Technology Management: Management of innovation and changes,

Technology life cycle, case study.

What is Innovation?
Innovation can be new ideas, new devices or new processes. It can be defined as something
original and new being introduced to the world. In a management context, Peter Drucker
(2002) has noted that innovation is a specific function of entrepreneurship and its ability to
create new wealth, producing resources or improving the wealth creation ability of existing
resources. Innovation can be intentional or accidental. Innovation is not a value addition, but
the creation of new value. Innovation begins with the analysis of the sources of new
opportunities. The opportunities are the unsatisfied needs. Through innovation, these needs
are being satisfied.
Innovation is said to be an independent factor. It can’t be judged as it will not have any close
or related product to be compared with as it’s new and invented to satisfy an unsatisfied need.
So, it’s independent in nature. Further, it’s believed that innovation stems from perceptional
change rather than reality change. Reality change is a continuous and natural process. But,
perception or imaginary change is discontinuous, unrelated and new. This creates
revolutionary ideas which in turn lead to innovation. For example, the perceptional change of
how we can travel lead to the invention of aircraft. The aircraft had no comparison as only
road vehicles were present at that time, so we can understand the independent factor of
innovation also in this case.

What is Change?
Change can be defined as the “difference in a state of affairs related to different points of
time”. Time dictates change, so the change needs to be conceptualized at different stages of a
certain factor. It may be organizational or personal. The change could be an act of making
(intentional) or becoming (natural). Change always would have two stages. One is the
previous or old stage, and the other is the new stage (after the change). Knowledge of both
stages is a prerequisite to confirm a change has taken place. It’s a comparison of different
stages and evaluation of the differences between such stages. The change could have been
positive or negative. iPhone 5 has been replaced with iPhone 6 which is a good example of
change.
Change can be looked in different context. We will be looking at it in a management context.
Management is the process of planning, organizing, monitoring and controlling in order to
achieve organization goals through effective use of available scarce resources. The element
of controlling is all about change, and it creates a never ending cycle. If the present results are
not in line with the objectives of the organization, new plans are devised and carried forward
which is a change in the management context. But, change is not the purpose of management.
Change is unintentional and occurs naturally in the process of management.
In management, a value can be identified for the change. This will reflect how good or bad
the change has been for the organization. For example, product change could have triggered
10% increase in profit which can be considered the value of change.

Management of innovation and changes: Innovation management is a combination

of the management of innovation processes, and change management. It refers both to
product, business process, and organizational innovation. Innovation processes can either be
pushed or pulled through development.
Six Effective Ways to Foster Innovation
Employee creativity and innovation are essential for the success of any business, particularly
in times of economic turmoil. There is a clear connection between employee engagement and
innovation according to a 2006 Gallup poll. Engaged employees are more creative and more
willing to accept innovative ideas from others. Most CEOs value creativity and employees
who are allowed to be creative are more engaged with their current positions. A company's
culture can either foster or stifle innovation. Fortunately, business leaders are able to shape a
more creative work environment if they follow a few basic guidelines

1. Maintain an open dialogue between employees and upper management

Dialogue will effectively motivate and engage employees. Always allow employees to
present their ideas before important decisions are made. Provide feedback to employees, even
when their ideas are not used, so that they know that they are not being dismissed.
Encourage communication between departments: Collaboration between members of
different departments often results in creative solutions for problems. Interdepartmental
communication facilitates trust and prevents conflict. Departments that do not communicate
are more likely to blame each other when problems arise.

2. Organize brainstorming sessions

IBM has found the innovation jam to be quite successful. Since 2001, jams have allowed
hundreds of thousands of IBM employees around the world to connect and come up with
innovative solutions for company problems. You do not need to run a global enterprise to
benefit from companywide collaboration. Give your employees regular opportunities to
bounce ideas off each other.
3. Engage employees by encouraging them to share creative ideas
Do not limit creativity to special occasions. Employees should be encouraged to continually
share their ideas with supervisors and each other. Find the most effective method of
communication for your organization. You may want to create a type of suggestion box or
schedule time at the end of meetings for people to share their ideas.

4. Do not force people to be innovative

Creativity can be encouraged but not compelled. Forcing people to present creative ideas at
certain times will not bring true innovation. Rather, create a number of different incentives to
draw out creativity. Innovative ideas could be rewarded financially, with opportunities for
advancement or any other incentive you have found effective for your employee base.

5. Remain flexible and forgiving

Inflexible environments discourage innovation. Innovation often involves taking risks.
Encourage employees to think outside the box and implement ideas without interference.
Additionally, do not punish employees if ideas are unsuccessful. Employees who are
punished for taking risks serve as a warning to others against being creative or innovative.
6. Keep track of company innovations
Many leaders in upper management lose interest in supporting creativity and innovation
because they do not bother to keep track of past innovations. Knowing how many employee
innovations have been implemented and how successful they are, presents a clear picture of
the financial benefits of employee creativity. Keeping track of innovations will also indicate
whether any alterations need to be made to recently implemented programs or the company
culture.

