The Role of New Trends of Technology in

Business in Today’s World

Group No. 03

H.D.L.H. BALAGALLA – BM/2019/128

W.A.B.H. WIJENDRA – BM/2019/174
M.G.M.U. KARUNATHILAKA – BM/2019/179
M.A. MADUSHIKA – BM/2019/184
S.P.S. SUDASINGHE – BM/2019/273
M.J. MADHUSANKA – BM/2019/509
B.D.K.G. SENARATHNE – BM/2019/533
M.K.T. JAYAMANNA – BM/2019/579
K.P.N. KULATHUNGA – BM/2019/583
T.D.S. JAYAWICKRAMA – BM/2019/597
JUDE JONATHAN – BM/2019/636

Department of Human Resource Management

Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies
University of Kelaniya
Date of submission – 10/02/2022
 Contents
 Executive Summary
 Roles of Technology Trends in Business
 AI Technology
 3D Printing
 Drone Technology
 Internet of Things
 Blockchain Technology
 Virtual Reality
 Digital Employees
 Robotic Process Automation
 Pros and Cons of Technology Trends
 Conclusion
 References
 Executive Summary

When we look at the environment around us in the 21st century, there are a lot of
examples of the use of technology. Technology has redesigned the way things are done. Its
use in every sector should be considered.

This report is an effort to elaborate the role of new trends of technology in business.
In business sector have been changed a lot, due to the use of innovations of technology and
new method of it. New technologies allow businesses to better understand their target market
and increase their efficiency and effective. Nowadays, small businesses are able to compete
with giants of the market and that has been made possible with the use of new trends,
methods of technology.

In here we have given an introduction about the use of technology in business and
new trends of it in the beginning. As the second part we have discussed eight technology
trends and their roles in business,

 Artificial Intelligence
 3D Printing
 Drones
 Internet of Things
 Block Chain
  Virtual Reality
 Digital Employees
 Robotic Process Automation.

And in third part we have included the pros and cons of the role of trends. Final part
we have included the conclusion which present the summary of the whole report and then
references are mentioned.

The Role of Technology in Business

Business is the production, distribution and sale of goods and services for a
profit. Technology is the science or knowledge applied in practice to solve problems or to
find useful tools. As the years go by, the business world becomes more and more inclined
towards that and the two are almost inseparable from each other. Business technology is a
growing need. The use of technology for business has taken a sudden but significant rise in
human history. Technological innovations began to rise in the 19th century. If you think
about it, these innovations are quite simple, but their impact on the business led to its
transformation into what it is today.

If technology is removed from the business, all major industries will collapse
catastrophically because they use technology in their operations and transactions. It provides
a faster, easier and more efficient way of doing business. Some of the functions of business
technology include accounting system, management information system, sales point systems
and other simple or more complex tools. Today, technology is rapidly evolving, enabling
rapidly changing progress, accelerating the pace of change. Entrepreneurs have also used
technology to their advantage. This is one of the reasons why technology companies like
Apple, Microsoft and Samsung are becoming the leading drivers of economic growth.

Today, every business cannot do without the IT sector. Keeping the

workforce up-to-date with emerging trends not only enhances productivity, but also has a
huge impact at the lowest level, so every company needs the technical knowledge of its staff.
As technology evolves, companies have a final need to cover technology. Therefore, in
today's world we can see new trends in business technology such as artificial intelligence,
internet and stuff, Big Data, Cloud computing, Digital Employees, Blockchain, 3D printing,
Robotics & automation, Drones. Those trends are very important and necessary for business
today. Due to these trends, businesses are able to carry out their business operations more
trustful, more efficiently and effectively than before.

Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is, using computers or robots that are controlled by computers to
perform tasks which are usually performed by humans and requires human intelligence.
Typical AIs observe their environment and take activities to increase their chances of
attaining their goals successfully.

Artificial intelligence mimic human expertise to identify patterns in large data sets.
Companies such as Amazon, Facebook, and Google etc. use artificial intelligence techniques
to identify data that is most relevant to us. Artificial intelligence may possess aspects of
human intellect such as speech recognition, decision-making, and visual perception. Another
feature is the ability to translate between languages.

Artificial intelligence is one of the most amazing technologies that will change people's lives
in practically every aspect of modern life. Many businesses and companies have already fast
to grab with this technology since it gives significant development opportunities.

Business operations in the twenty-first century are characterized by a high level of

complexity and tasks that are stressful and inefficient for humans to do. The data era has
taken over business in today's world. Companies can use data to gain useful insights into
strategies that can radically increase growth.

As a result, in today's business world, organizations must have a unique understanding of

their consumers' wants and preferences in order to grow and remain relevant in the face of
tough competition. Businesses can now use artificial intelligence to better understand and
engage customers, automate company operations, and increase productivity and revenue
while lowering operational costs.

