GRA8254 Management of IT, Fall 2002
    [What's new] [Course overview] [Administrivia] [Detailed seminar plan: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9]
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      This is the home page for the Fall 2002 MBA course GRA8254 Management of IT. The page is the primary communications vehicle for the course, containing all information necessary to participate. Suggestions for improvement always welcome.

    What's New?

    • September 11: Changed date last class, changed lit. for session 6.
    • September 4: Added article for session 5.
    • September 2, 2002: Minor corrections and updates to questions and literature for lesson 4.
    • August 22, 2002: A Blackboard page has now been set up, in it I will put additional material in electronic form, closed to the public.
    • May 31, 2002: Initial page setup.  If you are or plan to be a participant in this course, please read the opening memo to students.  If you have any questions, send an email to Espen Andersen.  Remember -- don't take everything on this page as gospel - the main outline and content will remain, but smaller changes may happen at any time.....

    Course overview

    Thanks to the relentless increase in computer performance (often referred to as Moore's Law,) information technology is increasingly pervasive in all aspects of business or public administration: IT has a significant portion of all investments (frequently, information system investements are second only to housing); many of the most difficult decisions (strategic or administrative) to be taken by managers involve information technology, both as medium and content; and many actions (both external and external to the organization) are carried out in information technology, sometimes (for companies in hypercompetitive industries) directly, to steal a march on the competition. The Internet floodwave signals the beginning of an era where most markets will be electronic, and, consequently, competition international.

    The intent of this course is to give the student an understanding of the role of information technology in organizations, the impact of the rapid technology evolution for business environments, and the challenge of managing the technology (and the organizational units charged with its introduction and support). The discussions will be within three main areas:

    • Managing IT for competitive advantage: Understanding how IT can give the organization a competitive advantage, and how to sustain that advantage.
    • Understanding the role of IT in organizations: This part of the course will analyze organizations in terms of the chains, shops, networks framework, trying to understand how value is created in each of these strategic configurations, and how IT supports this value creation.
    • Managing the IT resource: Understanding the organizational challenges of IT management, the interface between IS and the business, governance models and organizational processes, systems development and delivery, outsourcing.

    Administrivia

    Use of computers
    Extensive use of computers (primarily Internet technology) will be an integral activity to the course: Handouts, messages, discussions, some of the literature and some of the hand-ins will be done electronically. All communication between professor and students outside the classroom will be electronically. Students are expected to be active in discussions -- in class and electronically.

    There will be only very limited training in use of computers or in the vocabulary of computing technology. Students are presumed to have a working knowledge of personal information technology, as well as a reasonable understanding of the different types of information technology (mainframe computers, personal computers, data networks etc.) and applications (transaction systems, data bases, decision support systems, electronic mail and groupware) in a modern organization, such as would be expected from someone who has worked in an organization using these tools for some years.  If you as a student feel you lack this knowledge, please take a look at the literature below - some of the books are quite good beginners' guides to the technology and the vocabulary.

    Literature
    There is no compulsory book(s) in this course.  The books below are recommended only and may be read by students for updating areas the student feels weak in, or as reference books:

    • A good basic textbook in information technologies and their uses, strongly recommended for students with limited experience of organizational computer use, is Laudon & Laudon: Management Information Systems, 5th edition, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998. (or a newer edition, if available.)
    • If you need a "dictionary" of information technology terms and concepts, one of the following is recommended:
        • Peter G. W. Keen, Walid Mougayar, Tracy Torregrossa: The Business Internet and Intranets : A Manager's Guide to Key Terms and Concepts, Harvard Business School Press, 1998 is a beginner's dictionary to the Internet and electronic commerce.
      • Peter Keen's Every Manager's Guide to Information Technology: Key Terms & Concepts for Today's Business Leader is a beginner's glossary to the pre-Internet world of computers.  Make sure you get the latest edition.
      • WIRED Magazine has published something called The WIRED Style Guidewhich is a similar effort, small and quite good, oriented towards language
      • There are "computer dictionaries" on the Internet as well, such as Anchordesk glossary, PC Webopedia, og Whatis.com.
    • For a good, if somewhat optimistic, book on what the revolution in computers and communications means to us, how about Cairncross, F. (1997). The Death of Distance: How the Communications Revolution Will Change Our Lives. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press. (This book, as is increasingly common, has its own Web site)
    • For those interested in the economic laws underlying the current Internet revolution, try Shapiro & Varian's Information Rules.  This book will be compulsory in a later course on electronic strategic business development.
    • For the Internet challenged, books and texts are almost too numerous to mention.  No real recommendations here, how about Internet for Dummies? At least it sells well...
    For any other book, well, try my favorite books page.

