Instructor's Note: One of the things I try to do from time to time is introduce some perspectives to the issue of technological change that don't appear in the course texts (for example, the Tushman articles we looked at earlier). It is in this spirit that I've set up this week's discussion, which is based on an impact analysis method developed by Sandeep Mehta. In a few weeks you're going to begin to lay the groundwork for proposing and implementing a technological change at your place of work (or, if you prefer, at an organization with which you're familiar), so now is as good of a time as any to start laying the groundwork for that change plan. I hope you find this article helpful, even if the English is a little suspect.
Discussion Questions:
Before you get started, think of a technological change you would like to propose at your place of work. You are going to be working with this particular change plan on and off for the rest of the semester, so be sure you pick a good one! You might find it helpful to review your mid term project, take a strong look at the processes and personnel that you included therein, and then decide on a technological change that will best suit the firm's needs.
I give a lot of latitude on the kind of change you can propose, but there are a couple of guidelines. Specifically, the change needs to be substantial enough to warrant an implementation plan, but not so large as to be completely beyond the scope of this assignment. In my experience the most appropriate changes for this assignment are those that come in at the $5K-$20K range. To better illustrate, let me give you some examples of changes that students have proposed in the past that didn't make the cut;
- New computers for every store in a large, nationwide hardware chain (waaayyyy too big of a change for this assignment).
- A new time clock to record employee hours at a box-store retailer (not nearly substantial enough).
OK then- with that said, once you've decided on a technological change complete the following.
1) Tell us the name of the company for which the change is being proposed (or, if you'd rather, the industry in which it resides), and the change you're proposing.
2) Conduct the impact analysis as outlined in Mehta's white paper. Hit on points A,B,C,D,E,F and H (I won't ask you to conduct an ROI, so you can ignore 'G'). There is a discussion of costs and benefits on pg. 62 of the Haddad text that you may want to refer to in order to help you with these questions. Provide sustained andthoughtful responses to these questions- to get a feel for whether you've 'done enough', look over your answers when you're finished and see if you would feel comfortable presenting your impact analysis to your boss. I've included an impact analysis checklist in doc sharing that should give you some ideas of some points you may want to touch upon.
3) Respond to another student's posting. As with the discussion we had earlier on strategic intent, your response should offer a constructive-- but critical-- assessment of another student's analysis. What points could be strengthened? What major questions has the author failed to discuss in sufficient detail? Twenty percent of your grade for this assignment will be based on the quality of your critique.