Technology and Innovation Management - Essay Example

Technology and Innovation Management s Submitted by s: 2nd March 4th March, Introduction The modern marketplace is full of competing. The companies in all the sectors always have to come up with products that have relevance to the ultimate users. The products made by the majority of the companies have to be accepted in the market place for them to provide the parent companies with the anticipated returns. In order to produce the products that have a consumer in mind, it is important to incorporate the entire player in the company just as if it was the case in Black & Decker Corporation. Part A In the creation of the cordless drill, the company sought to include all the people in the company that interact with the ultimate user of the product. The focus of any project must focus on the usability of the product (Crawford 2001). The product must be able to be used in the easiest way possible. This means that the products ought to incorporate all the attributes of a good product in a given category. Therefore, the product that the company develops ought to meet the conventionality of the user market. However, in order for the product to have a competitive advantage over the competitors, it ought to be designed in a manner that distinguishes it from the other products. The products ought to be designed in a manner that it accords the user more convenience than the rest of the products in the market. Looking at the drills made by Black and Decker Corporation it is evident that they have a constant drive towards the provision of maximum comfort and convenience to the user. The drills are made in such a manner that they are capable of offering the conventional usability of any product but at a more improved scale. The drills are high performance tools. However, they are more convenient to use. The lack of a cord means that they are the most desired tools to be used on the remote construction sites. The drillers can be used in the places that do not have the power. The convenience of being able to work even after the power is out. This made the drills develop an edge over the peers. Part B The projects on the creation of the drillers and the screwdrivers follow the tenets of good project management that are postulated in the MIT report. The company focused on the production of a product that is comparatively better than the rest in the market. In the process of making the design of the product, the company focused on the creation of a unique product that would give it the desired level of competitive advantage. The cordless drills and drivers were the first ones in the market. The products not only provided the company with the desired competitive advantage, but they also provided the user with the bets levels of usability. The process of the development of the product took very long to develop. In fact, the project was a result on continued improvement of the products that they had produced prior to the release of the 1994 edition. The product development took gradual stages whereby the first the cordless drill was made in the 1960s for the astronauts. The 1960 edition of the drill was a limited edition, but it was later built on to represent the modern day cordless drill used in the commercial market today. The projects can also be termed as revolutionary. These projects were made in such a manner that they were the game changers in the production of drills. Drills made by the company are major seller sin the market whereby other companies in the industry have adopted the technology of the manufacture of cordless drills. The project entailed all the people. These projects were made in a consortium of employees from all the divisions in the organization. The incorporation of the employees from all the departments in the company was a major determinant of the success of the project since it was meant for the creation of the best synergistic approaches. This incorporation of all the people was a major source of competitiveness for the project. The completion of the project was a result of the teamwork (Hodgson & Cicmil 2007, pp. 431--450). The company ought to improve on the cooperation with the other players in the industry during the development of the products. Part C Concurrent engineering is an approach to product development that seeks to create parallel task. The concurrent engineering may be used in the creation of the best products. The main advantage of concurrent engineering processes is that it leads to the development of products that are made in accordance with the highest quality in the shortest time possible. The process was applied in the development of the drill model by Black & Decker Corporation. This approach has the time saving advantage. This approach to the product development saved the company the chances of loss of the projects authenticity (Yassine & Braha 2003, pp. 165--176). The product development of the 1994 edition of the drill took into consideration the time element. The product was made in a quick manner. However, in the event that all the tasks used in the development of the product were undertaken one after the other the development of the product would have taken longer than it did. This also meant that the company was capable of developing the product in a quick manner. The production process was also certain. In all the unsuccessful approaches used in the production, there was a possibility that the company would improve on them to create a new product. The company also came up with information on what to avoid when making the drill. The other advantage of the concurrent approach was that the time that the company saved by the adoption of this approach was also a timesaver in terms of the advances that the other players in the market would have created (Hussain & Barber et al. 2009, pp. 196--210). This means that the company was in a position of being the first one to produce a product in the industry. This attribute of the company makes it assume a semblance of market leadership even in the times when the product is in the introductory stage. This attribute can be used as the ultimate measure of the advantage of the concurrent approach in the creation of the drills or any other product. The company that leads in the production of a unique product has the possibility of creating the leadership notion in the people. The clientele will end up with the notion that the products from such a company are the most effective means of ascertaining the effectiveness of the product. The company uses this approach in all the products such that it is the first one that launches a new and innovative product in the market (Stretton 2006, pp. 15--24). Part D The main features in the drill that made it appeal to the customers touch on its convenience. The drill was capable of providing the same utility with the corded drills only that it had the user had the advantage of not dealing with a cord. The kettle also was made in such a way that it was easier to use (Sauter 2003). The handle was made of a material that absorbed the shock coming from the activity. The innovation helped reduce the discomfort of using the normal drills and driver tools. The innovation also reduced inconveniences brought about by the cord in the normal drills. The customers responded to the innovation by providing a loyal customer base for the company. The companys product development is undertaken in a way that leads to the creation of satisfaction (Hussain and Barber et al. 2009, pp. 196--210). Conclusion The customer base has in turn ended up being loyal to the products made by the company. This has led to the success of the company since the introduction of the tools in mid 1990s.After the production of the drill, the company shot to the top of the companies that produce similar products. The company was capable of using the innovativeness to produce smaller drills that are focused on the travelling technician. The company has developed nail guns that are based on the same idea that led to the creation of the 1994 edition of the driver. The company has managed to handle the issues of the competition well in order to retain the position as a market leader. The competition has responded by providing similar products. However, the Black &Decker corporation has a head start over the other producers of light industrial tools. References Crawford, L. 2001. Project management competence: the value of standards. Hodgson, D. and Cicmil, S. 2007. The Politics of Standards in Modern Management: Making ‘The Project’a Reality*. Journal of Management Studies, 44 (3), pp. 431--450. Hussain, Z., Barber, K. and Hussain, N. 2009. An Intranet based system as an enabler in effective project management and implementation of quality standards: A case study. Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 26 (3), pp. 196--210. Sauter, R. 2003. Modern project-management. Stretton, A. M. 2006. Bodies of knowledge and competency standards in project management. AMA handbook of project management, pp. 15--24. Yassine, A. and Braha, D. 2003. Complex concurrent engineering and the design structure matrix method. Concurrent Engineering, 11 (3), pp. 165--176. Read More