The management of technology: a production and
operations management perspective – gaimon
Technology is the embodiment and deployment of technical and scientifc
knowledge and discoveries that lead to the creation of goods and services.
The ability of a frm to innovate, develop and apply new technologies is a critical
determinant of its domestic and global competitive position (Porter & Stern).
Wikipedia: MOT is ‘an integrated application of engineering, science, and
management capabilities to the management of the life cycle of new
technologies’.
Khalil: MOT research is the study of how management systems drive the
‘creation, acquisition, and exploitation of technology.’
In the context of rapid technology innovation: MOT addresses how to develop,
adapt, and exploit technological capabilities to create new or improved products
or services to accomplish the strategic goals of an organization.
Research themes in the Management of Technology
Underlying dynamics of technology innovation:
- The technology S curve: characterizes how innovation afect technology
performance over time during the phases of introduction, improvement
and maturity.
- Perspective of the impact on a frm or industry. Tushman/Anderson:
examine the competitive implications when a new technology makes a
frm’s existing competencies obsolete (m.a.w. the technologie innovatie is
competence destroying)
- Ultimate test of the success of MOT eforts is the extent to which an
innovation embodied in a newly developed product/service difuses (zich
verspreid) to the market place. Loch & Huberman fnd that conditions are
given whereby each technology is optimally adopted. It is increasingly
common for technical and scientifc innovations that difuse to the
marketplace to create new industries or radically change existing
industries (Khalil) biotechnology
Innovations in the Manufacturing and Information Technologies
- The decision to adopt an innovation in manufacturing or information
technology should consider its ability to:
1. Reduce costs & improve quality
2. Rapidly enter new markets
3. Create new knowledge for future development
4. Reduce the risk of obsolescence
5. Reengineer organizational processes
6. Facilitate integration and the transfer of knowledge and thereby reduce
organizational barriers
7. Adapt technology strategy in response to competitive forces and changes
in markets
- Research in management of technology seeks to address many of the
above issues
, - Research in MOT: Flexible technology although the upfront investment is
costly, early market entry benefts aforded by the fexibility may be
substantial
- Research in MOT: explores how to design, develop, implement and
manage IT that operates at internal (processes) and external (customers
and suppliers) boundaries of the frm.
- Linkage between a frm and its suppliers Radio-Frequence Identifcation
= technology to track movements of materials throughout the supply chain
lower labour costs/improved supply chain coordination/reduced need for
inventory/ofering greater product availability.
- Electronic auctions (it innovation), reduces costs and increase competition
- IT and the internet have introduced new forms of industrial competition
Resource-based view of a frm
Technical systems is only one element of a frm’s resource capabilities that must
be carefully managed to drive competitive advantage. The MOT literature
demonstrates the importance of managing the workforce as a means of ensuring
successful outcomes when a frm invests in new manufacturing technology.
Technical systems and workforce depend on the organizational structures and
managerial systems in which they operate resource-based view of a frm
(Barney). A frm’s organizational structure and managerial systems include its
incentives and rewards, reporting relationships and mechanisms for knowledge
sharing between diferent functions of the organization. It is important to
recognize that a frm’s resource capabilities must evolve over time in response to
or in anticipation of technology change, changes in the marketplace, and
competitive forces. IT has enabled the workforce to obtain and exploit knowledge
from other functions of the organization in real time.
Knowledge management
MOT is about knowledge management.
1. The knowledge embedded in the frm’s manufacturing or information
technologies defne the capabilities of the frm’s technical systems
2. The workforce possesses theoretical, conceptual, and practical knowledge
across diverse scientifc, engineering, and management disciplines
3. Organizations possess knowledge
The academic literature refects on the growing importance of considering the
knowledge-based view of resources (generate and transfer tacit knowledge, rate
of change in production know how etc.). Also substantial literature exploring a
variety of issues involving patents: the embodiment of knowledge that can either
be exploited by the developer or licensed to other frms.
, Managerial incentives for process innovation – Overvest
& Veldman
Main ingredients of the model: we assume that frms decide simultaneously &
non-cooperatively on the level of process innovation and the level of output. This
assumption is consistent with two interpretations of the R&D process:
1. Firm’s production technology & its current investments in R&D can’t be
observed by other frms
2. Process innovation is a learning by doing phenomenon.
We do not view the reduction of production costs as an exogenous
process that takes place during the production phase. The production
process gives the frm an opportunity to cut costs, and the level of
R&D investments captures the extent to which the frm seizes this
opportunity.
Timing of the model is as follows:
1. Owners decide non-cooperatively and simultaneously whether they hire a
manager and ofer him an incentive contract
2. The decision makers of the frms innovate and supply their output to the
market
3. Profts are realized and managers are paid according to their contract
operations management perspective – gaimon
Technology is the embodiment and deployment of technical and scientifc
knowledge and discoveries that lead to the creation of goods and services.
