• FINISH IVF• NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING• Preimplanta.docx

• FINISH IVF
• NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING
• Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD)
• Surrogate motherhood
• “snowflake babies”
• Artificial Insemination (AI)
Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD)
ZYGOTE
M
O
RU
LA
COMPACTION
BLASTOMERES

MALE &
FEMALE
PRONUCLEI
Surrogate motherhood
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Thai_surrogacy_controversy
INTRINSIC BIOETHICAL EVIL/WRONG:
NATURAL RIGHT TO BE GESTATED BY BIOLOGICAL
MOTHER
“snowflake babies” = ivf embryo transfer
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/docum
ents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20081208_dignitas-personae_en.html
Artificial Insemination (AI)
NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING (NFP)
1.OVULATION SYMPTOMS
2.BIOETHICAL EVALUATION
NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING (NFP)

1.OVULATION SYMPTOMS
a) 3 PRIMARY
b) 7 SECONDARY
PRIMARY OVULATION SYMPTOMS:
1) BASAL BODY TEMPERATURE (BBT)
2) CERVIX ACTIVITY
3) CERVICAL MUCUS
SECONDARY OVULATION SYMPTOMS:
1) MITTELSCHMERZ
2) SPOTTING
3) SWOLLEN VAGINA AND/OR VULVA
4) INCREASED LIBIDO
5) BREAST TENDERNESS
6) GENERAL BLOATING
7) FERNING

SOME MAJOR PROTOCOLS AND METHODS:
• CREIGHTON MODEL (NaPro Technology)
• COUPLE TO COUPLE (CCL)
• SYMPTO-THERMAL METHOD
• BILLINGS METHOD
• FAMILY OF THE AMERICAS (BASED ON BILLINGS)
ACTIVITY OF THE CERVIX AND CERIVCAL OS DURING
MENSTRUAL CYCLE
INFERTILEFERTILE
1 DAY BEFORE OVULATION:
OS OPEN, CERVIX HIGH,
SOFT AND CENTRAL,
EGGWHITE FLUID
INFERTILE PHASE: OS CLOSED,
CERVIX FIRM,
ANGLED SLIGHTLY,
TACKY FLUID
Examples of cervical mucus
during various days of the

menstrual cycle.
Transparent and elastic
is fertile.
Opaque and tacky
is infertile.
WHAT ABOUT THE HUSBAND?
• DISCIPLINE, RESPECT, COMMUNICATION, SACRIFICIAL
LOVE
• OPENNESS TO THE PRESENCE OF GOD IN THEIR DAILY
LIFE
2. BIOETHICAL EVALUATION OF NFP:
a) AS A MEANS
b) AS AN END / GOAL / OBJECTIVE
a) AS A MEANS:
• NO SEPARATION ÷ UNITIVE / PROCREATIVE
DIMENSIONS

• RESPECTFUL OF HUMAN NATURE
• MARRITAL INTIMACY = UNION OF
BODY AND SOUL
b) AS AN END:
HUMANAE VITAE 16b:
“If therefore there are well-grounded
reasons for spacing births, arising from the
physical or psychological condition
of husband or wife,
or from external circumstances…
then take advantage
of the natural cycles immanent
in the reproductive system…”
b) AS AN END:
THEREFORE, TO BE AVOIDED IS A
CONTRACEPTIVE MENTALITY,
WHEREBY PREGNANCY / CHILDREN
ARE SEEN AS AN EVIL,
TO BE AVOIDED BY ANY MEANS.
INSTEAD, A FUNDAMENTAL OPENNESS TO LIFE,
COLLABORATING WITH GOD’S PLAN
TO BE CO-CREATORS
OF A UNIQUE HUMAN LIFE.
Slide Number 1Slide Number 2Slide Number 3Slide Number
4Slide Number 5Slide Number 6Slide Number 7Slide Number

8Slide Number 9Slide Number 10Slide Number 11Slide Number
12Slide Number 13Slide Number 14Slide Number 15Slide
Number 16Slide Number 17Slide Number 18Slide Number 19
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ERP implementation in Omantel: a case study
Article in Industrial Management & Data Systems · February
2010
DOI: 10.1108/02635571011008416 · Source: DBLP
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ERP implementation in Omantel:
a case study
Stuart Maguire
The Management School, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
Udechukwu Ojiako
School of Management, University of Southampton,
Southampton, UK, and
Al Said
The Management School, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
Abstract
Purpose – Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems if
successfully implemented bring about
competitive advantages. On the other hand, project failure
could, in an extreme case, cause an
organisation to go out of business. Mapped against existing
literature on ERP critical success factors,
this paper examines environmental factors that impacted on the
adoption of ERP by The Oman
Telecommunication Company (Omantel).
Design/methodology/approach – A case study methodology is
used to study perceptions of the
ERP system implementation project in Omantel.
Findings – This paper highlights the particular problems of
large organisations that operate
disparate legacy systems.

Research limitations/implications – A single case study is
conducted. This provides
opportunities for further research in a number of varied settings.
Originality/value – It is very important that experiences of ERP
projects are shared across
countries and sectors. This is because many ERP
implementations are rolled out by multi-national
corporations in several countries, often simultaneously. This is
one of the few ERP studies that have
been conducted by an internal member of staff. In these
situations, it is not just a case of access, but
that the respondents feel able to give practical answers.
Keywords Manufacturing resource planning, Project
management, Competitive advantage
Paper type Case study
1. Introduction
There are a wide variety of tools and systems that have been
developed to enable
organisations to become more competitive, one of these tools is
enterprise resource
planning (ERP).
ERP systems are all about ensuring that operational systems
being used by an
organisation are fully integrated. The purpose of using ERP is
to improve and simplify the
internal business processes, which typically requires re-
engineering of current business
processes (Huang et al., 2004). The idea is to combine various
systems into a single
database (Payne, 2000). This approach will enable the
organisation to have a single view of

its business by ensuring that systems that support different
functionalities within the
organisation are combined (Kumar and van Hillegersberg,
2000).
There are quite a few advantages of adopting ERP as part of as
an organisational
strategy. For one, ERP systems support an organisation’s desire
for systems integration
which means that organisations will not have to manage
separate systems independently.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is
available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0263-5577.htm
IMDS
110,1
78
Received 12 July 2009
Revised 17 August 2009
Accepted 22 August 2009
Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 110 No. 1, 2010
pp. 78-92
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/02635571011008416

In this case, the organisation optimises its processes which then
improves the entire
supply chain process, and integrates functionalities leading to
increased transparency
across the organisation. In most cases to continue to support
this optimisation, the
organisation also develops sets of expert common capabilities.
The result is that the
organisation is most likely to save on operational costs due to
rationalisation and systems
integration. It is expected that such savings on operational costs
will be transferred to
lower costs for the customer. At the same time, the integration
of systems should lead to
the provision of a more memorable experience for the customer
as service provision
becomes more seamless. ERP systems can also empower
employees by providing them
with real-time data (Davenport, 1998). It is also connected with
greater job flexibility by
providing a platform that enables the expansion of individual
awareness, creativity, and
innovation. Overall, existing statistics suggest that 63 per cent
of large ERP customers are
of the opinion that they do realise some major business benefits
from their ERP
implementations (Gould, 2004). ERP systems are however key
strategic resources for the
majority of organisations. Their importance is demonstrated by
statistics which show that
they usually comprise the largest segment of an organisation’s
applications budget (Aloini
et al., 2007).
2. ERP implementation
Although this is the case, it is imperative to highlight that many

