**4. Strategic technology management in advanced manufacturing: analysis of a research study**

A study was carried out to determine the influence of STM on the performance of firms in technology-intensive advanced manufacturing sector of the economy. This was a mixedmode study and employed a survey instrument comprising both quantitative and qualitative questions. The respondents were the chief executive officers, technology managers and senior management in 101 high-technology firms who were considered to be part of strategies at the firm level. The responses were analysed using statistical tools. The variables included in the questionnaire were reduced by performing factor analysis. The relationship between the variables of interest was determined using regression analysis. The factors were grouped into TS and TM dimensions. These were then used to determine their influence on performance of firms. Sales revenue growth (SRG) was selected as the performance measure. Two of the factors, namely, *key positioning* and *strategic R&D*, were found to relate with performance, while the other five factors, namely, *technology leadership*, *up-to-date plants and facilities*, *technology consciousness*, *formal planning* and *external technology acquisition*, were not correlated with performance. Multinational corporation and joint venture firms were found to have acquired the factors of key positioning and strategic R&D, whereas foreign and locally owned companies were found less likely to acquire these factors. These results have implications both for management within the firm and the policy planners at the national level.

#### **4.1. Influence of R&D on technology strategies**

linkages between the company's business environment and the way that company develops and maintains its technological base. Despite this, the main focus remains on the way of acquiring new technology and how to improve the existing ones to gain competitive advantage. The underlying task remains how to find an answer to match technology to market. This is relevant in the case of smart manufacturing whereby employing only modern technologies in terms of IoT (Internet of Things), and data analytics might not be able to provide the competitive advantage.

Smart manufacturing is nothing new; terminologies like advanced and flexible manufacturing have also been used in the past which focus on utilising modern technologies to improve manufacturing. Smart manufacturing entails availability of data of the entire manufacturing process so that manufacturing organisations can *strategise* the processes to match the market. In this respect smart manufacturing 'influences' and 'aids' technology management decisions. Smart manufacturing provides data and empowers everyone in the organisation including top management, which should help management in developing appropriate technology strategies to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage. It would not be wrong to

Ettlie [28] conducted a study of various successful firms in the USA and found that synchronous innovation of both technology and administration made for the best-performing firms. 'If business strategy can be thought of as defining the preferred field of contest and the tactics used in confronting a competitor, a technology strategy defines how these tactics can be created and employed' [29]. Clark et al. [30] use the phrase 'technology management' to refer to 'organizational issues and processes involved in developing and implementing a strategic approach to technology'. *As such in the context of smart manufacturing, only utilisation of advanced technology is one of the aspects of performance of firms; how to employ and administer these* 

According to Dell ([31], smart manufacturing provides immense opportunities for organisations including predictive maintenance, quality control, automated process management and supply chain visibility. To be able to avail these opportunities, organisations will need a robust technology strategy in order to determine what tactics need to be employed to ensure

Andrew Waycott [32] suggests that smart manufacturing is about collecting and crunching data to make more informed decisions. With greater visibility of the real workings, your shift supervisors and operators can make better, more informed decisions, all day long. Thus,

Chand and Davis in a paper written for Rockwell Automation [33] suggest that smart manufacturing is not merely technology rather an integration of information, technology and human ingenuity. This integration could be achieved by application of technology management strategies at the strategic level in the organisation to ensure it aligns with the business strategy and

**3. Smart manufacturing and strategic technology management**

say that smart manufacturing is in fact a technology management trend.

*technologies (TS/TM) will remain the major driver of performance enhancement.*

smart manufacturing can help in strategic management of technology.

compliance of these.

98 Digital Transformation in Smart Manufacturing

provides a competitive advantage.