The benefits of AI technology for business are as follows:

 Increase efficiency and effectiveness

 Save time and resources
 Reduce human effort
 Lower the cost of production
 Innovate at a higher level
 High accuracy in doing tasks

The role of AI technology in business in today’s world:

 Automation - as a result of automation people are no longer required to undertake

repetitive activities. By doing tedious or error-prone activities, it frees up employees'
time to focus on higher-value work.
 Data analytics -   Data analytics allows organizations to gain insights that were
previously inaccessible by discovering new patterns and correlations in data.
  Customer services using a telephone or chatbot – AI driven chatbots enable
businesses to give customer care services all the time. AI has allowed businesses to
automate communication via emails, online chats, and even telephone conversations.
 Fraud detection and prevention
 Predicting consumer behaviour and product suggestions
 Advertising and marketing messages that are tailored to the individual

Looking at the exciting future trends of AI, we may expect the following in the near future:

 Entertainment companies will create AI-generated songs and films.

 Fully automated factories requiring no human supervision
 Ai’s use to generate high-quality training data for itself, as well as to address bias and
data scarcity, and many more.

For the first time, AI's future potentials will give humans the actual power to design the
future exactly how we want it.
 3D Printing

A method of manufacturing known as 'Additive manufacturing', due to the fact that instead of
removing material to create a part, the process adds material in successive patterns to create
the desired shape.

Main areas of use:

 Prototyping
 Specialized parts aerospace, military, biomedical engineering, dental
 Hobbies and home use
 Future applications- medical (body parts), buildings and cars
3D Printing uses software that slices the 3D model into layers (0.01mm thick or less in most
cases). Each layer is then traced onto the build plate by the printer, once the pattern is
completed, the build plate is lowered, and the next layer is added on top of the previous one.

Typical manufacturing techniques are known as Subtractive Manufacturing' because the

process is one of removing material from a preformed block. Processes such as Milling, and
Cutting are subtractive manufacturing techniques. This type of process creates a lot of waste
since; the material that is cut off generally cannot be used for anything else and is simply sent
out as scrap.

3D Printing eliminates such waste since material is placed in the location that it is needed
only, the rest will be left out as empty space

Current and future applications of 3D Printing

 Biomedical Engineering
 Aerospace and Automobile Manufacturing
 Construction and Architecture
 Product Prototyping

Benefits
 SLS has many advantages over traditional manufacturing techniques. No special
tool is required, and the speed is much clearer as the parts can be built in a few hours. In
addition, it allows for more rigorous testing of SLS prototypes. Since SLS can use many
alloys, prototypes can now be functional hardware made from the same material as the
product components. SLS is one of the few additive manufacturing technologies used in
manufacturing. Because components are built layer by layer, interior features and passages
that cannot be molded or otherwise machined can be designed. Complex geometry with
multiple components and assemblies can be simplified into smaller parts with a cheaper
assembly. SLS does not require special tools such as molding, so it is easier to run short
products

Types of 3D printing

 There are also different types of 3D printing depending on the size, detail and scope
of a project. Each different type of printer will vary slightly on how an object gets
printed.

 Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is probably the most widely used form of 3D
printing. It’s incredibly useful for manufacturing prototypes and models with plastic.

 Stereolithography (SLA) Technology is a fast-prototyping printing type that is best

suited for printing in intricate detail. The printer uses an ultraviolet laser to craft the
objects within hours.

 Digital Light Processing (DLP) is one of the oldest forms of 3D printing. DLP uses
lamps to produce prints at higher speeds than SLA printing because the layers dry in
seconds.

 Continuous Liquid Interface Production (CLIP) is amongst the faster processes that
use Vat Photopolymerization. The CLIP process utilizes Digital Light Synthesis
technology to project a sequence of UV images across a cross-section of a 3D printed
part, resulting in a precisely controlled curing process. The part is then baked in a
thermal bath or oven, causing several chemical reactions that allow the part to harden
 Drone Technology

What is a drone? A drone, in technological terms, is defined as an unmanned aerial vehicle

(UAV). It is an aircraft without a human pilot on board and also called as a remotely piloted
aircraft (RPA) by the International Civil Aviation Organization. The drone has become
popular among many as a flying robot. It can be controlled by a remote controller device of a
pilot and autonomously by onboard computers. Initially, the innovation of drone is started in
the early 1900s. And it was used for training military personnel. So, drones were basically
developed for use in military services but nowadays we can see drones are used in different
business fields like agriculture, robotics, electronic, construction and photographic etc.

Drones are made in wide varieties of sizes, shapes and functions. There are two types of
drones.

1) MQ-9 Reaper.
It is known as a hunter killer surveillance UAV. They are usually used for military
and special operations applications.

2) DJI Phantom UAV.

