The Strategic Information Technology Plan-Final Project

Running head: THE STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN 1
The Strategic Information Technology Plan
Robert Haskins
MGT 497: Strategic Technology Plan for Organizations
David Randolph
21 May 2012

THE STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN 2
Executive Summary
The information age has brought us many new ways of living life and doing business.
The management of technology and innovation (MTI) is a development of processes that will
enable a firm to compete and to survive the constantly changing world of information
technology. New products and services from businesses and their competitors are forcing them to
develop ways to help firms become more efficient and effective.
These changes in the internal and external environment of the firm pressure more
emphases on the management of technology and innovation. Managers will need to establish a
strategic process of achieving goals in planning, implementation, evaluation, and control. The
development of internal innovation and obtaining new technology through external means are at
the core of the strategic process to ensure the goals of the firm are achieved. The creation and
analysis of value is a principle focus of the management team because it reinforces the goal of
obtaining and sustaining a competitive advantage. The capabilities that are necessary for the MTI
must be developed through organizational learning and knowledge management.

The Strategic Information Technology Plan
Understanding the management of technology and innovation in an organization is the
principle undertaking when considering the aspirations of an organization predominately is the
function of technology and innovation. International Business Machines (IBM) has had a long
history in the development of technology and the implementation of innovation is the core of
their business model. At a recent event that included 319,000 IBMers, Chairman, President, and
Chief Executive Officer, Samuel Palmisano concluded the event by describing what is IBM’s
mission and goal, “If we're going to solve the biggest, thorniest and most widespread problems in
business and society, we have to innovate in ways that truly matter. And we have to do all this
by taking personal responsibility for all of our relationships - with clients, colleagues, partners,
investors and the public at large” (IBM, N.D.). The mission and goal IBM has established for
itself is similar to many other organizations that procure the same ambition to produce and
deliver technology to their clients. However, what differentiate IBM from the others are the
goals they have to manage the technology and innovation. IBM has taken unique steps at
bringing the innovators within the organization to bypass the traditional developmental lifecycle
and work directly with strategic markets. This new program is called First-of-a-kind in which
“Sales identifies strategic market segments and targets early adopter clients and business partners
to work side-by-side with IBM scientists, testing new ideas and innovative technologies”
(Frederich & Andrews, 2008, pp. 7). The capabilities that IBM possesses demonstrate the
flexibility they appreciate and the Innovative Capabilities Audit Framework points out these
variables. The direction IBM is taking will elevate their status as an organization that

exemplifies the management of technology through innovation and continue to develop the
strategies of an information technology plan.
Resource Availability and Allocation
The capabilities of IBM in determining the ability to allocate the available resources into
research and development, engineering, and market research are important to comprehend
because it actuates the purpose of funding. By establishing, a percentage of sales and a
percentage of research and development funding compared with the main and/or leading
competitor, IBM will be able to evaluate the different avenues they can take.
Understanding Competitor’s Strategies and Innovative evolution
If IBM can identify, analyze, and predict competitors’ innovative strategies and industrial
evolution, they could make the proper decisions before falling behind. It is imperative for IBM
to “Anticipate facilitating/impeding external forces relevant to business unit’s innovative
strategies” (I-Hai Lin, 2008, pp. 11).
Understanding Technical Developments
Since IBM transformed from a struggling hardware selling company to a dynamic service
oriented one, they have made substantial moves at developing technology before their
competitors do. IBM has developed a strategic insight into tackling the forces of opportunity gap
and performance gap by using “Market Insight…a focus on understanding customer needs,
competitor moves, technology developments, and market economics” (Harreld, O'Reilly III, &
Tushman, 2006, pp. 18).
Structural and Cultural Context Affecting Intreprenuership

IBM is a leader in innovation and it can be attributed to having associates that are
encouraged to take risks without the consequences of being reprimanded for failure. This
freedom is important in the high technology industry that is constantly changing and new ideas
are often times have already been thought of. IBM’s associates to take these risks and gain a
sense of ownership in the projects they are involved with intensifying corporate culture.
Dealing With Innovation Initiatives by Internal Entrepreneurs
IBM has referred to these internal entrepreneurs as innovation enablers and they have
become a valuable member of IBM’s ability to use innovation. Some of the structures that have
been created to foster the innovative ideas from these innovation enablers are using them in
cross-functional teams collaborating with the same practices to manufacture innovative
archetypes. (Pohle & Wunker, 2007, pp. 3)
Assessing sustainability, CSR, and Ethics
IBM has launched an initiative called Smarter Planet that has outlined a “Commitment to
integrating sustainable development into business strategy and operations…for business
practices and for specific efforts toward developing IT products” (IBM, 2012). Corporate social
responsibility does not stop at the doors of IBM; it involves the entire community of clients that
IBM collaborates with. IBM tries to identify information gaps with suppliers and partners and
understand the CSR concerns of the customers. (IBM, 2009) IBM does not tolerate the
unethical practice of any employee or business partner. In addition, IBM will “voluntarily and
promptly disclose known violations of government procurement laws to appropriate officials of
government” (IBM, 2012).
Responsibility to Stakeholders

