We used the Amazon story about cloud computing to introduce the course. The objective was to show the implications of emerging technology for firms that develop/supply, as well as for firms that adopt the technology. Firms that supply the new technology hope that the technology will be adopted by a large percentage of the targeted population. We leveraged analytics and big data to explore adoption rate of cloud computing as well as the market reaction (investors and analysts implicit assumptions) regarding the expected adoption of cloud computing by the market.
The special report on cloud computing let us see the same story from the adopting firms’ standpoint. Adoption of emerging technologies has important implications for performance and competitive position of adopting firms. Firms have to consider which technologies to invest on, when to adopt the technology, as well as monitor and evaluate the expected and realized benefits from these technology related investments. During the course we will be using the Whirlpool case study to explore the multifaceted implications of technology adoption and its competitive implications.
The special report on cloud computing let us see the same story from the adopting firms’ standpoint. Adoption of emerging technologies has important implications for performance and competitive position of adopting firms. Firms have to consider which technologies to invest on, when to adopt the technology, as well as monitor and evaluate the expected and realized benefits from these technology related investments. During the course we will be using the Whirlpool case study to explore the multifaceted implications of technology adoption and its competitive implications.
Topics and Readings for Week 2
Lecture: Adoption of emerging technologies implies that firms will allocate resources in their IT budget. In Chapter 1 we will explore some patterns related to IT spending over time and across industries. When firms invest in IT, they expect to achieve certain objectives. The justification, possible manifestations, and expected payoffs of IT spending are the remaining topics that we will discuss in the rest of chapter 1. (Read Chapter 1).
Firms invest in IT hoping to increase sales, reduce costs, or both. While the argument sounds reasonable, early empirical evidence showed that this expected positive association between IT spending and firm performance should not be taken for granted. Maximizing the payoffs from IT investment requires planning and the development of a vision regarding the role of IT in the organization (IT strategy) that is aligned with the firm's business strategy. We will start exploring strategic management related topics and business strategy in Chapter 2 (Read pp. 80-96)
Seminar: We will continue our practice problems related to technology adoption (Read Appendix 1B) and explore IT spending patterns (Read Appendix 1C-1D). In exploring IT spending we will combine industry level IT spending data from IW500 with financial data from Compustat.
Assignments/Quizzes.
The second online quiz will be a based on Chapter 1 and the Whirlpool case, as well as material we cover in lecture/seminar. The quiz will be available on Friday at 12:30 pm.
All the best.
Prof. Stratopoulos
