1. Technology has become an integral part of any business unit. Keeping this statement in mind discuss the role of technology in designing the business strategies of a firm. Illustrate your answer with the help of an example.
What is Technology?
The word technology usually conjures up many different images and generally refers to what has been described as the “high – tech” (high – technology) industries. Limiting technology to high – tech industries such as computers, chips, superconductivity, genetic engineering, robotics, and so on focuses excessive attention on what the media consider newsworthy. Limiting technology to science, engineering and mathematics also losses sight of other supporting technologies. Technology includes more than machines, processes, and inventions. There are many different manifestations of technology; Some are very simple and others, very complex.
Technology can be described in different ways:
1. Technology is the means for accomplishing a task—it includes whatever is needed to convert resources in to products or services.
2. Technology includes the knowledge and resources that are required to achieve an objective.
3. Technology is the body of scientific and engineering knowledge which can be applied in the design of products and / or processes or in the search for new knowledge
TECHNOLOGY IN BUSINESS
The technological base of a company is the ability of an organization to develop an ongoing stream of new products which meet the market needs, to manufacture these products while maintaining appropriate levels of quality and cost, to develop or adapt new technology to meet future needs, and to respond promptly to unexpected competitive
moves or unforeseen opportunities. This functional definition of the technologic, base implies that in addition to caring for its current products, processes, and projects, the organization must look into the future. Among other things, it must consider whether it is technologically equipped to sustain a competitive advantage over a period of years. Is it able meet or initiate new opportunities and threats created by its environment and its competitors, and is it able to change and adapt .quickly to new situations and circumstances.
- Core technological assets. This is the technical—and most obvious—part of the technological base. Such assets are the heart of the organization’s core competencies. They constitute the set of technologies embedded in products and process that are important to the company’s present and future competitiveness.
- Organizational assets. These are the factors that allow the firm to create and exploit new technologies. They include five elements: the skill profile of the employees and managers, the procedures for decision making and information sharing, the organizational structure, the strategies that guide action, and the culture that shapes shared assumptions and values.
- External assets. These are the links between the firm and its environment—a network of connections the organization establishes with the external world. They include relations with current and potential partners, rivals, suppliers, customers, professional associations, research and educational institutes, consultants, political actors, and local communities.
- Development processes. Two key processes are critical to technology-based firms. First, the product and process development process generates the actual output of the company and creates value for customers. Second and fueling the first, the technology development process creates the next generation of technologies which eventually become part of the core technological assets.
- Complementary assets. Even successful technology-based companies need more than technology to compete effectively. Complementary assets may be needed in marketing, distribution, manufacturing, field service, or information systems.
Adapting the technological base
Management may often initiate a change in the company. Such a change may be needed to better adapt the organization to its environment or to be able to carry forward the company’s strategic decisions such as moving into a new group of products, a new technology, or a new type of market. The technological base provides a framework, not only for assessment but also for implementing change and for analyzing the difficulty involved. Of the five elements we have identified, it is usually the organizational assets that prove to be the limiting factor. Furthermore, if the organizational assets are effectively managed, one can positively control the other four elements
Skills:
The most direct determinant of the organization’s ability to derive benefits from new technological opportunities is the skill base of the organization. Do the personnel have the skills required to effectively select, develop, operate, and maintain the technological capabilities?
- Procedures: Whether skills are effectively deployed will depend on prevailing procedures— in particular, the procedures for decision making, personnel selection, and human resources development.
- Structure: Whether these procedures—which prescribe certain roles—are effectively implemented or degenerate over time will depend on their congruence with the incentives and information flows created by the organizational structure. What specialized units have been established? To whom do they report? And how do they contribute to the development processes?
- Strategy: These structures, in turn, will evolve to reflect the priorities embodied in the organization’s strategy. What are the competitive priorities of the firm? How are these formulated? How are they translated in to resource allocation?
- Culture: Behind these priorities, we often find culture—the values and assumptions that behind the organization and give it continuity over time.
Transfer of technology for commercialization
Technology component is responsible for ensuring that a particular idea or invention is assessed for its technological feasibility and translated into a marketable product for commercialization. The marketing component covers the business angle, assessing the market conditions and developing a business plan. It is also concerned with the business planning in terms of developing a comprehensive marketing strategy - to ensure a clear market capture for the new product.
The financing component identifies and procures funds for seed capital, expansion, market penetration etc. in order to make sure that the return-on-investments is good. Each of the above components require the inputs of different organizations in a market, bringing to the process different resources and skills that will eventually lead to the success of the technology and product being developed.
Role of technology in organization
It is necessary to make a clear strategy, which articulates and explains the company’s processes and the role played by technology to support them. This can be demonstrated and monitored with a help of a balanced scorecard.
For Example Ashok Leyland has signed a technology agreement with Brehon Energy PLC, Australia
The Government is also actively encouraging R&D on Hydrogen-natural gas mix as an alternate fuel for automobile engines. In fact, a Rs 5 Crore project is now on under aegis of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) to create an optimal mix of Hydrogen and CNG, usable in existing vehicles. Ashok Leyland is one of the participating organizations in this project, along with Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, M&M and Eicher Motors.
The main benefit sought by including hydrogen in the alternative fuels mix is emissions reduction – eventually by 100%. Imagine a fleet of 100
natural gas buses. The fleet owner wants to reduce emissions by buying hydrogen-powered buses but cannot afford to convert the entire fleet. What is the best way to reduce emissions using the least hydrogen? In the simplest example, a few of the buses are replaced with hydrogen internal-combustion engines with the same fuel economy as natural gas. These hydrogen-powered buses can have near-zero exhaust emissions, so if 7 of the 100 total buses run on hydrogen, there will be a 7% reduction in emissions. By taking advantage of the unique properties of hydrogen, it is possible to improve the typical one-to-one relationship between emissions reduction and hydrogen use. Suppose he uses Hythane but now with 7% hydrogen by energy blended with natural gas and used over the whole fleet. Both laboratory and real-world experience shows that a natural gas engine with a calibration optimized to reduce NOx emissions with 7% hydrogen in natural gas will cut emissions by about 50%, for every bus in the fleet. In this example, Hythane reduces emissions 50% with 7% hydrogen by energy, so the hydrogen utilization leverage factor is 50%/7% = 7.1, or more than 2.5 times better than the most generous fuel cell bus scenario.
There are only minimal costs associated with changing the natural gas engine calibration and pre-blending the Hythane fuel. The natural gas refuelling compressors, storage tanks, and fuel dispensers can be utilized, and the vehicle engine and fuel system does not require any hardware changes. Many years of research have proven that only 5% to 7% hydrogen by energy is all that is necessary to minimize emissions and significantly stabilize the combustion of natural gas. Hythane is the next step on the path to an ultimate hydrogen economy. The only practical way to utilize hydrogen in vehicles with today’s technology is through the use of Hythane, which provides leveraged
benefits to justify infrastructure investment even before hydrogen vehicle technology becomes economically feasible.
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