Report on Role and Application of Technologies in Business Organizations

The business environment is dependent on technology as the majority of companies depend on computers and software for the provision of the information which is accurate and that is used in the management of business today. There is the utilization of robust technologies, which are also used in catalyzing the process of evolution and commence to help in solving the huge challenges that are faced by the large companies. Due to the fast changing conditions of conducting business operations, it is a good thing to ensure that the challenges of adopting technology in business operations are looked into and handled.

The Areas Where Technologies Are/Could Be Applied in Business Operations

Service Delivery Improvement

Businesses use technology to ensure that they are focused on quality delivery of the services to the customers. Efficiency is also of fundamental importance. Technology is a major contributor in ensuring that there is an improvement of the experience of the customer hence transforming the way business is conducted (Bresnahan & Yin 2017). Technology has brought about improvement in terms of services in a number of ways especially in service delivery which includes online service provision and the introduction of e-commerce facilities which bring about convenience and efficiency to the customers.

Financial Control

Financial control and account processes for various projects use spreadsheet programs in financial programming and the results of budgets are compared with the use of information systems. Financial information systems aid in the management of the liquid assets of a business like cash and securities which ensure high yields with the lowest degree. As Bresnahan (2017) states, budgets are fundamental in the control of finances of any business operation as it specifies the resources that are being utilized.

Market Research and Marketing Decisions

Marketing research is necessary for ensuring that there is relevant data and information about the market. There is software which is used to support analysis of statistical data which assists businesses to be able to find a correlation of buyer behavior in relation to their geographical location and variance in demographics. The use of media tracking services and online database services help in gathering competitor information which is crucial in marketing decisions the firms make.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems

According to the research conducted on over 1000 reputable business people, change in technology impacts various monetary changes and the technologies are applicable to many of the business procedures, which then help in solving multiple company challenges in the entire enterprise and beyond (Kurnia, Choudrie, Mahbubur & Alzougool, 2015). Many organizations have adopted the installation of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that aid the businesses in a number of ways including processing and carrying out the daily transactions of the business. The ERP systems are provided by many companies and they have been able to solve problems in business operations. The use of the ERP systems for instance in a company that is involved in any type of business operation leads to the improvement of processing quality and make it easy and fast to make management decisions related to the operation of business.

The Use of Cloud Computing

Business has now resulted in the use of cloud computing which enables the important data ensuring the business to be safe being stored virtually and can be accessed by the authorized persons online with the Internet connection; the access is also extended to the global level. Cloud computing helps in the elimination of data loss whenever systems crash. It also allows for real-time communication among the stake holders including the customers.

Marketing Mix Subsystems

Marketing mix subsystem is a part of information technology in business which supports decision making regarding the introduction of products to the market, setting prices of the new products, and conducting a promotion of the products and its distribution.

The Role of Technologies in Enhancing the Performance Objectives Such as Improving Delivery Speed and Quality

Performance objectives are designed to ensure that the business meets their corporate strategy. Quality is a major consideration for conformance of any business specifications. Quality is equally necessary and it is also called the durability of a product and how the customers believe in the product (whether the product meets the needs of the customers or not). Speed, as used in performance objective, refers to the rate of sales generation including the time necessary to manufacture products in the company.

Improving the Responsiveness to New Development

Technology is a major aid in ensuring that a business operation is swift to changing technological environments especially in terms of data processing and decision implementation in a cost effective manner. Computers and machines are better than manual methods as they are more accurate and faster in terms of operations.

Increased Productivity

Technology makes everything in a business operation run faster. Sometimes when a business has to pay for the wages and salaries, it needs to make calculations which can be cumbersome and may take long for completion, which may also lead to miscalculation and arithmetic error. Technology helps resolve this issue fast and of low cost.

Use of Embedded Collaborative Technologies

The use of embedded collaborative technologies can fasten and increase productivity while improving the quality of production. The technologies are embedded into how work is done in the business operation. It, therefore, improves how work is conducted helping the company to achieve impressive results. Guidance for optimal performance on processes is given by the embedment that improves the quality of production and increases productivity levels.

