ASSIGNMENTS

BB0026 –Semester 5

(2 credits)

Set 1

Marks 30

Introduction to Technology Management

Q.1 Explain Life cycle of technology.

(5 Marks)

The life span of various technologies can be

conveniently identified as consisting of four distinct

stages. These stages are as follows:-

Innovation stage:-

It represents the birth of a new product, material or

process resulting from research and development

activities. In Research and development

laboratories, new ideas are generated by need pull

and knowledge push facts. Depending upon the

resource allocation and also the change element,

the time taken in the innovation stage as well as in

the subsequent stages varies widely.

Syndication stage:-

It represents the demonstration and

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commercialization of new technology with potential

for immediate utilization. Many innovations are

shelved in research and development laboratories.

Only very small percentage of these is

commercialized. Commercialization of research,

outcomes depends on the technical as well as non-

technical factors.

Diffusion stage:-

It represents market penetration of a new

technology through acceptance of the innovation by

potential users of the technology. But supply and

demand side factors jointly influence the rate of

diffusion

Substitution Stage:-

This last stage represents the decline in the use and

eventual extension of a technology due to

replacement by another technology. Many technical

and non- technical factors influence the rate of

substitution. The time taken un the substitution

stage depends on the market dynamics.

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Life cycle of Technology

In the early days, the innovators and technology enthusiasts drive the market; they demand technology. In the later days, the pragmatists and conservatives dominate; they want solutions and convenience. Note that although the innovators and early adopters drive the technology markets, they are really only a small percentage of the market; the big market is with the pragmatists and the conservatives.

All technologies have a life cycle, and as they progress from birth, through troubled adolescence and on to maturity, their characteristics change. During this life cycle, the customer segment varies; starting with those technology enthusiasts who nurture the fledging early products and help them gain power and acceptability. In the early days of a technology, the engineers rule: each successive new product boasts of yet better technology: faster,

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more powerful, better this, better that. Technology rules the day, guided by feature-driven marketing.

When technologies mature, the story changes dramatically. Now the technology can be taken for granted. It does no good to make watches even more accurate than they are today: today's state is "good enough." The vast majority of customers wait for technologies to prove themselves, for the time when they can get value for their money, value without hassle. These are the late adopters who wait until the technology is mature. Now the product has to be driven by customer needs. Now it requires a human-centered development cycle.

Everything changes when products mature. The customers change, and they want different things from the product. Convenience and user experience dominate over technological superiority. The company must change: it must learn to make products for their customers, to let the technology be subservient. This is a difficult transition for a technology-driven industry to understand, a difficult change to make. Yet this is where the personal computer industry stands today. The customers want change, yet the industry falters, either unwilling or unable to alter their ways.

The high-technology industry is driven by engineers, by technology itself. It has flourished through a period of phenomenal growth, accompanied by high profits. As a result, the industry has succumbed to a technology fever, to the disease of futurities, to pushing new technologies at the customer faster than even the most compliant customer can absorb. The normal consumers, who make up the bulk of the

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market, consist of people who just want to get on with life, people who think technology should be invisible, hidden behind the scenes, providing its benefits without pain, anguish and stress. These people are not understood by the wizards of high-technology. These people are left out. I consider myself one of these people

If the information technology is to serve the average consumer, the technology companies need to change their ways. They have to stop being so driven by features and start examining what consumers actually do. They have to be market driven, task-driven, driven by the real activities of those who use their devices. Alas, this requires a dramatic change in the mindset of the technologists, a change so drastic that many companies may not be able to make the transition. The very skills that made them so successful in the early stages of the technology are just the opposite of what is needed in the consumer phases.

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Q.2 What are the classification of

technologies (5 Marks)

There are no agreed-on approaches for

classification. Technology can be classified as

follows:-

State of the art Technology - These are equal

or surpass the competitors

Proprietary technologies : These protected by

patents or secrecy agreements that provide

measurable competitive advantage

Known technologies: These may be common

to many organizations but are used in unique

ways

Core technologies: These are essential to

maintain a competitive position

Leveraging technologies: these support

several products, product lines, or classes of

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products.

Supporting technologies: these support core

technologies

Pacing technology :- whose rate development

controls the rate of product pr process

development

Emerging technologies: these are currently

under considerations for future products or

processes

Scouting technologies: formal tracking of

potential product and process technologies for

future study or application

Idealized unknown basic technologies:

technology that, if available, would provide a

significant benefit in some aspect of life.

