The discussion from class last week in regards to the article IT Doesn’t Matter brought up some very interesting points. One aspect of this article that stood out to me the most is that even if a company builds a proprietary system in regards to IT, it could easily be replaced. With the rapid advancements in technology, things are constantly changing. In effect, it creates a continuously evolving culture. Even if a company possesses a proprietary system one day, the very next day a new technology could come out that completely obliterates what the company has spent so much money creating. For example, AHS had a competitive advantage with its electronic ordering system, ASAP. However once personal computers and software arrived, AHS’s competitive advantage took a downturn. Therefore, I think it is crucial to be extremely cautious when spending large sums of money on new technological advancements. Companies should make sure they find the right technology for them. Rather than getting caught up in the whirlwind of technology, companies should make careful, cautious decisions and know that being the first to market is not always the best alternative. Sometimes it is better to wait and copy other applications, but with the intent on finding some missed opportunity in the market and making that application better than the competitor. Examples of companies that waited and were lucrative in making this decision are Dell and Wal Mart. Like Dr. Miller said in class last week, it is not the technology that always provides the competitive advantage it is the talent of the people who are innovative enough to come up with ways to improve technologies in order to keep up with current trends. Just because a company has created a fascinating new application that has helped it gain market share does not mean it can stop and just reap the benefits. This company needs talented people who are constantly thinking of ways to improve this application in order to maintain its competitive advantage.
Thus companies really need to think about their decisions when it comes to IT. They must make sure they make the right decisions for their company and they do not get caught up in keeping up with the Jones’. This will help reduce wasteful costs and make IT more valuable.
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2 comments:
To some extend I agree to what you are saying. It is true that we need talented people to do the work, but it is also true that in such a so called E-world we need right IT tools and applications to make life and things easier for the talented individual. I think the combination is always unbeatable. So, to me IT does matter and I am glad I am in the era were it is used commonly.
I have a similar point of view. Many people falsely believe computer technology equals business competitiveness. Only if it is so, life will become much easier.
Since the computer age has started, we tended to believe computer is the ultimate solution for almost everything. We have shifted the human factors, consciously or unconsciously, behind computer technology. We constantly telling the inquirers that we have to check our records on our database, we will change our design with the latest software, and we will inform you the all the changes by e-mail.
See what I am getting at? It is never about the computers. It is us who communicate with others. It is our mind which says what is more important.
We can always say "Based on what is shown on our database..." It is, at the end, we are the one who make the final decision.
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