ACF100 10100101010101

ACF100 10100101010101
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Otoño
08
Otoño

Tingting Luan, Eirini Marini, George Mills, Alex Nath, Trang Nguyen
Tingting Luan, Eirini Marini, George Mills, Alex Nath, Trang Nguyen

Miniproject Michaelmas 2013

Consider the uses and importance of new technology for organizational success

Miniproject Michaelmas 2013

Consider the uses and importance of new technology for organizational success

Business Environment
Business Environment

Table of Contents

* Introduction……………………………………………………...........................2 * Discussion * Human Resource Management………………………………………….3 * Research & Development……………………………………………….4 * Supply Chain Management……………………………………………..5 * Production………………………………………………………………6 * Customer Relations……………………………………………………..7 * Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...8 * Reference List…………………………………………………………………10

Introduction

The technological boom of the new millennium has revolutionised the world we live in. It is advancing at such a rate that it has become near impossible for any organisation or individual to ignore it. It is central to modern day living as it is used in communication, transport and even impacts one’s leisure activities. We are not just in coexistence with technology but we are now reliant on it. As such, data is growing at an outstanding rate with the world data stores doubling every 20 months, which is hardly surprising given there are now more Internet connected devices than there are human beings (Taylor, 2013).

Organisational success can be seen as firms finding a system under which they operate at their optimal efficiency where they best serve their stakeholders interests. To achieve organisational success, firms have to undergo continuous change in order to maintain comparative advantage over their competition. It can be seen that one way companies can achieve said advantage is through the greater utilisation of technology. Technology can help reduce costs, boost productivity, improve access to markets and build on post-sale customer relations. As such, firms are being forced to at least consider the implementation of technology throughout all areas of their business operations.

The report will consider various divisions and observe how technology influences them now and how it will influence them moving forward. For this, the departments reviewed were: Human Resource Management, Customer Relations, Research & Development, Production and Supply Chain Management. For each area, the impact of technology was assessed from various points of view and numerous sources.

Human Resource Management The 2006 CIPD report reveals details of a study (which at the time was ongoing) of human resource information systems uses by organizations. Given the time of writing the report was most likely written in response to the boom in technology seen across all aspects of life and business from the early 2000s. The source is reliable given that it was written by a reputable organization for human resource professionals to be read by human resource professionals. Further, the source includes references to interviews with industry experts as evidence. However, the report is now more than 7 years old and as such it is fair to assume at some of the ideas are becoming dated. The report is consistently favorable toward the use of information systems by HR teams, outlining its uses “for recruitment and selection, performance evaluation, compensation and benefits, training and development, health and safety”…the list continues. It then goes on to give examples of just how information systems can help achieve improvements in these areas. Examples include, how O2 (the telecommunications network) were able to create “an online Total Reward Statement tool that enabled all its UK employees to see all the elements of their total reward package” (CIPD, p. 11). As a result of this tools statistical analysis O2 were able to identify the key areas of interest for their employees, enabling HR to prioritize employee communication. Whilst light on the topic, the report does briefly cover the costs attached to implementing technology into human resources, quoting that in a CIPD survey only 35% of responses agreed that the systems could help achieve cost reduction. This helps highlight one of our group’s worries on how technology can help lead to organizational success – the initial and in some cases continuous costs are so high.