What is the difference between Innovation and Change?

Innovation Change
Definition Innovation is something original and The difference in a state of affairs
new, being introduced to the world. related to different points of time.
It can be new ideas, new devices or
new processes.
Knowledge Previous knowledge is not necessary Previous knowledge and resources
for innovation to happen are required for a change to happen.
Comparability Innovation is not easily comparable Change is comparable with a
as it does not have near factors to be previous situation or product and is
compared with as it’s unrelated in relative in nature.
Need Innovation will be the answer to Change will only improve on the
satisfy an unsatisfied need which did ability to satisfy a need which
not have a solution earlier. already has a solution. Change will
not assist in answering an
unsatisfied
Continuity Innovation is discontinuous in nature Change is a continuous and natural
and usually originates from process of adoption and efficiency
perceptional change. improvement.

Managing change and innovation to accelerate critical learning

Innovation inherently requires some level of change. Change requires learning. However,
humans and organizations tend to learn as a reaction to events. Business incentives provide
additional motivation to exploit existing knowledge. What change triggers will motivate the
investment in new learning needed to innovate?

Triggers come from both internal and external sources and include:

External triggers
❖ Customer needs, desires or expectations
❖ Competitive offers
❖ New technology
❖ Changing demographics
❖ Economic cycle
❖ Geo-political events
❖ Environmental change
❖ Societal change
❖ Industry structural changes
❖ Regulation change
Internal triggers
❖ Decisions
❖ Problems in operations
❖ Company growth or decline
❖ Leadership and personnel change
❖ Changes to inter-organization alliances

Innovation provides a response to these change triggers. Innovation help characterize these
responses, suggesting innovation that could provide a more effective response to a specific
change environment or trigger. With high uncertainty and possibility, managing change and
innovation effectively requires that learning investments be focused on the areas of change
that represent the highest risk and/or opportunity for continued sustainability and growth of
the business.
Of this long list of change triggers, only decisions come fully under control of the firm.
Innovation processes typically include external and internal scanning to provide early
identification of change triggers, moving company responses into the strategic decision and
innovation funnel.

Are gated processes still relevant?

When used appropriately, gated processes can provide an effective framework for managing
change and innovation. However, gate review boards must represent true decision making
bodies. For innovation, they must encourage accelerated, validated learning that reduces
uncertainty with minimum investment. Decisions completed at each gate should inherently
support the change process needed for the organization to encourage the success of an
innovation.

Consider the following innovation gate decisions:

1. Idea identification - Ideas are evaluated for further resourcing. Criteria will often
demonstrate the ability to be accommodated in the current business model, although
spinoffs may be supported. Balance must be developed that will promote promising
ideas while preventing being overwhelmed by evaluation of too many ideas.
 2. Concept validation - The concept is developed enough to determine the investment
needed to validate key elements of viability such as value proposition, competitive
advantage, and likely returns.
3. Demonstration development plan - A plan is developed to provide a proof of
concept demonstration to customers. For startups, this could be a product that might
be used with non-paying customers. This plan will seek to minimize investment
needed to validate key hypotheses with targeted customers. A demonstration vehicle
that can accommodate quick and low cost requirements changes will accelerate the
learning process.
4. Customer value validation - The value to the customer is established through their
interactions with the demonstration product. Metrics that show causality will provide
the learning that will continue to reduce uncertainty.
5. Growth plan - commitment to commercialize - For businesses with an established
business model, the plan for full commercialization is developed. This may be the
entry business gate to the more predictable (knowable risks) development process. For
newer businesses, investment is made to develop a product that can scale as business
grows.
Each successive gate in the innovation funnel reduces uncertainty that would prevent
additional investment. The decisions made provide evidence of meeting established factors
needed for success. Factors that facilitate change are increased while factors that work to
resist change are reduced. Needed communication and education are built into the process.

Why Innovation is important?

