Use of IT to Improve Business - Literature review Example

Use of IT to Improve Business Contents Introduction 3 2.What is Technology Change? 3 3.Proposed Technological Change inthe Gym 5 4.Why Technology Change? 6 4.1 Benefits 8 4.2 Risks 8 5.How would we Change? 9 5.1 Technology Change Plan 10 5.2 Current Process Flow 12 5.3 New Process Flow 12 6.Interim Technology Solution 13 6.1 Project Timeline 15 6.2 Resources and Procurements 16 7.Issues 16 7.1 Technology Cost 16 7.2 Cost Assumptions 17 7.3 Full-Time-Employees Assumptions 18 7.4 Other Alternatives 18 7.5 Outsourcing 19 8.Conclusion and Recommendations 19 References 22 1. Introduction Baltzan (2011) explains that technology offers strength to a business; it supports the initiatives taken by an organization. The author explicates that “business initiatives should drive technology choices” (Baltzan, 2011). Technology change takes place whenever a new and advanced process is used to perform a task. This paper revolves around innovation in gym and describes in detail how a new process is planned to be introduced in the gym to offer better services to the customers. Before going into the details of technological change suggested for the gym it is important to highlight the theoretical aspects by defining technology and technological change. Following heading explains these concepts. 2. What is Technology Change? Weaver et al (2000) explained that understanding the term ‘technology’ is important before we move on to understanding the term ‘technological change’. The authors explained that there are several definitions of technology given by different authors at different times. Grubler (1992) defined technology as a way, method or process to extend human capabilities to achieve tasks that cannot achieved otherwise. Defining the ‘tasks’ in Grubler’s definition, Ayers (1994) defined technology more specifically as knowledge that helps transform resources or information from one form to another- a form that is more desirable. Weaver et al (2000) based on the definitions of other authors defined technology as a resource that helps make other resources productive. The authors pinpointed that yet there are definitions that focuses more on tangible and physical elements of technological solutions such as infrastructure, hardware, software or process equipment etc. However, this makes it clear that technology is a process of improving task performance by extending capabilities and making resources more productive whereas technological change is a change that takes place in the existing technology in the form of an invention, innovation or diffusion of previous technologies. Weaver et al (2000) described that technological change can take place in the form of invention, innovation or diffusion. Invention, according to the authors, is the discovery of a new technological solution – a solution that has not existed before. Innovation, on the other hand, is technological improvement in which technology is built upon to reach a new more desirable technology solution. Whereas diffusion of technology means technology spread over time across different user groups. All these types bring technological change. Clark et al (1990) elucidated that the process of technological change has three main elements, that is, technological change stages, issues arising during the technological change and the critical junctures or the crisis moments in the technological change process. Authors further explained that there are five stages in the process of technological change i.e. initiation, technology adoption decision, selection of the system, implementation, and the routine operations. All these stages are required to ensure technological change is successfully adopted. However, this is not simple and straight forward; there are several issues in the process of technological change. Clark et al (1990) explained that different issues arise at different stages of technological change; these include staffing issues, control issues, skills, training and pay issues and so on. Decisions need to be made to cater these issues either through negotiation or omission. Finally the third major element of technological change process is critical junctures which provide the intersecting point for technological change process stages and the issues arising at particular stage of the change process. Clark et al (1990, p.32) stated that critical junctures “are points at particular stages of technological change where organizational actors are able to seek to intervene to influence a particular issue or outcome”. 3. Proposed Technological Change in the Gym Area of focus in this paper is bringing technological change in the gym. Fingerprint identification system with membership is already in place in the gym premises where the members are identified using their fingerprints and they have to use their fingerprint to enter or log out of the system. The idea is to improve this system by introducing personal health tracker within the fingerprint identification equipment. This new equipment will then be used to track every member’s personal health. In order to track member’s health a chip will be implanted in the fitness equipment. When the member needs to use the equipment to track their health they just need to scan their fingerprint. The information related to specific areas of health will then be displayed on the screen. This information will then be analyzed to device a perfect fitness plan for the member without any personal coach. This personal health tracker that use fingerprint scan to reach results will also provide daily intake of nutrients or food. For example, if the gym member does the chest, back or legs or any other big muscle, the system will suggest a diet plan accordingly like increasing intake of high-protein. The system will also suggest the kinds of food offering high protein which can be good for this kind of workout and the frequency of taking the meals like every three hours or five hours or so. For those who wish to gain muscles it is really important to balance workout with diet; this new health tracking system will help in balancing the workout and diet to get the best results. Hence the overall idea