A stakeholder is anyone that has invested his or her time, capital, and knowledge to a
project. These people can be direct or indirect users to a product, management, and associates
that have a stake in the success of a firm, project, or product. It is important to maintain
perpetual communication with the stakeholder at every phase in the project development to
preserve the support they offer. Feedback and communication by the stakeholder will ensure
that evaluation and control of the management of technology and innovation will take place.
IBM has created a website that dedicates this communication with its stakeholders that
commissions the rights and responsibilities to the stakeholders. Some of the rights that are given
to stakeholders include “Describing [the] characteristics that make the product easy to use”
(Ambler, 2001). Scott Ambler (2001) goes on to describe the right of the stakeholder “To
receive a system that meets their functional and quality needs.” These are just a few of the
extensive list of rights to the stakeholder. In addition, IBM has established a list of
responsibilities they attempt to advocate to all of their team members. They include, “Be
specific and precise about requirements” the stakeholder desires. In addition, if changes are
made to a project, IBM is responsive by communicating to the stakeholders about the potential
risk and benefits to the change.
Social Responsibility and the Bottom Line
Social responsibility delves into the realm of doing what is right for society by examining
human moral integrity. This can be just basic human rights to abiding by the law. However,
when a corporation must consider the moral equivalence of that of humans to maintain a positive
view from the public, it can become a grey area because an organization ultimate goal is to make
a profit. In these past decades, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a driving force

in organizations because of the positive outlook people have for organizations that adhere to
environmental, economic, and societal challenges. The first challenge for IBM was to know
what their customers considered “responsible.” “To recognize the impact of [IBM’s] activities
on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders, and all other members of
the public sphere that matter” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 73), IBM found there was a knowledge
gap between their managers and the customers. The second challenge for IBM was to promote
the readiness they had for change because they knew the benefits of a positive reputation from
people and the bottom line.
Innovative Actions to Improve Its Reputation
Reputational risk can be a major reason for many organizations eventual downfall. Often
times it is much easier to create a bad reputation than it is to grow a good one. Therefore, an
organization will take great strides at reducing those risks that can damage a reputation. For
decades, IBM was the model of a good reputation demanding respect from all of their
competitors. However, during the late 1980’s and early 1990’s they wavered from their standing
with corporate clients and their ability to build the highest quality mainframe computers in the
world. (Bresnahan, Greenstein, & Henderson, 2011, p. 14) The reason for this was IBM’s
attempt to enter the personal computer industry. They failed to maintain the respect and
reputation from their top clients in the corporate world because of the distraction they created
without the proper internal organization needed to divert their talents into new markets.
(Bresnahan, Greenstein, & Henderson, 2011, p. 36) Through a reorganization effort from within,
IBM has been able to return to the good reputation they enjoyed before, IBM is now a leader in

the highly competitive consumer electronics industry, and they are always looking to improve
their reputation to gain the competitive advantage.
Favorability of the Demand for the Product
The consumers demand for a product will be determined by how it will benefit them or if
they enjoy the service. Therefore, focusing on positive aspects of the product is paramount.
Determining whether the product sufficiently alleviates the consumer’s appetite on a long-term
basis is important. The potential for sub-markets to offer products that accompany the original
product is another factor to consider. Repeated usage of the product by the consumer will ensure
the long-term product lifecycle. (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 38) The innovation planning
process is a cascading model that begins broadly and matures to the actual undertaking of
achieving the organization’s goals. The demand of a product relies on the success of the
innovation planning process in identifying the “Strategic issues focused outward on economic
and technology issues rather than on internal organizational outcomes” (White & Bruton, 2011,
p. 103).
Factors That Could Speed Adoption
Society in general is apprehensive to change and making investments into technology that
people may not grasp can affect the resources put into that technology. Some people oppose
having to take time to learn new technologies or change their habits. “Factors that tend to speed
adoption include customer dissatisfaction…, low perceived risk to the customer, and a selling
proposition in which those who stand to benefit can actually make the purchasing decision”
(McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 37). Depending on what the firm’s capabilities are, they
should decide what actions to take in internal innovation planning. If management decides to be