ERP implementations
have been considered as significant failures (Markus et al.,
2000). Examples include
Avis Europe Ltd’s abandonment of its ERP implementation
project in 2004 (at a cost of
$54.5 million) and Ford Motors’ ERP purchasing system which
was also abandoned in
2004, after the company had spent close to $200 million.
Perhaps, the most famous case
of ERP system implementation failure relates to the collapse of
the US$5 billion
(GBP£2.5 billion) pharmaceutical giant FoxMeyer Drugs
partially driven by a failed
ERP implementation in 1995.
Work examining ERP implementation in the Middle East is not
particularly
extensive, although some work has been conducted. For
example, Kholeif et al. (2007)
discussed ERP customisation failures in the Middle East. On the
other hand, Aladwani
(2001) examined user resistance to ERP implementation from a
Kuwaiti perspective
while Ziaee et al. (2006), studying ERP software selection,
proposed a two-phase
procedure of selecting ERP vendors in small manufacturing
enterprises in Iran.
A review of available research shows that there is a general lack
of literature on ERP
systems implementation in Oman.
With developments which have led to the new ERP II, it is now
possible for service
providers and their customers to share information by
integrating their systems into one
single database (Moller, 2005), leading to more organisations

recognisng the huge benefits
from successful implementation of ERP systems. Starting in the
late 1990s there has been
growing use of ERPs in many of the larger businesses and
organisations. The extensive
use of ERP reflects the need of businesses and organisations to
replace older software
systems and achieve integration of different organisational
functions and processes.
3. Considerations
Information technology and information systems (IT/IS) serve
as a major support
platform for many organisations to build the competitive
success of their enterprise. They
serve numerous roles including being a key component of
knowledge management and
ERP
implementation
in Omantel
79
customer intelligence, as well as enablers and agents of
business change and
transformation making them a core aspect for the twenty-first
century organisation.
The provision of IT/IS in organisations is always demanding
and the case of ERP
implementation in The Oman Telecommunication Company
(Omantel) is no different

apart from specific characteristics such as the emphasis on
active localisation
and Arabisation of digital content (ESCWA, 2003). In addition,
the company is one
of the few telecommunications still operating in a monopoly
market. Previous
studies on implementation strategies adopted in ERP
implementation specific to
telecommunications have been conducted, for example, by
Berchet and Habchi (2005).
According to Beheshti (2006), the implementation stage is
usually a very critical
step during the introduction of ERP systems. As ERP
implementation is usually
complex (as in the case of most corporate level IT/IS projects),
it is not uncommon that
many organisations do allocate significant resources to this
phase of the project.
Unfortunately, current ERP implementation statistics do not
look promising with an
estimated 70 per cent of all ERP implementations likely to fail
(Sivunen, 2005).
Overall, it is important for organisations implementing ERP
systems to recognise
that the introduction of ERP will most likely result in key
organisational changes
which, if not managed carefully, can actually result in conflict
within the organisation
especially in relation to the question of how to integrate the
ERP system, the legacy
system, and the business processes of the organisation.
4. The case study
The success or failure of a research exercise has been

demonstrated to be directly related
to the research methodology adopted (Easterby-Smith et al.,
1993; Yin, 1989). This
particular study focused on how an organisation behaved during
a major exercise of
systems interactions. For this reason, it became imperative that
this study was
conducted using a research approach that emphasised both
subjective and contextual
interpretation of events (van Strien, 1997). For this reason, we
adopted a single case
study approach as the primary mode of research. It is imperative
to highlight that the
use of single source-case studies is well represented in research
(Eisenhardt, 1989).
In this particular case, based on earlier work by Yin (1989), the
use of Omantel as a single
case study is valid as it can be argued that within the Omani
context, due to the size of its
operations, it is representative of the telecommunication
industry. Our main reason for
choosing this approach was because our investigation was
primarily directed at
studying current phenomena in a real world context (Yin, 1989).
This approach has been
used even though it is not generally popular in project
management. In particular, we
mention the work of Jaafari (2003), who suggests that creative-
reflective models are
most appropriate when studying complex projects. Of particular
relevance is the fact
that this approach is heavily reliant on the competencies of
project management
professionals.
Omantel is the sole licensed operator in the Sultanate of Oman

for fixed line
telephony. The company presently operates as a monopoly in
the Public Switched
Telephone Network and Internet Service Provider markets. The
company has a mobile
subsidiary (Omanmobile) which offers mobile services and
operates as a duopoly with
Nawras which is owned by Qatar Telecommunication Company.
The government of
Oman is the major shareholder of the parent company Omantel.
Omantel has been
providing communication services for nearly four decades and
currently, the number
IMDS
110,1
80
of people who are employed in Omantel and its subsidiary
Oman Mobile is about 2,600.
The group achieved a profit of 80 Omani Rial (£108 million) by
the end of 2006
(Omantel Financial Statements, 2006).
5. Strategic drivers
Omantel commissioned the ERP project for two major reasons.
In the first place, the
company sought to ensure that it was strategically placed and
ready for the anticipated
liberalisation of the Omani telecommunications industry. To
achieve this, it has sought
to upgrade its capabilities in terms of network technologies that
will support best

practice controllable work flows (Al Wohaibi, 2006). The
second driver was a need by
the organisation to position itself to be able to meet national
development requirements
as identified by the United Nations (ESCWA, 2003).
In February 2005, an agreement between Omantel and Oracle,
one of the leading
global ERP providers (Huang et al., 2004) with about 14.5 per
cent of market share
(Jakovljevic, 2001) was signed, with the project being initiated
immediately. The project
was planned to be completed in exactly 12 months after
initiation. However, the
implementation process overran by about six months, with
completion of all ERP
package transfers from the test environment completed in June
2006. The overrun was
primarily driven by a limited number of IT/IS staff within
Omantel possessing
necessary Oracle integration expertise. This caused major
communication problems
between Omantel staff and the technical team from Oracle (for
example in explaining
systems architecture of existing legacy systems). There was also
limited in-house
expertise within Omantel on Oracle products. This meant that
Oracle’s initial contract
to focus solely on implementation was soon expanded into a
consultancy role.
6. Findings from the case study
The findings obtained from the case study are discussed and
analysed in this section,
and combined into themes. These findings (not determined
directly from this case

study) are mapped against earlier discussed critical success
factors that impact on ERP
systems implementations (Finney and Corbett, 2007; Nah et al.,
2003):
. stakeholder consultation;
. vendor selection;
. project management;
. stakeholder management and communication;
. training;
. risk management; and
. system re-engineering and software customisation.
6.1 Stakeholder consultation
Omantel understood that each of its customers were not only a
stakeholder, but also an
important collaborators in the ERP implementation. For this
reason, the company was
committed to full consultation and transparency with not only
its customers, but also
with its competitors (predominantly Nawras), and the regulator
(Telecommunications
Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Oman). Omantel’s principle
ERP consultation
philosophy was not necessarily to seek unconditional consent
from either Nawras or
ERP
implementation

