SRI SHARADA INSTITUTE OF INDIAN MANAGEMENT - RESEARCH Approved by AICTE Plot No. 7, Phase-II, Institutional Area, Behind the Grand Hotel, asant !un", Ne# $elhi % &&''7' MANAGEMENT OF TECHNOLOGY AND CHANGES ON LMMS AND FA CEBOOKSUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY: Prof.N Ve nkat!"aran V#$a% Kr#na &'()(()(*+ 1
Synopsis Innovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes services, technologies, or ideas that are acceptedby markets,governments, andsociety. Innovation differs from invention in that innovation refers to the use of a new idea or method, whereas invention refers more directly to the creation of the idea or method itself.
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Innovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes services,
technologies, or ideas that are acceptedby markets,governments, andsociety.
Innovation differs from invention in that innovation refers to the use of a
new idea or method, whereas invention refers more directly to the creation of the
idea or method itself.
Go/a #nno0at#on #n1e2
This international innovation index is part of a large research study that looks at
both the business outcomes of innovation and governments ability to
encourage and support innovation through public policy. The study comprised a
survey of more than !,""" senior executives from #$% member companies across
all industries& in'depth interviews with (" of the executives& and a comparison of
the )innovation friendliness) of !!" countries and all *" +.. states. The findingsare published in the report, )The Innovation Imperative in %anufacturing- How the
+nited tates an /estore Its 0dge.) The report discusses not only country
performance but also what companies are doing and should be doing to spur
innovation. It looks at new policy indicators for innovation, including tax
incentives and policies for immigration, education and intellectual property. The
latest index was published in %arch 1""2.3 To rank the countries, the study
measured both innovation inputs and outputs. Innovation inputs included
government and fiscal policy, education policy and the innovation environment.4utputs included patents, technology transfer, and other /56 results& business
performance, such as labor productivity and total shareholder returns& and the
impact of innovation on business migration and economic growth.
CASE STUDY )Lat M#e Mo/#e So3t#on &LMMS+: Te4!noo5% an1 Partner#n5 for So4#a
Inno0at#on
World 7ision and our Information Technology 8IT9 partners have developed innovative software
for use on robust mobile computers to meet an unmet need in humanitarian applications. This
:ast %ile %obile olutions initiative is applied to field‐ based data collection, management and
analysis processes in an effort to eliminate duplication, streamline business variations, and
remove complexity. /esults from the food‐ programming domain verified substantial benefits
including a reduction in the time to generate key reports by ;"< and a reduction in beneficiary
pre‐ processing and verification times at aid distributions by approximately =*< .
Cae St31% S366ar%
These positive outcomes have led to overwhelming support from within World 7ision and our
partners for the expansion of these innovations. $s such, :%% is now at the start of a ;"‐
month expansion drive across all World 7ision food‐ programming activities. This case study
describes the innovation process and demonstrates how IT and effective partnering with the
private sector can foster opportunities for significant social innovation.
Ba4k5ro3n1 Infor6at#on an1 7at#onae for Inno0at#on
6elivering aid to the right people, at the right time, in the right location, and in sufficient
quantities is challenging enough, let alone when complicated by war, civil conflict or naturaldisasters. 0xperience also shows that having access to reliable, valid and timely data can
significantly improve the analysis of the situation on the ground, and contribute to more effective
decision‐making and better targeting in responses. While the collection and management of field
data is seen as vital, the current processes used by humanitarian operations tend to be extremely
labour and time intensive. The reliance on paper ‐ based procedures to track the aid that
beneficiaries receive is more time consuming and costly to audit and insure against inaccuracies,
loss or theft. World 7ision>s efforts to integrate better monitoring and to assess the efficacy of aid
programs often requires duplicating data collection and the processes suffer from the
aforementioned challenges associated with remote, field‐ based data collection. To redress these
notable gaps in the remote, field‐ based
data management needs World 7ision began partnering with key players in the IT sector.Working closely with anadian software specialists, :%% issues computer readable identity
cards to primary beneficiaries. These are capable of being printed in the field or at centrali?ed
locations at low cost. Households are registered once into a particular food pro@ect or are
transitioned into new programs using the same identity card, thereby avoiding multiple data entry
over time.
For e2a6-e, in 1""= World 7ision International assisted over !1 million people in (;
countries with AA",B2" %T of food 8about ;"< of it from WCD9 valued at +E1*( million with a
loss rate of ".1<.