Research & Development Research and development plays a crucial role in the firm’s production of goods. The chosen extract speaks of the implementation of virtual R&D teams in small and medium enterprises. This new form of research and development, brought about by contemporary technological tools, is simply clusters of members working together from around the world, using technology to coordinate and plan their projects. These are taken up by firms to reduce costs thanks to their advanced efficiency and organization. The most basic application of technology in virtual R&D divisions is communication. As these research & development teams are commonly spread over the world, especially ones belonging to the larger corporations, a great deal of communication is required. This involves day-to-day tools such as telecommunications, e-mail, video call and many other means that bring about coherency and efficiency (Ale Ebrahim, p. 110). Overall, the authors of the extract conclude that virtual R&D teams lead to reduced time and expense, increased efficiency and coordination, and better output. Additionally, since there are no travel costs and these teams can be used no matter their position, firms that use these groups will further reduce their costs and boost productivity (Ale Ebrahim, p. 112). The source selected has a very specific focus, it speaks of the implementation of virtual R&D teams in SMEs (small and medium enterpises) in Malaysia. Although this topic might seem irrelevant to the argument, it provided some useful information for the subject at hand. It spoke largely of how virtual R&D teams work, exposing the technological foundations they use. However the conclusion of this report can be considered subjective, as it applies only to Malaysian SMEs. All of the information was collected amongst these entities, which might present a distorted view of how virtual R&D teams work. However, the main principles behind these divisions still stand, in any environment, they would allow firms to reduce costs and boost efficiency in their department.

Supply Chain Management

The supply chain of a business is an inseparable part of its foundation. We are going through a time of high volatility, instability and uncertainty. One necessary action needed by the business, in order for it to survive and continue to operate is to alter its supply chain process into a more flexible one. The aim of this change is effective and efficient adaptability so that the business is able to change as fast as the world around it.

A 2012 Accenture Report on Dynamic Operations, stresses the value of supply chain innovations in the era of permanent volatility. Technological advances are an essential element for a business to remain viable and competitive within its industry. More specifically, it assists the three key characteristics of a smart supply chain which are instrumentation, interconnection and intelligence.

A demonstrative example of how an adaptable supply chain can be proven extremely important in the current volatile business environment is Nissan. In 2011 Japanese automakers were faced with an earthquake in Japan and the Thailand floods. These two natural disasters severely harmed production throughout the Japanese car industry with the exception of Nissan which was the first to rebound into business. Nissan was able to restrain the damage on a local basis and thus overall be significantly less hurt in its global parts-supply operations compared to its Japanese competitors.

Among the several innovative steps taken by Nissan which comprised this result was Nissan’s global low-cost “V” platform for vehicles in emerging markets. This platform has provided the opportunity for Nissan to expand its production base across the globe because it used standardized parts in different production facilities. Thus under the previously described circumstances Nissan was in a position to promptly re-source parts from China, by that restricting production constraints locally. Subsequently global operations were largely unaffected.

Production

Technology was viewed by Woodward (1965, cited in Clegg, Kornberger and Pitsis, 2008, p.539) as “the production methods in use in a firm’’ so that it involved process and workforce. Based on the Woodward’s viewpoint, Clegg, Kornberger and Pitsis (2008) provide useful insights into the utilization and significance of technologies in production.

Firstly, according to authors, in terms of the process of production, technologies are classified into different types that can boost the productivity of firms as employed in appropriate management methods. Indeed, technologies can be applied to small batch and unit production in which products are tailored designs. More importantly, technologies appear to be an irreplaceable tool in the larger scales of production runs and diversity of consumers in large batch and mass production or process production where a production flow is continued on a ‘‘24/7 basic’’ with the ‘‘specifications and standards’’ required (p.541). It is obvious that organisations can gain economies of scale from cheaper cost of production due to reduction in overhead and, as a result, gain competitive advantages. Secondly, as for the worthwhile benefit of technologies in that variety of production types, technology is a seemingly crucial factor that brings outstanding opportunities for globalisation, one of criteria selected for assessing organisations’ success. In fact, as supported by the text, technology is exploited to not only separate “back-office routine functions’’ but also access and locate them to new and cheaper resources, especially in the car industry (p.38).

Nonetheless, other authors’ argue relating to workforce is that the more complex technologies organisations utilise, the more advanced education and training labours are expected to obtain; shifts in technological paradigms, also, lead to new competences of managers. Therefore, the text is powerful to suggest organisations should weight not only the outcome but also the cost of processing certain technological approaches.