in Omantel
81
the TRA, but rather based on the recognition that such
consultation will ease
competitive concerns (especially in relation to Nawras). Success
of the project was
based on bilateral discussions that would hopefully lead to
consent. Consultation
covered four specific areas of the implementation (Table I).
Each consultation process
was managed independently as part of a specific working group.
Lessons. Omantel’s decision to implement a consultation
programme was in
recognition that it shared where possible commercially sensitive
information on the scope
of the ERP implementation. By sharing such information,
Omantel anticipated that
stakeholder needs were to be fully understood and reflected in
the implementation plan.
Thorugh this consultation process, the company was able to
address the various concerns
raised by stakeholders which included creating a greater focus
on collaborative testing.
In effect, the consultation programme represented an approach
for Omantel to create
a more detailed understanding with its suppliers, customers, its
mobile subsidiary
(Omanmobile), competitors (predominantly Nawras), and the
regulator (TRA of Oman)
of the project. The consultation was limited to the operational

and technical impacts
arising from the sequencing and timing associated with
Omantel’s implementation plan
(thus falling within the remit of the Implementation and
Migration Working Group).
Three major issues emerged from the consultation process,
clarity on:
(1) operational impact of the timing of the implementation,
especially in relation to
specific customers;
(2) a specific request for implementation freeze periods from
customers due to a
specific event (e.g. billing runs); and
(3) whether the implementation plan will negatively impact or
impede Omantel’s
ability to meet regulatory and contractual obligations, and
possible cost
implications if the implementation fails.
Omantel’s objectives were to ensure that these three issues were
resolved prior to
completion of the issuing of test cases and schedules. This was
regarded as feasible as
it was not expected that the implementation plan would remain
unchanged and fixed
throughout the duration of the project. Omantel sought to reach
solutions acceptable to
all parties through its change control process.
6.2 Vendor selection
The decision to select Oracle as the ERP vendor was based on
recommendations by
Omantel’s in-house software evaluation team. Selection of

Oracle was conducted through
Board Details
External industry focus Focus on external operations of Omantel
and how the ERP
implementation will impact on corporate, government and
other high-value customers
Product management working group Focus on product
management and expected new product
introduction resultant from the ERP implementation
Conformance testing Focus workshops on test execution plans,
especially on
operational readiness
Implementation and migration How Omantel will approach
implementation (and subsequent
migration to new platforms)?
Table I.
Omantel consultation
activity
IMDS
110,1
82
an evaluation workshop organised by the vendor evaluation
team during which all
interested stakeholders (including representatives from its
mobile subsidiary

(Omanmobile) and other lines-of-businesses such as its Al-Ufuq
Prepaid Card Unit,
were invited to review various bids and proposals from potential
vendors. One major
parameter which was considered was how such an initiative
could impact on existing
integration with legacy systems (especially some stand-alone
systems used for billing
mobile customers). From interviews with the Omantel ERP
Implementation Manager, it
emerged that Omantel’s decision to award the project to Oracle
was based on Omantel’s
perception of Oracle’s ability to demonstrate an understanding
of its business.
Lessons. Previous research by Ponis et al. (2007) and Swan et
al. (1999) lists vendor
selection as one of the critical management issues in ERP
implementation. Oracle was
able, according to the Omantel ERP Implementation Manager,
to demonstrate that
its solution was the “most practical, suited application, able to
address Omantel’s
business objectives”. In addition, “Oracle was able to
demonstrate that it had the
infrastructure, experience and reputation to support Omantel’s
vision” (Al Wohaibi,
2006). These are two key parameters discussed by Ponis et al.
(2007) and Ziaee et al.
(2006), which also influence ERP vendor selection. Overall,
again on this point, we note
that the role of reputation (Keil and Tiwana, 2006) and trust
(Benders et al., 2006) has
been discussed within the context of ERP vendor selection
criteria.

6.3 Project management
The major concern about the overall project management
approach related to
knowledge sharing and transfer. The Omantel staff expressed
concerns that the Oracle
consultants seemed to have no time, or were unwilling, to share
knowledge with the
Omantel technical project staff. This perception was especially
prevalent during
the first stages of project implementation.
Overall, the scope of work of the project involved:
. validation of scope and quality of service;
. definition of service architecture and interfaces;
. development of a test mechanism;
. development of procedures to ensure that no loss of service
would occur during
systems implementation; and
. establishment of success criteria.
A phased implementation approach was adopted, with key
milestones (Table II) and
distinct objectives being identified for each project phase
(Table III). Monitoring and
control of the overall project plan was through a formal change
control process which
sought to:
. Track and manage requests for changes to sequencing and
timing of any aspect
of the plan (through stakeholder consultation).
. Modify the plan over the course of project duration (initially
12 months). The
plan was updated and published monthly under change control

and made
available to all stakeholders.
If possible, reduce this very large gap (obviously check that it
does not as a result split
tables up too much).
ERP
implementation
in Omantel
83
Lessons. The implementation was managed by utilising a strong
matrix project structure.
Omantel assigned project management responsibility to its in-
house project management
office, leaving Omantel team leaders in each domain with full
responsibility while overall
management responsibility resided with the Omantel project
manager. Support was
provided by Oracle which provided an independent integration
team (in order to facilitate
development, support and knowledge transfer). However, in
reality this approach did not
work as what appeared to be a parallel implementation team
emerged. To resolve the
developing conflict, the project team was reorganised into one
team. Overall,
responsibility was assigned to an Omantel project manager,
while technical leadership
and consultancy was provided by Oracle. Other subtle efforts
were made to support

integration. For example, to break down the possibility of poor
project level focus
(Kuprenas, 2003), improve communication (Zomorrodian, 1986)
and facilitate a greater
sense of a shared project agenda (Lamproulis, 2007), the project
team was moved from
individual offices into a single open plan office.
6.4 Stakeholder management and communication
The implementation of new IT/IS systems is usually
accompanied by changes in
operations and ways of working. If not adequately addressed,
new systems
introduction can be met by resistance from stakeholders (Brown
et al., 2002). Often this
resistance can manifest in different forms such as system non-
use (Maguire and Ojiako,
2007), or withdrawal (Allen and Wilson, 2005). One of the
approaches adopted by
Omantel to overcome stakeholder resistance was to choose a
robust approach to
stakeholder anaylsis. Table IV provides details on the
stakeholders, dividing them into
key groups. Details on a desired response in each case are also
provided.
Milestone Definition
Definition of project dashboard Success criteria are defined to
facilitate
implementation performance to be assessed
Baseline procedural establishment Focuses on the establishment
of baseline
processes for various aspects of the project
including communications and back-out. These

procedures will also need to be tested successfully
Customer premises equipment compatibility Assist stakeholders
in designing test plans for
customer premises equipment in order to establish
compatibility with new implemented platforms
Stakeholder awareness Commencement of programme of general
awareness of migration to all stakeholders
Migration cases and schedule issued Undertaking to verify that
(where necessary) all
migration cases (especially in relation to legacy
platforms) have been issued, reviewed and agreed
by all stakeholders
Test cases and schedule issued Undertaking to verify that all
test cases have been
issued, reviewed and agreed by all stakeholders
Network and product compatibility testing
complete
Undertaking to verify completion of compatibility
testing of all products on the network
Post-implementation review All lessons from completed phases
of the project
successfully collated
All customers migrated All customers migrated
Live Systems go live
Table II.
Omantel ERP milestones