Studies have confirmed that all businesses want to be more innovative. One survey identified
that almost 90 per cent of businesses believe that innovation is a priority for them. The
conclusion is that the importance of innovation is increasing, and increasing significantly. In
the current day economic scenario, innovativeness has become a major factor in influencing
strategic planning. It has been acknowledged that innovation leads to wealth creation. Even
though efficiency is essential for business success, in the long run, it cannot sustain business
growth.
Most often planned and measured a combination of ideas, objects, and people leads to
innovation resulting in new business ideas and technological revolutions. In order to be
termed valuable innovations, new products and services need to be strong enough to progress
through rigorous commercialization processes and into the marketplace. Management expert
Peter Drucker said that if an established organization, which in this age necessitating
innovation, is not able to innovate, it faces decline and extinction. Many organizations are
adopting measures to strengthen their ability to innovate. Such companies are creating a
dependable operating system for innovation, an important indicator of corporate
sustainability.
Research has indicated that competition combined with strong demand is a major driver of
innovation. The intensity of competition is the determinant of innovation and productivity.
Innovation, besides products and services, also includes new processes, new business systems
and new methods of management, which have a significant impact on productivity and
growth.
Today, we need innovators more than any time before. Every organization and business are
feeling the impact of globalization, migration, technological and knowledge revolutions, and
climate change issues. Innovation will bring added value and widen the employment base.
Innovation is imperative if the quality of life in these trying circumstances is to improve.
Innovation will make the world a better place for the younger generation.
15 Types of innovation
1. Incremental innovation: Incremental innovation seeks to improve the systems that
already exist, making them better, faster cheaper.

2. Process innovation: Process innovation means the implementation of a new or

significantly improved production or delivery method.

3. Red ocean innovation: Red Oceans refer to the known market space, i.e. all the industries
in existence today. In red oceans, industry boundaries are defined and accepted, and the
competitive rules of the game are known. Companies try to outperform their rivals to grab a
greater share of existing demand usually through marginal changes in offering level and
price. As the market space gets crowded, prospects for profits and growth are reduced.
Products become commodities, and cutthroat competition turns the red ocean bloody.
4. Service innovation: Service Innovation can be defined as “a new or considerably changed
service concept, client interaction channel, service delivery system or technological concept
that individually, but most likely in combination, leads to one or more (re)new(ed) service
functions that are new to the firm.

5. Business model innovation: Business Model Innovation (BMI) refers to the creation, or
reinvention, of a business itself. Whereas innovation is more typically seen in the form of a
new product or service offering, a business model innovation results in an entirely different
type of company that competes not only on the value proposition of its offerings, but aligns
its profit formula, resources and processes to enhance that value proposition, capture new
market segments and alienate competitors.

6. Sustainable innovation: Eco-innovation is a term used to describe products and processes

that contribute to sustainable development
7. Frugal innovation: Frugal Innovation is about doing more with less. Entrepreneurs and
innovators in emerging markets have to devise low cost strategies to either tap or circumvent
institutional complexities and resource limitations to innovate, develop and deliver products
and services to low income users with little purchasing power.

8. Blue ocean innovation: Blue Oceans represent the unknown market space, i.e. all the
industries not in existence today. Blue oceans are defined by untapped market space, demand
creation, and the opportunity for highly profitable growth. In blue oceans, competition is
irrelevant because the rules of the game are not set. Blue oceans can be created by expanding
existing industry boundaries or by reconstructing industry boundaries.

9. Radical innovation: Radical innovations (sometime referred to as

breakthrough, discontinuous or disruptive innovations) provide something new to the world
that we live in by uprooting industry conventions and by significantly changing customer
expectations in a positive way. Ultimately, they often end up replacing existing methods /
technologies.
10. Open source innovation / Crowd sourcing: In production and development, open
source is a philosophy or pragmatic methodology that promotes free redistribution and access
to an end product’s design and implementation details

11. Experience innovation: Companies that try to create holistic experiences by emotionally
engaging their consumers.

12. Impossible innovation

13. Disruptive innovation: A disruptive innovation is an innovation that helps create a

new market and value network, and eventually goes on to disrupt an existing market and
value network (over a few years or decades), displacing an earlier technology.
14. User led innovations: The user is king. It’s a phrase that’s repeated over and over again
as a mantra: Companies must become user-centric. But there’s a problem: It doesn’t work.
Here’s the truth: Great brands lead users, not the other way around.

15. Supply chain innovation: Supply chain innovation is about applying best practices and
technological innovations to your own supply chain in order to reduce such cycle and wait
times and other waste (to use a Lean term) in your in-house processes.
8 reasons why innovation is important to businesses today
1. The word is full of problems that are hard to solve and aren’t going away
Albert Einstein famously said that “we cannot solve the problem with the same thinking
we used when we created them”. So simple conventional linear planning and problem
solving processes using the same thinking that created some of these undesirable problems in
the first place aren’t not going to result in the visionary, creative ideas and innovative
solutions required to solve them. The first thing about understanding innovation is that it is,
in essence about seeing, perceiving and solving problems in creative ways! It requires a sense
of urgent passionate purpose and visionary dreaming and thinking to play with solving
wicked problems so as to improve the quality of people lives and the way we live.

