New Technology in Coca-Cola Company - Assignment Example

A Report on Introduction of a New Technology in Coca-Cola Company Student’s Name Institution Date Overview of Report In the past years, the rate of incorporation of technology in businesses has been skyrocketing at alarming speeds. Companies and organizations are putting into full use of technology to increase production, efficiency through efficient, high speed and up to date communication and Coca-Cola Company has not been excluded from the trending use of technology. The company’s sector that has been affirmatively boosted by technology is the communication and information sector. This department has been effected and upgraded by the communicating through the internet, emails, websites, social media and other internet avenues to sell brands to consumers, create awareness of products on market, and join all the branches of a company by a single information centre to communicate to others. Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction:…………………………………………………………..………4 2.0 Pros and cons of new technology:…………..………………………………...4 2.1 Pros: …………………………………………………………………..4 2.2 Cons: ………………………………………………….………………5 2.3 Costs and benefits……………………………………………………..6 2.4 Comparison of different products…………………………………….6 2.5 Training: ………………………………..…….………………………6 2.6 Technical implementation: …………………………………………...7 2.7 Adaptability……………………………………………………………7 2.8 Marketability…………………………………………………………..7 3.0 The findings of the research…………………………………………………...8 4.0 Recommendations……………………………………………………………..8 5.0 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………..9 A Report on the introduction of a new Technology in Coca-Cola Company 1. Introduction Coca-cola Company is arguably among the most reputed companies in the world dealing with production of soft drinks. It is a company that has embraced technology and innovation in high esteem and over the years, it has constantly rebranded, advertised for and presented its products in order to maintain sales consistently high. Introduction of a new technology a new technology has been as a result of enhancing easy and faster working conditions to meet the dynamic world and increase competitiveness. But as many companies yearn to advance technologically in service delivery and production, this report tries to focus on the pros and cons of introducing new technology in a company with a special focus aimed at Coca-cola company Technology has proved to be efficient in improving productivity, service delivery and marketing. Its vast advancement and outright acceptance has been effected as a result of companies and organizations trying to adapt to the ever changing world. It has a great source of solutions to a variety of problems in the company. The solutions for example have been packaging of the soft drinks where greener bottles were introduced in 2009, subtle yet effective online advertising that attracts and make consumers feel like want its products, dispensers that allow the consumer to create a cocktail of his/her favorite beverage from a variety of soft drinks available, and networking where coca-cola maintains a visible appearance on social sites notably Facebook and Twitter with millions of ‘likes’ and ’followers’ respectively as of 2011. Through the power of social sites, Coca-cola and a host of other companies have been able to spread news about new products, testing consumer loyalty by inviting users to play games and win prizes, test advertorial campaigns among other strategies. In Coca-cola, the production has been automated to mix the beverage constituents to the desired sugar levels and other machines operated by computers and sensors for example the packaging machines that sense when the bottle is filled to the desired level and automatically inserts the lid. This has greatly improved productivity as more bottles of drinks are produced in large quantities, service delivery because distributors are served with orders on time, and saves time as compared to when production is manual and has to rely on a human being. 2.1 Pros Introduction of technology ensures effective and maximum utilization of resources and credible accountability in its functioning. This can be attributed to the fact that only about one or two people are operating the machines hence any amiss can be traced to the initiator and its origin with ease. New technology reduces cost which is always a huge burden to companies. Introduction of computers has lessened the distance of communication and made it easier through the internet. Company information and files are stored in computers in soft copies that are easily transferable to different people in and out of the company. Technology improvement has also greatly boosted marketing due to their effectiveness. This has been enhanced by internet improvement and emergence of technology companies like Google and Yahoo.These companies have made it easier by providing search engine optimization. Internet advertisement has brought several advantages to marketing sector in coca-cola industry. Some of the advantages include the fact that it is not time or location bound. In other words it covers a large area than newspapers or Tvs. It is also cheaper than paying for prime time advertisement (International Communication Union, 2010). Internet can cover a large geographical area compared to other methods. Coca-cola, through its own websites has been conveying their messages about its upcoming products e.g. the sugar free coke, brands, advertizing that has been essential in its marketing. the website also act as a plat form where they can interact with their consumers hence getting feedbacks about their performances. On the other hand social media is also another technological improvement which organizations can exploit. The advantage of social media is that they give demographic distribution of the users. This means that organizations can easily target their market segment an important aspect in advertisement (Interactive Inc. 2013). Social media