IMDS
110,1
84
The stakeholder management and communication approach
facilitated the development
of a framework for stakeholder segmentation that identified not
only important
stakeholder groups, but also identified desired responses from
them based around:
. What Omantel wants stakeholders to know about the
implementation?
. How Omantel want stakeholders to feel about the
implementation?
. What Omantel want the stakeholders to do about the
implementation?
Lessons. Stakeholder management and communications is a key
success factor for ERP
projects and its role has been discussed by various researchers
such as Al-Mashari and
Zairi (2000). For example, it is known that communication
influences the acceptance of
technology (Amoako-Gyampah and Salam, 2004), and enhances
the two-way flow of
information between the vendor and customers, thus enabling
feedback. Omantel
sought to communicate and engage with all stakeholders and to
provide advice on the
likely impact of the proposed implementation. By engaging in

this process, Omantel
sought to reassure stakeholders on service continuity. Omante’s
consultation
philosophy was based on an acceptance that the level of
engagement was not to be
based on a “one size fits all” approach, but that instead,
stakeholder management was
to be tailored to the individual needs of each stakeholder.
Even though processes were put in place to support effective
stakeholder
communication (for example, a special implementation webpage
was created and
Work stream Details
Customer
experience
The customer experience work stream focused on identification,
contact and
management of each line of business impacted by user
acceptance testing. In general
this work stream was responsible for putting together a test
strategy plan, developing
test scenarios and managing the interface with other lines of
business impacted by the
implementation
Technology The technology work stream was responsible for
ensuring that required technology
was in place to support ERP implementation. Key activities in
this work stream include
setting up of required user acceptance test environments,
development of required
design and test documents, and resourcing of testing and

technical support to the
project team and customers, when required
Systems
development
It was expected that in most cases, the implementation will
impact on a majority of
existing customer interfacing systems. A full compatibility
audit of all systems was
conducted prior to systems development
Networks
and
systems
The network and systems readiness work stream was responsible
for ensuring that all
existing (and legacy) networks and systems were migrated (as
required). This team was
also responsible for ensuring that new designs and necessary
changes required for the
successful implementation were successfully completed. The
team was specifically
responsible for activities such as production of solution designs,
end to end testing of
solution design, and the implementation of the network and
systems changes
Customer
migration
and
assurance
Omantel’s priority was to ensure that the transfer of customers
onto the new platform

was conducted with minimal impact on customers. One crucial
aspect of this migration
was to utilise robust and detailed advance notifications
(covering service disruptions
and data freezes). At the same time, it is crucial to recognise
that customer migration
plans also included a back-out plan which articulated a clear
process (if required),
whereby customers could be migrated back to legacy systems
(without substantial loss
of service)
Table III.
Omantel ERP project
work streams
ERP
implementation
in Omantel
85
heavily promoted), there were general concerns with
stakeholder information
especially in relation to how quickly responses were provided to
stakeholder
information requests (especially those requests put forward
formally). To address this
problem (and improve information flow), an information
database was developed and
delivered.

Perhaps, most worrying is that only a handful of employees
(mainly senior managers)
was aware of the project before its inception. Most surprising is
that even after
implementation, a small number (admittedly only a handful)
was not even aware that
any new systems had been deployed! Studies on systems
introduction (Maguire and
Ojiako, 2007; Ojiako and Greenwood, 2007) have highlighted
that poor employee
engagement will often lead to a lack of understanding of the
system.
Group Categorisation Desired response
Major customers Know The project objectives, detailed
information on
emerging solutions and capabilities
Feel Enthusiastic and confident that Omantel is their best
partner and will continue to deliver desired value
Do Identify needs and work with Omantel to exploit the
implemented platform and purchase solutions
Low-value customers Know That they are not affected by the
ERP
implementation
Feel That they are reassured about the future and the
service they receive and expect to receive in the
future
Do Continue to remain with Omantel
Employees Know The company’s vision, overall strategy,
constituent

projects and potential impacts on company’s
competitive position if failure occurs. At base level,
understand broad impacts of the project
Feel Confident, trusted, valued and part of the company’s
vision and future
Do Possess a shared vision and outlook. Are willing to
create lasting customer relationships, while at the
same time seek opportunities to enhance the
customers’ experience
Investors Know The broad outline plan. Understand value
associated
with current project
Feel Confident that the new implementation will enhance
Omantel’s competitiveness
Do Continue to maintain (and in some cases increase)
their investment in Omantel, while at the same time
encouraging others to do so
Regulatory (TRA) Know The outline plan and its compliance
with regulatory
and contractual agreements and requirements
Feel Confident that the plans adhere to regulatory
requirements
Do n/a
Oracle and other suppliers Know The detailed plan and how
they fit in
Feel Involved in the implementation

Do Proactively get involved in all aspects of the project
Table IV.
Omantel ERP
management analysis
IMDS
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86
6.5 Training
The general perception of the employees was that training was
not adequate.
It appeared that the majority of staff involved in the project
were first trained on the
new system well after the “go-live” date. This obviously meant
that at the time of
commissioning, close to one in three employees was not trained
on the use of the
system. Perhaps, more worrying is that overall, about 15 per
cent of staff involved in
the project did not receive any training at all, while those who
did, such as on database
languages such as structured query language, only ended up
using their newly
acquired skills nearly seven months after training, meaning that
knowledge gained
from the original training was forgotten due to lack of practice.
This meant that
refresher courses had to be arranged at additional cost to the
company.
Lessons. Even though recognised as a crucial means of

addressing possible
resistance to organisational change (Maguire and Redman,
2007), and of crucial
importance in ERP implementation (Yu, 2006), the study
appears to indicate that
inadequate staff training was a major concern within the project
team. It is important
to highlight that an issue with the employee’s perception of
training was fully
acknowledged by the project manager. Various reasons have
been attributed to this
situation. For example, he pointed out that there was a general
problem working with a
limited number of expert users and trainers. In addition, the
talent pool available to
Omantel was generally restricted.
6.6 Risk management
Despite numerous consultations, the potential impact of the
implementation on
services provided by some stakeholders remained unclear
primarily because Omantel
did not have the appropriate knowledge to carry out these tests,
leading to an
over-reliance on Oracle to resolve technical queries. At the
same time, precise details of
the improved “experience” new systems that users were to be
exposed to at the
completion of the project were not clearly articulated. In certain
instances, Omantel
was unable to provide exact details on time lags associated with
anticipated
“breaks-in-service” which were expected to impact on
customers’ systems. This had an
adverse effect on the detailed dialogue conducted with some
customers.