It is used for commercial, educational, recreational areal photography and research
purposes.
In addition, with development of drone industry, specially, commercial drones are being used
more and more in various industries. This type of drones is more useful for collecting data
remotely. In inspection scenarios, using a drone to collect data in places inaccessible to
human reduces the exposure of people to dangerous situations.

Role of drone in business.

Today, drone technology has become increasingly widely used to facilitate lots of different
kind of business activities, as shown below.
 With innovation of drone technology, consumer companies like Amazon are using
drones for delivery service anywhere and medical drones now deliver medicine for
remote locations throughout the world.
 Drones are being used in the chemical industry to improve indoor inspections and to
collect visual data of large assets used in chemical processes.
 Construction mapping and surveying by construction companies was done by
walking, which can be quite slow. But now drones help to provide real-time maps of
progress and surveys and it can speed up wok and help to project planning.
 Specially, filmmaking companies use high-end drones to capture aerial shots for
movies.
 In the agriculture industry, farmers are able to use high-tech sensing drones to collect
data about various crops of large area in a relatively short period of time. And also,
drones are being used for chemical spraying. So, drones are very useful tool for
farming to improve yield and increase overall farm productivity and probability.
 Today, insurance companies use drones for gathered visual data of damages more
quickly and also use drones for accident reconstruction.
 Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and
digital machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers and the
ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-
computer interaction.

How are you reading this document right now? It might be on desktop, on mobile,
maybe a tablet, but whatever device you’re using, it’s most likely connected to the internet.
An internet connection is a wonderful thing, it give us all sorts of benefits that just weren’t
possible before. If you’re old enough, think of your cell phone before it was a smartphone.
You could call and you could text, sure, but now you can read any book, watch any movie, or
listen to any song all in the palm of your hand. The point is that connecting things to the
internet yields many amazing benefits. We’ve all seen these benefits with our smartphones,
laptops, and tablets, but this is true for everything else too. And yes, we do mean everything.
The Internet of Things is actually a pretty simple concept, it means taking all the physical
places and things in the world and connecting them to the internet.

The beneficial impact of IoT on business

Industry leaders are rapidly realizing the advantages of Internet of Things in business in
every sector. In fact, according to projections by business insider  , the number of IoT
devices in use in the industry will reach 55 billion by 2025.

IoT allows organizations to replace their manual asset tracking systems with automated
sensors. These sensors connect to the internet with centralized systems for real-time
monitoring of company assets. Moreover, IoT shows great promise for taking customer
satisfaction to the next level.
Advantages of internet of things in business

1. Effective utilisation of assets

2. Acquiring sensor driven Insights

3. Enhanced customer service

4. Increased communication between devices

5. Cost- effectiveness

6. IoT helps I machine learning.

Disadvantages of internet of things in business

1. Security and privacy problems

2. Technical complexity

3. Connectivity and power dependence

4. Integration

5. Time- consuming and expensive to implement

 Blockchain Technology

Blockchain is a chain of blocks that contains information. It is the technology that underpins
the crypto currency bitcoin. But bitcoin is not only version of a blockchain distributed ledger
system. Blockchain is a distributed, unchangeable ledger that makes recording transaction
and managing assets in a corporate network much easier. A tangible asset can be intangible
assets on a block chain network, virtually anything of value may be recorded and traded,
lowering risk and cutting cost for all parties.

It’s simply idea of blockchain, it’s a distributed database that is shared among computer
network nodes. A blockchain like a data base, stores information electronically in digital
format. It’s best known for their critical role in cryptocurrency system such as bitcoin in
keeping a secure and decentralized record of transaction. The blockchain’s innovation is that
it ensures the fidelity and security of a data record and generates trust without the need for a
tested third party.

the way data is structured differs significantly between a traditional database and blockchain.
A block chain collects information. Ingroups known as blocks, which hold sets of data. when
a block’s storage capacity is reached, it’s closed and linked to the pre vinous filled block,
forming a data chain known as the blockchain. All new information that follows that newly
added block is compiled into a newly format block, which is then added to the chain once it is
complete.

Why it important to business?

The faster and more accruable it is received the better. Because it delivers immediate,
sharable and entirely transparent information kept on an immutable ledger that can only be
viewed by permissioned network users, blockchain is excellent for delivering that
information orders, payment, account. Production and much more may all be tracked using a
blockchain network. Also, it is used to create a safety and transparent digital ledger of all
transactions and more efficient system for trading securities. Lenders use blockchain to
execute collateralized loans through smart contracts. Also, it is used in the logistics industry
as it helps to track items as they move through a logistics or supply chain network. we can
see all fact of a transitioned end since members share a single view of the truth, providing
you greeter confidence as well as additional efficiencies and opportunities

There are key elements of a blockchain

 Distributed ledger technology

 Immutable records
 Smart contras

There are several ways to build a blockchain network

 Public blockchain networks

 Privet blockchain networks
 Permissioned blockchain network
 Contributing blockchain
 Virtual Reality

The use of computer technology to create a simulated world is known as virtual reality
(VR). Unlike traditional user interfaces, virtual reality immerses the user in an
experience. Instead of looking at a screen, users are immersed in and able to interact with
3D environments. The computer is converted into a gatekeeper to this artificial world by
replicating as many senses as possible, including vision, hearing, touch, and even smell.
The main constraints to near-real VR experiences are a lack of content and inexpensive
processing power.