De4r#-t#on of t!e Inno0at#on Pro4e
To identify how the :ast %ile %obile olutions 8:%%9 pro@ect took root within the
organi?ation, can differentiate a number of different innovation stages.
7e4o5n#t#on Sta5eWorld 7ision is currently the largest implementing partner of the +#>s World Cood Drogramme,
in addition to handling food from the + Fovernment and the 0uropean +nion. World 7ision>s
leadership recogni?es that improved systems capacity and better processes will be required to
facilitate enhanced humanitarian programming. This culture supporting continuous
improvements enabled our team to table ideas of change and to critically assess existing modes
of operation with the encouragement and support of top management.
In the stages of problem identification, there were ideas brewing in terms of what inventions that
could be applied. 4ne staff member for e2a6-e, while on a business trip, observed how airlines
were organi?ing passengers at the check ‐in counters to take advantage of mobile bar ‐coded
technology in an effort to speed up client processing. The initial review showed that could not
purchase the appropriate solutions purely through a market transaction, as there were no Goff ‐
the‐shelf products available for food aid programming. The private sector in creating a new
product for the humanitarian context, in part due to recognition that the time to deliver a
workable solution could best be met through a collaborative effort. Cield‐ based research and
stakeholder interviews identified fundamental challenges that extended beyond the logistical
arrangements in how services are delivered to people.
For e2a6-e8 the huge burden paper ‐ based systems placed on the organi?ation in terms of staff
productivity, its impact on our clients and on our donor accountability. $t the early recognition
stage, it became evident how one good idea on managing and processing beneficiaries was now
enabling us to look at more fundamental changes across a breadth of food programming issues.
/emote information management became the trigger point for change.
In0ent#on Sta5e
$t the start of the invention stage, the recognition of problems and the consideration of
innovative solutions were seen as being driven by certain individuals who had a mandate to seek
change 8i.e. innovators9. However, practitioners in the field were not as ready to embrace yet
another change initiative. Derhaps a causality of too many pilots in our industry,
The statistical and behavioural research on Ginnovation diffusion suggests that preferences to
adopt new ideas or products can vary a great deal even within a single organi?ation. $ptitudes
and attitudes toward embracing novelty can range from early adopters to those whose
preferences lag far behind the acceptance of an innovation
Bell ‐curve distribution of types of adopters in the population
uch principles of innovation diffusion were considered purposely throughout the pilot>s
implementation process. upporting the early adopters was a process of education and
negotiation during the invention stage to garner sufficient support from implementers for both
input and ownership of the impending innovation. The responsible business owner, the Cood
Drogramming %anagement Froup 8CD%F9 of World 7ision International, has a reputation for being particularly responsive to innovation. This proved tremendously important in terms of
getting the ideas to a concrete development stage once it overcame the initial inertia.
$s mentioned, many of the original ideas were based on observed practices that the private
sector was using to improve efficiencies. 6uring the identification of potential solutions the
scrutini?ed potential technology failure points. $s part of this process, it relied heavily on the
field staff to identify likely problems and on the private sector partners to assist in the formation
of suitable solutions. Therefore common Dersonal 6igital $ssistants or consumer grade mobile
phones would not be a suitable technology choice. It is also needed to consider simplifying the
IT architecture with respect to how data would be transmitted to a central storage area. 7ery early
into the invention stage, we decided to make use of a particular IT architecture that would enable
our teams to centrali?e data transmission over small, locali?ed areas. This architecture would also
enables to bypass failed or non‐existent mobile phone networks in the transfer .Issues associated
with biometric data capture were another example of due consideration to failure points. While
technologies existed for the use of fingerprint readers, doing so would not have been a prudent
choice when simpler biometric information could be used 8i.e. photo images9. Dhoto capture
would also prove to be simpler to implement.
It is important to note that every point of IT systems development on :%% entailed
deliberations on humanitarian programming needs. Cundamental to this has been leadership from
key staff that had both highly technical IT and humanitarian programming skills. $s an example,
due consideration was given to the principles associated with respectful and dignified treatmentof beneficiaries. imply automating the finger printing process would have merely extracted data
from the field, making the field more passive about ownership of the data and not proactively
involved in the process. Instead our invention tables the issues on data ownership rights. :%%
uses computer readable identity cards that are owned by the beneficiaries. This is their data and
the process of submitting their I6 cards is intended to encourage their participation in the system
and for them to have a say in terms of how their information is being used in both data collection
and in aid distribution programs.