In terms of risk associated with the test programme, it was felt
that the time
allocated for customer managed inter-operability and equipment
testing (one month)
was considerably limited as no time appeared to have been
allowed for any
contingencies, late deliveries or significant failures in testing.
Overall, the information
provided to support testing was also initially regarded as
extremely high level.
Lessons. Successful ERP implementation is dependent on
numerous factors and
parameters. One of these parameters is poor information
management (Biehl, 2007).
6.7 System testing and software customisation
Failure to test in a robust way can often lead to significant
problems when a system
goes live (Maguire, 2004; Ojiako and Greenwood, 2007).
Omantel had quite a few
products that had to be reconfigured as part of the introduction
of the new ERP
systems. Under the joint system testing and software
customisation process run by
Omantel and Oracle, most products were reviewed by specialists
to determine what
impact the newly introduced system would have on Omantel’s
products and services.
In the majority of cases, confirmation was received that there
was unlikely to be any
ERP
implementation

in Omantel
87
impact (subject to more aggressive testing). It was, however,
noted that due to the short
contingency period between testing and “go live” date, if the
tests failed, product and
service customisation would need to be managed expertly in
order to ensure that the
limited resources of the organisation were used effectively and
also to ensure that
disruption was minimised.
Details of test scenarios were produced, and scripts for the
testing of products and
services that had to be completed prior to migration were also
prepared. However,
citing the general lack of technical knowledge within the
organisations, a review of
these test scenarios appeared to be insufficient, as each
generally lacked the necessary
depth to give assurance of its robustness. The result (which was
one of the major
contributors to the project being delivered late) was that product
and service offerings
required changes either because the requirement for change had
been identified before
testing began and had not been sufficiently addressed, or where
changes had to take
place following a problem identified during testing.
Lessons. As the literature suggests that ERP clients should
avoid system

modification (Markus et al., 2000), an agreement was reached
between Omantel and
Oracle that no part of the ERP system would be customised to
meet the system
compatibility requirements for any of Omantel’s products and
services. Any system
customisation implemented by Omantel without full sign-off by
Oracle would
invalidate the system warranty and support.
7. Discussions
The introduction of the new ERP system is the most significant
change within Omantel
since the drive to liberalise the Omani telecommunications
industry commenced. These
new systems have the potential to deliver significant benefits to
the organisation. They
are also expected to fundamentally transform the way Omantel
delivers services to all
of its customers. Ultimately, it is the first major step the
organisation has taken in
readiness for the full liberalisation of the telecommunications
industry in Oman.
Unlike the more chaotic strategic alignment approach adopted
by NITEL (Ojiako
and Maguire, 2006) which led to poor customer perception
(Onwumechili and
Okereke-Arungwa, 2003), the findings indicate that the impact
of the ERP system on
Omantel is considered in a more positive light. For example, a
majority of the
company’s employees were of the opinion that the newly
introduced systems had made
a considerable difference to their jobs.

It is however important to highlight that overall evaluation of
the performance of
the system still raises concern. We show that just over half of
employees sampled felt
that the new system was easy to use. This point reinforces the
need to address
employee training as a matter of urgency. At the same time, it
reiterates that the effects
of earlier failure of management to engage with employees
during system design is still
lingering.
8. Conclusions
ERP is no longer a western European or North American issue.
By its very nature its
implementation is complex and far-reaching. There are plenty of
opportunities for
things to go wrong. Its multinational nature means that further
research should be
undertaken in a range of countries to identify the political,
cultural, and behavioural
repercussions of implementation. The scope and complexity of
ERP means that any
IMDS
110,1
88
opportunity to gain insights from this system development
process should be grasped
with both hands. We do not have all the answers with regard to
this process and so any
way the process can be facilitated should be made available to a

wider audience.
This research has examined the key environmental factors that
have impacted on the
adoption of ERP by a large organisation in Oman. It highlighted
the implementation of
strategic systems that would transform the capabilities of the
company at a time of
major change within the sector. There has been a dearth of
research with regard to ERP
implementation with Oman. There has been some research in the
Middle East in the area
of ERP but the fact that an internal member of staff undertook
the interviews meant that
fur [. . .] study? Their insight into internal strategies and
documentation was made
available and this added to the richness of the research. This
research has also shown
how important it is to view ERP implementation as a strategic
operation for the
organisation at every stage. Adopting a stakeholder involvement
philosophy at an early
stage of development paid dividends for Omantel. This
openness seems to have
facilitated an effective system development process that, in
turn, led to a successful
implementation.
This particular investigation has highlighted the benefits that
can accrue from a
commitment to full consultation and transparency throughout
the various stages of
ERP implementation. During any large system development
there is a temptation for
the various stakeholder groups to be secretive about the scope
of the project and their

roles within it. However, this can often have serious
consequences in relation to areas
such as system testing. This crucial area can only be wholly
addressed if rigorous
testing takes place – and this will only occur if there is a united
effort to provide the
requisite test data for the various processes and elements of the
system.
Many organisations underestimate the organisational impact of
ERP
implementations. Even the timing of the implementation can
have adverse effects on
various parts of the organisation or strategic partners, i.e.
customers and clients.
Viewing the consultation process as important also allowed
Omantel to collect
strategic intelligence that would help with the risk management
that should always
underpin any ERP implementation. The critical aspect of vendor
selection was based
on Oracle’s commitment to make great efforts to understand
Omantel’s core business.
However, probably more important in the longer term was
Oracle’s ability to
demonstrate that it had the infrastructure, experience and
reputation to align with
Omantel’s vision and business objectives.
What Omantel has gone some way to achieving is to view an
organisational ERP
implementation as external and strategic rather than internal and
operational. This very
important distinction increased the chances of the ERP
implementation being a success.

This does not mean that there were no glitches in the overall
process, i.e. some Omantel
staff expressed concerns that Oracle’s consultants were
unwilling to share information
and knowledge with them. This is of particular concern as
knowledge transfer should be
a key part of any ERP implementation, especially where it is
normally taken as a given
that the vendor’s consultants will disappear soon after
implementation.
It would be especially constructive if the stakeholder
management and
communication approach could be tested in other countries and
sectors, and with
different sizes of organisations.
Even though single case study research, especially if undertaken
by internal
managers, can provide researchers with a significant amount of
rich data, it is often
ERP
implementation
in Omantel
89
very difficult to determine firm conclusions. This is why further
research in a number
of varied settings and environments is needed to consolidate any
of the conclusions
revealed by this particular research.