Real World Virtual Reality Examples

1. VOLVO Reality:

Volvo, a well-known automobile manufacturer, came up with a unique approach to use

Google Cardboard. Volvo executed a big campaign called #volvoreality for its Volvo XC
90 Luxury SUV, in which consumers could immerse themselves in a magnificent
mountain journey using Virtual .

Volvo wisely designed for numerous distribution tiers. The experience is tailored for
Google Cardboard, but it is also available as a video-only experience across devices.
Volvo's Virtual Reality campaign helped them reach a million impressions, and their out-
of-the-box approach was featured in PCMag.

2. 3D Matterport Spaces:

Matterport integrates Virtual Reality and 3D in the best way possible to provide unique
3D experiences in the real-world segment. Its wholly new immersive media encourages
users to conduct virtual tours and explore locations as if they were physically present. As
print photographs become increasingly obsolete and virtual reality sessions in 360
degrees become increasingly popular, Matterport offers an all-in-one reality capture
system with real estate tours in 4K quality. 3D graphics are also made accessible online or
for VR headsets such as the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive.

3. London's King's College

The capabilities of science, medicine, and health have considerably increased over the last
50 years, and with the advent of Virtual Reality, the medical profession is always looking
for methods to better. Once such outstanding action is taken by King’s College Clinical
Research facility. They treat people suffering from Bipolar Disorder using their cutting-
edge Virtual Reality Lab. The lab employs motion sensors that allow the user to walk
through a virtual environment that will trigger the patient for a certain reaction.
 Digital Employees
A digital employee is an automated team member who is trained to carry out
the business process just like any other employee, employees who can perform tasks quickly
and without error. All workgroups will have digital employees with people in the future. For
organizations, the key to success in the digital age is not just about technology. It's also about
developing a clear digital strategy based on an understanding of how the workplace is
changing and becoming increasingly mobile.

Organizations need to embrace a new way of wording that gets the best out of the 21"
century workforces. in the night hands, digital technologies can help employees work more
efficiently and effectively. Businesses need to be more agile and responsive to changes.

Benefits of digital employees

1. Attract the best talent

2. Retain talent

3. Maximum value can be obtained from employees

4. Increased flexibility

5. Increased revenue

6. Increase performance
 Robotic process automation (RPA)

RPA is the use of artificial intelligence to handle high volume, repetitive tasks that humans would
previously have performed such calculations, quarries and maintenance, of records or transactions.

RPA uses software (often referred to as robots or bots) to capture, learn from and then mimic the way
humans use and enter data to application. RPA is best suited for repeatable, predictable tasks carried
out in IT application. RPA can be used to automate time-digital processes that involve digital data,
which are rules based and are prone to error.

Multiple bots can be used as a robot workforce, with the cost of a license per bot being less that the
equivalent of an employee salary. Bots can also run 24 hours a day.

There are benefits other than cost, including improved accuracy, speed and flexibility. The Bots will
follow simple rules in making decisions. The human role then simplify becomes to manage any
exception.

Examples:

1) Accounting
RPA can be used for general ledger entry, budgeting, and transactional reporting
2) Financial service
RPA can be used for foreign exchange payments or processing insurance claims.
3) Human resource
HR tasks can be automated such as updating employee data and timesheet related tasks.
4) Procurement and supply chain management
RPA can be used for automate order processing, payments and to monitor inventory level.
 Pros and Cons of Technology Trends

Pros

• Easier, faster and more effective communication.

• New sales avenues.
• Less wastage.
• More effective marketing and promotions.
• More efficient stock management and ordering systems.

Cons

• Increased dependency on technology.

• Often large costs involved with using the latest technology
• Increased risk of job cuts.
• Closure of high street stores in favour of online business
 Conclusion

The information technology has already given rise to a wide range of change in the business
world. We hope that such changes will continue in the future. New marketing opportunities
are emerging, overcoming traditional products and services with new digital alternatives.
Businesses have to use information technology to keep up with the current competition.
Digital employees, internet of things, artificial intelligence, virtual & augmented reality,
blockchain,3d printing, drones and robotics & automation are the new technological trends
we talked. All the technological new trends mentioned above have a positive impact on
businesses. And also bring a new face and they contribute to the success of the business.
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