The ability of a frm to innovate, develop and apply new technologies is a critical
determinant of its domestic and global competitive position (Porter & Stern).
Wikipedia: MOT is ‘an integrated application of engineering, science, and
management capabilities to the management of the life cycle of new
technologies’.
Khalil: MOT research is the study of how management systems drive the
‘creation, acquisition, and exploitation of technology.’
In the context of rapid technology innovation: MOT addresses how to develop,
adapt, and exploit technological capabilities to create new or improved products
or services to accomplish the strategic goals of an organization.
Research themes in the Management of Technology
Underlying dynamics of technology innovation:
- The technology S curve: characterizes how innovation afect technology
performance over time during the phases of introduction, improvement
and maturity.
- Perspective of the impact on a frm or industry. Tushman/Anderson:
examine the competitive implications when a new technology makes a
frm’s existing competencies obsolete (m.a.w. the technologie innovatie is
competence destroying)
- Ultimate test of the success of MOT eforts is the extent to which an
innovation embodied in a newly developed product/service difuses (zich
verspreid) to the market place. Loch & Huberman fnd that conditions are
given whereby each technology is optimally adopted. It is increasingly
common for technical and scientifc innovations that difuse to the
marketplace to create new industries or radically change existing
industries (Khalil) biotechnology
Innovations in the Manufacturing and Information Technologies
- The decision to adopt an innovation in manufacturing or information
technology should consider its ability to:
1. Reduce costs & improve quality
2. Rapidly enter new markets
3. Create new knowledge for future development
4. Reduce the risk of obsolescence
5. Reengineer organizational processes
6. Facilitate integration and the transfer of knowledge and thereby reduce
organizational barriers
7. Adapt technology strategy in response to competitive forces and changes
in markets
- Research in management of technology seeks to address many of the
above issues
, - Research in MOT: Flexible technology although the upfront investment is
costly, early market entry benefts aforded by the fexibility may be
substantial
- Research in MOT: explores how to design, develop, implement and
manage IT that operates at internal (processes) and external (customers
and suppliers) boundaries of the frm.
- Linkage between a frm and its suppliers Radio-Frequence Identifcation
= technology to track movements of materials throughout the supply chain
lower labour costs/improved supply chain coordination/reduced need for
inventory/ofering greater product availability.
- Electronic auctions (it innovation), reduces costs and increase competition
- IT and the internet have introduced new forms of industrial competition
Resource-based view of a frm
Technical systems is only one element of a frm’s resource capabilities that must
be carefully managed to drive competitive advantage. The MOT literature
demonstrates the importance of managing the workforce as a means of ensuring
successful outcomes when a frm invests in new manufacturing technology.
Technical systems and workforce depend on the organizational structures and
managerial systems in which they operate resource-based view of a frm
(Barney). A frm’s organizational structure and managerial systems include its
incentives and rewards, reporting relationships and mechanisms for knowledge
sharing between diferent functions of the organization. It is important to
recognize that a frm’s resource capabilities must evolve over time in response to
or in anticipation of technology change, changes in the marketplace, and
competitive forces. IT has enabled the workforce to obtain and exploit knowledge
from other functions of the organization in real time.
Knowledge management
MOT is about knowledge management.
1. The knowledge embedded in the frm’s manufacturing or information
technologies defne the capabilities of the frm’s technical systems
2. The workforce possesses theoretical, conceptual, and practical knowledge
across diverse scientifc, engineering, and management disciplines
3. Organizations possess knowledge
The academic literature refects on the growing importance of considering the
knowledge-based view of resources (generate and transfer tacit knowledge, rate
of change in production know how etc.). Also substantial literature exploring a
variety of issues involving patents: the embodiment of knowledge that can either
be exploited by the developer or licensed to other frms.
, Managerial incentives for process innovation – Overvest
& Veldman
Main ingredients of the model: we assume that frms decide simultaneously &
non-cooperatively on the level of process innovation and the level of output. This
assumption is consistent with two interpretations of the R&D process:
1. Firm’s production technology & its current investments in R&D can’t be
observed by other frms
2. Process innovation is a learning by doing phenomenon.
We do not view the reduction of production costs as an exogenous
process that takes place during the production phase. The production
process gives the frm an opportunity to cut costs, and the level of
R&D investments captures the extent to which the frm seizes this
opportunity.
Timing of the model is as follows:
1. Owners decide non-cooperatively and simultaneously whether they hire a
manager and ofer him an incentive contract
2. The decision makers of the frms innovate and supply their output to the
market
3. Profts are realized and managers are paid according to their contract