Investment in R&D contributes to technological innovation, and to manage these innovations requires the development of technology strategies. So, why do firms invest in R&D? Shane [34] highlights five reasons for this:


Competition amongst firms lays the foundations of business strategy and is a driving force in the establishment of R&D strategy. 'R&D strategy' is often used interchangeably with 'technology strategy' in the literature. As such R&D management has dominated in technology-intensive and advanced manufacturing industries. This R&D emphasis is quite common in the US industries; this is in contrast to the European model which stresses acquisition, diffusion and transfer of knowledge [20]. R&D strategy needs to be integrated with the other strategies of the firm. And, indeed in recent times, there has been a 'shift from an R&D management focused attitude, towards a wider perspective of the issues facing innovation management, and, more recently, towards a combination of innovation, technology and strategy' [20].

In this study R&D is considered as an integral part of a firm's strategy and is employed as a background variable to determine its relationship with the performance of firms. Technology helps in the formulation of a company's technology strategy, and its implementation provides the success. This is the rationale to define strategic technology management as a combination of technology strategy and technology management.

This sample was considered as a probable one, and it was thus possible to 'extrapolate beyond

Influence of Strategic Technology Management on Smart Manufacturing: The Concept of…

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Because of their familiarity with technology management and strategy issues in their firm, the CEO, technology managers or senior management of each firm was expected to complete

In order to address the research question, a mixed method design was used to collect data. Zahra [38] has indicated a 'need to refine the conceptual and operational definitions of technology strategy and … that field studies and surveys can help to identify additional components of

**1.** To gather data on key technology strategy and management elements from senior execu-

**2.** To gather data about the level of technology awareness of the respondents and about their

The research was designed in three phases. The first phase involved the development of a survey instrument. The survey instrument was developed in line with the objectives of the research and so as to maximise information extraction from the respondents ([39], p. 29). Advantage was taken of prior surveys in selecting the variables chosen for the study, especially Herman [40]. The response rate was initially 18%; this increased to 26.5% (useful rate being 20.7%) after two follow-up letters were sent. The second phase involved the pilot testing of the survey instrument. The pilot study involved 10 firms and sought to assess the clarity and usefulness of the questionnaire items. Phase three of the study involved the administration of

According to Jones et al. [9], 'Successful technology strategy management must go beyond content, implementation is as important' (p. 158). There are 10 elements of strategic technology management that were selected for this study. Each element is measured through inductively developed items in order to develop a richer description of the element and to triangulate on the element value. A four-point modified Likert scale was chosen due to its

In this study firm performance was measured using sales revenue growth (SRG), that is, by considering the annual sales revenue at the start and end of the period of this study. SRG reflects the effects of technology strategy decisions. Although SRG is not a perfect measure, various researchers have found it adequate for performance, especially for developing countries [41].

inherent advantages over the original odd-numbered Likert scale.

the sample to establish findings for the wider population of interest' ([37], p. 184).

technology strategy' (p. 214). The data-gathering phase had three objectives:

understanding of the role of technology and the competitive environment.

tives of firms in the manufacturing sector.

**3.** To gather data about the performance of the firms.

the questionnaire.

*4.2.2. Research design*

the survey.

*4.2.3. Measures*

*4.2.4. Firm's performance dimensions*

'R&D has to live in continuous symbiosis with other functions in the company and should be absorbed into the technology function' [27]. This Strategic Management Conference [27] also recommended that firms need to 'measure the technological assets' so as to decide on how to use technology in making strategic choices.

According to Van der Meer et al. [35], 'Companies which operate in technology intensive environments are compelled to invest heavily in R&D in order to maintain a competitive advantage'. This study, besides exploring the effect of technology strategy factors on success of firms, also explored if R&D investments in terms of the number of people employed in the R&D department related to the performance of the firms.

'The promise that R&D holds is not the reality for many firms as competitors often appropriate and commercialise new technologies more nimbly than the firms that paid to develop them' [36]. Firms need to find a fit between their R&D and their company strategy. Evan et al. [22] suggest that technology strategy improves communication between R&D and the rest of the firm and seeks to answer questions like:

