Principles of Technology

Management – (FUS-CC-623)

M.Tech(Technology Management)-II Sem

Department of Futures Studies
University of Kerala
 Module I - Syllabus
• Management of Technology – Definitions ,
Scope, Implications – Concepts , Issues
• What is Technology?
• Management as Technology
• Scope of Technology Management
• Systems Model
• Integrated and Holistic Models
• Strategic , Operational ,Management Issues
• Classification of Technologies
Reference Book
• “A Handbook of Technology Management”,
Gerard H. Gus Gaynor , MC- Graw Hill , 1996.
 MANAGEMENT OF TECHNOLOGY(MOT):
A DESCRIPTION
• What is Management of Technology (MOT) ?
For many people ,
MOT means Managing Engineering
For Others ,
MOT means Managing Information,
Managing Research,
Managing Development,
Managing Manufacturing operations,
Managing the activities of Engineers and Scientists OR
Managing Functional activities
• Without concern for the “ Total Spectrum of activities” that encompass the
“Business Concept to Commercialization Process”.
• Those Inter-related activities must be “Integrated” into a “Technology Management System”.
• Only one keyword that must be emphasized in the “Management of Technology” is
“INTEGRATION”.
• MOT involves managing the system and it also involves managing the pieces but neither the
system nor the pieces can be subordinated.
• MOT involves “Integrating” the “Pieces” into an acceptable “Whole” by focusing attention on
Independent of Pieces
What is MOT?
• To understand MOT ,it is necessary to clarify
• What we mean by Management?
&
• What we mean by Technology?
Then Explain What is MOT?
Technology
• Technology can be viewed in many different ways,
Tool
Physical Manifestation
Knowledge
Applied Science
Academic Discipline
• In here , We view “Technology” as a “ Tool”.
• It is a means for accomplishing some end.
MOT
To understand just what MOT includes,
• It is necessary to clearly differentiate between
“Management” and “Administration”.
• “Management” involves Degree of Creativity , Leadership ,
Risk and Concern about Future Performance.
• “Administration” involves Supervising the assigned
“Activities” or “Tasks” that are essential to keep an
Organization afloat.
• Management or more appropriately , Managing is a Complex
Process – much more complex that Administration.
MOT
• MOT requires “Leadership” that leadership function must
focus on long term as well as short term requirements in order
to maintain the viability of the firm.
• This kind of “Leadership” requires Focus and Discipline ,
moves the organization into future and it should take places at
all levels of organization.
• The traditional approach that the leader is at the top is no longer
viable , if ever it was.
• It is certainly not viable for Managing the Technology where
Technology Leadership is expected at all levels.
• CEO’s do not make the decisions that determine Success or
Failure of Technology.
Management
• Management is not a Science.
• As much as researchers try, they cannot and have not developed any
consistent theories that guide human performance in a logical sequence
from point a to point b.
• Not only are people different, but the same person acts and reacts
differently in different situations.
• There are no mathematical equations that can be written and then applied
to describe the interactions that take place between people.
• At best,
Management is an “applied art” that involves using the linkage of
data, information, knowledge, and the social interaction between
people in solving problems or pursuing opportunities.
Administration
• Administration implies following Rules and Regulations.
• It implies following Predetermined Processes and Methods.
• Words such as Creativity, Innovation and Risk are not in the
Administrator's lexicon.
• This does not mean that Creativity and Innovation are not essential to the
organization
• It does not excuse these administration functions from exercising their
creativity in a systematic way toward continuous improvement.
• In MOT administration,
Creative accounting on a daily basis would most likely be
challenged. Creativity and innovation may not be desirable attributes for
the payroll department. Pay checks must be issued in the correct amount
and on time.
• In essence, Administration means fulfilling the routine activities of the
organization. These routine activities can neither be ignored nor dominate
the actions of the organization.
 Management and Administration
• The distinction between Management and Administration becomes of greater importance
in considering the issues related to the Management of Technology.
• For many years ,Managers involved in managing the technical activities of the business have
tended to spend a greater percentage of their time on Routine administrative matters.
• Managers in science and engineering in many situations have become “Paper pushers”.
• Much of this evolution from management to administration came about as a result of some