De0eo-6ent Sta5e
While it was recogni?ed that the :%% tools were suited for wider deployment across different
business functions within World 7ision, the implementation team was intentional about avoiding
expansion of our pro@ect scope by keeping the solutions focused on a particular business need,
namely food programming. The development process that is being used for the full‐scale
development and the adoption of the innovation is based on an iterative release cycle with
continuous design, build, modification, testing and improvements planned for each period in the
release cycle. Curther enhanced functionality and different IT architectures will be grown over
Iterative Development & Release CycleThe development stage of the :%% innovation required a balancing act to maintain interest
within the organi?ation, while still meeting the original ob@ectives given the resources at hand. To
assist in controlling scope and in keeping key stakeholders engaged, the development team
leveraged regular check ‐ins and debriefings. $ collaborative website was set up to document
milestone progressions and to serve as a repository for decisions that the implementing team
made based on inputs from various stakeholders. Cree?ing the scope empowered software
developers to start work early.
I6-e6entat#on Sta5e
Drior to the start of the implementation, key partners and stakeholders were invited to a pilot
launch event in which information on the reasons for change as well as an introduction to the
types of change was introduced. This helped ensure early buy‐in from various stakeholders.
6uring rollout, CD%F appointed experienced personnel who understood the constraints of food
interventions and who were well versed in implementing new food programming processes.
ommunity leaders were informed of the pro@ect>s design. This was led by our IT partners and
engaged World 7ision staff from enya, :esotho, anada and %alaysia. $dditional IT training
was delivered in anada by our hardware and software partners. 4ne trained anadian staff
member travelled to the field and led a four ‐day training session for end users in bothimplementing countries. These training events were supplemented with ongoing J5$ and
additional training sessions during this phase.
$ formative review process was used during implementation. In general, while user expectations
were successfully met, there were areas that required changes to the software functionality.
6uring this stage, the implemented field trails as a dual process K running the old paper ‐ based
systems in parallel with the new automated system. While this ran counter to the designed
process flow, field staff showed true ingenuity in adapting the system to a different business
practice. Curther inventiveness was demonstrated when field staff found various ways to speed
up the process of basic data entry.
For e2a6-e8 staff found additional open source software that enabled multiple team members
to enter basic information on households simultaneously K one could speciali?e in alphanumeric
text inputs on the laptop and the others could speciali?e in selecting radio buttons or drop down
boxes on the mobile devices.
D#ff3#on Sta5e
It was recogni?ed that successful diffusion would entail- !9 managing expectations& 19 providing
education and training& (9 leveraging persuasion& A9 conducting on ‐going analysis& *9 relying on
negotiation and ;9 making use of authority when needed. %anaging stakeholder expectation
from technology‐led innovation can be modeled on the different stages of the technology>s
maturity.
The Hype Curve (Adopted from Gartner Group $:#$D Innovations
0ducation profiled heavily as part of the diffusion of innovation. $ two‐day review of the pro@ect
was intended to present facts and gather feedback from internal and external parties. 7ideo
material was produced. $ web log site and an extremely well received comic book version
depicting the innovations in practice were also developed. +nrealistic expectations on what the
technology would deliver would be inevitable. However, as deployment of the innovation takes
root in standard business practices, the Glows in the Hype urve will be managed by access toadditional resources to meet wider user needs and to add more strategic value through broader
application of :%%. In part, our emphasis on modulari?ing software development and building
core infrastructure to support :%% will also add to this greater adoption of the technologies
over time.
$dditional efforts supporting diffusion are being implemented. 4n the education and
communication side, an improved :%% website, new videos, newsletters, various case studies
The :%% innovation was introduced in tandem with existing practices during Dhase ! to
mitigate technical failures and to avoid critical data loss. The running of simultaneous
processes enabled an external evaluator to run comparisons between the old and new
systems. The following summari?es key findings from arr 81""B9- The incurred hardwareand software costs were lower than the pro@ected annual savings on staff time, thereby
suggesting a positive cost‐ benefit position when fully deployed. $ ;"< reduction in time
spent generating reports using :%% was estimated when compared to the time required to
generate these reports using paper ‐ based processes. The analysis suggested that the
introduced innovations are expected to have a significant impact on food programming costs
as its use is further expanded. The innovations were expected to positively impact on the
quality of service to end beneficiaries through better tracking of food pro@ect activities, as
well as through faster and more efficient processing of beneficiaries 8pre ‐ processing and
verification times were documented as being cut by =*<9.