a forerunner of the industry, they can make the decision to advance their basic research and
apply it to the market. However, if management decides to take a low risk approach to the
available technology, then systems integration is the best option. The firm can tweak the
innovation “To improve the [Firm’s] fit with existing knowledge bases” (White & Bruton, 2011,
p. 95) and gain a minimal amount of competitive advantage.
Factors That Could Block the Success of an Innovation
Competitors, governments, and social groups with agendas use blocking techniques to
restrict access to resources and customers to make it more difficult for a firm to make money.
“The trouble with blocking is that it can either simply stop business in its tracks or it can require
enormous investments of managerial time and other resources to resolve” (McGrath &
MacMillan, 2000, p. 37). If a firm operates within a regulatory structure that restricts them from
making a profit, they may have to reengineer the work process to allow means that are more
efficient. Government regulations may dictate how the work process is carried out and a firm
will have to adjust to those regulations if they are to become successful. If a firm cannot adjust
to those regulations, they will have to consider changing the innovation planning.
Likelihood of Strong Competitive Response
Competition will continue to drive the firm’s decisions on many factors including
competitors matching the firm’s capabilities with their own justification and resources. This is
especially damaging in industries “In which customers neither know nor care about inputs to the
product or service, but simply evaluate the offering on the basis of what they can observe”
(McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 39). Imitation is another competitive response that a firm will
have to consider because competitors can simply imitate a product with lower quality standards

THE STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN
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and drive down prices that will eventually affect the firm that originally produced the product.
The evolutionary aspects of technology benefit start-up and growth related firms that use their
competitor’s technology to sustain a competitive advantage. Start-up companies will “[Look] for
opportunities in the environment, and contacts with external groups…to identify those
opportunities and understand how to take advantage of them” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 111).
Likelihood That the Potential Competitive Advantage Is Sustainable
Whatever the competitive response is to the firm’s products either it is through matching
or imitation, sustaining the competitive advantage ought to be the focus of the firm. Controlling
the competitor’s response is the best solution to these problems, having the products under
patents and trademarks will be effective however, using entry strategies will sustain the
competitive advantage. Commercializing existing products with new technologies will “Embody
formally protected process or trade secrets” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 39). Development
of products that are difficult to reverse-engineer is another way to maintain sustainability.
Taking a proactive response to competitors will help to sustain the dominance in a market and
allowing research to become transformative from basic to applied research will lessen the time
needed to bring technology to the customer quicker.
Factors within Your Organization That Would Allow You to Set Standards
If the firm is to sustain competitive advantage it will have to create the dominate design
and set the standards the product will be accepted to live up to. “It is much more likely to enjoy
sustainability than if it must wrestle in a world in which no standard has been established, or
worst yet, find itself on the wrong side of the standards battle” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p.
40). Taking creative ideas and implementing them to discover new possibilities will help to be

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the firm that sets the standards of a market. A firm will have to encourage their employees to try
new ideas and create cross-functional teams that are actively adventuring, confronting, and using
their portfolio of skills. (White & Bruton, 2011, pp. 106-107)
Cost Factors In Commercialization
Commercialization cost can easily be maintainable when the costs are “Modest and
contained” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 40). Some factors of cost that need to be addressed
are investments in creating and distributing the product or service, production assets, costs of
inputs, training and organizing a staff, positioning a pathway to the market, and advertising and
promoting. (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 40) The innovation planning process takes in
consideration some of the commercialization costs by initializing the costs into the planning. A
firm will need to “Identify events that occur in its environment and then to adjust and adapt
constantly” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 104).
Resources Available For Commercialization
Commercialization will require resources that are already obtained or readily obtainable.
Resources that are already in place will be an advantage because customers will continue to use
the product as long as it is satisfactory. However, if the firm changes the supplier it can affect
the resources used for the product and adversely affect the customer’s relationship with the firm.
This could also have a reverse effect in which it could give the firm a new competitive advantage
because of smaller costs to bring the product to market. This is another example of the
importance of the stage, tactics, and actions, in the innovation planning process.
The Level of Novelty the Innovation Captures

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Commercialization of the product before the firm’s competitors will allow the firm to
gain a competitive advantage because of the novelty of the innovation. However, a balance
between creating a product that is attractive to customers and the costs of creating the product
must be achieved. A product that is an unattractive project “Is one in which revenues are
constrained or likely to be so long in coming that costs could balloon out of proportion”
(McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 42). Anticipating how the customer will benefit from the
product is one factor but the concentration should be on whether it is worth the cost of
development to capture the value of the product. A clear understanding of the vision of the firm
should be the focus. A clear vision will dictate if the product the firm wants to create will help
the leaders convey the goals to their associates and ultimately benefit the customer.
Cost Considerations in Development
Considerations in cost require a level of management that evaluates the return of
investment on the facilities and skills used for “Design, prototypes, testing, and model
development” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 42). The historical aspect of the cost of
products similar to what the firm already produces is a way to determine cost for development.
In addition, “The extent to which investing in the new project offers the potential to create
benefits in your ongoing businesses, or positive spillover effects” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000,
p. 42). Finally, the cost of risk involved in the development effort must be addressed. A factor
that favors innovation for a firm that decides to become a fast follower in the market will help
maintain the cost of risk because first movers will receive the majority of the risk. Thus, the fast
follower will need to enter the market shortly after and perform better in an industry. (White &
Bruton, 2011, p. 92)