    Class preparation
    Each class will have at least one case, as well as some reading (articles and/or book chapters) associated with it. You are expected to prepare for each class by reading the assigned material, answering the study questions, and mailing the answers asked for (straight email, please, no attachements) to indicated study question (the one marked mail) to the instructor before 20:00 (8pm) the day before class. The answer to the "email" question should be short (no more than 200 words), I am looking for keywords, not filler. The assigned material, as well as the answers sent in by the students, will then be discussed in class. To learn more about discussion-based classrooms and MIS business cases, see 'Learning Information Systems with Cases' by Daniel Szpiro and Derrick Neufeld.

    Classroom discussion
    Classroom discussion is the main interaction between teacher and students in this course. It is crucial both for the students' understanding and the quality of the discussion that the students are intimately familiar with the contents of the case before the lecture begins. Although individual time required to analyze cases varies significantly, experience suggests that students should plan to spend at the very least two hours (more, if lacking in English language skills, business or computer experience) on reading and analyzing each case (exclusive of articles and other course reading), and prepare extensive notes of their analysis to guide them in their discussion. The cases will be accompanied by study questions, which provide guidance in analyzing the case. The articles or book chapters may also help in analysing a case, as well as discussions with your peers.

    Grading
    will be based on the following criteria::

    Individual participation (50% of grade) will be based mainly on the individual student's contribution in the classroom discussion. The weekly individual electronic hand-ins will form part of the participation grade, as will participation in the electronic discussion group. This will be graded on an individual basic: Basically, everyone starts out with a 3.0 and work their way up or down from there. For each class and for each assignment, a few students will get a 2.0, a few more a 4.0.  3.0 means the contribution was on par with your classmates (understood the main issues, demonstrated preparation and ability to evolve the theme). A 4.0 means the contribution was significantly better than average, 2.0 significantly worse.  Students who do not participate at all will be graded a 1.0.

    Two papers will be submitted, in groups, during the course.  The first paper counts for 20% of the total grade, the second for 30%:

    1. Pick one of the following cases: Cisco, Dell, Pacific Pride Services, Andersen Consulting, McKinsey, and prepare a 7-12 page report to the main protagonist(s) advising him or her on what IS and managerial decisions will be key in the next two years (based on the timing and facts of the case, not the company as it is now) and what he or she should do about them.

      2. or
      Answer the following question: You are CEO of a mid-range manufacturing company (i.e. in the InformationWeek sample).  How much money should you spend on information technology, and why? (7-12 pages)
    2. (This one all groups should do before the last class, see further instructions there) Based on the case Capital Holding Corporation: Seeking Synergy, write a memo to Maria Blackboard, hired as Chief Information Officer of Capital Holding Corporation in September 1990, on the following:
      • the nature of CHC's business(es) and how their information systems are organized
      • a description of how IT should be organized in the company, and why
      • a description of the difference between the current and the ideal and a plan for how to get from the former to the latter
      A tip: It is normally not fruitful to try to find lots of extra information about the company (more than what is in the case).  It can, however, be smart to look for information about the industry, unless you know it well or you don't deem industry factors important.
    Each paper is due before class on the day the case is to be taught. A grade will be given within three days. Groups that are not satisfied with the grade of the first assignment have the option to write more than one case and pick the best one.