The technologies were expected to also lessen fraudulent claims in distribution applications
where personnel were not as familiar with community recipients 8or their designated proxies9 via
better photo verification processes. Improve real time analysis of food programming efforts is
expected to enable better formative assessment of food programming activities. $udit
improvements are expected through the innovation>s improved field‐ based stock control
procedures at final distribution points 8more data is to be collected9. :%% enabled staff to meet
documented World 7ision standards for monitoring food aid pro@ects. :%% will yield
opportunities for fostering higher value returns through increased field worker productivity. Cor
example, the technology empowers monitors to integrate additional data collection that is
normally outside of their @ob scope in food pro@ect management.
Cor example, :%% was found to positively benefit quality of service to end beneficiaries by
improving the way in which recipient information is kept confidential 8e.g. the health status of
beneficiaries is not made public to monitors as the system automatically calculates rations due K
rather than a monitor having to do so in front of the beneficiary9. #ew benefits were also
identified. Cor example, the technological innovation was cited as a positive move toward
becoming paperless and thereby positively influencing the organi?ation>s carbon footprint.
losely associated with this was the need for greater user documentation 8electronic help files9
and more training. There was also the recognition of the fact that real‐time data processing is
much needed, but that implementing and supporting these features was challenging. Cinally, the
lessons also identified the need to pay due diligence to the issues of data integrity and data
security.
In addition to developing applications for greater deployment with humanitarian industry
partners, working with the private sector on additional strategic partnering opportunities. The
:%% tools are one subset of data management. There is much more that we aim to build on top
of these solutions. Curther, World 7ision and our hardware partners like Intermec must look at
creative developments entailing the invention and customi?ation of hardware. This is required for
broader applications within the humanitarian sector and to remove unnecessary hardware and
embedded software features from the existing tools.
This case study has documented how IT when tightly coupled with humanitarian programming
needs can deliver innovative solutions for the humanitarian industry. The success of the :%%
innovation was achieved in part by enabling space to grow a good idea, by being open to
controlled risk, and through creative thinking rooted in humanitarian need. Curther, the
innovation succeeded by building strong partnerships with the private sector such that the core
competencies from all partners were effectively channelled. In so doing, :%% has opened
significant opportunities in which remote data management and data use is now available for
wider humanitarian sector impact
CASE STUDY ON FACEBOOK
In 1""A, college sophomore %ark Muckerberg wanted to build an online version of student
directory with basic information, commonly known to schools as face book. Harvard didnot offer
such a directory and the administration insisted that they were unable to aggregate theinformation required. Thus, one night, Muckerberg hacked into Harvard>s student records and
created a basic site called Cacemash , which randomly paired photos of undergraduates and
invited visitors to determine who was Ghotter. $fter four hours, A*" visitors, and 11,"""photo
views, Harvard administration disconnectedMuckerberg>s internet connection and took
down the site. However, Muckerberg continued with this new pro@ect as he believed
thatinformation should be available to all students. He added applications and expanded
thenetworks to other schools, and to work networks such as employees from the entral
Intelligence $gency %c6onald>s and the +.. %arine orps. 0ventually in eptember
1"";,Muckerberg>s social networking website, Cacebook.com, was opened to the
public.Dresently, the site has more than ;B million active users worldwide. Cacebook is ranked1nd in the G Top !" +.. ocial #etworking ite for #ovember 1""= report released by
#ielsen 4nline. In Nanuary 1""B, Muckerberg reportedCacebook>s revenue at +E!*" million in
1""= and pro@ected revenue at +E(*" million for1""B
This paper examines Cacebook>s revenue model and investigates on the factors that led to
thecurrent success of Cacebook, to understand and illustrate the different
technologicalmanagement concepts behind this success. While the emphasis in this case study is
on thelessons learnt for a successful innovation, it also briefly discusses the other issues
Cacebook is currently facing and recommends some future strategies to maintain its
competitiveadvantages.
7e0en3e Mo1e
There were several funding from venture capitalists since the launch of Cacebook.
#otably+E*"",""" from Deter Thiel 8co'founder of DayDal9 in 1""A, +E!( million from
$ccelDartners in 1""*, and +E1* million from Freylock Dartners, $ccel Dartners,
%eritechapital Dartners and Deter Thiel.The revenue model of Cacebook is based on the
following-
6isplay advertisements ' 0xample of revenue from this is through outsourcingadvertising deal.