is to provide customers some dietary recommendations where a perfect diet is to be adopted along with the specific workout used. The system will suggest what the member should eat, when they should eat and how much they should eat of a certain food to go well with their exercise / workout. Comparing with theory discussed above, the proposed technological change to be introduced in the gym falls under the category of innovation. This is because the health tracking system to be introduced in the gym is a development of the existing fingerprint identification system that is already available for the members of the gym. Nevertheless, fingerprint scan system is used for some other purpose, that is, health tracking and not its conventional purpose that is person identification. By implanting the chip the purpose and use of fingerprint scan can be changed to tracking personal health of the gym members. This is what Baltzan (2011) also suggested that technology helps business achieve excellence in its operations by supporting its initiatives. Hence this new scanning system will offer a more desirable technology solution for the gym members and enhance their satisfaction as they can now track their health and design their workout and diet plan accordingly. 4. Why Technology Change? Darwin’s ‘survival of the fittest theory’ offers the best answer to the question ‘why you should change?’ Technological advancement offers solutions to the problems arising in today’s world and since every company is adopting new technological solutions those who do not stay updated will risk being victims of obsolescence. White et al (2003) stated that today strategic systems are affected by technology advancement and competition in the marketplace and hence it is important to work on specific areas of technology development to maintain competitive advantage. White et al (2003) suggested a few dimensions where technology development can help businesses succeed. Frist dimension is considering technology a strategic resource; the authors stated that if technology is considered a strategic resource in the organizations it is possible to exploit technology for strategic advantage. Second dimension pinpointed by the authors is making technology a part of company’s competitive strategy; the authors highlighted that technological change in the form of innovation can be considered a part of organization’s competitive strategy for organizations to take full advantage of it. Third dimension highlighted by the authors is that technology adopted by the organization must target customers to give strategic benefit to the organization. And finally fourth dimension is that technology should be taken as an offensive strategy not defensive one; authors explained that the organizations with strong technological support can be the one adopting offensive strategies and not ones developing defensive strategies. Hence these dimensions help organizations cope up with the changing competition in the marketplace. Now analyzing the competition in the market, workforce and technology in the fitness industry it can be said that the fitness industry is becoming more attractive yet competitive than ever before. According to Fitness Industry Analysis 2014 conducted by FranchiseHelp it can be said that currently United States is under obesity epidemic and those facing obesity issues are referring to gyms and fitness centers to get in shape and get rid of obesity (Weber, 2014). Yet the report suggested that aging population is also joining gyms to stay fit and healthy. All this population needs technological advanced and less complex solutions for their health needs and the gyms that offer easy and fast solutions will be the choice of public. It is therefore assumed that in fast growing fitness industry, technologically advanced solutions is highly in demand in the marketplace. Given the fact that fitness industry is expanding, players in this industry are adopting technologically advanced solutions and to stay ahead opting for the proposed solution is best for our gym at the moment. Following heading explains the risks and benefits of adopting this technology change. 4.1 Benefits Weber (2014) in fitness industry analysis report stated that obesity in America is growing and is showing no signs of stopping or slowing down. This is why the business of fitness centers and gyms will grow in the near future. The benefit of introducing this technologically advanced solution of tracking member’s health via fingerprint could give a competitive edge to the gym as this is a more desirable option as per the demands of the marketplace. Also according to White et al (2003) there are always potential benefits of investment in new technologies and especially when the technology is promising it is sure to offer benefits to the business. Another benefit of introducing this solution is the need of the hour. This reduces the need of personal coaching yet gives more accurate results about member’s health. Weber (2014) also highlighted the wonders good marketing can do for fitness industry players. This is why it is presumed that doing good marketing of this newly introduced technology solution can attract customers and give business to the gym. Yet hitting the market with the right technology solution at the right time is very important to gain a competitive edge over competition. 