Customer Relations

With the advent of new technology a huge mass of various changes has influenced our lives, even overturned them completely. Businesses in order to remain competitive within their industry should achieve the optimal level of consumer satisfaction. This can be obtained through an innovative set of customer relations.

New technology bridges the gap between the producer and the consumer. A number of areas are able to expand by taking advantage of the new technological breakthroughs. For example, a customer who wants to buy a car could use the firm’s electronic space dedicated to answering their personal questions concerning the quality or distribution of the cars. As a result, the customer has the opportunity to make an informative decision based on her own standards. Thus creating a direct link between the company and the satisfied customer.

An alternative way for a business to achieve consumer satisfaction through its customer services department is to get an insight of the popular demand relative to its product. More specifically, assembling customer data and applying new analytics and management methods can lead to the firm understanding, anticipating and thereby making production decisions based on the preferences and needs of its customers.

The combination of the aforementioned technological advances implemented in the customer relations of a firm increase not only the satisfaction of the customer but also and most importantly its loyalty. The article mentions clearly that a business that succeeds into being responsive to customer inquiries, complaints, or other needs can sustain and potentially increase its competitiveness within its industry (Inc Staff, 2013). Therefore, the use of new technologies in this component of the business as whole is imperative.

Conclusion

The importance of technology is clear, it contributes to organisational success in numerous ways, such as reduction of costs, minimisation of risk, and therefore maximisation of profits. However, initial costs for appropriate technology are relatively high. For traditional businesses focused on sustained long run profits the costs related to technology, which can be great, are of little importance. These costs will be covered by the increased profit margins assuming ceteris paribus. On the other hand, companies focused on the short run will not see the previously mentioned long run benefits.

To be more precise, the adoption of technology by Human Resource Management divisions can lead to decreased process completion times and, as an example, the use of intranet policy books can help firms reduce their need for expensive HR staff and allow managers to focus on larger scale issues. In the same manner, it can be seen that the implementation of new technology in Research and Development is crucial. To take on innovative and dynamic forms, such as contemporary virtual R&D teams, cutting-edge technology has to be made use of. In this specific case, advanced tools allow virtual R&D divisions to provide their standard services from any location and at a lower cost for the firm.

The supply chain of a business needs to reflect the fast-paced changes happening in the volatile world around it. Nissan’s example demonstrates the organizational success that can be achieved through a flexible supply chain process that is at the same time effective and efficient. The innovative implementation of new technology has enabled Nissan to gain a competitive advantage within the Japanese car industry when unexpected circumstances arose. In the discourse of production, the application of technology brings the worthwhile benefits of economies of scale as costs of production have the potential to be drastically reduced. Moreover, compared to other organisations' tools, technology is viewed as the one that can help specialise each step of production at different places and times.

Last but not least, technological advancements can be utilised in customer service departments so as to optimise customer satisfaction. Progressive website designs as well as pioneering data analytics and management can reveal as much as calculate customer preferences.

The importance of new technology for organisational success is irrefutable. The surmounting evidence brought about through the division and examination of a typical business structure confirms that companies using innovative technology have a competitive advantage within their industry.

Reference List

Ale Ebrahim, N. (2011) “The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs” IEMS, Vol. 10, 109-114.

Clegg, S., Kornberger, M., Pitsis, T. (2008) Management and organisations. 2nd ed. London: Sage.

Deep A., Godfrey G., Naik S., Simchi-Levi D. (2012) Dynamic Operations Supply Chain Innovations for the Era of Permanent Volatility, Accenture

How to Use Technology to Improve Customer Service (2013) How to Use Technology to Improve Customer Service, Inc.com. http://www.inc.com/guides/cust_tech/20909.html. [Accessed 19/11/2013].

Kenneth Leighton R., Parry E., Selbie D., Tyson S. (2007) HR and Technology: Impact and Advantages. Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development.

Taylor, P. (2013) IT trends shape future corporate strategies. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4715c80c-c3f4-11e2-8c30-00144feab7de.html#axzz2l6KCb7X1 [Accessed 19/11/13]