Lesides the common banner advertisements, Cacebook allows usersto make their own
advertisements known as Cacebook Clyers at low prices based onnumber of clicks. These
advertisements are filtered according to targets> gender, age,education status, and regional
networks. 6irect advertisements accounts for ma@orityof Cacebook>s revenue.
ponsorship ' This is in the form of homepage sponsored stories and sponsoredgroups. In the
former sponsorships, advertisements are displayed in the #ews Ceedsection of Cacebook users>
pages which most users pay attention to. The click'throughrates of such advertisements are
higher than normal banner advertisements by ten totwenty times. :evels of filtering 8such as bygender or location9 for targeted users areapplied with a premium. ponsored groups are groups in
Cacebook created for Aparticular brand of goods. These groups 8such as $pple tudents, DI#
7ictoriaecret, #L$ Cinals Trivia hallenge9 are personal environments for users to gatherand
interact, transforming the brand into a participant of Cacebook. The cost of eachsponsored group
is +E("",""" for three months. There were !B; sponsored groupsin eptember 1""=.Fifts '
+sers can purchase limited edition virtual gifts for other Cacebook users at+E! per item.
Pat! to S344e
Crom an innovation based on the believe of a sophomore, to one with ;; million active usersandannual revenue of +E!*" million, it is not difficult to see that Cacebook has been a
greatsuccess. This is also evident from the significant investment made to the company since
itslaunch. In 4ctober 1""=, %icrosoft invested +E1A" million for !.; percent stake
inCacebook . This values the Cacebook at +E!* billion. Collowing that in 6ecember
1""=,Hong ong tycoon :i a'shing +E;" million for ".A percent stake in Cacebook. $nd
inNanuary 1""B, Ferman internet entrepreneurs the amwer brothers also invested a
theseentities of interest 8such as book titles or movie titles9 directly to the internet shopping
websites 8such as eLay or $ma?on9 of these items. +sers browsing these profiles are
moremotivated to click'through these links than those in advertisements. There is a trend of
increasing online sales. In a 1""= Correster report, it predicted a rise of !B percent of onlinesales
to +E1*2.! billion P!;3. Thus, by connecting to trends and integrating with services,can
produce a business model that them to mutually benefit 8such as sharing profitof directed sales
for internet shopping9.
Look#n5 O3t#1e So4#a Net"ork#n5
The modular architecture of Cacebook can be applied to fields outside social networking.
4nesuch example is using it as a teaching tool. $s college students are very familiar with
theCacebook interface, schools can make use of the Cacebook Dlatform to be interactive tools
forinstructional purposes. Cacebook Lrand ulture $s seen in many successful brands,
developing a brand culture is the key to sustainingsuccess. With the success of one single
product, users will be able to identify with products of same family 8such as in the case of $pple with the Gi products, eg. iDod, iDhone, etc.9.imilarly, Cacebook can continue to
target other markets by developing a brand culture andproducts from its initial success. Through
customi?ation based on profiles of other targetedmarket, Cacebook can launch hybrid versions of
its current social networking site and otherproducts using its brand culture 8such as sites for the
older demographic9.
Creat#0e Or5an#9at#ona C3t3re
reativity and innovation are absolutely critical in today>s economy for firms to staycompetitive.
Cacebook will also need to constantly innovate in its infrastructure andtechnology, to meet the
users> needs and improve in its performance. There different ways tobuild innovation as part
of their organi?ational culture. It is necessary for Cacebook torecogni?e the importance of
innovation in the organi?ational culture, and adapt the successformulas from innovative
companies to suit individual firms .
Con43#on
The key strength of Cacebook is its modular and open architecture, which enabled it toexploit the
network effect. $s a first mover in this aspect, it had rapidly gained market shareover incumbent
Technology leadership goes beyond managing the day'to'day logistics of a strategic tech
planning process. It is about a social'change process. $n effective technology leader should be a
public advocate of the mission'driven use of technology, maximi?ing relationships with variousgroups, both within and outside of the organi?ation, and empowering others to get invested and
involved in planning for and deploying technology. GI think forming a technology team
comprised of volunteer and paid staff and other stakeholders is key. Having the team to motivate
and enthuse others about the benefits of technology, as opposed to me as an 0xecutive 6irector,
will help more people to be positive about the additional work involved with paying attention to