Issues in Managing Technology Deployment

by Chris Pickering

We are all familiar with stories of companies that introduce breakthrough technologies in anticipation of major performance gains, only to see the new technologies falter almost before they get started. The reason is often a mystery. There is no question that the new technology is superior to the old technology, and, for many organizations, this is where the analysis ends, with comments such as "You can lead a horse to water ..." and "How can you soar with eagles when you're surrounded by turkeys?" In scenarios like this, future disappointments are almost certain -- relying on technical excellence to carry all of the responsibility for technology deployment is simply not good enough.