     
    Detailed seminar plan
    The right to make changes at any time is most explicitly reserved....
    Date/lecturer Topic & study questions Preparation
    0
    August 12
    1000-1200
    Espen Andersen    		 What is this case stuff, anyway?  How can I survive and get the most out of a case-based course? This will be a pre-discussion for the teacher to meet you and you to meet the teacher. In class we will discuss the short case "The Incident at Waco Manufacturing" (will be handed out in class).
    1
    The evolution and role of IT in business
    August 13
    1pm-4pm
    Espen Andersen    		 Introduction, course overview, work processes, administrivia, course objectives. What difference does IT make?

    Study questions:
    1. What are Malone & Rockart's key arguments? To what extent were they right? Wrong?
    2. What role does information technology play at Mrs. Fields?
    3. What roles and responsibilities do the managers (i.e., Debbie Fields, the controllers, the line managers, and the store managers) have?
    4. Would you like to be a store manager for Mrs. Fields? Why? Why not?
    5. What was computing technology like when Leavitt & Whisler wrote their article? What technological and organizational developments did they foresee and which did they miss?
    6. Which parts of Microsoft's strategy worked -- and which didn't? 

    Assignment to be mailed in to Espen:
    (remember to put "GRA8254-1 Ada Lovelace" in the subject line (assuming your name is Ada Lovelace, otherwise put your own name):
    Write 10 lines on my previous experience of using or managing IT in organizations and 10 lines on what I expect to get out of this course.

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss: 
    • Sherman, Stratford P. (1984). Microsoft's drive to dominate software. Fortune, January 23, 82-90.
    • Malone, T. W., & Rockart, J. F. (1991). Computers, Networks and the Corporation. Scientific American (September), 128-136.
    • Leavitt, H. J., & Whisler, T. L. (1958). Management in the 1980's. Harvard Business Review (November-December), 41-49.
    • Case: Mrs. Field's Cookies  (HBS 9-189-056)
    • Stabell, C. B. and Ø. D. Fjeldstad (1998). “Configuring Value for Competitive Advantage: On Chains, Shops and Networks.” Strategic Management Journal 19: 413-437.
    Further reading (for the especially interested):
    • Coase, R. H. (1937). “The Nature of the Firm.” Economica 4: 386-405. (Classic on the concept of transaction costs and the theory of why firms exist and evolve.)
    • Friedman, T. L. (1999). The Lexus and the Olive Tree. New York, Farrar, Strauss Giroux.  (Interesting argument on the effect of technology on globalization, and the consequences for nations and politics)
    In your spare time:
    • O'Rourke, P. J. (1998). Eat the Rich: A Treatise on Economics. New York, Atlantic Monthly Press.  (Economics and globalization, gonzo style.)
    • Cringely, R. X. (1992). Accidental Empires: How the boys of Silicon Valley make their millions, battle foreign competition, and still can't get a date. Harmonsworth, Middlesex, England, Penguin Books. Fun about the microcomputer industry.
    2
    IT in Value Chains
    August 20
    9am-12am
    Note time!!!!
    Espen Andersen    		 Understanding the role of IT in value chain companies -- value chain integration, parameterization, customer interface.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen: (remember to put "GRA8254-2 Charles Babbage" in the subject line (assuming your name is Charles Babbage, otherwise put your own name))
    1. Why is Cisco implementing an ERP system?  What does this system do?

    Other study questions:
    2.  What is the role of information technology at Dell Computer?  What competitive advantages does the Dell Direct model give compared to traditional retail distribution models?
    3. What technology is typically used at each of Venkatraman's five stages? How has companies' ability to progress up these stages changed with the technology?
    4. According to Porter & Millar, what can IT do for the competitive power of a value chain? 
    5. Porter and Millar's article is 15 years old--what parts are it still applicable, what doesn't work anymore?

