Search

Search Results

• 1. [Article] Assessing Strategic Intent in the Context of Competition and Absorptive Capacity

  High technology firms compete fiercely for their share of wealth. Strategic Management is a discipline that determines a firm’s intent and direction for creating a competitive advantage and wealth. Often, ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Assessing Strategic Intent in the Context of Competition and Absorptive Capacity Author: Sperry, Richard Chad Year: 2010 High technology firms compete fiercely for their share of wealth. Strategic Management is a discipline that determines a firm’s intent and direction for creating a competitive advantage and wealth. Often, strategies are set though polices that govern the firm’s products and services, how it positions itself to compete, the choice of scope and diversity to compete, as well as the administration polices used to define and coordinate work. Two prevailing economic theories that help explain how an economic phenomenon affects economic competition are Schumpeterian and Kirznerian. Both theories attempt to explain entrepreneurship and its effect on the economy. Firms that are able to learn and exploit technological opportunities before their competitors position themselves with a competitive position, while reaping the profits. The theory of Absorptive Capacity is predicated on the firm’s ability to predict more accurately the nature of technological advances through the accumulation of the firm’s knowledge by recognizing the value of new external information, assimilating it, and exploiting it commercially. This paper discusses expanding the Absorptive Capacity model developed by Cohen and Levinthal to include technical regime incentives and dynamically model Schumpeterian and Kirznerian competition when assessing the firm’s strategic intent Title: Assessing Strategic Intent in the Context of Competition and Absorptive Capacity Author: Sperry, Richard Chad Year: 2010 High technology firms compete fiercely for their share of wealth. Strategic Management is a discipline that determines a firm’s intent and direction for creating a competitive advantage and wealth. Often, strategies are set though polices that govern the firm’s products and services, how it positions itself to compete, the choice of scope and diversity to compete, as well as the administration polices used to define and coordinate work. Two prevailing economic theories that help explain how an economic phenomenon affects economic competition are Schumpeterian and Kirznerian. Both theories attempt to explain entrepreneurship and its effect on the economy. Firms that are able to learn and exploit technological opportunities before their competitors position themselves with a competitive position, while reaping the profits. The theory of Absorptive Capacity is predicated on the firm’s ability to predict more accurately the nature of technological advances through the accumulation of the firm’s knowledge by recognizing the value of new external information, assimilating it, and exploiting it commercially. This paper discusses expanding the Absorptive Capacity model developed by Cohen and Levinthal to include technical regime incentives and dynamically model Schumpeterian and Kirznerian competition when assessing the firm’s strategic intent Close

• 2. [Article] Multi-Perspective Technology Assessment to Improve Decision Making: A Novel Approach Using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping for a Large-Scale Transmission Line Upgrade

  The objective of the technology assessment (TA) process is to understand problematic and undesirable consequences from the development and application of technology. TA advocates for the engagement of ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Multi-Perspective Technology Assessment to Improve Decision Making: A Novel Approach Using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping for a Large-Scale Transmission Line Upgrade Author: Sperry, Richard Chad Year: 2014 The objective of the technology assessment (TA) process is to understand problematic and undesirable consequences from the development and application of technology. TA advocates for the engagement of technology experts and stakeholders to understand the effects of technology. However, TA is often criticized that the decision-making process is not transparent - leaving stakeholders wondering if their contributions were heard. Furthermore, the methods have limited capability for conducting tradeoff analysis between the organizational objectives and conflicting stakeholder perspectives that can result in unintended consequences. Finally, these methods are static making it difficult to update and reassess decision alternatives when new information about issues becomes available. This dissertation research addresses these problems by developing a new technology assessment methodology using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (Fuzzy Cognitive TA - FCTA). This novel approach supports both stages of the process: capturing expert and stakeholder perspectives in cognitive maps, and then using FCM for assessment and decision-making. The methodology shows how experts and stakeholders perceive the value or harm of a technology alternative, which stakeholders share the same perspectives, and how these perspectives change over time. The methodology also shows the degree to which expert and stakeholder perspectives are in support or in conflict with the organizational objectives to help avoid the direct and indirect consequences associated with the decision. Finally, the methodology shows how new or changing perspectives by experts and stakeholders affect the outcome of the decision to improve system knowledge. The research applies the FCTA methodology with a real-world Environmental Impact Study conducted by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). BPA is a U.S. federal agency that provides about a third of the electric power and 75 percent of the high-voltage electric transmission in the Pacific Northwest. Title: Multi-Perspective Technology Assessment to Improve Decision Making: A Novel Approach Using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping for a Large-Scale Transmission Line Upgrade Author: Sperry, Richard Chad Year: 2014 The objective of the technology assessment (TA) process is to understand problematic and undesirable consequences from the development and application of technology. TA advocates for the engagement of technology experts and stakeholders to understand the effects of technology. However, TA is often criticized that the decision-making process is not transparent - leaving stakeholders wondering if their contributions were heard. Furthermore, the methods have limited capability for conducting tradeoff analysis between the organizational objectives and conflicting stakeholder perspectives that can result in unintended consequences. Finally, these methods are static making it difficult to update and reassess decision alternatives when new information about issues becomes available. This dissertation research addresses these problems by developing a new technology assessment methodology using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (Fuzzy Cognitive TA - FCTA). This novel approach supports both stages of the process: capturing expert and stakeholder perspectives in cognitive maps, and then using FCM for assessment and decision-making. The methodology shows how experts and stakeholders perceive the value or harm of a technology alternative, which stakeholders share the same perspectives, and how these perspectives change over time. The methodology also shows the degree to which expert and stakeholder perspectives are in support or in conflict with the organizational objectives to help avoid the direct and indirect consequences associated with the decision. Finally, the methodology shows how new or changing perspectives by experts and stakeholders affect the outcome of the decision to improve system knowledge. The research applies the FCTA methodology with a real-world Environmental Impact Study conducted by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). BPA is a U.S. federal agency that provides about a third of the electric power and 75 percent of the high-voltage electric transmission in the Pacific Northwest. Close