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THOMPSON'S TECHNOLOGY CLASSIFICATIONThe model was devised in the 1960s by James D. Thompson, and is called Thompson's Technology Classification. 'Technology' is used in this model in a way that is common in organization theory literature - but is a bit different from the colloquial use of the word. Robbins (1989, p. 468) defines technology as 'The information, equipment, techniques and processes required to transform inputs into outputs.' He explains the model as follows Thompson sought to create classification scheme that was general enough to deal with the range of technologies found in complex organizations. He proposed three types that are differentiated by the tasks that an organizational unit performs.

Long-linked technology [A in the diagram] . If tasks or operations are sequentially interdependent, Thompson calls them long-linked. This technology is characterized by a fixed sequence or repetitive

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steps ... That is, activity A must be performed before activity B, activity B before activity C, and so forth. Examples of long-linked technology include mass-production assembly lines and most school cafeterias...

Mediating technology [B in the diagram] . Thompson identified mediating technology as one that links clients on both the input and output side of the organization. Banks, telephone utilities, most large retail stores, computer dating services, employment and welfare agencies and post offices are examples. As shown [in the diagram], mediators perform an interchange function linking units that are otherwise independent. The linking unit responds with standardizing the organization’s transactions and establishing conformity in clients' behavior. Banks, for instance, bring together those who want to save (depositors) and those who want to borrow. They don't know each other, but the bank's success depends on attracting both...

Intensive technology [C in the diagram] . Thompson's third categoryñintensive technologyñrepresents a customised response to a diverse set of contingencies. The exact response depends on the nature of the problem and the variety of problems, which cannot be predicted accurately. This technology dominates in hospitals, universities, research labs, or military combat teams.

Robbins quotes Thompson in giving the following example of intensive technology: The intensive technology is most dramatically illustrated by the general hospital. At any moment

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an emergency admission may require some combination of dietary, x-ray, laboratory, and housekeeping or hotel services, together with the various medical specialties, pharmaceutical services, occupational therapies, social work services, and spiritual or religious services. Which of these, and when, can be determined only from evidence about the state of the patient.

 

Q.3 Within the context o f your text

book, is management a technology?

Explain with the substantial proof. (5

Marks)

Within this context, is management a technology? The response can be a resounding “yes” or a resounding “no”. The response depends on the limits placed on the description of technology.

Every management action requires a process-or at the least should follow a process. But substance, action, and integrity must accompany that process. It seems almost trite to say that all decisions should follow some predetermined process regardless of whether the decision involves a major financial

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investment or the introduction of some new human resource program. Both involve allocation of resources, so some process must guide a fiscally responsible action. To that extent management as a technology can be defined simply:

Management as a technology can be described as the process of integrating the business unit resources and infrastructure in the fulfillment of its defined purposes, objectives, strategies and operations.

This is a simple statement with significant implications for management of technology. If the broader descriptions in 1 and 2 (in the list at the end of Sec. 1.2.) are accepted, then management definitely is a technology. If the restrictive approach of description 3 (technology as a body of scientific and engineering knowledge) were used, management would probably not be considered as a technology.

It could be argued that descriptions 1 and 2 are so broad that they encompass all of management and further that considering management as a technology is stretching the description of technology. It is true that the broad perspective is all encompassing, but then technology in one form or another or to a greater or lesser extent drives most organizations-especially those that are concerned about the future. If it does not drive the product base, it does drive the distribution process from order entry to customer satisfaction. Technology cannot be restricted to the manufacturing industries. It encompasses not only

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the manufacturing sector but all industries-agriculture, airlines, banks, communication, entertainment, fast food, clothing, hospitals, insurance, investment and so on-and determines future viability of the business unit as well as the industry.

There is no limit to the way in which organizations

can describe technology. The important point is that

organization defines what they mean by technology.

This is a holistic approach and differentiates

MOT/TM from the single issues approach-managing

engineering, managing research, and so on.

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Q.4 The human being used to be the

masters of technologies. Give the

comparative analysis on this statement.

(5 Marks)

Until recently, we used to be the masters of

technologies, we used to drive technology, but

today we have become technology’s servant, and

technology is driving us . We believe that we have

crossed a “technology threshold”, whereby our

response to technology has become one of catching

up. Many companies are unable to cope with the

dramatic changes taking place in the very nature of

technologies. This, in turn puts a company in a

reactive posture, rather than a proactive one.

Companies which are learning the art of managing

new technologies, have a better chance at being a

technology master instead of a technology servant.