4.2 Risks There are certain risks associated with fitness business as highlighted by Weber (2014) in fitness industry analysis report. The report stated that fitness industry is highly fad-based and a pill or a weight loss technique which is popular in one year may not be popular in the next year. It is therefore a risk that this technology solution may become popular but may lose its appeal later on. To make sure this doesn’t happen, proper information about this innovation is given to the customers and how and why it is beneficial for them on a constant basis. Besides, major reason behind a technique or pill becoming obsolete is the lack of results or introduction of a new solution. However, in this case this fingerprint health tracker is of constant use for the customers and it is helpful for them first after every specific time period and second whenever they change their workout plan. Another risk highlighted by Weber (2014) in fitness industry analysis report is that competition in fitness industry comes from different sources. It is not only the other gyms but also the pharmaceutical companies and the clinics that offer competition to the gyms as they also work on the fitness and weight loss of the customers. Therefore all these sources offer risks. Besides, cost of the technology will determine if the customers will opt for it or not because they turn to other more affordable options in case of tough economic conditions. Another risk is high cost which ultimately is to be transferred to the customers / members of the gym. Cost is therefore an important factor that has to be taken care of if this technology solution is to survive for a longer term. This is because usually people adopt a technology initially as they want to test it and see its results but if they later on feel it a burden on their finances they may quit using it. 5. How would we Change? As mentioned earlier there are five stages in technological change process; initiation, decision to adopt technology, selection of the system, implementation and finally making change a part of the routine. In the case of the proposed innovation in the gym the same stages would be followed. Obviously there will be issues which will be discussed later and critical junctures will be identified to overcome issues as they arise at each stage of the technology change process. Following outlines the plan to adopt the technology change. 5.1 Technology Change Plan Initiation and Decision to Adopt Technology First stage in the technology change process is ‘initiation’; in this stage need identification is done and it is decided that what change initiative is actually required by the business. It has already been identified that fingerprint identification system which is already in place will be accompanied with the fingerprint health tracking system. Decision to adopt technology is finalized and it was decided that bringing this change would require a little investment in R & D because though such health tracking systems exist but they need to be customized as per the needs of the gym and customers. It was highlighted earlier that such a system has to be developed which can be used not only for the tracking of health of the customer but the one that also suggest health solutions according to the condition of the customer. It is therefore required to merge a few systems to develop a unique tracker that can inform about customer health and the needs of the customers based on the workout plan they are currently following. Selection of the System Though the identified system is the fingerprint health tracking system however since such system is not readily available it needs to be designed with the help of experts. IT experts will be contacted to develop a system which not only track health but also offer health solutions. The system will be named ‘fingerprint health tracker and advisor’. This name will clarify the purpose of the system and attract customers. Implementation Once the system is developed, fourth stage is the implementation of the system. This will require placing the system under specific department while giving the responsibility to a team for the efficient operations of the system. Following organizational chart explains where the fingerprint health tracking system will be placed in the organizational chart. Figure I- Fingerprint Health Tracker and Advisor in the Organizational Chart The gym setup has four main branches; nutrition branch, physical activity branch, obesity prevention branch, and workout plan development branch. All these branches will be connected to the fingerprint health tracker and advisor team. The team would collect relevant information and process the information while the supervisor provides the report after verification. Making Change a Routine Making the implemented technological change a part of routine would take some time. All the processes need to be linked and the results of the tracker need to be accompanied with the health solutions offered by the tracker and advisor. Training of team and coordination would help smooth the process of making the change a part of routine. 5.2 Current Process Flow Making the change a part of routine would require identifying the changes in the current process flow in order to develop a new process flow. Current process flow is presented as under. Figure II – Current Process Flow This is a simple process as the system implemented is only for the member identification and allowing access to the member to the facilities of the gym. However, new process flow would be a little complex. This is because the fingerprint health tracker and advisor would be added to the process and based on the membership type and facilities availed, the tracker will be used, health of the customer will be tracked and suggestions will be given accordingly. Following heading presents and explains the new process flow. 5.3 New Process Flow Figure III – New Process Flow In this new process flow, once the member is allowed access into the gym, he/she will move into the specific branch for which they have taken the membership. Then the fingerprint tracker will be given to them as they workout and health tracking will be done with the help of the tracker. Once the workout is complete results will be generated and upon verification from the authorized authorities the results will be given to the member to follow the new diet plan according to their workout. 