IT & Technology

                                               IT & Technology

Key points presented by Nicholas Carr

The development of information technology has led to the transformation of businesses globally. The act of operating businesses through the use of the internet has widely increased; hence the customers can be able to transact their buying transactions online while the suppliers can be able to offer their services to customers online. Companies have embraced information technology as a resource since it has become one of the strategies for success in the operation of many organizations (Carr 25). The companies have invested much in information technology since it has enhanced increased returns on investments. Online businesses have led many business people to focus on it since they can reach wide coverage of customers all over the world. Also, since the customers want to access their products through online shopping, then it has been the only technique to be used. Through the advancement of technology, customers can be able to compare different products produces by different producers globally; hence he or she can purchase a product that is of quality and that meets its purpose through his selection.

In the past, many organizations looked down on the investment in information technology in that the employees in those companies had no idea how to use the computers. Today, the top management has embraced the technology change since they have been able to employ the computer literate staff, and also the organizations have the consultants (Carr 27). The consultants are the staff used by the top management in giving ideas on the best strategy to use in investing in information technology. The organizations can have a competitive advantage since they have been able to do business using advanced technology as a strategy to outperform the competitors in the market. Information technology is concerned with the storage, processing, and transportation of data all over the world (Nicholas 35). Therefore, information about the organization can be easily accessed through the use of the internet. That is how the organizations sell their image and reputation. The products sold by organizations are easily accessed on the different websites about the quality, properties, purpose, demonstration on use, place where the product can be found, price, and much more information pertaining to the product.

There exit different technologies that have helped many organizations to have a competitive advantage. Different organizations have embraced the proprietary technologies and infrastructural technologies to enhance profitability in their organizations. Proprietary technology can be effective by single companies and can be possessed by that company only. It means that the company is the only one that has the right to use that technology. This type of technology is where the top management becomes innovative in the organization. Hence, it comes with different ways of doing business or does value addition to the existing product different from their competitors. In the case of infrastructural technologies, is where the organization comes up with the technology that can be used in various lines of companies and to different customers. The technology is sometimes restricted to other firms through not sharing the intellectual property right, and the cost of accessing the technology can be expensive. Even though this technology has restrictions, the organizations that access it has been able to gain more profit since it has enhanced its easy provision of services to consumers (Carr 29). This technology has led to positive change in the market; hence it is a technology to be embraced.

The overall companies in the whole world embraced the technology, and hence the cost of accessing the technology network became cheap. Every business, people, or all the sectors in the world can afford the technology. In hospitals, the technology is embraced too by the patients since they can access medical services faster and good treatments. Many institutions all over the world are using modern technology, and almost everyone is computer literate. Since the demand for universal distribution networks is high, then the price of accessing the internet service has become low; hence many organizations can access the new technology (Nicholas 32). The organizations that are using the information technology can enjoy large economies of scale, and its brand name is well recognized in all parts of the world.

Do you agree or disagree, and why?

I agree with the findings by Nicholas Carr simply because compared to the past years and today’s activities, there is a significant difference in how people are doing things since technology has enabled people to be more innovative. The way businesses were carried out during the past is different from the current situation. If people can try to use the strategies that were used in the past to operate their businesses, then there would be poor performance; hence the people are moving with the technological changes (Herterich 325). The business operations currently are easy, and one can access the product globally without taking much of the time. As well, having a look at the Facebook company that has enabled many companies worldwide to use its platform to operate their businesses in their Facebook accounts.

The companies that have been able to embrace the Facebook platform has been able to operate their businesses online. This has increased the number of customers since the customers can be able to access the information about the company through Facebook. Companies can display their products and services in their Facebook accounts, give information about their service and product, and also the pricing and the means of delivery. This saves the time of the consumer to travel to the sellers’ premises to buy the products. Nay people prefer to purchase goods online since it sounds to be cheaper (Matthias 326). Also, customers can be able to acquire affordable commodities and of good quality all over the world. All that is needed is to order the products, and through a good relationship with the online sellers, the goods will be delivered at any time to the buyers’ premises.

Considering the benefit of the organization embracing the information technology and technology itself, you will find that the organizations have a higher return on investment. For example, an organization that is using Facebook as a platform to sell its products and services will reach a variety number of buyers worldwide as compared to when it would be operating on a small scale. Since the organizations will be able to create awareness of the products to global customers, then the information about the product will be globally known (Brenner 327). This increases the demand for the products; hence the organizations will be receiving orders of supply of goods and services to a different part of the countries leading to increased sales that leads to increased profits. The main point here is that the organizations that embrace the new technology and invests in it have.

Many businesses are carried out with the current technology that is advanced in all parts of the country. Business people have come up with innovative technologies to remain active in the competitive market and also to have a competitive advantage. Many sectors in the countries are used the current technology since everything is done in some computerized ways. There is no paperwork; hence this has reduced the wastage of time and resources. In hospitals, the medical instrument used is of modern technology like scanning of the unborn child, this is the technology aspect, and therefore it has enabled people to embrace the system (Arts 670). In banking sectors, doing the transactions in banks has been easier since every transaction is technologically advanced. People can deposit, borrow, withdraw, or do money transfers through their phones without going directly to the banks. This is saving time, and it is convenient. In the education sector, many students are using computers and their laptops to do their daily assignments, and also, there is online teaching where the students learn online (Brenner 328). The part-time students are also sorted out through e-learning services.

The change in technology has been embraced by many organizations globally. This has led to increased demand for internet services to all organizations. In the past, the cost of accessing internet services like creating an organization’s website was expensive, and hence many organizations were not able to afford it (William 665). Since many organizations have come up with different internet services, then it has become easier for organizations to access internet services easily. The cost of the service is currently affordable, and all the organizations can access it. Organizations are using different platforms on the internet to carry out their businesses, and this has led to good returns on their sales.

In conclusion, advanced technology has transformed the operation in many organizations and businesses all over the world. People have become very innovative in coming up with new ways of doing their activities and also the best strategies to use to invest in the new technology. It is not as the past where people had no idea on how to improve their ways of doing activities. All the sectors in different countries are using information technology to access and spread the information to the people globally. The advanced technology has linked many people in different countries, and this has led to the integration of the nations (Koen 665). Generally, adopting new technology is always expensive, and it requires the change in how people were doing things before, but it is of significant impact on many organizations. The organization must be in line with the changes in technology so as it can enjoy the competitive advantage and also the economies of scale.

Work cited

Arts, Koen, Rene van der Wal, and William M. Adams. “Digital technology and the conservation of nature.” Ambio 44.4 (2015):661-673.

Carr, Nicholas G. “IT doesn’t matter.” Educause Review 38 (2003): 24-38

Herterich, Matthias M., Falk Uebernickel, and Walter Brenner. “The impact of cyber- physical systems on industrial services in manufacturing.” Procedia Cirp 30 (2015):323-328.