misguided human resource professionals and academic behavioral scientists-the manager was
not to interfere and was to let scientists and engineers do their own thing and let every
employee start at the bottom of the learning curve.
• In the process, the role of the manager as teacher was totally ignored.
• Both Management and Administration are essential.
• The question that must be answered in the context of the Organization's purposes and
objectives is: What is the proper balance between management and administration?
• The answer depends on the many characteristics that define the organization-the Resources,
Infrastructure, and the Activities in which the organization engages.
• The proper balance may be quite different for an Automotive company like Ford and a
Multiproduct innovative company like 3M.
• The balance will be quite different for an Order-entry department and a Research
department.
• The best product cannot be introduced on time, within specifications and requirements, and at
estimated cost without the effective performance of many routine activities.
What is “Technology”?
• The word Technology usually conjures up many different
images and generally refers to what has been described as the
“High-Tech" (High-Technology) industries.
• Limiting technology to High-Tech industries such as
Computers, Chips, Superconductivity, Genetic
engineering, Robotics, and so on.
• Mainly it focuses excessive attention on What the Media
consider Newsworthy.
• Limiting technology to science, engineering, and mathematics
also losses sight of other supporting technologies.
• Technology includes more than machines, processes, and
inventions.
What is “Technology”?
• There are many different manifestations of technology;
some are very simple and others, very complex.
• A “Description of technology” in the MOT context must go
beyond the Traditional.
• Technology can be described in different ways:
1. Technology is the means for accomplishing a task-it
includes whatever is needed To convert resources into
Products or Services.
2. Technology includes the Knowledge and Resources that
are required To achieve an objective.
3. Technology is the body of Scientific and Engineering
Knowledge which can be applied in the design of products
and/or processes or in the search for new knowledge.
“Management” as a “Technology”
• Is management a technology?
• The response can be a resounding "yes" or a resounding "no."
• The response depends on the limits placed on the “Description of
Technology”.
• Every management action requires a process-or at the least should follow a
process. But that process must be accompanied by substance, action, and
integrity.
• All decisions should follow some predetermined “Process” regardless of
whether the decision involves a major financial investment or the
introduction of some new human resource program. Both involve
allocation of resources, so a fiscally responsible action must be guided by
some process.
“Management” as a “Technology”-
Definition
• “Management as a Technology” can be described as the
process of integrating the business unit resources and
infrastructure in the fulfillment of its defined purposes,
objectives , strategies, and operations.
• This is a simple statement with significant implications for
“Management of Technology”.
• If the broader descriptions in 1 and 2 are accepted, then
Management definitely is a Technology.
• If the restrictive approach of description 3 (technology as a
body of scientific and engineering knowledge) is used,
Management would probably not be considered as a
Technology.
Contd...
• It could be argued that descriptions 1 and 2 are so broad that they encompass
all of management and further that considering “Management as a
Technology” is stretching the description of technology . It is true that the
broad perspective is all-encompassing,
• But then technology in one form or another or to a greater or lesser extent
drives most organizations-especially those that are concerned about the
future.
• If it does not drive the product base, it does drive the distribution process
from order entry to customer satisfaction.
• Technology cannot be restricted to the manufacturing industries.
• It encompasses not only the manufacturing sector but all industries-
agriculture, airlines , banks, communication, entertainment, fast food,
clothing, hospitals, insurance , investment, and so on-and determines future
viability of the business unit as well as the industry.
Contd...
• There is no limit to the way in which organizations
can describe technology.
• The important point is that organizations define
“what they mean by technology”.
• The description of technology as the means for
Accomplishing a task;
• It includes whatever is needed to convert
Resources into Products and Services.
• This is a holistic approach and differentiates
MOT from the single-issues approach-managing
engineering, managing research, and so on.