6. Interim Technology Solution This heading discusses the plan which will be adopted until the new process flow is in place. It is the intervening plan that will be followed by the staff and members of the gym till the time the new system with fingerprint health tracker is not fully functional. Following presents the interim technology solution adopted by the gym. Figure IV – Interim Technology Solution The reason to implement this intervening plan is because there will be no system in place till the fingerprint identification system is not connected to the health tracking function. Though it seems that renting another fingerprint identification unit could have solved the issue but it is not worth the time and cost. This is because the fingerprint identification system has to be reinstalled with three fingerprint impressions of the gym members and staff which will be annoying as they have to redo all the steps which they did initially when the system was installed. It is therefore best option to keep it manual till the new process flow is operational. Another alternative that seems workable at first glance is that fingerprint identification system in the current process flow can run as it is until the new system is installed. But this is also impractical because the fingerprint identification unit has to be connected to the health tracking function and if the current identification function is not stopped it will be difficult to get it connected to the health function. Therefore it is suggested that manual entry and exit is followed to keep the identification system dedicated to the working in order to get best output. During the development of the fingerprint identification tracker and advisor, the process of database development will be on-going as it is important to have a database of all the members availing all the facilities in order to get the member connected to the system respectively. 6.1 Project Timeline According to the negotiation with the experts it seems that it will take around 6 weeks to complete the project. First they will be connecting the fingerprint identification system to the health tracking function. This has to be connected to different other devices used by the members during the workout. This is how data during the workout can be taken. This development of connections would take around four weeks. The process of database development will be on-going during these four weeks. Then there will be a one week trial with report generations to check if everything is going well. And the final week will be test run of complete project. After the completion of six weeks the health tracker and advisor device will be fully functional. Following presents the timeline for the project. Tasks Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Connecting the fingerprint identification system to the health tracking function. Connecting health tracking system with other workout devices. Database for all the gym members Report Generation Trial Test Run Table I – Project TimeLine 6.2 Resources and Procurements Fingerprint identification system currently in use in the gym has 3000 fingerprint templates and is sufficient for 1500 members. Moreover, it can register five fingerprints and also offers the password option. It has a capacity of 100,000 records however it has no in-built battery backup. To connect this system with health tracking devices which can work with fingerprint impression such devices needs to be identified which measure heart rate and blood pressure etc. during the workout with fingerprint impression. Each of such devices needs to be purchased according to the number of the members in each branch of the gym. Other resources include hiring of one health and one IT expert to finalize and authenticate reports and resolve any issues arising with the system respectively. 7. Issues As discussed earlier technology change process is not simple and there are always certain issues that hinder the process. It is important to identify critical junctures that can intervene to influence and resolve issues as they arise during particular stages of the change process. Interim technology solution is explained which will be used in order to avoid the issues with the system and member’s entry and exit until the system is not put in place. Some of the envisaged issues with implementation of this system are explained as under; 7.1 Technology Cost According to Dorf (1998) it is very important to carry out a technology cost-benefit tradeoff in order to be sure that the technology improvement is worth opting for. In this case, based on the analysis of competition and increasing fitness needs of the customers this technology development option is best. It is appropriate to be introduced at this time because it will surely attract more customers. Though this technology is expensive and health tracking devices for all members of the gym would be costly however same will be the pay-off. Not only will it satisfy current customers but will also attract new ones due to positive word-of-mouth. Here is a rough estimate about the technology cost. Fingerprint identifier currently in use in the gym is $400 whereas health tracking devices for the members of the gym would be around $5000. Connection and IT service charges would be $500 and normal maintenance per month would be $75. Following table organizes these costs. Device / Resource Cost Fingerprint identifier $400 Health tracking Devices $5000 Connection service charges $500 Connection and IT service charges (monthly) $50 Total $5950 Table II – Technology Cost Comparing this cost with the financial benefit, currently the fitness center has 28 members and the fee per month is $30. Adding $20 to the fees for those members who wish to avail this health tracking facility would be a good idea and once the breakeven is reached the fee could be reduced to $10 additional for each member availing the option. It has to be noted that this installation of the health tracker and advisor is one-time cost and as the membership will increase more tracker devices could be purchased and attached to the main server as required. It is estimated that the breakeven will be reached within first six months of the introduction of this health tracking facility. 7.2 Cost Assumptions It is assumed that people will like this technology change and would prefer to opt for it. Besides, it is assumed that they are willing to pay for it. In case any of these assumptions stand wrong there will be a loss. However to minimize this loss an initial survey was conducted with the members of the gym and they showed willingness to opt for this health option. Therefore it is assumed that this technology change would be adopted by the gym members and they willingly will pay for it as well. Another cost assumption is that connections services would be done within the range of $500 and there will be no maintenance charges more than $50 a month once the installation is complete. This assumption would be wrong if the maintenance is required more than expected and this would affect the time period to reach breakeven. 