Question

The current "internet and technology" revolution is significantly changing the way business and the workplace is conducted. What 'Management' dilemmas do you think will face a new generation of "management pioneers' who will need to address these changes?

Answer 1

The new technologies, including web technologies and the internet, have given rise to new systems that differ from the traditional systems. The new internet-connected systems are growing fast and rapidly, and these are now the primary ways through which stakeholders, businesses, clients, consumers, and businesses are connecting with each other. The systems are also the connections through which the different departments of the company connect with each other as well. Internet systems come with distinct web interfaces, but the traditional systems are devoid of them. The new systems contain graphic artistry and may also be specialized for particular departments and functions like marketing, human resources, or finance.

However, the internet and related technologies may also bring in a new set of issues, as they differ from the traditional systems. Developers can now use the readily available web development tools and can indulge in software building without any extensive knowledge. These systems pose certain challenges and the new management pioneers have to face the dilemmas.

Issues related to web management

Web management issues may occur with the use of web technologies. For instance, in industries like print and newspaper, managers need to classify and prioritize content and should have ways to publish the ones they want online. They should also have ways to charge money for the content. However, new IT system designing processes and methodologies like Agile development focus more on individuals and user interactions, and the new approaches are aiming to create the working models and achieving customer collaboration only. The traditional methodologies having a set-by-step approach, contract negotiation, and comprehensive and extensive documentation are being overlooked now. The building methodologies of the new functional web software developers do not emphasize on the standards and their conformation and establishing rigorous controls. The new developers may also not have a good know-how of areas like software engineering and may lack skills and experience in critical areas. However, in the real world, such use of internet and web technology remains far from satisfactory.

Security issues

Much of the software and databases of the new IT systems of business firms nowadays can interact directly with the clients and consumers. While the managers need to achieve user satisfaction and provide them a good experience online, the visibility of the systems also increases. Hence the clients may suffer setbacks due to virus attacks easily, while the organization may also suffer in case a hacking attempt is successful.
The mangers should work in crystal areas and should link corporate strategies with the strategic planning of the internet and web technologies. They should have a clear understanding of the goals of using the internet as a resource and should lay down their internet and web technologies objectives clearly.