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Other Opportunities That Could Be Leveraged
If the firm has established a competitive advantage they have the edge on development
cost over their competitors because it cost more develop a product from scratch. (McGrath &
MacMillan, 2000, p. 42) The competition will find it harder to match or imitate your technology
because they do not possess the artisanship and knowledge of the technology. The leverage a
firm has over its competitors in the function of creating spillover technology at a lower cost
improves profitability. Product innovation allows a firm to integrate existing knowledge with
new ideas to create incremental improvements “In established products [and open] new markets
with an existing product” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 95).
Potential Area Where Damage Might Occur
If a project has the potential of imminent failure, the investments made into the project
will be in jeopardy. The scope of the project may “Require so many of your best people that the
rest of the business is likely to suffer” (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 44). Some of the areas
more prone to distraction and a need for attention according to milestones are development,
engineering, marketing, operations, and capital structure. (McGrath & MacMillan, 2000, p. 43)
It is prudent for a firm to evaluate each phase of development when certain deliverables are made
to the project. This will effectively determine when potential damage can occur before
production and marketing efforts are made. One of the characteristics of the planning process is
“Promoting widespread support and involvement in the entire process” (White & Bruton, 2011,
p. 103). This characteristic is consequential in structuring a means of evaluation of deliverables
to the project.

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Vision Leadership
Does the team have a clearly articulated vision,
mission, or set of objectives?
Does everyone share the vision (objectives)?
Is the vision (objectives) clearly stated?
Did everyone participate in creating it (them)?
Is this vision (objective) attainable?
Is excellence of central importance to the
team?
How does the manager monitor and improve
performance levels?
Are all team members committed to
excellence?
Does the leader encourage open idea
exchanges?
Processes Resources
Do team members share information fully?
Do all team members participate in decision-
making?
Are team members comfortable proposing new
ideas?
Are team members able to challenge standard
practice?
Is there a climate of trust within the group?
Does management support new ideas?
Do team members support new ideas by giving
time, cooperation, and resources?
Does the team leader offer practical help and
resources for the development of new ideas?
What happens when a new idea fails?
Figure 4.7 Checklist for Innovation Strategy (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 147)
The readiness to implement an innovative strategy
To determine the readiness of the firm to implement innovation strategy begins with
defining the objectives. Assessing the core business and industry demands and establishing the
goals will effectively set the vision for the team members to coalesce around. Each member of
the team will help build the sense of personal responsibility of the other members. The team
members will have to choose a priorities list to define the vision and “What actions are critical
today, what needs to be done later, and what can be ignored for now” (White & Bruton, 2011,
pp. 123). IBM has taken a unique opportunity of using their web capabilities to connect with
members all over the world by having what they call an Innovation Jam. This is a worldwide
brainstorming session where nearly 150,000 of its 356,000 members took part in. what is
fascinating about the Innovation Jam is not the ideas that were formulated over the two day,

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three hour sessions, but the emerging new vision that came afterwards. (Bjelland & Wood,
2008, pp. 33)
To bring together the diverse members of a team to work towards the common goals of
the firm, leadership is a key component to the success. A leader will effectively help members
convert problems into ideas by embracing problems to encourage ideas. The leaders will need to
demonstrate to the members what is expected of them by setting a timeframe and the milestones
the firm wants to achieve. To help motivate the members to capitulate to ideas when they are in
favor of internal innovation, leaders may have to offer incentives that try to change the negative
attitudes of external innovations. (Lichtenthaler, Hoegl, & Muet, 2011) Edward Bevan, Vice-
President of Technology and Innovation at IBM Research, described the new role leaders were
undertaking with the new concept of Innovation Jam when he said, “Idea generation is in some
ways the ‘easy’ part…of innovation, whereas advancing, refining and building support for those
ideas is the really tough part” (Bjelland & Wood, 2008, pp. 40). This understates the new
challenges of leadership when determining the readiness of innovation strategy.
The innovation process is at the core of the entire lifecycle of bringing ideas to the
customer. Team members will need to be able to share information and participate in the
decision making process. The team will need to be assembled with confidence that they are
allowed to take risks and propose new ideas. The cohesiveness of the team to trust one another
is an important factor in determining the preparedness of the innovation strategy. IBM has
become a service-oriented company by openly discussing challenges with their customers adding
value to them. IBM encourages sharing of information and participation amongst the team
members as a way to implement an “inside-out” approach at developing solutions for the

