Introduction
Globalization has brought about rapid technological improvement across different parts of the world, an aspect that has contributed to significant impact on the growth of different companies. Technological innovation has resulted in more efficiency in production and increased profitability in companies. The paper seeks to explain the strategies used in enhancing technological development in organizations, pressing competence issues and competitive advantage of the concept (technology), and its impact on globalization. The paper utilizes an example of AssaAbloy, which is a manufacturing company of door opening solution that employed a new innovation to enhance efficiency.
Impact of Technology Improvements to a Company/ an Industry
The 21st century has experienced tremendous changes in technology enhancement, which has changed the face of institutions and industries in the global setting. Innovation has in the recent past increased at a fast rate, and the situation is expected to continue into the future (Charles et al., 2015). The aspect has enabled organizations to develop competitive advantage in the market and achieve efficiency in their respective operations. People in different groups have a chance to communicate across the globe due to telecommunication, an aspect that has enhanced business operations.
Nonetheless, one of the impacts of technology is enhanced globalization, as companies can venture into business activities with others firms in different parts of the world. The introduction of the internet has made multinational organizations to establish satellite offices in various parts of the world and effectively communicate. Therefore, the strategy has helped develop remote areas, which had been deprived of an opportunity to expand as a result of lack of efficient communication devices. The global setting is characterized by computers and information technology, a feature that plays a significant role in the day to day activities (Charles et al., 2015).
We live in a society that is marked by change, and effective management of technological change is required for sustainability purposes. Companies in the current generation ought to take advantage of the numerous technological breakthroughs and stop relying on a few innovations. The management of the particular organizations ought to identify and secure the innovation so as to benefit from the competitive advantage offered by the novelty. The concept (technology and innovation) helps enhance a firm's profitability, positioning, and performance in the global market setting which is suitable for growth purposes (Charles et al., 2015).
Globalization was enhanced with elimination of the various barriers from the international market, and companies have sought to benefit from the existing opportunities in the global setting. Together, globalization and innovation have led to the maximization of efficiency among companies, production of quality products and efficient satisfaction of consumers’ needs. Globalization has resulted in increased demand for organizational products hence contributed to mass production, a feature that reduces production cost due to economies of scale. Companies in the global setting have sought to capitalize on technological development as one approach through which they can gain a competitive advantage in the market and experience product differentiation (Charles et al., 2015).
Major Technological Improvement at AssaAbloy
An example of a company to use in the above paper is AssaAbloy, which is a leading manufacturer of the door opening solutions. The company has received tremendous growth in the recent past due to technological innovation as will be explained shortly. However, it is worth noting that as managers strive to obtain more sophisticated innovations to manage their business efficiently, the cost of acquiring the aspect is also increasing. Innovation has brought about customized programs that meet the respective needs of business in the global setting, a feature that is often demanded for efficiency purpose (Arasti et al., 2016). Technology has brought more solutions to help the organization achieve effectiveness in production, a feature that helps save time and resources while at the same time reducing cost.
Situation before implementation
Before implementation of a new technique to solve the previous challenge, the company used to depend on ERP system that worked independently in the different business units. However, the company required using a single system as a global solution to enhance efficiency. The new technique that was developed is ColumbusManufacturing that involved automation of the manufacturing process, hence eliminating the different manual processes. Some of the key challenges that were experienced by the company before implementation included inefficient production, high maintenance costs, and low profitability.
Impact
Through the implementation of the above technique (ColumbusManufacturing), the company was able to reduce errors by over 80% and experienced faster production. Moreover, the automation process introduced an online portal through which customers can place an order, an attribute that led to increased profitability. The new technique gave the company a competitive advantage in the market as it experienced production at a reduced cost compared to rival companies in the market.
As illustrated by Charles et al., (2015), the low-tech companies often experience high average costs of production due to inefficient operations while the high-tech companies can produce at a low cost, an aspect that results in more profitability. However, for pioneering companies that invent a given technique, they often experience a chance of benefiting from a wide range of products offered by the business.
Competitors
ColumbusManufacturing is a customized technique which is Unique to AssaAbloy. Other manufacturing companies use different tactics in gaining efficiency which is an advantage to the company as it benefits from the varied benefits of the concepts, hence gains a competitive advantage in the market. As mentioned earlier, the technique has significantly reduced errors in production and enhanced efficiency due to reduced paper work. However, the company experienced high initial costs, as the innovation was outsourced from Microsoft Dynamics. However, the company worked closely with the organizational management in successfully implementing the technology into use at AssaAbloy. For sustainability purposes, it is imperative to appreciate that with more innovation, organizations tend to depend more on outside resources due to increased costs of technological innovation.
Impact of Additional Technology Improvements
However, to address on the prospects of the company, it is worth appreciating that the corporation is yet to fully exploit the existing opportunities in the market. Therefore, with more investment in research and development, the company will experience enhanced efficiency in the future due to continuous innovation.
Conclusion
Innovation is vital to conducting day to day business activities and has effectively replaced the traditional methods which were inefficient, as experienced in the case of our company AssaAbloy. The rationale of technology in the business setting is the development of efficiency, as organizations can experience more productivity at a faster rate and a reduced cost hence resulting in more profit in the end. Companies that invest a lot of resources in technological development such as Apple have succeeded in the international market due to the competitive advantage acquired from the same. It is worth concluding that globalization is facing a lot of uncertainty, which can be effectively managed with investment in technology.
References
Arasti, M., Khaleghi, M., & Noori, J. (2016). Corporate-level technology strategy and its linkage with corporate strategy in multi-business companies: IKCO case study. Technological Forecasting and Social Change.
Charles W., L., Jones G., R., & Schilling M., A., (2015. Strategic management: An integrated approach. United States: South-Western College Publishing.