which include Facebook, Twitter, Google + etc are usually interactive sites thus a company can get instant feedbacks from their consumers about their performances. As noted earlier, coca-cola has millions of followers on its facebook and twitter fan pages across the world making it effective and easier to disseminate information, promote the company, award prizes to loyal consumers by asking questions related to its products, etc. Retrieved from: http://mashable.com/2009/12/31/social-media-web-2/ The above diagram is a graph showing the usage of social media in recent years. From 2004 to 2008, social media usage was way low -registering a search volume index of below 1.0. This can be attributed to computers and internet been accessed by developed countries only and lack of awareness and accessible social media. In 2009 and the subsequent years, the usage of social media rose rapidly due to wide spread of computers, internet phones, iphones, tablets, etc and increased awareness about existence of facebook, twitter and recently google +. A, B, C, D, E, F….show how the usage has been on the rise (Sarah, 2012) The fact that social media can be easily accessed through phones and other gadgets means the number is likely to rise for the next few decades. In fact accessibility of internet has skyrocket even in developing world which is a positive thing because of increase in middle class. Since the major objective of companies is profit maximization, introduction of new technology enhances realization of high profits. New technology is introduced to produce that surplus value of products that increases the profits of the company. 2.2 Cons Although technology has its pros, it also as well has cons upon its introduction. Introduction of new technology leads to retrenchment of workers thus depriving them of their livelihoods. Also technology is seen as a catalyst to increased laziness at the company. This is because one only needs to operate and then the machine or gadget does the rest. Employees can also relax in the work place like they can be in social societies during working hours which is damaging the consumers. Those companies that are highly computerized are sometimes thy can be easily compromised if their systems are attacked by malicious people. This happens incase of information which is kept on the internet including personal information of the clients. If the personal information of clients is stolen it can lead to theft especially in the banking sector. It can lead to operation breakdown if organization is run by computers in case of breakdown of equipments (International Communication Union, 2010). The introduction of computer systems in the 21st century led to increased unemployment rates since manual labor was replaced by machine. Therefore, though introduction of a new technology or software upgrade has its advantages, it leads to a mass of unemployed laborers who may end up in misconduct and crime (Will, 2013). Technology can also bring out resentments among workers especially the older employees. This can be attributed to the fact that they fear being subjected to new environment which they are not accustomed to. In some cases it can reduce productivity as workers may feel their competence is no longer needed with introduction of new ways of doing things. For example, if a certain worker was doing book keeping and it becomes computerized the individual may feel irrelevant or unwanted hence affecting his performances. It is therefore paramount for organizations to explain to their workers about a new technology before they actually implement it. 2.3 Costs and Benefits Introduction of new technology helps cut down and reduce the costs for the companies that were earlier accrued. This is in itself a benefit since it is a gain by the company. Another benefit of introducing new technology to a company is that of allowing the company to keep up with the emerging trends and competition from other companies (Kelly, 2010). Introduction of new technology in the company involves some costs that have to be incurred during procurement, transport, delivery, training, e.t.c. Costs are also incurred during installations of technology in the company structure. Introduction of a new technology in a company is too expensive and requires large investments in order to account for the spending of research and development. The cost of labor in the introduction of new technology is also high. 2.4 Comparison of Different Products/System Options Information introduction into the company ensures fast adaptability and keeps the company updated to the new events, products and services in the market. Introduction of new technology in the company allows for fast communication down the hierarchy from the managers to the workers. This saves time and energy hence improving efficiency. In this 21st century, the introduction of computers into many companies and organizations has greatly improved production efficiency and boosted service delivery. Data is now saved in soft copies rather than hard copies that eat a lot of space and cause congestion in offices. Smart phones have also improved communication in companies and business organizations. Introduction of CCTV camera systems in companies has enhanced security thus ensuring smooth running of operations and activities. The increase in the number of people using mobile phones has improved communications which help the company run activities even through the phone (Kelly, 2010). 2.5 Training Introduction of new technology in the company calls for skilled workers and staff. Hence with every new technology, training is a necessity which one of the costs incurred in the introduction. For example, the introduction of computers in the 21st century required for workers to be trained on how to operate the machines. Even managers had to go for computer training too (Will, 2013). Introduction of a new technology therefore requires thorough training on the use and operation of the technology. As discussed earlier, training is a cost for the company as it looks to improve its production efficiency (Interactive Inc. 2013). Proper training is essential for any new technology a company decides to introduce. This is of most importance as it makes sure the new technology is efficiently used and utilized by the staff in the company. 