Technology management

Technology Management is set of management disciplines that allows organization to manage its technological fundamentals to create competitive advantage. Typical concepts used in technology management are technology strategy (a logic or role of technology in organization), technology mapping (identification of possible relevant technologies for the organization), technology roadmapping (a limited set of technologies suitable for business), technology project portfolio ( a set of projects under development) and technology portfolio ( a set of technologies in use).

Role of technology management function in organization is understand the value of certain technology for the organization. Continuous development of technology is valuable as long as there is a value for the customer and therefore technology management function in organization should be able to argue when to invest on technology development and when to withdraw.

Technology Management can also be defined as the integrated planning, design, optimization, operation and control of technological products, processes and services, a better definition would be the management of the use of technology for human advantage.

Perhaps the most authoritative input to our understanding of technology is the diffusion of innovations theory developed in the first half of the twentieth century. It suggests that all innovations follow a similar diffusion pattern - best known today in the form of an "s" curve though originally based upon the concept of a standard distribution of adopters. In broad terms the "s" curve suggests four phases of a technology life cycle - emerging, growth, mature and aging.

These four phases are coupled to increasing levels of acceptance of an innovation or, in our case a new technology. In recent times for many technologies an inverse curve - which corresponds to a declining cost per unit - has been postulated. This may not prove to be universally true though for information technology where much of the cost is in the initial phase it has been a reasonable expectation.

The second major contribution to this area is the Carnegie Mellon Capability Maturity Model. This model proposes that a series of progressive capabilities can be quantifies through a set of threshold tests. These tests determine repeatability, definition, management and optimization. The model suggests that any organization has to master one level before being able to proceed to the next.

The third significant contribution comes from Gartner - the research service, it is the hype cycle, this suggests that our modern approach to marketing technology results in the technology being over hyped in the early stages of growth.

Taken together these concepts provide a foundation for formalizing the approach to managing technology.

Graduate Programs

The Masters of Science in Technology Management (MS-Tech) is offered by the Graduate School of Business (UIUC College of Business) at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

The Ph. D degree and Master of Science degree in Engineering Technology Management are also offered by the Dept. of Engineering and Technology Management(ETM) at the Portland State University. The ETM department is also the organizer of the prestige international conference (PICMET).

Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (INDIA) also provides an MBA degree in Technology Management.

Department of Futures Studies, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram offers an M - Tech degree in Technology Management (2 years).

MBA in Technology Management is offered by Northern Institute of Technology Management, Hamburg, Germany. The MBA forms a part of the Global Engineering Program and is also accompanied by a Master of Science in one of the courses at Technische Universität Hamburg Harburg.

The MS-Tech Program is unique in that it combines the development of essential business principles and skills with an emphasis on the fundamental role that technology plays in managing the business enterprise. Unlike traditional business programs, the MS-Tech Program immerses students in case studies on integrating new technology, the benefits of technology infrastructure, and problem solving through technology. This specialized knowledge of technology as a problem solving tool and change driver allows MS-Tech graduates to develop into more effective managers and leaders, and to adapt more readily to changes in the marketplace.

Both PhD and MSc degrees in Technology Management are offered by the Defense Sciences Institute of the Turkish Military Academy (Kara Harp Okulu) [1].

With the diversity of students from different countries and different industries, students have an added benefit as this enhances their knowledge and prepares them effectively to become global leaders.

Further reading

• Kropsu-Vehkapera, H., Haapasalo, H. & Rusanen, J-P. (2009). "Analysis of Technology Management Functions in Finnish High Tech Companies". The Open Management Journal. 2: 1–10. doi:10.2174/1874948800902010001. ISSN 1874-9488.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)