KNOWLEDGE BASED TECHNOLOGYCHARLES PERROWS CONTRIBUTIONS

Presented by Sakshi Kukreja (12DM141) Sameer Mirani (12DM143)

WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY ?
Information Equipment Techniques Processes In simple words, how inputs are converted into outputs

CHARLES PERROW
Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, 1960.
Author of 6 books and over 50 articles including Radical Attack on Business(1972),award winning Normal Accidents: Living with high risk technologies (1984), award winning THE AIDS DISASTER (1990) and others. Interests included development of Bureaucracy in the 19th century, radical movements of the 1960s , accidents in high risk zones like nuclear plants, DNA research and chemical plants and protecting nations infrastructure etc.

LIMITATION OF WOODWARDS PERSPECTIVE ON TECHNOLOGY

His theory was limited only to the manufacturing firms, which represented less than half of the population of Organizations
Charles Perrow identified that technology needed to be operationalized for all organizations.

CHARLES PERROWS DEFINITION OF TECHNOLOGY

The action that an individual performs upon an object, with or without the aid of tools or mechanical devices, in order to make some change in that object.

DIMENSIONS OF KNOWLEDGE TECHNOLOGY

Task Variability: No. of exceptions encountered in ones work. Problem Analysability: The type of search procedures followed to find successful methods for responding adequately to task exceptions. In other words, well defined versus ill defined.

PERROWS TECHNOLOGY CLASSIFICATION

Intuitive problems: Cell 3 and 4

Systematic problems: Cell 1 and 2

Familiar problems

Unfamiliar problems

DEPARTMENTAL TECHNOLOGY WITH STRUCTURAL AND MANAGEMENT CHARACTERISTICS

PERROWS CONCLUSIONS
Control & coordination methods should vary with technology type More routine the technology, more highly structured the organization Non-routine Technology requires greater structural flexibility Craft technology requires problem solving with greatest knowledge & experience. Engineering technology requires centralized decisions but maintain flexibility because exceptions are many.