2. Adapting to Black Swan Events

Black Swans are random and unpredictable events that cannot be anticipated and require us to
find new ways of responding and adapting to them, and their impact, when they happen.
So be-ing innovative involves be-ing willing and competent in adapting and in knowing how
to think differently. Knowing both how to think analytically and laterally as well as knowing
how to think at the critical, creative and associative levels. To see and solve problems and to
respond to Black Swan Events and external crises in different ways to transform them into
creative ideas and innovative solutions that people value and cherish.

3. Taking advantage of the global entrepreneurship movement

Entrepreneurship is becoming a global movement and entrepreneurship is growing especially
in emerging markets, where China and India are leading the pack and Africa is predicted to
be the next hot spot. There are three particularly “Hot” sectors that include people who really
want to ‘both’ take self responsibility for their futures, by contributing towards making the
world a better and more sustainable place ‘and’ make a difference via the social, women and
youth sectors. This movement is being powered by governments realizing that
entrepreneurship is a vehicle of economic success and prosperity, by organizations realizing
that they can harness the collective genius of their people through building an
entrepreneurship capability and finally by the rise of new impact investors. Innovation is an
enabler of entrepreneurship as well as a way of empowering and enabling people to take
control of their lives and manifest their own destiny and economic prosperity.

4. Competing via blue ocean possibilities with lean & agile start-up methodologies
In their book Blue Ocean Strategy research proves that there are no permanently excellent
companies, and that organizations, like people, all do smart and less smart things. They
suggest that what matters is making smart strategic moves and that the strategic move that
matters centrally is to create ‘blue oceans’ of disruptive, new and uncontested markets.
The emerging business paradigm is shifting towards discovering blue oceans that incorporate
lean and agile start-up methodologies as a way of innovating businesses to create increased
value for customers that they value and cherish.
5. Flowing with advances in technology
The advance of digitization enabled largely by the internet of things has created the
connection and sharing of data between digital devices, ranging from household devices and
heating systems to automobiles, and even jet engines. This connectivity and the resulting
aggregation of data is creating entirely new business models and revenue streams, both for
startups and established companies that leverage existing assets in exciting, profitable new
ways. It also is changing the basis of competition as companies can now compete as part of
ecosystems. The increasing availability and accessibility to free and low cost online
education is encouraging and enabling almost anybody with a desire for learning and a
hunger for knowledge to become subject matter experts in their fields.
Innovative entrepreneurs and lean start-ups are proliferating by via the internet of things,
always connected mobile devices, cloud computing and via the social media. Especially by
the development of software applications aimed at improving the quality of people’s minds
and lives everywhere.

6. Adapting to changing workplace dynamics and trends

As more baby boomers retire and conventional succession planning processes become
obsolete, the ageing demographic globally is the new tidal wave incurring financial demands
on already exhausted financial systems. Millennial are also swapping jobs at increasing rates
as they seek more meaningful work, autonomy and equality. Hiring processes are shifting as
more recruiters rely on internet based social processes where ‘reputation’ is fast becoming
more important to professionals and companies alike. Freelancing and contracting are
becoming a way of life, meaning that more people are working from home, taking
responsibility for generating their own income and wealth. They are also operating more from
co-working and collaborative work environments. This means they are networking and
teaming to share and gain knowledge, skills and experience.
These factors are forcing organizations to explore innovative strategies for enhancing staff
engagement, empowerment and enablement as well as with the acquisition and retention of
the best talent.

7. Responding to increasing customer expectations and choices

There are significant changes required as to how we perceive and sense customer’s needs,
wants and expectations as they too, adapt to, are empowered by the increasing speed and
proliferation of choices available in our increasingly connected and digitized world. Their
focus is on receiving value that demonstrates that companies understand and empathize with
them and support their lifestyle choices. Noting that customers have never had more control
over who they are, what they do, and importantly, what, how and where they buy! Increasing
consumer expectations and choices are impacting organizations to become increasingly
customer centric through innovative change. By using human centered design to improve the
users (our) experience provides increased value and new ways to create and invent products
and services as well as to execute plans in ways that people value and cherish.
8. Maximizing globalization connectivity
The current wave of globalization has been driven by policies that have opened economies
domestically and internationally as a result of many governments adopting free-market
economic systems, vastly increasing their own productive potential and creating new
opportunities for international trade and investment. Whilst reducing barriers to global trade
and negotiating new international agreements to promote trade, in goods and services as well
as in investments. This trend allows true connectivity and collaboration to occur. It
encourages anyone, anyplace at any time to develop an internet based business that leverages
and builds scale via the application of lean methodologies. Coupled with the speed and pace
of technological change, increasing availability of private funding and easing of government
infrastructures and compliance factors make it easier for people to initiate low cost, internet
based global businesses.

