised data can be kept indefinitely)?
YES✓ NO
2. If no, please explain why.
6.5. Data storage and security
1. Will you be storing your research data using University IT facilities (see Section 17 of the
Guidance)?
YES ✓ NO
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2. If no, please explain why and give details of the storage medium you intend to use. Please tick
the box to confirm that data will be backed up at Roehampton .
3. Please give details of how and where data will be stored and how they will be kept secure. Please
tick the box to confirm that all electronic data will be password protected, and also encrypted if on
personal devices .✓
Information and entire data will be stored in pen drive with password to protect its authenticity
4. If using an online questionnaire/ survey, please give details of the survey platform, the
organisation hosting it and data protection implications associated with using an online survey.
Online questionnaire will be used to conduct interview with chosen respondents through email.
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PARTICIPANT CONSENT FORM
Title of research project:
Topic: Impact of digitalization on organisational capability changes
Brief description of research project:
The concept of Digitalization can be described as a process of
converting or translating information in a digital format. Use of
Digitalization method is also vital to provides assistance for the
company through which it can operate its business practices and
other operations in a more impressive and vital way by
accomplishing their desire target and objectives in an accordance to
set standard.
This should include:
What participation involves
Where it will take place
How long it will take
How many participants there are likely to be (if appropriate)
How long any personal data will be kept for
Whether personal data will be kept indefinitely in an anonymised form
It should state that research findings will NOT be disseminated
It should state that no data will be shared with third parties
Student contact details: Name
Department
University Address
Email
Consent statement:
I agree to take part in this research, and am aware that I am free to withdraw
at any point without giving a reason by contacting Name of Student.
I understand that if I do withdraw, my data may not be erased but will only be
used in an anonymised form as part of an aggregated dataset. I understand
that the personal data collected from me during the course of the project will
be used for undergraduate dissertation purposes.
By signing this form you are confirming that you have been informed about
and understand the University’s Data Privacy Notice for Research
Participants.
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