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customers. (Chesbrough, 2011, pp. 88) IBM’s concept to include everyone in the decision-
making process and promote new ideas without the repercussions of failed risks is conceived in
the Innovation Jam sessions held each year. This also helps to create a corporate culture that
“Gives people the sense they are being listened to, as well as generate valuable new ideas”
(Bjelland & Wood, 2008, pp. 32).
The innovative strategy depends on resources from leadership and team members for the
success of the established objectives. To foster support of new ideas management and team
members will need to display effort, cooperation, and resources. Leadership is at the forefront to
offer practical help and resources and ought not to discourage team members from taking risks
without apprehension to giving new ideas.
Evaluation of the implied innovative strategy
In determining the readiness of an organization to implement innovation strategy,
evaluation of the outcome before the final product is conducted to determine whether the product
is worthy of the innovative strategy or will it be outdated or outmoded. Therefore, some metrics
need to be tested and some questions need to be answered. For instance, do we have a broad
enough range of models of technological possibilities, understanding the customer expectations,
and societal trends? How well do we understand the future? Will we reach the target customer
with this innovation strategy? Are we prepared for any changes in the attitudes, positions, and
ideals of our customers? These questions will help to anticipate changes the future may hold and
avoid outdated innovation strategies.

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Figure 1 Courtesy of SAP Enterprise Management (SAP Enterprise Management, N.D.)
The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is an evaluation matrix that analyzes the alignment of
“Business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external
communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals” (The Balanced
Scorecard Institute, 2011). This is a framework created by Dr. Robert Kaplan and Dr. David
Norton to combine performance metrics with financial measurements and allow managers a
more equitable view of the organization’s performance. Kaplan and Norton recognized the
inconstancies the financial measurements caused by looking primarily at past results. They had
the insight to include three other perspectives including customers, knowledge of employees, and
the internal business process “To develop metrics, collect data, and analyze it relative to each of
these perspectives” (SAP Enterprise Management, N.D.) to determine the impact on the vision
and strategy for the firm in the future.
International Business Machines (IBM) is a for-profit organization and the world’s top
provider of computer products and services. The primary focus of the company is the computer

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hardware services business. “The company is also one of the largest providers of
semiconductors, and its computer hardware legacy lives on in the form of its industry-leading
enterprise server and data storage product lines” (Cella, 2012).
Mission Statement: “At IBM, we strive to lead in the innovation, development, and
manufacture of the industry’s most advanced information technologies, including computer
systems, software, storage systems, and microelectronics.
Vision Statement: “Solutions for a small planet”
Strategy Map Performance
Measures
Targets Initiatives
Financial Results
 Increased profits
 Increased operating
income
 Lower liability costs
~Percentage of
profit margin
~Percentage of
operating margin
~Lower short-term
debt liabilities
~47.5% profit
margin
~19.6% operating
margin
~>20% of total
current liabilities is
short-term debt
~Control production
costs
~Diversify delivery
methods
~Implement a new
inventory control
policy
Customers
 Increased customer
Satisfaction
 Increase the value of
our products and
services
~Image Manager
Active Edition1
~95% answered
inquires on the first
call
~Retain and increase
customer lifetime
value by quick
follow-up inquiries
Human Resources
 Developing new
ideas
 Recruit and retain a
highly skilled
workforce
~Increase
knowledge capital
~Enhanced training
programs
~%100
participation
~Constructive
Innovation Jam
sessions
~Consider every new
idea as important
and valuable
Sustainability
 Convey the
corporate culture
 Improved business
~Improve
communication
within internal
environment
~Completing
intranet capabilities
~Analysis of the
work process will
~Plan a work
process initiative,
analyze what needs
to change, obtain
1
A program any organization can take advantage of that provides a highly scalable, high-performance
access to billions of objects for its business, eliminating the need for off-site storage and the associated costs. (IBM,
2007)

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practices ~Tweaking
business work
process
show deficiencies resources, and
implement them for
improvement
One stark difference between for-profit and non-profit organizations is the approach of
the financial perspective. Non-profit organizations will not see the importance of the financial
perspective because they are not in the business in making a profit. The strategy is more
reflective on how efficient the non-profit is with their relationship with their customers and its
funding source. In addition, more emphasis on how the organization can improve incurred costs
and creates value. (Zimmerman, 2004)
The Wounded Warriors Project is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to assist armed
service members that have been critically wounded in battle. It was created in response from a
group of people that exchanged stories of loved ones experiences and tragedies from the Iraqi
and Afghanistan wars. The Wounded Warriors Project provides “Comfort items to wounded
service members [and] has grown into a complete rehabilitative effort to assist warriors as they
recover and transition back to civilian life” (Wounded Warriors Project, 2012).
Mission Statement: The mission of Wounded Warrior Project® is to honor and empower
wounded warriors. (Wounded Warriors Project, 2012)
Purpose: To raise awareness and to enlist the public’s aid for the needs of injured service
members, to help injured servicemen and women aid and assist each other, and to provide
unique, direct programs and services to meet their needs. (Wounded Warriors Project, 2012)