How else can innovation save the business world?

Here are the top 8 reasons, at ImagineNation™ we believe passionately that make innovation
a visionary strategic lever for change, business transformation, management, profitability and
overall sustainability. It is also a systemic lever that engages, empowers and enables people
to affect business breakthroughs and deliver profound culture, system, process, product and
people changes. The result is increased organizational engagement, reach, competitiveness,
faster business growth and increased business value to enable businesses to flow and flourish
in this age of disruption.
TECHNOLOGY LIFE CYCLE
The technology life cycle shows the journey your technology takes. From it’s exciting birth
and growth; to its inevitable decline and eventual death – it’s a foregone conclusion your
technology won’t last forever!
Either a new product enters the fray and forces you to adapt, or the demands on the current
model increase and pushes you to introduce incremental updates of the current offering. In
any case, understanding the technology life cycle helps you predict when you’ll be able to
recover the investment you put into it development, and when to plan for new projects.

Types of Technology
➢ The evolution of technology in education
➢ The technology of teaching
➢ Instructional technology
➢ Assistive technology
➢ Medical technology
➢ Technology productivity tools
➢ Information technology

THE EVOLUTION OF TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION

To many of us, the term technology conjures up visions of things such as computers, cell
phones, spaceships, digital video players, computer games, advanced military equipment, and
other highly sophisticated machines. Such perceptions have been acquired and reinforced
through exposure to televised reports of fascinating devices and news articles about them,
science fiction books and movies, and our use of equipment such as automobiles, telephones,
computers, and automatic teller machines.
While this focus on devices and machines seems to be very prevalent among the general
population, many educators also hold a similar perspective. Since Pressey developed the first
teaching machine in 1926 (Nazzaro, 1977), technology applications in public schools and
post-secondary education institutions have tended to focus on the acquisition and use of
equipment such as film projectors, audio and video tape recorders, overhead projectors, and
computers.
Since the early 1960s, however, a trend has emerged that is changing the way we perceive
technology in education. At that time, educators began considering the concept of
instructional technology. Subsequently, after considerable deliberation, a Congressional
Commission on Instructional Technology (1970) concluded that technology involved more
than just hardware. The Commission concluded that, in addition to the use of devices and
equipment, instructional technology also involves a systematic way of designing and
delivering instruction.
With the rapid development of microcomputer technology, increased research on
instructional procedures, and the invention of new devices and equipment to aid those with
health problems, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments, the latter third of the 20th
century has borne witness to a very dramatic evolution. The current perspective is a broad
one in which six types of technology are recognized: the technology of teaching, instructional
technology, assistive technology, medical technology, technology productivity tools, and
information technology (Blackhurst & Edyburn, 2000).
TECHNOLOGY OF TEACHING
The technology of teaching refers to instructional approaches that are very systematically
designed and applied in very precise ways. Such approaches typically include the use of well-
defined objectives, precise instructional procedures based upon the tasks that students are
required to learn, small units of instruction that are carefully sequenced, a high degree of
teacher activity, high levels of student involvement, liberal use of reinforcement, and careful
monitoring of student performance.

Instructional procedures that embody many of these principles include approaches such as
direct instruction (Carnine, Silbert, & Kameenui, 1990), applied behavior analysis (Alberto &
Troutman, 1995; Wolery, Bailey, & Sugai, 1988), learning strategies (Deshler & Schumaker,
1986), and response prompting (Wolery, Ault, & Doyle, 1992). Most often, machines and
equipment are not involved when implementing various technologies of teaching; however,
they can be, as will be seen later.

INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY
Although there are differing opinions about the nature of instructional technology, the
Commission on Instructional Technology (1970) provided the following definition:
Instructional technology is a systematic way of designing, carrying out, and evaluating
the total process of learning and teaching in terms of specific objectives, based on
research in human learning and communication, and employing a combination of
human and nonhuman resources to bring about more effective instruction. (p. 199)
Typical applications of instructional technology may use conventional media such as
videotapes, computer assisted instruction, or more complex systems, such as hypermedia
programs in which computers are used to control the display of audio and visual images
stored on videodisc (Blackhurst & Morse, 1996), CD-ROM and digital video discs. The use
of telecommunication systems, particularly the Internet (Williams, 1995) and its World Wide
Web component (Williams, 1996), have great promise for use in classrooms and for distance
education. Computer software systems are now available that can be used to manage the
delivery of instruction via the Web. Such systems have been used successfully to deliver
instruction to undergraduate and graduate students on topics related to special education
(Blackhurst, Hales, & Lahm, 1997).
It is important to note the various components of the above definition and to realize that
technology is actually a tool for the delivery of instruction. In this conceptualization,
technological devices are considered as means to an end and not an end in and of themselves.
Use of technology cannot compensate for instruction that is poorly designed or implemented

ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY
Assistive technology employs the use of various types of services and devices designed to
help people with disabilities function within the environment. Assistive technologies include
mechanical, electronic, and microprocessor-based equipment, non-mechanical and non-
electronic aids, specialized instructional materials, services, and strategies that people with
disabilities can use either to (a) assist them in learning, (b) make the environment more
accessible, (c) enable them to compete in the workplace, (d) enhance their independence, or
(e) otherwise improve their quality of life.
Assistive technologies may include commercially available or "home made" devices that are
specially designed to meet the idiosyncratic needs of a particular individual (Blackhurst &
Lahm, 2000). Examples include eyeglasses, communication aids, alternative computer
keyboards, adaptive switches, and services such as those that might be provided by
speech/language pathologists.

MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY
The field of medicine continues to amaze us with the advances constantly being made in
medical technology. In addition to seemingly miraculous surgical procedures that are
technology-based, many individuals are dependent upon medical technology to stay alive or
otherwise enable people to function outside of hospitals and other medical settings. It is not
uncommon to see people in their home and community settings who use medical technology.

For example, artifical limbs and hip and knee implants can help people function in the
environment. Cochlear implants can often improve the hearing of people with auditory nerve
damage. Some devices provide respiratory assistance through oxygen supplementation and
mechanical ventilation. Others, such as cardiorespiratory monitors and pulse oximeters are
used as surveillance devices that alert an attendant to a potential vitality problem. Nutritive
assistive devices can assist in tube feeding or elimination through ostomies. Intravenous
therapy can be provided through medication infusion and kidney function can be assumed by
kidney dialysis machines (Batshaw & Perret, 1992). In addition to keeping people alive,
technologies such as these can enable people to fully participate in school, community, and
work activities.

TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS

As the name implies, technology productivity tools are computer software, hardware, and
related systems that enable us to work more effectively and efficiently. For example,
computer software such as database programs can be used to store and rapidly retrieve
information; word processing programs can be used to easily edit text material; FAX
machines can facilitate the transmission of written documents over long distances; expert
system computer programs can aid in decision making, such as weather forecasting; and
video conferencing facilities can reduce the need for travel.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Information technologies provide access to knowledge and resources on a wide range of
topics. The Internet, and its World Wide Web component, is the most prominent example of
information technology. The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) is another
example. The ERIC system enables people to search and locate much of the world's
educational literature on a given topic. More information about the ERIC System is available
elsewhere on this Web site.
A COMPLEX EXAMPLE
Each of the above types of technology has significant implications for the education of
students with disabilities, in and of itself. It is important to remember, however, that these
also may be used in combination.
For example, a high school student who is paralyzed may require a respirator to assist in
breathing (medical technology). In a course designed to teach about telecommunications,
that individual may use a voice-operated computer (assistive technology) to pursue a tutorial
about how to design databases from a software program (instructional technology) that was
designed according to principles of near-errorless learning (technology of teaching). As a
result of the tutorial, the student will be able to set up a database, enter and retrieve
information necessary to function effectively in class (technology productivity tool) and use
the Internet (information technology) to locate information that could be stored in the
database.
While the above example may be somewhat extreme, it serves to place the various types of
technology into perspective. In reality, it is more likely that only one or two types of
technology would be used at a time. It is important to keep the different types of technology
in mind when considering technology solutions for people with disabilities.

THE FOUR STAGES OF THE TECHNOLOGY LIFE CYCLE

1. THE INTRO STAGE: You’re still building it, and a Beta version is ready to be
tested by early adopters. This is also known as the “bleeding edge”, it’s when revenues are
low and you’re pouring money into its development – most likely out of your own pocket.

2. THE GROWTH STAGE: This is where you’ve moved from beta to launching the
product. And where you’re initial has been recovered. Here you’ll want to take advantage of
the newness of the technology and start creating some hype. Ideally you want to get covered
by all the major blogs to grow your user base and expand your distribution to more people.

3. THE MATURITY STAGE: Good news! This is a stage your technology is being
accepted by the public. The bad news? The market has reached a saturation point where
competitors have caught up. And revenue slows down as your technology becomes a
commodity.