2.6 Technical Implementation After any introduction of any new technology, technical implementation is a process undergone to ensure the technology is fully incorporated into the company. This involves the processes of installation and training to ensure the technology is fully implemented in the company. Technical implementation is another cost in the introduction of new technology. Implementation of a new technology in a company is very expensive and requires skilled personnel to do so. This entails a pool of skilled experts to ensure no errors are made in the implementation of the new technology. 2.7 Adaptability Adaptability of any new technology is another factor that is considered before introducing it. Anew technology has to meet the demand of the population at large. The new technology should therefore be adaptable sooner rather than later. Adaptation is a process therefore that requires maximum attention in the introduction of new technology (The Journal, 2012). 2.8 Marketability Research of the market has to be first conducted thoroughly be any introduction is made into the company. Market research is vital because the company has to make sure there is pool of consumers that will welcome the introduction of a new technology in the market. Retrieved from http://www.dividendwatchdog.com/ The diagram above shows a graph of dividend (money given to shareholders) by Coca-cola company in the recent years. Dividend has been on the rise each year due to massive profits that this company is making. This is due to increased use of modern technology each year in production machinery, promotion and packaging, advertising and marketing, attractive websites, making orders online to customers across the world, among other numerous profit generating avenues (International Communication Union, 2010). 3.0 Findings of the Research The introduction of a new technology by a company is somewhat a tasking job that requires proper planning. This planning involves a look at the usefulness of the new technology and how it will affect the future livelihood of the consumers. The introduction of green bottles by coca-cola was well thought of and planned. They brought attractive shapes, recyclable material hence the need to preserve the environment and reduce cost, and non contaminant (Interactive Inc. 2013). New technologies require a company to be more alert in terms of costs and risked involved in introducing a new technology into the company. Of most importance is the effective training of staff, training and ensure a profound technical implementation. This could be expensive and planning is hence important to ensure the company doesn’t incur losses. 4.0 Recommendation Technology is a powerful cornerstone of today’s generation which is characterized by emerging trends and fashions that seek to keep up with a growing population of intelligent and innovative population. This means usage of technology will increase tremendously in future. The advantage of increase in technology is the fact that it becomes cheaper. Technology hard wares are becoming cheaper coupled with internet accessibility and companies which invest in technology are likely to reap in terms 0of returns. However, introduction of a new technology is dependent on a number of factors that ought to be considered before, during or after its introduction into any company. However, it is highly recommended for companies to adapt technology in training. This is whereby they invest on training technology in order to save time and human resources. For example, on line training programs can be integrated into the company so that they can help in terms of training employees about usage of new technological devices. It is also advisable for companies to hold seminars before they embark on implementation of technology in the company for the sake of expanding to the employees the reason so that they can avoid negativity about the changes. Adapting to the new technology is also important to ensure full implementation of its services into the company. The company should therefore do a follow up when they introduce a new technology in the company for the sake of evaluating its importance and checking potential weakness. The evaluation should include employees who play an integral part in running the institution. The dynamism of technology means firms must keep updating their performances if they are to fully reap the benefits of technology. If organizations will fully adapt to new technology as it continue to be introduced, it is likely to be cheaper to run a business and at the same time bringing considerable returns. Bibliography Sluga, A., Rihtaršič, B., Hrovat, B., Gortnar, O., Balorda, Z., Miškova, S., Šemrov, M., ... Drusany, P. (January 01, 1997). Implementing of computer aided information system: Implementing of CIM; hardware structure : development period: 01/95 to 05/97. 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March 31. mediaentertainmentnews.typepad.com/.../the-new-york-times-data-st... www.techrepublic.com/article/...training-tools...technical.../1040797 November 13 2001 post www.techrepublic.com/ References International Communication Union. (2010). Almost 200000 Texts sent Every Second. October 19 ,2010. Interactive Inc. (2013). Internet Tax Proposal Up for Vote in Senate this Week. March 21, 2013. Kelly, K. (2010). What Technology Wants. New York: Vikings. The Journal. (2012). In Predicting Ed Tech’s Future, SETDA MARKS SAFE. Bets and Wild Cards. December 2012 Digital edition. Sarah M. (2012). In Bedroom Community, Birth of Tech Center. New York Times. October 15. Will, S. (2013). Google Launches its Evonote Rival, Google Keep. Bizmag Magazine, March 21, 2013. Read More