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Corresponding author

Udechukwu Ojiako can be contacted at: [email protected]
IMDS
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92
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Pg. 02
Case Study
Integrated Enterprise Systems
IT 402
Case Study Instructions
Case Study Objective:
This case study is an opportunity for you to practice your
knowledge and to develop skills of working in teams.
·
Total Marks = 14
Case Study report
Presentation

9 marks
5 marks
· Group Size = 3-4 Members.
·
One group member (group leader/coordinator) should
submit all files:Case Study Report and
Presentation Slides on blackboard. Marks will be given
based on your submission and quality of the contents.
Case Study Report
· Each Case Study Report will be evaluated according to the
marking criteria mentioned in each question section.
Presentation
· Students (Group) need to present their Case Study (either F2F
or Virtual) in
week 11 or week 12.
· Presentation schedule with date and allocated timing will be
shared with the students via Blackboard before the end of Week
10.
Note: the following case study is just an example, students are
supposed to find a separate case study
Example Case Studies: Enterprise Software Choice Nightmares
Each example assumes steps as follows:
1. Key individuals involved – most costly in any company are
the active participants on the team
2. The Selection Processes, Re-selection processes,
3. Dropping challengers to the short-list
4. Final selection procedures to make your decision.
5. Purchase, finance, loan, check, or capital expenditure.
6. Enterprise preparations – hardware, software, education,

systems infrastructure
7. Installation – infrastructure readiness and execution
8. Integration – training and systems integration
9. Implementation processes
10. Return on investment (ROI) can now begin
11. Follow on: Restoring, training, and ongoing support, re-
visiting old ground.Case # 1 –Corporation is unprepared for
what is coming – but believed they were okay.
A manufacturer/distributor must upgrade their software to
satisfy their business and client needs, or they will unavoidably
fail. Upon examination, we find infrastructures are inadequate,
and inner resources do not allow this change. Additional,
because of their cash position, they cannot fund the lowest
requirements for a new enterprise solution.
What are they supposed to do?
They must retrench and reconstruct quickly in as cost-effective
manner. To serve their requirements, they must substitute all
servers, operating systems, upgrade the network architecture,
PCs, printers, improve their internet connection, rise network
bandwidth, install wireless networking, protect their data
backups, email SPAM control, implement security firewall,.
i.e.: upgrade it all! What was believed to be a software spend of
$35-$55K derived to be an enterprise spend of $160-$260K, and
excluding the software.
It is avoidable with proactive budgeted enterprise management.
You cannot permit your business to fail because systems are out
of reach.Case # 2 – Corporation is prepared to spend – but don't
know enough to execute properly.
When we encounter a client that has the financial capitals but
not sufficient technical resources to deply today’s enterprise
systems, we are prepared to contribute in hiring, raining, and
support. The trick is the cost of these resources is high, and
availability is inadequate. Businesses in a sound financial
situation must also know they have resource necessities to
consider while taking on a up-to-date solution. It is not for the
reason that systems are complex it is because infrastructure and

user requirements have raised.
For example:
Today is a extremely competitive and combative environment.
Let’s look at some factors disturbing these pieces. Global
rivalry is all the rage. China pays its employees $0.50/hour.
Without the complete best systems, technologies,
implementation, integration, utilization, cost-controls, security
of the enterprise, accuracy in data, dedication to continuous
monitoring and decision support tools, our businesses will flop
and feel like they could do nothing about it.
We have, today the absolute utmost robust and reliable tools a
little generation of business has ever seen. We can perform our
business from a mobile phone from the inside of the Desert. If
we can do this, the remaining is a matter of application.
Note: the above mentioned case study is just an example,
students are supposed to find a separate case study.
Question Two
2 Marks
Learning Outcome(s): CLO4:
Design ES architectural models for various business
processes.
Model (As-Is) process using BPMN 2.0 using any tool such as
Visio. Then analyze As-Is process from atleast two
perspectives. Forexample, if quality and time perspectives are
taken then mention at least 1 issue related to quality and 1 issue
related to time in the process.

Commentary of The National Catholic Bioethics Cente
Volume 32, Number 10
October 2007
Views expressed are those of individual authors and may
advance positions that have not yet been
doctrinally settled. Ethics & Medics makes every effort to
publish articles consonant with the magisterial
teachings of the Catholic Church.
A Commentary of The National Catholic Bioethics Center on
Health Care and the Life Sciences
The ChurCh and AssisTed ProCreaTion
Today, many different techniques of “assisted” human
procreation are lumped together: fertility drugs,
sperm enrichment, sperm capacitation, artificial insemination,
gamete intra-Fallopian transfer, in vitro
fertilization (IVF), pre-implantation diagnosis, and even
reproductive cloning. In a strict sense, though,

some of these techniques assist procreation, while others
substitute for it. The distinction between
assisting and substituting points to what is ethical and what is
not.
Assisted procreation is both expensive and burdensome. At the
physical level, it typically involves
hyperstimulating the woman’s ovaries hormonally, and
extracting anywhere from one to three dozen of
her matured eggs; for the man, it involves procuring and
washing sperm, in addition to a series of
preliminary tests on the couple’s overall physical health. Also,
it is taxing at the psychological level
because, even after the couple has undergone all the testing and
procedures―for months or perhaps
years on end―and after they have paid about thirty thousand
dollars for each attempt, there are no
guarantees that it will work. If it does, it typically involves
freezing a number of “spare” embryos for
possible future use, thus creating a new set of delicate issues for
the couple. There are also serious
social concerns. For example, over the past thirty years or so in
this industry, about half-a-million frozen
human embryos have accumulated in fertility clinics in the
United States alone.1 Also, assisted human
procreation is perceived as being “pro-life,” but in reality it
involves a number of very serious attacks on
human life and dignity precisely at life’s most vulnerable
stage—the first week of embryonic
development.
What, then, motivates the couple to undergo these travails? The
desire to have a child. Now, “to have a
child” may be taken in two ways. At face value, it is natural for
loving couples to want to have children.
At a deeper level, however, no child can really be “had,” since a

child is not a possession, not an object,
and not a thing. Rather, children are a gift from God. All life,
and especially human life, is a
gift from God. And, by definition, we do not have a right to
gifts. Therefore, no one really has a right to
have a child. Couples do have a right, however, to desire
children. In fact, in order for their marriage to
be valid, the couple has a responsibility to desire children.2 But
whether the children come or not must
remain the prerogative of God.
Conception, Pregnancy, and Marriage
Within a valid marriage, there are two central considerations:
first, the unitive and the procreative
dimensions of the marital act must remain intact and, second,
each couple is called to responsible
parenthood.The unitive and the procreative dimensions are like
two sides of the same coin: every coin
has two sides, yet the coin remains one. This does not mean that
each time a couple has intercourse
they are obligated to conceive. In fact, the flagship document on
this topic, Humane vitae, states that
“in relation to physical, economic, psychological and social
conditions, responsible parenthood is
exercised either by the deliberate and generous decision to raise
a numerous family, or by the
decision, made for grave motives and with due respect for the
moral law, to avoid for the time being,
or even for an indeterminate period, a new birth.”3 Nonetheless,
each act must remain open to the

possibility of conception. And if conception does occur, then
the resulting child should be accepted
lovingly.
In a sense, IVF is the converse of contraception: contraception
allows the unitive dimension to happen
without the procreative; IVF allows the procreative without the
unitive. In both cases a radical
separation has been introduced between the two essential
elements of human intercourse. Yet, like the
two sides of a coin, these two dimensions must remain together
in order for the act of intercourse to be
truly and fully human. In other words, what makes sexual
intercourse fully human (as opposed to a
mere instinctive act of self-pleasure) is the radical generosity
that occurs precisely in desiring children
and simultaneously desiring to give the core, the heart, the total
love of oneself to the other.
It can also be said that human procreation is a natural act and a
vital act. It is natural for a man and
a woman to desire each other; in fact, this is such a universal
principle that male/female gender
complementarity exists in all animal species that reproduce
sexually. And procreation is a vital act
because it is the only way by which nature perpetuates our
species. We do not have the freedom to
radically change natural vital human acts, as explained in the
next section. Thus, in order for human
procreation to be ethical, the sperm must fertilize the egg in the
proper place (locus) where nature
intends, that is, in the distal end of the fallopian tube
(infundibulum) of the wife (in vivo). Although
technologically we can extract a human egg, collect sperm and
mix them in a Petri dish, we may not
do it ethically. The fact that it is legal does not mean it is