4. THE INEVITABLE DECLINE STAGE: This is what everybody dreads. The

inevitable decline or more appropriately the death stage. This is a stage where you’ll see a
decrease in sales or the emergence of a replacement technology. Here you’ll reach a point of
no return, where further development is not profitable. For example Nokia’s mobile operating
system Symbian was the cream of the crop for many years, that is until Google and Apple
entered the market with Android and iOS respectively.
Examples of Different Forms of Technology-Mediated Communication
The technology revolution happened so fast that many people have never stopped to ponder
just how much of their communications depend on technology. People have “friends” they’ve
never met on social networking sites, and a whole generation is already tired of cell phone
calls and has given them up in favor of texting. Examine the forms of technology-mediated
communication that are essential to your small business.
Email
You must answer your email or hire someone to do it for you. Email has become a standard
form of business communication, especially for short messages that require action. This kind
of technology-based communication allows you to take care of a lot of customers, as well as
partners and other stakeholders without lengthy conversations. In fact, modern software
allows you to send the same email to all interested parties so that you can keep your message,
name and products in the forefront of their minds.
Texting
Texting has become the most personal form of business communication. Whereas you might
give your email address to many people, your personal text number is reserved for a few
close associates. Your communications by text tend to be more urgent than email. If your
business is moving too slowly, you should examine whether you are taking full advantage of
texting.
Instant Messaging
Instant messaging through websites or instant-messaging applications can contribute to the
success of your negotiations. Instant messaging tends to be for longer discussions than
texting. You can engage someone in another city, state or country in a conversation that can
lead to a lucrative business deal. The advantage of this electronic conversation is that you can
take time to think before you respond. In face-to-face conversations, it can be difficult to
pause long enough to gather your thoughts.
Social Networking
Social network sites such as Facebook and MySpace can be essential to getting your message
out. You will have to adjust your communication style to a more informal approach. You
gather “friends” on these sites. These are places to do relationship marketing. Instead of sales
pitches, place messages on these sites that sound like you have a good deal for your friends.
Tweeting
The website Twitter allows you to broadcast very short messages called “tweets” to people
who have elected to follow your posts. This is not the place for a long treatise. Instead, briefly
refer to a new product, message or development your company is excited about. This may not
result in immediate sales, but it will result in awareness of your company in the marketplace.
Blogs
The word “blog” is short for “web log.” These sites are often written by amateurs, but getting
a blogger to review a product or service can be a good way to spread the word about your
small business. Contact bloggers by email, usually listed on their blogs, and ask them to take
a look at your product or service. You can spread the word informally and quickly through
this technology-based communication. Many companies, from sole proprietorships to large
corporations, have established their own blogs as a primary communication channel to the
public.
Video Conferencing
You can save travel money by using video-conferencing. If you and another person both have
cameras and the right software, you can see each other and talk to each other on your
computers. This gives you the face-to-face meeting you need without having to be in the
same location. When you want to convey your message with physical gestures and facial
expressions, this form of technology can be an effective communication tool.

Types of Technology in a Business Environment

The way that businesses function both in and out of the office has changed drastically thanks
to advances in computer, information and communication technology. Companies now use a
variety of mobile devices, software and various applications that employees can use for
marketing and networking, as well as research and development, for their goods and services.
Internet: The Internet, perhaps more than any other factor, has changed the way that
companies do business. Most companies have websites, which allow them to reach a much
larger audience and attract customers and employees from all over the world. In addition,
businesses are now utilizing social-networking websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and
Twitter, enabling them to communicate directly with customers with news and updates.
These websites are interactive, which means that companies can also receive immediate
feedback on new products from customers, speeding the process of research and
development. Email, video conferencing and online chat rooms have also made it easier for
businesses to become more globalized, communicating quickly and easily with clients and
co-workers regardless of their location.
Mobile device: The Internet resources listed above are not just available on an office
computer. Many companies provide their employees with other mobile devices such as
laptops, tablet computers, PDAs and smart phones. These devices are portable and enable
workers to stay constantly connected and updated with their work. They also make it more
possible for employees to have a "mobile office," working from any location and allowing
them to travel or live in an area other than where the business is actually located. Most
mobile devices also have an enormous number of applications available such as productivity
tools, locators that utilize GPS functions and other organizational applications that help
employees download, type, share and even print documents remotely from their device.
Software: Depending on the type of business, the software used by companies will vary.
However, many companies can benefit from several types of software and applications. For
example, Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) software, when installed, allows businesses to
make phone calls and have conferences over the Internet rather than use the traditional analog
signal. Most business software is designed to make specific tasks, such as budgeting,
accounting and communication, easier, faster and more cost effective. They also help with
more advanced tasks, such as translation for companies that are moving into the global
marketplace, website design and monitoring and managing of web services.
Product life cycle (PLC)
An important contribution to our understanding of innovation was made by Bill Abernathy
and Jim Utterback in the USA who presented a model of the product or technology life cycle.
(Abernathy and Utterback 1978) Essentially this says that for any product or technology there
is a finite life — it may be measured in decades or even centuries but eventually it gets old
and something comes along to replace it. (Of course with some of today's computer and
communication technologies this life cycle is very short and may be measured in months
rather than years).
(Details of their work can be found in Utterback, J., Mastering the dynamics of innovation.
1994, Boston, MA.: Harvard Business School Press. 256.)
The model is often presented as an 'S-curve' — so called because if we plot it on a graph it
has an S shape -
Abernathy and Utterback took this idea — and the experience of many different sectors and
showed that there are different phases in the technology life cycle.