The chaos that companies face today in responding

to “rapid technologies” can be harnessed as a

positive strategy to create opportunities for new

products and/or service

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It will not be too long before we see integrated

communication systems, combining technologies

related to television sets, computers, VCRs,

telephones, and fax machines. Cable companies will

soon be in the computer business; and computer

companies, in telecommunication business. It is

impossible to even conceive the extent of the

technological integration revolution we will be facing

even before we enter the 21st century. Our

wristwatches might become microcomputer devices,

working as remote-control units and information

retrieval systems. We might see a series of

technology thresholds bombarding us in the years

to come, and every time we cross one of them,

companies have an opportunity to convert

technological chaos into economic opportunities.

Q.5 What are the impact of

technological change on firms

competencies.

(5 Marks)

Technology:-

According to Porter, "technology is very under

defined term and is about discussion of

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competition."

According to Betz," Technology develops

business by providing technical knowledge for

the goods and services that a firm produces. "

Although all firms use technologies in products

production and services, not a gain a positive

competitive advantage from technology. There are

many factors in competition, and technology is only

one factor. Yet some firms effectively use

technology as a competitive advantage, and others

do not. One important factor in the successful use of

technology has been the role of general

management technology strategy. In particular, it

has been management’s ability to foster corporate

core technical competencies.

An example of this is Joseph Morone’s study of

companies that have turned technology leadership

into long-term competitive advantage for business

success. The similarities among the cases of

success (in using technology for a competitive

advantage) begin with the way general

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management defines the domain in which their

businesses compete. In every case, a strategic focus

has been consistently articulated and applied for

decades.

Impact of Technological Change on Firm

Competencies

Technological change can alter the basic capabilities

of a firm in either production or marketing, or both.

Technological change can alter corporate operations

to preserve or to destroy existing competencies in

production or marketing.

Abernathy and Clark classified innovations by their

impact on such existing competencies.

1. Regular innovations-preserve production

competencies and market competencies

2. Niche-certain innovations-preserve production

competencies but disrupt market competencies.

3. Revolutionary innovations-obsolete (phase out)

production competencies but

preserve market competencies.

4. Architectural innovations-obsolete production

competencies and disrupt market competencies.

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For normal strategic process at the executive level,

a firm can deal with the regular and niche-creation

innovations since the technical skill base of the

organization is not affected by either type of

innovation. However, the event of either a

revolutionary or an architectural innovation requires

a strategic business reorientation, because these

discontinuities obsolete the current technical skills

in firm, there by impeding the firm’s future ability to

produce and to serve market.

The relationships between the nature of innovation

and markets are:

Incremental technological change allows a fir to

grow and hold markets in an industrial structure.

Discontinuous technological change allows firm to

alter an existing industrial structure and to compete

with the competitors

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Q.6 How do you assess technology

management? (5 Marks)

Technology Assessment (TA) addresses the question, Will the technology work and is it likely to make money? This Technology Assessment is an independent and interdisciplinary analysis that comprehensively and systematically evaluates the potential positive and negative impacts of introducing and applying technology.

Although the Technology Assessment may build on the results of a Technology Survey (TS), a TS is certainly not a necessary precursor to this higher level of analysis.

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A Technology Assessment typically includes:

A detailed review and analysis of the technology development proposal documentation and literature

Verification of the representations made by the proponent and a reviewer's conference

A review of the technology plan; an evaluation of the depth of proponent's in-house expertise

A search and analysis of state of the art in the proponent's area of technology

A search and analysis of related and competitive technologies

A detailed analysis of the technology and development plans, schedules, and budget

A review of the enterprise’s management capabilities and ability to respond to the opportunity; structured interviews with key personnel

Formulation of conclusions and recommendations, along with documentation of full details of methodology, sources, and references

Sampling of Recent Technology Assessment Engagements

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Technology Assessments are based on almost 10 years in this business domain, and we capture this experience in mature and cost – effective processes for technology assessment and Technology Due Diligence.

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ASSIGNMENTS

BB0026 - Semester 5

(2 credits)

Set 2

Marks 30

Introduction to Technology Management 

Q.1: What is technology management?

And who is technology manager?

  Technology Management:

               Technology management is about getting people and technologies working together to do what you want. Technology management is a collection of systematic methods for managing the process of applying knowledge to extend the range of human activity and produce defined products (goods or services). It is not about managing only technical specialists in technology-based businesses, but includes that conventional, but very limited definition in a holistic and integrative approach. Effective technology management synthesizes the best ideas from all sides: academic, practitioner, generalist, or technologist.

    The Technology Manager:

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             Managing technology is about systematically applying know-how both technical and managerial- to meet needs by getting people to produce particular goods and services and thereby create competitive advantages for the firm. Thus, a technology manager must have three critical and interlocking skill sets.