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Strategy Map Objectives Measurement Target
Community ~Reaching out to
more people,
awareness
~Accepting new
service members in
need
~Increased
membership to
monthly donations
~Advertise on new
mediums (i.e. radio,
television, social
networks)
Internal Processes ~Maintain technical
operations
~Communication with
medical institutions
for support
~More support for
mental and physical
rehabilitation
~25 new medical
institutions to help in
support of wounded
service members
Learning and
Growth
~Expand the needs of
volunteers and
supporters by training
and education
~Awareness among
the internal and
external environment
is increased
~Increased
volunteerism and
support to include
service members of
other wars
Financial ~Increased donor
support
~Donor ship surpasses
previous year
~15,000 new monthly
donor subscriptions
With the influx of recent mergers and acquisitions, corporations reap great benefits in
acquiring other corporations including technological, financial, and the ability to gain innovation
over its competitors, to name a few. However, there are numerous unfavorable benefits to enter
into alliances. Risk management has the obligation to take the issues that could potentially
damage the relationship with the newly acquired company and the customers/clients the parent
company services and make an assessment to how the issues can be avoided. Once risk
assessment, or due diligence, is performed on the prospected technology or innovation the firm
wants to acquire, “It should integrate the knowledge into its planning process” (White & Bruton,
2011, p. 223). If due diligence does not show evidence of obtaining the goals of the firm, efforts
into purchasing the technology or innovation ought to be rejected.
Cultural Environment

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Often times, a large amount of time and effort on due diligence to analyze the possible
alliance with another firm is spent on “Physical resources, markets, and the logic of potential
mergers” (Carleton, 2010, p. 2). However, if the cultural environment between the parties
involved is not compatible it could lead to problems with coalescing management working
towards a common goal. Due diligence is required to examine the cultural compatibility to
alleviate any possible misunderstanding in the corporate culture that would dominate the
alliance. An important step in disseminating the concerns a firm may have is to compare and
contrast the examiner’s culture with the examinee and what differences may cause barriers for a
mitigated transition. The elements that may create confrontations with cultures are:
1) Cultural identity – How people speak and what clothes they wear are concerns that
must not be overlooked. In addition, their work habits and processes may be different and what
kind of company sponsored work activities exist.
2) Work environment – Differences in the workspace from one firm to the next may
cause problems if one firm normally works in open, bright areas and are then asked to work in
closed, cubical areas.
3) Learning new technologies – “Both in relation to internal systems and equipment, as
well as product and services provided to the customer” (Carleton, 2010, p. 9). The differences in
the technology that is used between firms could pose a problem in the way employees of one
firm may perceive the other.
4) Manager’s ability to manage – Managerial leadership over their employees help to
maintain moral, direction, and intricate relationships. Due diligence must be considered in this
area because a type of management execution may not be well excepted in another and if there is

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a developing alliance, you would want the leadership of either firm to understand the overall
goals of the firm.
5) Organizational practices – An analysis of how the potential acquired firm operates in
each department as far as what part does each play in the daily lives of their employees.
Especially formal functions like budgetary needs, “It is not unusual…to find that some particular
person or function is considered sacrosanct, regardless of the impact a person or function may be
having on important business issues” (Carleton, 2010, p. 8).
6) Infrastructure – Examination of the protocols that employees are expected to have
compared to what they are accustomed. For instance, the hierarchy of the leader’s employees is
to report to and the nature of the relationships that are expected.
7) Core business initiatives – Understanding how a firm may view its industry and the
approach it may have on decisions of future aspirations of developing the firm. This analysis
speaks a lot of management operandi towards innovation.
8) Intended direction – “Ascertain, from the top of the organization on down what the
company intends to accomplish” (Carleton, 2010, p. 6). Understanding how senior
management’s viewpoint on competitive advantage may be different from those that work in
other departments can demonstrate a lack of communication and overall cohesiveness. This can
create problems when those same senior management officials try to collaborate with the
acquisition firm.
Using due diligence to investigate the cultural environment that a potential acquisition or
merger will give insight to as how management and their associates are able to transition from
one business culture to the other.