In the early days of a new technology there is enormous potential for application. No-one
knows quite what to do with it — and they may try things which turn out to be impossible.
This phase is characterized by lots of experimenting around the technology and its
applications. People take risks because the stakes are low — no one knows quite what the
future will hold, and the markets for the new applications don't exist — they are just made up
of people who are interested in the new thing.
But gradually these experiments begin to converge around what they call a 'dominant design'
— something which begins to set up the rules of the game. This can apply to products or
processes; in both cases the key characteristics become stabilized and experimentation moves
to getting the bugs out and refining the dominant design. For example, in the chemical
industry we have moved from making soda ash (an essential ingredient in making soap, glass
and a host of other products) from the earliest days where it was produced by burning
vegetable matter through to a sophisticated chemical reaction which was carried out on a
batch process (the Leblanc process) to the current generation of continuous processes which
use electrolytic techniques and which originated in Belgium where they were developed by
the Solvay brothers. Moving to the Leblanc process or the Solvay process did not happen
overnight; it took decades of work to refine and improve the process, and to fully understand
the chemistry and engineering required to get consistent high quality and output.
In product terms the original design for a camera is something which goes back to the early
19th century and — as a visit to any Science Museum will show — involved all sorts of
ingenious solutions. The dominant design gradually emerged with an architecture which we
would recognise — shutter and lens arrangement, focusing principles, backplate for film or
plates, etc. But this design was then modified still further — for example, with different
lenses, motorized drives, flash technology — and, in the case of George Eastman's work, to
creating a simple and relatively 'idiot-proof' model camera (the Box Brownie) which opened
up photography to a mass market. Innovation doesn't stop at the dominant design but it
moves from being big steps and radical experimentation to focusing more on improvement
and refinement.
As the technology matures still further so this incremental innovation becomes more
significant and emphasis shifts to factors like cost — which means efforts within the
industries which grow up around these product areas tend to focus increasingly on
rationalization, on scale economies and on process innovation to drive out cost and improve
productivity.
Finally the stage is set for change — the scope for innovation becomes smaller and smaller
whilst outside — for example, in the laboratories and imaginations of research scientists —
new possibilities are emerging. Eventually a new technology emerges which has the potential
to challenge all the by now well-established rules — and the game is disrupted. In the camera
case, for example, this is happening with the advent of digital photography which is having
an impact on cameras and the overall service package around how you get, keep and share
your photographs. In our chemical case this is happening with biotechnology and the
emergence of the possibility of no longer needing giant chemical plants but instead moving to
small-scale operations using live organisms genetically engineered to produce what we need.
The table below sets out the characteristics of each of these stages in life cycle.

Stages in the innovation life cycle

This model helps us in two ways. First it is comforting to know that even disruptive change
does tend to follow a pattern — and that we might learn from that. The second is that we need
to think about our response in strategic terms — this is clearly not an area where we can
tinker around with the business. When technologies shift in discontinuous fashion then those
firms which simply respond with more of the same kind of improvement innovation are
essentially rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic!

The S-Curve
I would like to take the time to explain the concept of the Innovation S-Curve. As you can see
below the concept of the S-Curve is used to determine performance in regard to time or
effort. These are extremely important due to the fact that understanding where you are in
regard to this system determines how you should proceed in regard to innovation strategy. It
can also assist you in understanding your current risks and how to avoid certain pit-falls
common to products or services in certain phases of maturity.

Technology Life Cycle: the “S” Curve

Now if we look at the same S-Curve in the context of innovation in regard to an industry or
product we can see that there exists four major stages of innovation. These are Ferment,
Takeoff, Maturity, and Discontinuity.
 Industry or Product Lifecycle as an S-Curve

• Ferment - This is the when a product or industry is completely new. A dominant

design has not been recognized and competition to create the dominant design is
fierce.
• Takeoff - If a dominant design has been determined and the innovation crosses the
chasm of death you will see a rapid period of growth as the innovation moves towards
full market acceptance.
• Maturity - The product or industry has become a completely accepted by the general
public and has matured. It is at this point that only a few large players exist and the
markets are clearly defined. This is also the point when products become completely
standardized and the products are less and less unique.
• Discontinuity - Once a product has reached maturity it runs that risk of being
discontinued by newer technologies a great example of this was the transition from
film cameras to digital cameras.