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Porter, M. E., & Millar, V. E. (1985). How information gives you competitive advantage. Harvard Business Review(July-August), 149-160.
    • Venkatraman, N. (1994). IT-enabled Business Transformation: From Automation to Business Scope Redefinition. Sloan Management Review (Winter), 73-86.
    • Davenport, T. H. (1998). “Putting the Enterprise into the Enterprise System.” Harvard Business Review (July-August): 121-131.
    • Case: Dell Online (HBS 9-598-116).
    • Case: Cisco Systems (HBS 9-398-127) and Cisco Systems: Implementing ERP (HBS 9-699-022)
    • Bower, J. L., & Christensen, C. C. (1995). Disruptive Technologies: Catching the Waves. Harvard Business Review (January-February), 43-53. (For more details on the disk drive industry, Chapter 1 of The Innovator's Dilemma can be found here).
    Further reading (for the especially interested):
    • Clark, K. B. and T. Fujimoto (1991). Product Development Performance - Strategy, Organization, and  Management in the World Auto Industry. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press. Large study of product and process development in the global auto industry.  Food for thought, many good concepts of organization and process.
    • Utterback, J. M. (1994). Mastering the Dynamics of Innovation. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.  Technology innovation and how it works.
    • Christensen, C. M. (1997). The Innovator's Dilemma: Why New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.  Seminal work on the interactions between technology innovation and market dominance.
    • Iansiti, M. (1998). Technology Integration: Making Critical Choices in a Dynamic World. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.  Study of project performance and technology conceptualization.
    3
    IT in Value Networks
    August 27
    1pm-4pm
    Espen Andersen    		 We will review some well known cases of strategic use of information technology in value networks, specifically the case of American Airlines, famous for its SABRE system, and the case of Pacific Pride -- a less known, but not less interesting example of IT in networks.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen (remember to put "GRA8254-3 John von Neumann" in the subject line (assuming your name is John von Neumann, otherwise put your own name)):
    1. What benefits has American Airlines derived from its SABRE computerized reservations system from the 1950's to the 1990's?

    Other study questions:
    2. What are the economic characteristics of an airline?
    3. What are the similarities, in terms of the competitive dynamics and IT use, between the telecommunications industry, airlines, and banks?
    4. (this one is tricky) How valuable are Pacific Pride's information systems?
    5. Who was John von Neumann?  What is the "von Neumann principle"?

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Hopper, M. D. (1990). Rattling SABRE--New Ways to Compete on Information. Harvard Business Review (May-June), 118-125.
    • Fjeldstad, Ø. (1998). The Value System in Telecommunications. In K. A. Eliassen and M. Sjøvaag (eds.) European Telecommunications Liberalisation, Routledge.
    • Copeland, D. G., & McKenney, J. L. (1988). Airline Reservations Systems: Lessons from History. MIS Quarterly(September), 353-370.
    • Davis, Paul (1994) Airline Ties Profitability Yield to Management SIAM News, Vol. 27, No. 5 (if the link is unreliable, try the PDF version in Blackboard.)
    • Case: Pacific Pride Services, Inc.
    Further reading (for the especially interested):
    • Smith, B. C., J. F. Leimkuhler, et al. (1992). "Yield Management at American Airlines." Interfaces 22(1): 8-31.  Excellent article on how yield management works - and the impact it had on American Airlines.  In the course blackboard page.
    • McKenney, J. L. (1995). Waves of Change: Business Evolution through Information Technology. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.  The "big cases" of IT as competitive weapon (Bank of America, American Airlines, Frito-Lay, USAA and American Hospital Supply).
    • Petzinger, T. (1996). Hard Landing. New York, Times Business Books.  The play-by-play of the US (and trans-Atlantic) airline industry since it was deregulated in 1980.  Great fun.
    In your spare time:
    • Gladwell, M. (2000). The Tipping Point. London, Abacus.  A lighthearted book on how fashions and epidemics get started and spread - and with lots of examples that help you understand network economics without using economics or (too many) sociology terms.
    4
    IT in Value Shops
    September 3
    1pm-4pm
    Espen Andersen

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen:
    1. What are Andersen Consulting's main issues in implementing knowledge management systems?
    (remember to put "GRA8254-4 Grace Murray Hopper" in the subject line (assuming your name is Grace Murray Hopper, otherwise put your own name))

    Other study questions:
    2. What purposes does information technology serve in a Value Shop organization?
    3. What are the differences between McKinsey and Andersen Consulting in their use of information technology?  Why?
    4. How do information systems in a Value Chain differ from those in a Value Shop?
    5. What obstacles do you think you will face when implementing knowledge system in a stockbroking company?  A hospital?  A law firm?
    6. Who was Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper? How long is a nanosecond?