23
Human Resources Policies
Due diligence involves investigating all the departments to understand the advantages
and disadvantages, and risks involved in the decision of whether or not to purchase a company.
The human resource department is a critical department concerning the relationship of every
employee to the business. Examining the advantages and disadvantages of the operation in the
human resource department will give valuable information as to that relationship. A good due
diligence practitioner will concentrate on these concerns:
1) Compensation and benefits – This is a major concern that includes things that
employees care about the most. The contents of this concern may even need to have its own due
diligence evaluation because of the numerous options it contains. For instance, the acquisitioned
compensation philosophy, severance, retirement, and bonus plans. In addition, special
agreements, disability benefits, profit sharing, savings plans, and employee loans. A firm
interested in another will have to consider each of these compensation and benefits that
employees receive and a change in them could effectively alter the perception the employees will
have on the buying firm.
2) Relationship with labor organizations and/or collective agreements – Examine the
relationship with labor unions and inquire about union leadership, internally and externally,
consider work disruptions and internal strife. Due diligence will find out about any current and
past collective bargaining agreements and how it effects the workforce.
3) Worker compliance with the law – To avoid problems in the workforce, due diligence
is needed to inspect each employees legal work status, “Auditing I-9 forms and information

24
submitted online that proves all of the company's employees are documented workers”
(Mayhew, 2012).
4) Recruitment and training – An evaluation of the recruitment process is needed to
ensure the standards of the parent company will be followed and the training is sufficient to be
acclimated to possible changes in technology and innovation.
5) Possible employee liabilities – Reviewing employee files to show whether there is a
potential for some to become a liability in the aspect of sexual harassment, “Unresolved
employee complaints or pending litigation in which the new company may become embroiled”
(Mayhew, 2012).
6) Code of conduct agreements – Management with the acquisitioned firm may have
signed agreements of acknowledgement of code of conduct with the employees. A decision of
whether these forms ought to be honored should be considered or to have new employees sign
one that conforms to the purchasing corporate culture.
7) Integration of human resource information systems – Examine the acquisitioned
employee data processing and human resources information systems. Investigating the
transferability of human resource information systems and how it complies with data protection
laws. Has the employees been notified of the possibility that their records are going to be
transferred?
8) Third party agreements – The tool of due diligence to examine outsourced work from
the acquisitioned firm will need to be investigated. It could cause problems with contracts
offering employees to conduct work orders for third party entities. Thus, creating legal problems
the parent company may have never considered.

25
Due diligence is need to evaluate the critical department of human resources because the
implications that can cause negative perceptions from employees from the newly acquisitioned
firm and the contracts they may have, internally and externally. Investigating the relationship
between the business and its employees is a fundamental step in the due diligence in deciding on
taking on a new firm to increase the parent’s technology and innovation.
Value analysis, or value engineering, is a process of value-based decision making to find
improvements in essential functions to progress towards lower costs for the organization and its
customers. The basic process of value engineering consists of the information phase, speculation
phase, evaluation and analysis phase, and the implementation phase. Although, there is a
number of ways that this process can be fulfilled, the fundamental procedure contains the
aforementioned phases. What value engineering is not is a cost cutting measurement for the sake
of saving money. Value engineering is to acquire information and create new ideas.
Furthermore, taking the qualitative ideas and implementing them to attain lifecycle fixes to the
organization’s product and/or services. When a firm decides to purchase another firm that is
smaller to acquire their technology the larger firm will need to make a value analysis to
determine how the new technology’s value will affect the cost and how it will best serve the
firm.
Information phase
The information phase is the foundation to a value analysis because it supplies the
analysis with material knowledge of the project, product, or service from the newly acquired
firm. Defining what technologies have been acquired and what value it represents is the core
components to the information that is gathered. An organization is more fortunate to ask the

26
question “What must it do… [and] avoid the question of how to do it [because it] constrains
creativity” (Michaels & Younker, 1994, p. 1). During this phase, it would be prudent to use the
Function Analysis Systems Technique (FAST) because it lays out the groundwork to a wide
array of study approaches and analysis techniques.
Speculation phase
The speculation phase is born with team members coming together in brainstorming new
ideas without restrictions or apprehension because of criticism. “Creative thinking is essential to
this stage if the situation where the same old ideas are used to solve design problems is to be
avoided” (Facilities Society, 2012). The goal in the speculation phase is to suspend judgment of
the ideas and create as many creative ideas as possible. An environment of progressive, out-of-
the box ideas is preferred because this will motivate newer, never thought of, ideas.
Evaluation and analysis phase
The evaluation phase proceeds in shifting towards testing the new ideas and functionality
to find the value added benefits without the added costs to the organization. The point to this
phase is to filter out the brainstormed ideas down to the most viable idea. The idea chosen to be
most technologically and economically feasible is then developed further to determine if this
alternative is better than the original design. An analysis of comparing the idea to the existing
design should be like comparing apples to apples and not apples to oranges. Therefore, a cost
estimate will be conducted to conclude what idea has the best value to cost. The conclusion of
the evaluation and analysis phase culminates with a final review and recommendation to how to
proceed with implementing the innovation.
Implementation phase

