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Chapter 17 - Managing Technology and Innovation
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1. According to Francis Bacon, "A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds." What
does this have to do with technology and innovation? What does it have to do with competitive
advantage?
The implication for technology and innovation is that new ideas are rarely just lying around waiting
2. What examples of technological innovation can you identify? What forces led to the commer-
cialization of the science behind these technologies? Did the capability exist before the market
demand or was the demand there before the technology was available?
Students should be able to generate a long list of technological innovations, the forces behind com-
mercialization, and whether or not the demand was there before the technology was available.
3. Thomas Edison once said that most innovations are 10 percent inspiration and 90 percent per-
spiration. How does this match with what you know about technology life cycles?
Technology life cycles begin with the recognition of a need and a perception of a means by which the
need can be satisfied. This is the inspirational part of the process. Translating the idea into a viable
4. Why would a company choose to follow rather than lead technological innovations? Is the po-
tential advantage of technological leadership greater when innovations are occurring rapidly,
or is it better in this case to follow?
While technological leadership has the potential for high profits and represents an opportunity to es-
tablish a significant competitive advantage, it can also be a high risk/high cost strategy involving edu-
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
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5. If you were in the grocery business, whom would you benchmark for technological innovations?
Would the companies be inside or outside your industry? Why?
As the text points out, benchmarking is the process of comparing your organization's practices and
technologies with those of other companies. Which companies you would choose to benchmark
6. How would you see the executive champion, the chief technology officer, and the product
champion working together? Could the same individual play all of the roles? Why or why not?
The chief technology officer is most likely to be the person to recognize the potential value of a new
technology or innovation and he or she is then likely to try to sell the concept to either the executive
Chapter 17 - Managing Technology and Innovation
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EXERCISE 17.1 – TECHNOLOGY LIFE CYCLE
Objectives
To explore the different stages of the Technology Life Cycle.
Instructions
Refer back to the Technology Life Cycle in Exhibit 17.2. Review each product or technology listed below
and indicate whether it is in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd stage of the cycle.
Stages
- Stage 1: A new technology is created to address a need. Competitors experiment with operational
designs and product characteristics. Progress is slow. The rate of product innovation is high.
Technology Life Cycle Worksheet
Product or tech-
nology
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Apple Watch
_________
_________
_________
EXERCISE 17.2 - INNOVATION FOR THE FUTURE
Objectives
1. To look ahead into the future.
Suggested Responses to Discussion Questions
EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES
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The innovative product may be a flying automobile.
1. What trends lead you to believe that his product or service will be successful?
2. What current technologies, services, or products will be replaced by your idea?
Teaching Tips
1. Prior to beginning the exercise, have the students brainstorm ideas as to the various trends that are
likely to influence society over the next 25 or 30 years.
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Worldwide Games
Case Summary:
Worldwide Games develops and markets game consoles, portable devices, and software for video game
enthusiasts. The company provides subscriptions for millions of users who play one another online, in
Chapter Topics Related to the Case:
• Identify the concepts of technology and innovation
• Discuss the impacts technology and innovation have on organizations Discuss how to effectively
Case Discussion Questions:
1. Is Worldwide Games a technology leader or a technology follower? What are the risks and benefits
of staking out this position?
Suggested Response:
Suggested responses may point out the fact that Worldwide was not proactive in monitoring its security
systems or making this a priority as a protection for its customers. This makes them a technology fol-
2. What opportunities might Worldwide be missing by not having its chief information officer report
directly to the CEO?
Suggested Response:
First, Worldwide will make changes and respond to critical issues more slowly as a result of the distance
CONCLUDING CASE
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3. What makes innovation important for Worldwide? Following the hacking incident, how might bu-
reaucracy be expected to interfere with innovation? How should Worldwide engage in “bureaucracy
busting?”
Suggested Response:
As a leader in online gaming, Worldwide needs to protect its reputation and the privacy of its customers.
By demonstrating a commitment to innovation in security, Worldwide might garner a significant share of
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Example 17.1 – Forces driving technological development: All over the world, countries are
looking to create new industries to ensure they have good jobs for their people in the future. To
Example 17.2 – Technology life cycle: ATMs started as a simple money dispensing device. But
today’s ATM’s are Windows-based computers, capable of handling a wide variety of transac-
tions, from transferring funds between accounts to check imagining. As the technology gets more
Example 17.3 - Cannibalization: Some have criticized Apple’s overlapping product offerings
because of new products’ potential to cannibalize other offerings. However, CEO Tim Cook de-
scribes why the company is not concerned about cannibalization: “In terms of cannibalization, I
Example 17.4 – Benchmarking & scanning: The Internet has made staying abreast of technolo-
Example 17.5 – Pursuing new technology: New technologies can be acquired or devel-
oped. NEC Corporation chose to acquire 51% of the shares in Chinese IT total solution
Example 17.6 – Executive champions: Executive champions must know how to nurture creative
employees, and it’s not always easy. But according to managers from a design firm, a branding
consultancy, and a team of computer programmers, you can get high performance by following
eight simple rules:
EXAMPLES
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1. Recruit for diversity, hire for philosophy. Seeing things differently is important in main-
taining a creative environment, but you also need to be sure that all of your employees
are driven by the same basic vision or goal.
2. Rehab the neighborhood. It’s hard to be creative when you’re stuck in a boring cubicle.
7. Allow time for blue-sky thinking. At New Integration Technology, Fridays are “non-
directional” and programmers get to work on projects that aren’t part of their jobs.