First, the manager must be a change manager, in both the usual sense of possessing skills for implementing effective organizational changes and also in a technology change sense. Second, as with any good change manager, the technological change manager must have a deep and practical understanding of the institutional structures being affected by the change and those affecting the change and must be familiar with the technologies involved, but also comprehend the institutional basis in which these technologies exist or will operate. Third, the technological change manager must understand the fundamentals of relevant technology change mechanisms and trajectories and effectively operate within relevant technological, political, economic, and management systems.

  Thus, the profile of a good technology manager should be that of a person who combines solid competence in

1.     General management

2.     Change management

3.     Overall technological literacy

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Q2. What are the factors affecting technology user and its general meaning.

Factors affecting Technology user

                      General Meaning

Economic Social Economic viability in the short term or long term. Factors dictated by the social needs of people affected by the technology

Political Factors imposed and controlled by the policies and directives of political system in which the technology user functions

Ecological Ecology-sustaining facets that emphasize balance between natural and synthetic or

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artificial systems

Nature-imposed Factors strictly imposed and controlled by the natural systems of the universe in a predictable or unpredictable manner.

Technical Functionality at expected levels of performance, as defined by the user

Educational Level of education and training

Proficiency in skills acquired

Psychological Emotional and mental states

Behavioural characteristics

Perceptual conditions

Personal health Factors directly affecting the health, safety, and general well being of individuals who will be affected by the technology

 

Q.3: What are the strategic issues in technology management?

Strategic Issues:

    The strategic issues of technology management require greater attention by managers involved in

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developing business unit strategy. Consider the following strategic issues.

·       Understanding the scope of managing technology

·       Managing technology – different levels

·       Technology managers – who manages technology

·       Adding value with technology

·       Developing a technology policy

·       Bridging the gap between technology policy and results

·       Precursors to technology strategy

·       Including technology in business strategy

·       Rationalizing strategy and operations

·       Managing the decision-making processes

·       Systems thinking – the imperative

·       Negative impact of single issue management

·       The role of technology achieving competitive advantage

·       Managing technology in a dynamic environment

During the strategic-planning craze, technology was essentially ignored. Elaborate strategic plans were developed without any strategy. Volumes were prepared but were seldom reviewed after approval.

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Strategic planning processes yielded volumes of data instead of information, an interjection of operational detail but insufficient as an operational plan and prepared on a basis of at least questionable, if not false, assumptions. Those assumptions included the assumptions of a static rather than a dynamic environment, were based on a questionable premise of an annual event, dealt with data rather then information, focused on analysis without comparable emphasis on synthesis failed to translate the strategy in meaningful terms throughout the organization, and ignored technology that affects over 75% of the sales value of production.

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Q.4: How do you determine technology management as an emerging discipline?

 Technology management is rapidly emerging as a discipline combining the elements of business management and engineering. In support of the meaning of technology management one description view this discipline as “The research and education on how to:

·       Manage the technology component of individual product life cycles

·       Capitalize on process technology to gain a competitive advantage, and

·       Relate and integrate product and process technologies”

Technology management is applicable to every phase of technology-oriented businesses (in either application or development) such as marketing (services) and planning activities as well as R&D, product development, and manufacturing. Major elements referred by the National Research Council Task Force Report on Management of Technology include the following area of study.

·       Research management

·       Product planning and development

·       Project management

·       Integrated manufacturing processes

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·       Production control

·       Quality assurance

·       Information systems design and use

·       Software development

·       Product venturing

·       Corporate technology

·       Integration of technical [disciplines] with business and financial decision making.

“Formal knowledge of technology management is valuable, not only for managers of R&D, but also for manufacturing, marketing, financial, and general corporate management.” Therefore, it is important to view the management of technology not only across all disciplines and industries but also in a global environment in a rapidly shrinking society. Both manufacturing and services industries are in need of this knowledge today, although the latter is just beginning to be cited with frequency.

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Q.5: What are the basic tenets for MOT. Explain in brief.

A tenet is a principle based on observation, intuition, experience, and in some cases, empirical analysis. Ten tenets are proposed next, as guiding principles for an enterprise to operate within a TC framework. They recognize that short-term treatments of any issue in general, and technology management in particular. Some of the tenets are as follows:

Value diversification is a poor substitute for MOT:

Value diversification refers to the improvement of stockholders investments in a company through quick-fix solutions on paper, such as mergers, acquisitions, and other stock-exchanging strategies. Unfortunately, this traditional approach to value enhancement results in mostly short-term gains.