How Technology Investments Are Matched with the Volume/Variety Requirements to Provide the Appropriate Trade-Off between Flexibility and Cost

Flexibility is a necessity as the business operation is able to produce products with varying levels of quality. IT strategy is developed which can be used in solving business operations and technical problems in business.  As suggested by Obayi et al. (2017), the emerging information technology has many capabilities including changing the strategic direction of a business operation and also adding to the business new competencies that lead to the formulation of new business strategies.

There is a need for both business operation strategies and information technology to complement and support each other and it is necessary to make sure that strategy is a key in managing the use of IT in business. It is also paramount to make sure that the two interplay are compatible. Adapting modern and effective high technology products and implementing new computer technologies in the business can be optimized.

Business operations make use of technology in the manufacturing process and this has changed the manufacturing process since the use of technology makes the process highly efficient and fewer resources are utilized in the production process because the wastes are reduced. Time is essential in the manufacturing process and the use of technology ensures that the products fit time-based competition. Technology also makes manufacturing flexible as any adjustment can be made. Technology helps improve the overall performance of a business in terms of quality and flexibility.

The Challenges in Adopting New Technologies in Business Organizations

Most businesses continue to invest in IT resources even though a majority of the businesses do not ensure that they are protected. A large number of companies fail to conduct risk assessment and IT audit and this leads to gaps being left in the way information technology is handled. Some of the challenges include inadequate or lack of technological options, being unable to prioritize more important technologies and allocation of time to more important technologies, failure to effectively integrate the technologies into the operations of the business, and failure to protect the technologies.

New technologies may lack complementary skills and inputs. The customers who are intended to benefit from the introduction of a new technology may lack the skills necessary to utilize the technology that a business has introduced even if it is meant to benefit the customers. This factor determines the diffusion of the technology the business is introducing to the customers (Tongur & Engwall, 2014). In addition, workers and capital goods are necessary for the implementation of a new technology and it may consume time and be costly for the workers to acquire the new necessary skills. In case they lack necessary skills, diffusion may be slow at the firm level and this impacts negatively the profitability that results from the introduction of a new technology.

Globalization is also another challenge the use of IT in business operations faces. Markets are opened in the global arena providing a wider customer base for the businesses and this also opens up the business for an increase in competition (Tongur & Engwall, 2014). There is also excessive workload as the majority of customers become more and more demanding with the increase in competition growth.

There is a need for the business to purchase new machines and the employees need to be trained on how to use the new technology introduced in the business operation. Sometimes, if the new technology needs to be installed in the system of the existing business operation, some installation may take long and this brings about costs that result from lost output during the time of installation.

Regulation impacts the adoption of a new technology including the insurance environment. This also includes other regulations which cover environmental regulations because sometimes industry regulation may prohibit the use of particular technology methods in production.

According to Fitzgerald et al. (2014), less than half of the IT projects are the ones that are delivered on time and within the budget that was specified at the start of the projects. However, the failure to understand any point in the business operation may in lead to failure to deliver a high-quality. According to Otoo et al. (2016) project management, security, and risk are also the challenges that IT sphere faces and it can be alleviated through the collaboration of various disciplines. Meeting the expectation of customers is the main challenge of technology in business and it needs a business to be customer centric in order to be able to develop a viable e-business strategy. Protecting data and security is another challenge posed by the use of IT as hackers may work to steal the data that belongs to the business.

Conclusion

In conclusion, technology can help business re-evaluate and indicate how they can perform better and to take the business operations to the next level. ICT can introduce new efficiencies in the operation of a business. For consumer, adoption of the new technology is an important factor for diffusion of the technology in the market and for the technology to be useful in the market. There are some audit emerging trends in IT which a business needs to adhere to if it wants to be successful. The use of IT effectively can be of great benefit to any business that needs to streamline its operations but when it is used in an improper manner; otherwise, it may lead to system inefficiency and loss of customer base of the business organization.

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