Page 218 - Business Principles and Management

Chapter 8 • Technology and Information Management

have computer problems. Help desk employees must have business note
“people skills,” such as a friendly personality and a willing-
ness to help others. They must also have a great deal of
technical knowledge about computers and about solving
software problems that employees encounter. Advancement in computer technology may
Other technically oriented jobs include programmer
(one who creates and modifies software programs), net- be ready to take a greater leap. New com-
puters may have quad-processors, providing
work administrator, systems analyst (one who helps create, more than twice the fastest current com-
develop, and maintain MISs, DSSs, and EISs), software puter speed. A new Internet2 is promising
trainer, Web page designer, Webmaster (someone who speeds of up to 100 gigabits per second,
manages and maintains a Web site), computer equipment versus the 10 megabits most systems have
salesperson, and computer repair person. today. Businesses will need to continue to
Telecommuters, as mentioned in Chapter 2, work
at home using electronic equipment such as computers, change as these technologies allow for new
means of obtaining and delivering informa-
scanners, and printers to complete their “at home” tasks. tion. Explain how these changes will affect
Still other individuals are entrepreneurs who start and your future career plans.
run their own businesses from home using electronic
equipment. Many of the popular Internet businesses
were started from the homes of entrepreneurs.

CHECKPOINT

Describe how technology has impacted the cost of producing
goods and services.

The Future

Computer technology is now an indispensable part of business throughout the
world. Businesses either move with the technology or fade away. Well-managed
firms do not stand still. How much additional change will occur during the next
5 to 10 years? No one knows, because these are dynamic times. What is known,
however, is that change is constant and is occurring at amazing speeds. Rapid
change has been occurring in nearly every industry and in most countries. Slow-
moving firms are attempting to catch up. Some of those are catching up by buy-
ing healthy firms or by creating joint ventures that will move them through the
21st century.
The world is in the middle of a major shift in how business is conducted. Just
as cars, planes, television, telephones, and computers changed life during the last
century, the Internet is changing life in this century. It is transforming how we
work and live. It has increased the intensity of worldwide competition. No longer
can major businesses in any nation think of their markets or competitors as being
exclusively within their own boundaries.
The cost of producing goods and services in this electronic age has led to
increased competition that has lowered prices. And computers and other electric
marvels have cut paperwork, increased worker productivity, shed nonproduc-
tive tasks, and maximized business efficiency. Consumers have been the benefi-
ciaries. Even the nature of how businesses are organized and operated has been
permanently affected. Living in the Internet age, however, does not mean that
all firms have closed their doors where customers might enter to see, touch, and

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