Manufacturability must keep pace with inventiveness and marketability:

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In industries in general, and manufacturing companies in particular, people in manufacturing functions often find themselves coping with increasingly aggressive marketing strategies and design strategies.

Quality and productivity are inseparable concepts in managing technology:

The non-traditional total productivity management approach to competitiveness forcefully argues that quality, price and time are the three competitive dimensions which must be simultaneously created and monitored for companies to be long-lasting. Quality and total productivity are like two sides of the same coin or two rails of the same track. Companies that have excellent quality and competitive prices still cannot do well unless they can bring products of highest value to the marketplace in the least time possible.

It is a management’s responsibility to bring about technological change and job security for long-term competitiveness:

Employees must feel that they have job security, particularly when they are responsible for suggesting and implementing new technologies. They feel betrayed after they spend hours of hard work designing a technologically advance environment for greater competitiveness, only to find themselves victims of their own making. A smart approach to managing technology is to look at the competitiveness challenge as a holistic one. The Japanese have been excellent in taking such a

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systematic view while managing all their basic technologies.

Technology must be the “servant” not the “master”, the master is still the human being:

    Until recently, we used to be the masters of technology, we used to drive technology, but today we have become technology’s servant, and technology is driving us. We believe that we have crossed a “technology threshold”, whereby our response to technology has become one of the catching up.

The consequences of technology selection can be more serious than expected because of systemic effects:

This principle has major impact on the economic viability of the twenty-first-century organization, because we will be selecting multiple technologies with a rapidity that is hard to comprehend at this time. Product technologies will become obsolete in such short periods of time that they will resemble the toy industry, where the average shelf life of a product may be only one season, or sometimes only a month.

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Q.6: How do you link technology to competitive advantage?

Technology is related to three competitive advantages of low price, higher quality, and sooner availability.

 Technology and cost-low price:

Customers don’t normally care about what a supplier’s costs are; they only care about and often only see the price that is charged. It is important to note, therefore, that there are other ways to achieve lower prices than lowering costs. Subsidies-either internal to the firm or provided by governments-can be used to lower prices, and in international competition, changes in exchange rates can lower or raise prices overnight without any change in the firm’s costs.

Product costs are emphasized, but as indicated earlier, low costs must be pursued in each and every activity of the low-costs leadership firm. Wringing the last penny of cost out of production activities may be more than counterbalanced by “far” in distribution (outbound logistics) activities, for example.

Production costs and advanced manufacturing management technology:

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When we look at advanced manufacturing management technologies (AMMT’s) advanced ways to manage manufacturing operations, however, we see a more straightforward linkage with various production costs. There are a number of so-called Japanese manufacturing management practices that can affect production costs.

Technology and high quality:

A customer who expresses a preference for one particular product or service over a competing alternative because of its higher quality might be conveying one of two different meanings:

Ø The reliability of the product or service is higher-a production-process-related phenomenon.

Ø The performance of the product or services is higher- a design related phenomenon.

Reliability: Building it in

 There are two basic ways to improve reliability: to build it in or inspect it in. Building it in is usually the preferred way to improve reliability because; this involves improvement of the production process itself and therefore has the added competitive effect of lowering manufacturing process costs at the same time.

Reliability: Inspecting it in

Inspecting quality into the process without building it in results in higher reliability as perceived by the customer because few or no defects get past the inspection system, but there are no reductions in

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production process costs because the process itself remains unchanged-warranty, services, loss of customer goodwill, and liability costs of poor quality are merely shifted to scrap and rework.

Performance: Designing it in

Improving product performance is largely a matter of product design and the choices that are made in the product design activity.

Technology and Sooner Availability:

The third and final competitive advantage to be examined in the context of advanced manufacturing hardware and management technologies is that of availability.

New products:

 Two situations from which to examine the availability advantage: that of new products and that of expanded or extended product lines. Perhaps the ultimate availability advantage is to come to market first with a new product that is not available from any competitor. For that period of time when no competing alternative is available, a firm can charge what the market will bear, can create first-mover advantages which will endure even after a competing alternative is available, can obsolete its current new product with an even better or cheaper one to stay ahead of the competition, and so forth.

Licensing or acquisition:

There are a couple different ways to obtain new products. One way is to licence or acquire them as

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products, or to license or acquire underlying technologies which feed into the second way-the firm’s internal new-product development process which normally is managed by the R&D function.

Expanded or extended product lines

The second situation in which the availability advantage can apply is with expanded or extended product lines, and there are three cases of how this can happen.

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