7.3 Full-Time-Employees Assumptions Full-time-employees assumptions state that there will be one full time employee who will be responsible to take care of the system and one full time employee for reports authorization. As stated earlier these two will be at key positions and they will ensure smooth running of the system. However, in case of absence of any of these employees there should be a back-up plan. Alternatively, there will be two employees for IT and two for health report authorization so that one can work in the absence of the other. 7.4 Other Alternatives Though this technology change plan is already discussed with the experts but just in case if during the working it is identified the plan is not workable there is a contingency plan. Contingency plan suggests that there are devices available in the market that can be used for tracking health of the members of the gym. As other alternative option, these devices will be used to track member’s health however this alternative option will not have a link with the fingerprint identifier but it will be placed on to the member directly (in the form of a sticking device or a hand band etc.) so that their health can be tracked. Different devices are available to track different health indicators like BP or heart rate and they generate different results. Then a full time health practitioner will be hired to interpret the results and suggest a diet and workout plan accordingly. Whitman and Mattord (2011) suggested that contingency plan in technology change process is very important in case if the original plan doesn’t work. It is important because if the original plan fails there is risk of data loss and in such a situation there should be back-up and recovery plan. The authors also suggested that the contingency plan should be tested prior to the implementation of the original plan so as to be sure the contingency plan is workable. To ensure data safety and protection, backups will be taken before starting the project of building connection of fingerprint identification system with health tracking unit. This will ensure no data is lost during the process and the data integrity is maintained. 7.5 Outsourcing Outsourcing is yet another questionable area. For this project, the answer to this question is ‘yes’. This is because none of the employees from the current workforce in the gym has the required skills to make the connection between fingerprint identification system and the health tracking system. It is therefore decided to outsource experts to implement this project. Bids were asked from the potential experts and then from the mutual consent of the gym management team, one of the experts’ team was appointed for this task. 8. Conclusion and Recommendations From all the discussions presented above it is obvious that this technological change is important for the gym to accelerate in today’s fast growing fitness industry. Though there are risks with this change however risks are always there and there should be good back-up plan to deal with the risks and mitigate their impact. It is therefore suggested that this change should be opted for. Based on the analysis presented above following recommendations can be made to ensure the change is successfully initiated and implemented. Recommendation # 1 Cost analysis is very important and should be done keeping in view all the aspects to avoid any costs popping up suddenly in the middle of the process. This becomes uncontrollable when some unexpected costs arise, especially because technology related areas are expensive and any cost can disturb the entire plan. Therefore it is recommended to prepare cost analysis carefully and in detail. Recommendation # 2 Practicality of the change to be implemented is to be checked at initial planning stages. In IT areas there are many minute details which should be foreseen and planned for in order to avoid last minute disappointments. It is therefore recommended to engage experts from the early stages of the planning so as to have a plan that is practical and workable. Recommendation # 3 Timeline for the project should also include timeline for planning because most of the times planning takes longer than implementation and if planning is done carefully project has more chances of success. It is therefore recommended to plan for the project timeline tactfully and practically to ensure all the tasks are accomplished within the suggested timeframe. Concluding, it is important to mention that the proposed technological change is the need of the hour and there should be a system that is in place to track gym members’ health to ensure they get maximum chances of improving their fitness. However, there are main areas that needs keen eye to ensure the change is cost effective and is not burdening any of the parties – the customers or the business. IT no doubt helps in improving business and offers strength to the business (Baltzan, 2011) however the plan should be foolproof and the change initiative should be capable enough to bring positive changes not only to the business but also for the customers. References Ayres, R. (1994). Ecotransition in the chemicals industry. CMER WP, INSEAD, Fontainebleau. Baltzan, P. (2011). Business-Driven Information Systems. 3rd edn. USA: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Clark, J., McLoughlin, I., Rose, H., & King, R. (1990). The Process of Technological Change: New Technology and Social Choice in the Workplace. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Dorf, R. C. (1998). The Technology Management Handbook. Florida: CRC Press. Grubler, A. (1992). Technology and global change: Land-use past and present. IIASA, working paper 92-69, Laxenburg. Weave, P., Jansen, L., van Grootveld, G., van Spiegel, E., & Vergragt, P. (2000). Sustainable Technology Development. Sheffield, UK: Greenleaf Publishing Limited. 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