27
The final phase of the value analysis is the implementation procedure. This phase takes
the recommendations from the evaluation phase and creates the plan of action to implement the
approved solution. (Michaels & Younker, 1994, p. 1) Teams are created and leaders are made
during this phase and “Periodic checks on the progress in implementing the approved solution”
(Michaels & Younker, 1994, p. 1) are made.
The value analysis is a valuable tool that creates valuable solutions. Through finding
information, creative thinking, analyzing those ideas, and implementing those ideas,
organizations can determine whether the technology they acquired will help to reduce the costs
without sacrificing value.
Obtaining technology either by internal or external acquisitions forces an organization to
make decisions to how this new technology will advance the cause for the organization. The
organization will have to decide to implement the capabilities at hand including the
administrative structure, “That support the product and process technologies of the firm” (White
& Bruton, 2011, p. 291). A structure that will combine both the products and processes of the
firm and develop a platform or portfolio to increase the chances of success will benefit the firm.
As the complexity of the firm grows from single-product technology to product
platforms, either internal or external technologies, then to portfolios, the capabilities of the firm
will have to adapt. If the firm fails to extend the capabilities, then they can become a burden on
the firm. An examination of the environment of four core areas the firm operates within is
economic, political-legal, social-cultural, and technological. These four areas will need to be
examined because it will effect the strategic direction of the firm’s technology.
Economical

28
Questions in regards to how the firm will handle the strategic direction of the technology
economically depend mainly on what the tradeoffs are between the expected benefits and the
cost that are related. For instance, how long will the benefits last? What will the proposed new
technology cost to build and operate? How will the costs change over time? What resources
will be needed to maintain, update, and repair the new technology? The best possible metrics
available to determine whether the costs are benefitting the firm is consistent use of the same
evaluation and control methods throughout the lifetime of the technology in question.
Political-Legal
A firm that develops a strategic direction of the technology will need to consider the
political and legal challenges the technology will pose. Management will need to ask how
specific regulations, foreign and domestic, will affect that direction. How will regulations affect
the cost in developing innovation? How does the political instability of a host country change
the direction of technology strategy? How should the opinions of the public reflect how
regulations are administered? Are the regulations administered on sound science or personal
opinion? Before the strategic direction is decided on, these questions will need to be asked to
avoid the costly overruns to adhere to regulations, both foreign and domestic.
Social-Cultural
Social and cultural considerations are taken when the successes of technology a firm will
pursue will is determined by the users themselves. Questions that need to be answered are; what
are the social costs? What environmental risks are there from using it or not? What will be done
to dispose safely of the new technology's waste materials? The most feasible way to measure the
social benefits the technology will make is how the customer reacts to the technology and

29
whether it becomes will receive. This will come at the end of the time frame of the strategic
directional change.
Technology
The technical direction of a firm will have many factors that depend on a number of
questions that need to be asked. For instance, does this technology supersede the previous
version or technological advantage? Is the innovation consistent with existing platforms? Is this
technology too difficult to understand for the common user? Can this technology be easily
adoptable? These questions are answered by interviewing users and controlling the complexity
of the technology.
The development of new technologies will challenge an organization in defining the
benefits of the technology, maintaining the value, and ensure the firm will continue to get
positive results into the future. The firm will need to develop a plan to continue the success of
the new technology by putting in safeguards to prevent those successes succumbing to losing
focus of the benefits. If the firm can continue to deliver products that meet the customers’
requirements and with good quality, the favorable outcome will continue.
The building of the capabilities is often a difficult one for an organization.
Implementation of the plan to create the capabilities must be done in a fair and timely manner for
the technology to become successful. It is important for an organization to patiently plan and
pace the implementation of technology to allow the growth of the organization to imitate the
implementation plan. This will prevent the technology to become too much of a burden on the
employees to learn quickly. In addition, the technology will develop timely enough so that the
organization will not outgrow the technology because “Too frequently organizations buy a

30
software application that meets only their current needs” (Consultive Group to Assist the Poor,
2012, p. 20).
The purpose to measure the performance of the technological capacities is to measure the
maximum possible output the firm could achieve with the available resources, or inputs. In the
development of the capabilities, the same matrix will be applied to the strategic components that
produce the capacities. For instance, “Leadership to provide a clear strategic focus with visible
top management commitment” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 312) is measured by input and output
expectations. Depending on the commitment, the leaders put forth can affect how the employees
will respond to the decisions that are made in regards to developing the capabilities. The
willingness to share knowledge among the whole of the organization will advance the ideas,
empower and incentivize employees, and give them the perception they are part of something
larger than themselves. The structural makeup of the organization will change according to the
size and scope of the firm. An organization will need to match the proper fit to the structure of
the “Goals and activities of the organization. The more innovative the organization is the flatter
and more networked the structure will be” (White & Bruton, 2011, p. 312). The skills of the
employees will be necessary to develop the management of time, space, and technology. A wide
range of skills is necessary for the firm to sustain a competitive advantage.

31
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