moral, just as with procured abortion―to
which the IVF industry contributes significantly by its own
destruction of embryonic human life.
Natural Selection and IVF
There are many reasons for fertilization to occur in the place
where it does, even at the cellular level.
One main reason is natural selection. Natural selection ensures
that only the strongest, fastest, and
healthiest sperm reach the mature egg. It does this by a series of
biochemical events, beginning with the
neutralization of the acidity of the vagina and uterus by means
of the first wave of semen upon
ejaculation. Then, even when the cervix is dilated during
ovulation, most sperm never enter the uterus.
Those that do, proceed to navigate through the many crypts of
the thickened and spongy inner wall of
the uterus (endometrium), where many remain trapped.
Eventually, some sperm make their way into
the narrow fallopian tubes, where they continue to be selected
out by lack of nourishment or strength.
Finally, a few reach the mature egg at the distal end of only one
of the two tubes, where they then need
to burrow through not one but two protective layers of cells and
membranes of the egg―the zona
pellucida and the corona radiata. Throughout this entire
trajectory, a series of complex biochemical
reactions occur between the woman’s mucus and the man’s
semen, including the capacitation,
lubrication, and nourishment of sperm. Many of these reactions

are still very poorly understood in the
human being.
What is clearly understood, though, is that theoretically it takes
only one sperm to fertilize an egg.
Yet, unless the ejaculate of a man contains at least about 150
million sperm, he is considered
functionally sterile. This biological fact points to an enormous
selection process bearing down on
sperm cells, precisely to ensure that only the best sperm reaches
the mature egg.
If an egg is fertilized, a further process of natural selection
occurs at implantation, which in the
human being normally occurs about a week after fertilization.
Many embryos fail to implant, again
due to complex biochemical events that are poorly understood.
And even after implantation, many
human fetuses do not result in live births. It is estimated that
anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of all
human pregnancies end in a spontaneous abortion or
miscarriage.4 Analysis has proved that the vast
majority of these embryos and fetuses carry some kind of
genetic or developmental abnormality. As
expected, most of these abortions occur very early in the
pregnancy, even before a woman realizes
that she had conceived.
This sophisticated process of natural selection serves as a type
of quality control, and is indeed
essential for the survival of our species as a whole. It is
preposterous, and dishonest, to think that
IVF can adequately replace this intricate process of natural
selection.
When a human egg is extracted from a woman and mixed with

sperm, the laboratory technique
substitutes for the natural place and process of fertilization. In
fact, that is precisely what in vitro (in
glass) means: that fertilization does not occur in vivo (within
the woman’s body). This bypasses natural
selection, which is a universal principle of nature and, as such,
belongs to the patrimony of all humanity.
We simply do not have the right to substitute a manufacturing
technique in a laboratory for this vital
process of our species―even if a couple can pay for it.
Other Problems with IVF
In addition to these considerations of principle, which makes
IVF intrinsically evil,5 there are a number of
considerations of practice:
• Ovarian hyperstimulation and egg extraction poses health risks
to the woman. The process
involves, first, the woman taking fertility hormones. Once her
ovaries have matured a
relatively large number of follicles (typically evaluated through
noninvasive sonography),
anywhere from one to three dozen mature eggs are extracted by
the insertion of a largebore
needle either through her abdomen or through the wall of her
vagina (both obviously
invasive). The needle is guided by sonographic visualization,
but since the ovaries are partly
enveloped by the distal end of the fallopian tubes, in addition to
being tucked under them,
there is always a risk of perforating the reproductive tract as

well as other abdominal organs,
tissues, and membranes. Hyperovulation can also produce
ovarian hyperstimulation
syndrome, which can cause the ovaries to swell and poses
serious health concerns.
• Sperm is usually collected by masturbation. According to
Catholic teaching, this is immoral,
even if the man is the woman’s legitimate husband, since
masturbation radically separates
the procurement of semen from the conjugal act.6 The sad
reality is that, with our present
social ethos, masturbation is rarely seen as intrinsically evil,
even among spouses.
• Typically, between three and four embryos are released into
the woman’s uterus; on
average, one actually implants. (The overall rate of live births
per embryo transfer is
between 15 and 42 percent.7) This means that, on average, three
human embryos are
discarded for every one that implants. These are not natural
(spontaneous) abortions,
since there is nothing “natural” about IVF. Rather, they are
procured abortions, and
everyone involved in the process is accountable for them, since
they would not have
occurred if IVF had not been attempted.
• The “spare” embryos that were not inserted in the first attempt
are dipped in liquid
nitrogen (about minus 300° F) and stored frozen in steel tanks.
Anything dipped into liquid

nitrogen crystallizes instantly, becoming rock solid, like a piece
of diamond. This freezing is
done in case none of the three or four embryos released into the
uterus actually implants,
or in case the woman loses her pregnancy at any time during the
nine months. If that
happened, the technician would go to the steel tanks, pull out
four more embryos, thaw
them, and attempt a new implantation. Considering the fact that
even the early human
embryo is human, how can one justify freezing a fellow human
being, especially without
his or her consent? In addition, typically only one of the four
thawed embryos survives,
because of damage to the others during either the freezing or the
thawing process.
• In a market economy such as ours, and in view of the
perceived potential for cures through
embryonic stem cell research, the so-called spare embryos are
fueling an expanding industry
that routinely involves experimenting with live human embryos.
Even if these embryos are
only a week old (technically, a blastocyst consisting of only a
few dozen cells), they are
human and they are alive. The eugenics mentality that is
developing in this field is being fed,
in large part, by the fact that, once a couple has had the children
they want, they tend to
abandon their frozen embryos. In the past, clinics have simply
discarded them. But now
clinics can actually profit from the non-implanted embryos that
they hold “in stock.”

