“Device Love” by lukew is licensed under CC BY 2.0
We live in a technologically driven society. From the moment we wake up to our weekly personalised schedule on our smart devices, to the time we dim the lights using home assistant AI technologies and doze off. Technology is everywhere! So many areas of society have been vastly improved through advancements in technology. From agricultural and industrial processes to transport and communication means. All aspects of life are greatly influenced by the constantly changing and developing technological landscape. Daily tasks and routines in today’s world such as driving to work, typing up an assignment, making a cup of coffee, teaching a class or even talking to others, are all facilitated by technological developments. On an individual level, technology has a huge impact on effectively and functionally carrying out such tasks. For instance, using a navigating device/application with traffic update abilities and alternative route options could reduce the time taken to get a desired location. Thus, innovative technologies that improve the client experience have a significant general impact on society.
Technology also has considerable specific impacts on organisations. This is discussed in detail by Adner & Kapoor (2016) as they explore various details of what makes technologies successful and useful within organisations. They outline that organisations need to not only consider what the new technology offers and how it improves the client experience, but also the ecosystem or innovations required to support that technology. For example, a new Learning Management System in a school organisation with incredibly useful features would be useless without sufficient broadband or network connection.
Other considerations that are essential for organisations include the dramatic increased use of mobile devices. According to “Digital 2021”, 66.6% (5.2 billion) of the world population are mobile phone users. Organisations need to take this into account and integrate uses of this penetrating technology within their processes and functional routines. For instance, if using mobile device applications or software within the organisation, adequate support must be provided, and operational issues tackled for efficient and optimal performance.
Overall, technology has had significant and vast implications on our abilities to perform and carry out tasks and function as a society. Although some may argue that there are various negative impacts of technological developments, the positive applications and improvements as a whole are endless!
References
Adner, R., & Kapoor, R. (2016). Right tech, wrong time. Harvard Business Review, 94(11), 60-67.
We are Social (2021). Digital 2021. https://wearesocial.com/digital-2021