8. Protect your team from creativity killers. Creative people are personally connected with
their work, and when they receive criticism, they take it personally, and stop working.
Don’t reject a project - just be very specific about the objectives of the project.
9. Add a liberal dose of fun. Being creative is hard work, and pizza and Nerf football help!6
Example 17.7 – Bureaucracy busting: In October, 2007, The Economist had a special report on
innovation which started with a description of a meeting at Googleplex, Google’s headquarters in
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Please see the following additional materials in Connect.
• Netflix
Netflix was started in 1997 by the company co-founder, Reid Hastings, and others. He was introduced to the DVD
format by a friend and wanted to find out how the DVDs would hold up in the mail when shipping them to himself.
He also noticed when working out at a gym that people were paying for the subscription regardless of how often
they worked out. He came up with the idea of renting movies on a subscription basis where customers could rent
DVDs and keep them as long as they like with no shipping fees. Today, Netflix has over 100,000 DVD titles to
choose from at any given time. Over 12,000 of their movies are available for instant streaming. Netflix boasts 10.3
million members and every member’s Netflix website is unique to that member.
How is Netflix an Innovator?
What are the consequences to competitors of Netflix’s innovations?
Netflix’s competitors would face substantial challenges, including competing with the company’s well-known repu-
Project Management: Steering the Committee
I. Introduction
Conflict among work groups is a common problem in organizations. This scenario depicts an or-
II. Learning Objectives
1. To assess students’ understanding of the sources of conflict and the conflict process.
III. Scenario Description:
Overview: Three months ago, Patrick was given goal of implementing a computerized tracking
system on the factory floor with the expectations that it would raise quality control and workflow
CHAPTER VIDEO
SUPPLEMENTAL FEATURES
MANAGER’S HOT SEAT (MHS)
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Profile:
• Patrick Bennett is the Managing Supervisor of Production at TechBox, a desktop design
software house, who oversees production and supervises a floor of 50 employees.
• Morgan Baines is the Vice President of Distribution. He works at corporate headquar-
References: The references included in the DVD are:
• Sources of Conflict (PPT 9-3)
Back History: TechBox produces a specialized computer chip for a large client base of high-end
computer companies such as Dell, IBM, and Compaq. Within the TechBox compound are the
manufacturing factories and the corporate headquarters.
Sam Adelson has worked his way up from the mailroom. He does not embrace change and is
skeptical of young hot shots and young people in general. He also does not embrace computer-
ized system enhancements, which is odd for a man in high tech. In a nutshell, he’s stodgy,
grumpy, and difficult.
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Scene Set-up: A meeting is held with key stakeholders of Patrick’s project to discuss the status of
it in terms of time and budget.
Scene Location: TechBox conference room
The Meeting - Summary: Stakeholders in the project note their concern with the project going
over budget and missing deadlines. Patrick, the project manager, defends himself and assures
One Week Later - Patrick assures the group that they are now firmly under budget and plan to be
done on time. Lucinda mentions that Frank, one of Patrick’s employees, said he thought the pro-
Afterthoughts – Summary: Patrick doesn’t think the meeting went very well. He says he didn’t
Dossier: The specific artifacts included in the DVD are:
1. Bennett’s Progress Report 5/6/02
2. Bennett’s Progress Report 5/31/02
3. Voice message from Frank Jambey to Lucinda Bergen
IV. Discussion Questions:
The References and related Discussion Questions may be found in PowerPoint slides 9-1 to 9-10.
Learning Objective #1: To assess students’ understanding of the sources of conflict and the conflict pro-
cess.
1. What sources of conflict were present in this scenario? Refer to PPT 9-3 to construct your
answer.
Many sources of conflict come into to play here. Ambiguous rules may have been a source
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2. On PPT 9-4, The Conflict Process, overt behaviors are depicted as indicators of manifest con-
flict. What overt behaviors did you identify during this scenario?
Lucinda repeatedly rolled her eyes and displayed negative affect towards Patrick. She was
1. Patrick’s strategy should be to:
A. Emphasize progress
B. Defend himself
2. What does Sam Adelson insinuate about Patrick [when he calls him a
hot- shot]?
A. He’s arrogant
B. He’s incompetent
3. How was this [first] meeting?
A. A success
Learning Objective #2: To analyze and evaluate different conflict management styles.
1. Various conflict management styles are depicted on PPT 9-7. For each of the participants in the
scenario, describe which style(s) they used and cite examples to support your answer.
Lucinda – Competing – she doesn’t seem to want to listen to Patrick’s position or reasoning and
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4. How should Patrick respond [when Lucinda says “Frank says you will need an addi-
tional 3 weeks’]?
A. Defame Frank
Learning Objective #3: To identify ways to ensure functional, rather than dysfunctional, conflict occurs.
1. Review the Structural Approaches to Conflict Management (PPT 9-9). Several approaches to
minimizing dysfunctional conflict are provided. Identify at least two specific actions taken by
members of the group to minimize dysfunctional conflict.
Clarify rules and procedures – Patrick suggests a daily email to keep the group posted on the
2. Choose two approaches (on PPT 9-9) and provide specific examples of what could have been
done in this scenario to reduce dysfunctional conflict.
The superordinate goals that all members share should have been discussed up front. This
5. Confidence is low. Patrick should:
A. Fight back
6. How should Patrick respond?
A. Refuse offer
Chapter 17 - Managing Technology and Innovation
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Assessing Your Creativity Quotient
SELF-ASSESSMENT