• A number of high-profile cases have already appeared in the
news media about divorced
or remarried couples and frozen embryos.8 Often, one party
wants the embryos
implanted―either into the new wife, or the original mother with
the new husband―but
the former spouse does not. This creates a legal and social
morass that threatens to throw
into question what civilized society means by “my parents,”
“my children” and “my family”
at the very biological level of human procreation.
• In addition, every person has the natural right to be gestated
by his or her biological mother
in relationship with his or her biological father, since it is
through that familial biochemical
interaction that the embryo has the possibility to develop best.9
Permitted Assistance to Human Procreation
Despite these concerns, the Church does not reject all medical
intervention on human procreation.
Ethical medical advancement in itself is a positive expression of
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
upon the medical and scientific community. Hence, it can be
said that the practice of medicine for
the purpose of true healing is certainly a means of glorifying
God. What, then, is allowed in assisted
reproduction? Precisely that: to assist the sperm to achieve its
natural goal of insemination,
including by means of artificial insemination, provided several
conditions are in place:

• The couple is validly married
• The sperm of the husband is collected ethically (for example,
using a perforated
condom during intercourse with his wife and collecting the
semen that remains within
the condom immediately afterward)
• Conception takes place within the wife’s infundibulum
• The resulting embryo is not subjected to disproportionate risk
or harm
What the modern fertility industry calls “artificial
insemination” (or intrauterine insemination) is
allowed under these conditions because conception occurs in the
natural setting of the woman’s
reproductive tract. It is therefore understood that the Church
also allows less dramatic assistance,
provided similar conditions are in place. Such assistance
includes semen and sperm analyses to
determine the husband’s potency; analyses to determine the
wife’s fertility; and the use of fertility
drugs with great caution, accepting the possibility of twins,
triplets, or more and caring for all of them.
Faith and the Infertile Couple
The issue of human infertility is extremely complex. For
example, at the physiological level, infertility

may be caused by something as banal as tight underwear on the
man (pushing the scrotum up against
the body, resulting in the death of sperm from too much heat),
to something as complicated as both
spouses having Down syndrome. At the psychological level, one
hears of “infertile” couples who
conceive shortly after adopting a baby or having a baby through
IVF, which suggests that the anxiety of
not conceiving may itself be a cause of infertility. Also of note
is the extremely low percentage of rape
victims who conceive, compared to the normal rate in the
general population of women of the same
age.10 Clearly, then, there are both physiological and
psychological causes of infertility.
What, then, is left for the infertile couple? Medical technology
today can certainly assist in the ethical
ways noted above. But ultimately, in the case of a persistent
inability to conceive, the Church invites the
couple to reflect on the apparent silence of God in this aspect of
their marriage at this point in time. I
say “at this point in time” because it could well be that their
infertility is not permanent but temporary.
Also, I say “in this aspect of their marriage” because, while
children are certainly welcomed and a great
joy to have in a marriage, they are not essential to the marriage;
if the couple does not have children by
no fault of their own, they certainly still have a marriage and
their loving relationship. In fact, this point
could be a litmus test for the marriage as such; is it their mutual
love and respect that are keeping the
couple together, or is it the children? If the latter, what happens
to the couple when the children finally

grow and leave home?
But especially I say “the apparent silence of God” because it is
well known that God can speak volumes
in his apparent silence. Perhaps God is calling an infertile
couple to adopt, or to become foster parents.
Or perhaps He is calling them to dedicate themselves to other
generous acts and commitments that
they could not accomplish if they had to devote most of their
energies to raising their own children, and
to being a solid witness to the generous gift of self―a
testimony that is sorely needed in our society
today.
Ultimately, a couple’s acceptance of their infertility can be a
great act of humility, obedience, faith,
hope, and charity. As such, it provides the potential for
tremendous growth in mutual love, as they
realize that all they have to keep them together, at the human
level, is their love for each other. It is the
mutual recognition that God is in control, and the acceptance of
his Divine Will in our lives, since people
of faith are called to recognize that He always wants what is
best for us. In a world where we are more
and more intent on doing our own will―even if it costs thirty
thousand dollars per IVF trial―accepting
the Divine Will is an exceedingly powerful witness and a
tremendous source of grace.
In view of the event of the Incarnation―God becoming a human
being, starting as an embryo in the
womb of Mary―all human life can be said to be a specific act
of Divine Will. Therefore, when a married
couple surrender to the Divine Will in every aspect of their
marriage, including conception or its
absence, this is especially redemptive and sanctifying. In this

sense, infertility in the life of a married
couple can also be seen as an extension of their wedding vows,
when they promised each other “to be
true to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health,
to love and honor you all the days of my
life.”11
Rev. Alfred Cioffi, S.T.D., Ph.D.
Father Alfred Cioffi is a staff ethicist at the National Catholic
Bioethics Center and a priest of the
Archdiocese of Miami. He holds a doctorate in moral theology
from the Gregorianum, the Jesuit
university in Rome, and a doctorate in genetics from Purdue
University, Indiana.
1. A national survey of the number of frozen human embryos in
the United States was done in
April 2002. Of the 430 clinics surveyed, only 340 responded,
reporting a total of 396,526 frozen
human embryos. Because ninety of the 430 clinics did not
respond, and because these data are
five years old, half-a-million frozen human embryos is actually
a very conservative estimate. D. I.
Hoffman et al., “Cryopreserved Embryos in the United States
and their Availability for
Research,” Fertility and Sterility 79.5 (May 2003): 1063–1069.
2. The desire for children is one of the three goods of marriage,
the other two being: fidelity and
indissolubility. For an extensive explanation of marriage from
the Catholic perspective, please
see John Paul II, Familiaris consortio (November 22, 1981).

3. Paul VI, Humanae vitae (July 25, 1968), trans. NC News
Service (Boston: Daughters of St. Paul,
1968), n. 10.
4. Generally, the older the woman, the higher the rate of
spontaneous abortion and miscarriage.
For example, women over forty-five years of age have a 75
percent risk of losing the pregnancy.
A. M. Nybo Andersen et al. “Maternal Age and Fetal Loss:
Populationbased Register Linkage
Study,” British Medical Journal 320.7251 (June 24, 2000):
1708–1712.
5. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Donum vitae
(February 22, 1987).
6. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Persona humana
(December 29, 1975). See also the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2352. 7 As expected,
many factors influence this rate. See
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2004 Assisted
Reproductive Technology Success
Rates: National Summary and Fertility Clinic Reports (Atlanta:
CDC, December 2006), 81.
7. One of the latest Hollywood fads is to have IVF babies. See,
for example, “More Celebrities
Adopting Frozen Embryos, Swift Report, August 23, 2005,
http://swiftreport.blogs.com/news/2005/08/
more_celebritie.html.
8. See, for example, findings cited in Nicanor P. G. Austriaco,
O.P.,
9. “On the Catholic Vision of Conjugal Love and the Morality
of Embryo Transfer,” in Thomas V.

Berg, L.C., and Edward J. Furton, eds., Human Embryo
Adoption: Biotechnology, Marriage, and
the Right to Life (Philadelphia / Thornwood, NY: National
Catholic Bioethics Center /
Westchester Institute, 2006), 123–125.
10. The national rape-related pregnancy rate was 5 percent in
1996.
11. M. M. Holmes et al., “Rape-Related Pregnancy: Estimates
and Descriptive Characteristics from a
National Sample of Women,” American Journal of Obstetrics
and Gynecology 175.2 (August
1996): 320–324. The national pregnancy rate has been declining
for the past fifteen years, and is
influenced by fluctuating factors such as immigration and
economics, but averaged about 10
percent in the 1990s. Stephanie J. Ventura et al., “Revised
Pregnancy Rates, 1990–97, and New
Rates for 1998: United States,” National Vital Statistics Reports
52.7 (October 31, 2003): 1–15.
12. National Conference of Catholic Bishops, Rite of Marriage
(New York: Catholic Book, 1991).
The ChurCh and AssisTed ProCreaTionConception, Pregnancy,
and MarriageNatural Selection and IVFFaith and the Infertile
Couple

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