The Digital Firm

Overview

Sweeping technological change coupled with globalization has led to the development of a new organizational form termed the “digital firm.” Digital firms are highly decentralized, networked organizations that leverage information technology to digitalize business processes and foster creativity.   They present managers with the challenges of making rapid decisions in response to closely monitored and dynamic environments while creating conditions that foster innovation and creativity among employees.

This brief elearning module is designed to give you some insights into how information technology is changing the way we work, lead and measure success.  It is also intended to introduce you to the problems, issues and benefits of “going digital.”

Objectives

Specific objectives for this module include:

1. An understanding of the defining characteristics of Digital Firms.
2. An understanding of what it takes to be a successful member of a Digital Firm.
3. Presentation of an assessment tool to test your firm’s Digital IQ.
4. Presentation of exemplars of Digital Firms with some thought exercise.

Instructional Events

In order to complete module you should:

1. View the Course Lecture.
   Note: You must have RealPlayer to view this segment. It is a free download available at www.real.com
2. Go to course Discussion Board and post responses to the On-line Discussion questions (listed below). To do so you must:
   • Create a login to be used with the Discussion Board.
   • Login to the Discussion Board with your new username.
3. Explore the provided links for more information.
4. If you would like to learn more, contact lipper@adm.njit.edu to gain more information about NJIT's full course on Managing the Digital Firm.
   

Questions for On-line Discussion

• Jack Welch, former CEO of GE, has stated that companies have no choice when it comes to going digital.  To survive, they must adapt.  Do you agree?  Do you think that huge investments in IT will pay off to create value?

• Scott McNeely, CEO of Sun Microsystems, offers this thought about the Internet age:  There is no privacy—get used to it.  What, if anything, can companies do to provide secure personal and sensitive information about employees and customers in a digital world?  How serious do you think that breaches of privacy are for customers?employees?

• What do you think it takes to be a successful leader in a digital firm?  How about a successful employee?

• If you had to digitize a business process, how would you go about doing it?  What benefits would you expect?  How would you measure them?

Links and Resources

The School of Management has a full course on Managing the Digital Firm.  For more information on this course, please contact Stuart Lipper: lipper@adm.njit.edu

A good textbook on managing the digital firm: http://vig.prenhall.com/catalog/academic/product/1,4096,0130330663,00.html

A website about the digital economy by industry: http://www.digital4sight.com/index.php

Building brand equity using digital assets: http://www.crispdigital.com/