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Hansen, M., N. Nohria, et al. (1999). “What is your strategy for managing knowledge?” Harvard Business Review (March-April): 106-116.
    • Nonaka, I. (1991). “The Knowledge-Creating Company.” Harvard Business Review (November-December): 96-104.
    • Andersen, E.: From information to knowledge - stop missing the links.
    • Case: Knowledge Management at Andersen Consulting (HBS 9-499-032)
    • Case: Knowledge Management at McKinsey (HBS 9-396-357)
    Further reading:
    • Nonaka, I. and H. Takeuchi (1995). The Knowledge-Creating Company. New York, Oxford University Press.  Classic on Knowledge Management.  One of the few business books where reading the HBS article is not enough.....
    • Eccles, R. G. and D. B. Crane (1988). Doing Deals: Investment Banks at Work. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.  Great case study of investment banks -- and quite a lot about the marketing and pulling together of a problems solving capability.
    • Davenport, T. H. and L. Prusak (1997). Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know. Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.
    In your spare time:
    • Caves, R. E. (2000). Creative Industries: Contracts Between Art and Commerce. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press.  Excellent history of contracting and art: Lays out the peculiar reward and work mechanisms for writers, actors, painters, movie people, musicians as a consequence of the economic properties of creative products and their consumption.  Good economic history of the movie, music and theatre industries, as well.
    5
    Managing IT economics
    September 10
    1pm-4pm
    Espen Andersen    		 The economics of investing in and using information technology
    One of the hardest problems of managing IT is deciding on how much to spend on IT and understanding what the economic effect of the investment is.  We will look at this topic both from the viewpoint of a single company and by examining data from many companies.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen:
    1. Imagine you are a CEO worrying about whether you are spending too much or not enough on information technology. How would the InformationWEEK 500 study help you? For help with the analysis, here's an Excel worksheet with the numbers. Use Shift-click to download the file to your own computer, then analyze it there using Excel or another spreadsheet.  (remember to put "GRA8254-5 Doug Engelbart" in the subject line (assuming your name is Doug Engelbart, otherwise put your own name))

    Other study questions:
    2. Why did white-collar productivity not increase as much as blue-collar productivity in the period 1985-95?
    3. What are Hitt & Brynjolfsson's three measures of information technology profitability -- and their conclusions about them?
    4. How do you justify spending money on upgrading desktop computers and Internet bandwidth?
    5. Who was Doug Engelbart?  What is "bootstrapping"?
     

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Andersen, Espen (1992). Is IT Worth It?
    • Hitt, L., & Brynjolfsson, E. (1996). Productivity, Business Profitability, and Consumer Surplus: Three Different Measures of Information Technology Value. MIS Quarterly, 20(2), 121-142.
    • Gerlach, J., B. Neumann, et al. (2002). "Determining the Cost of IT Services." Communications of the ACM 45(9): 61-67. (in Blackboard.)
    • The InformationWEEK 500, InformationWEEK, September 1995. I suggest you try to analyze the one particular industry, for instance Aerospace/Manufacturing (for which the article is enclosed), Banking or Telecommunications, and then look at the bigger chart (or spreadsheet) to compare across industries.
    • David, P. A. (1985). Clio and the Economics of QWERTY. American Economic Review, 75 (May-June), 332-337. (In Blackboard). (For an alternative view on this, check out Liebowitz, S. and S. Margolis (1990). "The Fable of the Keys."  (April) as well as this page on the fable of the fable.
    • Case: Statoil: The IT Step (will be handed out in class)
    • Case: The missing Gigabyte
    Further reading for the specially interested:
    • Shapiro, C. and H.R. Varian (1999): Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.  (Excellent book on the economics of information and software, check out their web site. The book will be used on the 3rd semester course on Electronic Strategic Business Development.)
    • Zuboff, S. (1988). In the Age of the Smart Machine: The Future of Work and Power. New York, Basic Books.  Sophisticated, if long, discussion of the effects of information technology on work and power in traditional organizations.  Antidote to most e-books, coined the term "informate" (as opposed to "automate.")
    6
    Managing IT development and delivery
    September 17
    1pm-4pm
    Espen Andersen    		 How should the Information Systems Resource be governed and organized? How should development projects be managed?
    We will see a video about IT governance with Richard Pawson, and discuss a systems development project (CONFIRM) that failed.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen:
    1. Why did the CONFIRM project fail? (Consider technical, organizational and strategic reasons) (remember to put "GRA8254-6 Frederick Brooks" in the subject line (assuming your name is Frederick Brooks, otherwise put your own name))

    Study questions:
    2. According to Venkatraman, how has the role of IT departments changed over the years?
    3. Why is it hard to get people to work in IT departments?
    4. Pawson & al uses the term "expressive"? How is it different from "user friendly"?
    5. Who was Frederick Brooks?  What is a "man month" and what is its significance with respect to project management?

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • N. Venkatraman (1997) Beyond Outsourcing: Managing IT Resources as Value Centers, Sloan Management Review, Spring, pp. 51-64
    • "The Collapse of CONFIRM: What went wrong?", p. 534 in Laudon & Laudon: Management Information Systems, Fourth edition, Prentice-Hall, 1996
    • Oz, E. (1994). When Professional Standards are Lax: The CONFIRM Failure and its Lessons. Communications of the ACM, 37(10), 29-36.
    • Wheelwright, S. C. and K. B. Clark (1992). “Creating Project Plans to Focus Product Development.” Harvard Business Review (March-April): 2-14.
    • Hopper, M. D. (1990). Rattling SABRE--New Ways to Compete on Information. Harvard Business Review (May-June), 118-125. (already assigned for session 2, use in conjunction with Oz to evaluate CONFIRM.)
    Further reading (for the specially interested):
    • Pawson, R., Bravard, J.-L., & Cameron, L. (1995). The Case for Expressive Systems. Sloan Management Review(Winter), 41-48.
    • Check out this Salon article on genetic programming.
    • Rich, B. R. and L. Janos (1994). Skunk Works. New York: Little, Brown.  (The history of Lockheed Martin's "skunk works," a highly innovative - and colorful - group of engineers who developed the U2 spy plane, the SR-71 Blackbird, and Stealth technology.)
    • Brand, Stewart (1995). How Buildings Learn. New York, Penguin Books.  (Great book on what makes some buildings great for living in--rather than just looking at.  A technology book -- about houses)
    • Norman, D. A. (1988). The Psychology of Everyday Things. New York, Basic Books. Fun on user-centered design -- and why door-handles with words on them are signs of design failure...
    7
    Managing IT-business boundaries -- outsourcing and IT leadership
    September 20 
    9am-12pm
    Note day and time!!!!
    Espen Andersen    		 Outsourcing IS, IT leadership

    Outsourcing is increasingly popular--we will explore differing views on it, via two articles and one case.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen:
    1. Who is responsible for the Manufact situation? Should John Smith take the offer from Jim Lawler? If he takes the offer, what conditions should he set? (remember to put "GRA8254-7 Stephen Wozniak" in the subject line (assuming your name is Stephen Wozniak, otherwise put your own name))

    Study questions:
    2. What are the main differences between McFarlan & Nolan's view of what outsourcing is and Lacity & Hirschheim's? Why are their views different, and how do the differences influence their conclusions?
    3. Why has outsourcing become so popular?
    4. What is "human-centered information management", and what organizational mechanisms can we use to get it?
    5. Who was Stephen Wozniak -- and what was it that was "insanely great?"

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • McFarlan, F. W., & Nolan, R. L. (1995). How to Manage an IT Outsourcing Alliance. Sloan Management Review (Winter), 9-23.
    • Lacity, M. C., & Hirschheim, R. (1993). The Information Systems Outsourcing Bandwagon. Sloan Management Review (Fall), 73-86.
    • Earl, M. and D. F. Feeny (1994). “Is your CIO adding value?” Sloan Management Review (Spring): 11-20.
    • Davenport, T. H. (1994). “Saving IT's Soul: Human-Centered Information Management.” Harvard Business Review (March-April): 119-131.
    • The Economist: Outsourcing to India: Back office to the world, May 5th, 2001, pp. 69-71 (this has already been handed out for Hanno's class, so you have one less paper than you think you have to read.)
    • Case: Hostile IS outsourcing: The story of ManuFact
    • Case: Surething: The disempowered CIO
    8
    Understanding technology in your life and society
    Note date and time!
    September 27
    9pm-12pm
    Espen Andersen    		 Society, ethics and the individual in a digital world.

    Study question to be mailed in to Espen:
    1. What differences do you see between the US and Europe when it comes to privacy protection? (remember to put "GRA8254-8 Bill Joy" in the subject line (assuming your name is Bill Joy, otherwise put your own name))

    Study questions:
    2. What is a disruptive technology?  Why do existing, dominant companies often fail to respond to it?
    3. (This is not in any of the articles, but easy to find on the Internet): When was the mouse invented, and by whom? How about the graphical user interface? The laser printer?
    4. The technology Nelson describes bears remarkable resemblance to the World Wide Web as we know it today. Why wasn't it operational sooner? Why wasn't Nelson's Xanadu project the leader in its diffusion?
    5. Does Internet use cause anomie?
    6. Check out www.archive.org.  What does the site do?  Is this necessary?
    6. What is the Turing test? Do you think we can create a machine that can pass it?  Would that be a thinking machine? 
    7. Who is Bill Joy? What is Java?

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Wired Magazine: The Curse of Xanadu (this is a long article, interesting, but skim it)
    • Turing, A. M. (1949). “Computer Machinery and Intelligence.” Mind 59(236): 433-460.
    • Kraut, R., V. Lundmark, et al. (1998). “Internet Paradox: A Social Technology That Reduces Social Involvement and Psychological Well-Being?” American Psychologist 53(9): 1017-1031.
    • Dyson, E. (1998). “Privacy Protection: Time to think and act locally and globally.” Release 1.0 (4).
    • Bower, J. L., & Christensen, C. C. (1995). Disruptive Technologies: Catching the Waves. Harvard Business Review (January-February), 43-53. (For more details on the disk drive industry, Chapter 1 of The Innovator's Dilemma can be found here).
    • Revisit David's article on the QWERTY keyboard from class 5, including the rebuttal, and re-rebuttal.
    Further reading (for the especially interested).  Yes, I know I went off the deep end here, but you need something to occupy you when this course is over.:
    • Hofstadter, D. M. (1979). Gödel, Esher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid. New York, Vintage Books.  (Wonderful book on computers, music, art, mathematics and most of all--self-referential systems.)
    • Bolter, J. D. (1984). Turings Man: Western Culture in the Computer Age. Old Woking, Surrey, UK, Unwin Brothers Ltd.  (Man always seen himself in terms of the technology of the times--and now the technology is the computer)
    • Dennett, D. C. (1991). Consciousness Explained. Boston, MA, Little, Brown & Co.  (What is consciousness--and where in the brain does it reside?)
    • Lessig, L. (2001). The Future of Ideas: The Fate of the Commons in a Connected World. New York, Random House.  Brilliantly written on the connection between copyright and innovation - and the need to have "commons" where innovation can take place.
    • Garfinkel, S. L. (2000). Database Nation: The Death of Privacy in the 21st Century. Sebastopol, CA, O'Reilly and Associates, Inc.  How technology intrudes -- and what you can do about it (more of the former than the latter.)
    • Hafner, K. and M. Lyon (1996). Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of the Internet. New York, Simon & Schuster.  Good history of the Internet.
    • Hafner, K. and J. Markoff (1991). Cyberpunk: Outlaws and Hackers on the Computer Frontier. New York, Simon & Schuster.  Good book on computer sabotage and why people do it.
    9
    October 1
    1pm-5pm
    (time extended because of presentations)
    Espen Andersen    		 Final session

    Each group prepares a paper and hands it in at beginning of class (see assignment described above).

    Each group will bring a three-slide presentation to class, summarizing the group's answer to the questions in the paper. The presentation is to be prepared as if you were a consulting team charged with supporting the case protagonist.

    		 Read and be prepared to discuss:
    • Capital Holding Corporation: Seeking Synergy

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    Last updated: September 4, 2002.