Taiwan DRAM industry emerged on OEM basis, i.e. foundry manufactures based upon the technology authorized by the foreign owner. With the expansion of capacity, Taiwan DRAM industry has gradually increased its global market share. In particular, only those market players with 12¡¨foundry, which requires hefty capital investment and can significantly increases capacity, are able to compete in the market. The financial tsunami started in 2008, however, impacted severely on the global economy. DRAM industry could not immune from this, and the collapse was unprecedented. Majority of market players were suffering losses, and unable to afford the migration of manufacturing process. Taiwan players used to borrow to expand capacity. Four major Taiwan DRAM players carry an aggregate debt of TWD300 billion. Taiwan DRAM industry is almost destroyed by the high leverage during the financial tsunami. Facing the unprecedented difficulty of DRAM industry, Taiwan government raised an industry re-engineering (or consolidation, whichever is appropriate) proposal with an aim to enhance the competitiveness in the global market through changes in industry structure and business operation. Thanks to the industry recovery stemmed in the third quarter of 2009, DRAM price started rebounding. The financial difficulty of DRAM players was been resolved. The government¡¦s proposal for industry re-engineering was ended up with a failure.Taiwan DRAM players are still operating on OEM basis and lack of competitiveness in global market. Though Taiwan DRAM players have turned profitable, benefited from price rebound, it is still a question mark that these players can survive in the long run. As long as the structural problem remains unsolved, the industry players and the government will face the same issue again in future. When the next recession is coming, whether Taiwan players shall exit the market, or Taiwan government shall step in? Whether the industry shall go through a consolidation? This paper will present the migration of DRAM industry life cycle, change of business model, strategic alliance, and industry trend in future, analyze on business strategies adopted by Taiwan DRAM players under the competitive environment. Hopefully, this paper could provide a reference as to the development of business strategy for Taiwan DRAM players.

Extensive relevant literatures, the research of the company , Hi-Tech industry , semiconductor industry is quite abundant to starting an undertaking, mostly leave for the discussion in terms of pioneering venture capital company, Its content has: Achieve the investment of investing the company and financing behavior , influence achieving and throwing the factor that the company invests in , achieving and throwing the company to the administration behaviour carried on of venture capital company. Lack researchs to probe into the behaviors of venture capital company as different industry life cycle stages for company behavior. So, this research attempts to base on business model of semiconductor industry and the products demand characteristic of the semiconductor, in order to find out about venture capital company¡¦s business model. Take the quality research approach mainly in this research, through investing the relevant personage of the industry and carrying on depth interview with start an undertaking to the industry of the semiconductor. The result of study is found: First, in the development in the future of IC industry, large-scale IDM and the competitions of Virtual IDM two kinds of main types of operation will appear; Second, will achieve and throw for the subject with the group type in achieving and throwing the development in the future of the cause in Taiwan; Third, make an investment in industry of the semiconductor more types of operation of going into operation industry of wound are under the jurisdiction of the passive role, receiving the type of operation of semiconductor manufacturer and demand characteristic of the products mainly influences; Fourth, on industry's technology import respect of the semiconductor, research unit and person who creates throwing industry of the industry are cognitive and different. So, it is mainly adjusted with transition of the demand characteristic of the products on the type of operation of the industry of the semiconductor of Taiwan that this research is thought. It is more passive role to create the going into operation industry , is interacted with demand characteristic of the products to leave and react by the semiconductor manufacturer mainly. So, in the development in the future, with the merger trend of the industry of the semiconductor, Taiwan¡¦s venture capital company will also move towards the way to combine.

The relathionshiops between industry attribution and knowledge management-A case study on Petroleum and Petro-chemical Industries, steel industries, and TFT-LCD industries. To meet the demands of the market and create demands and hence to build up new competitive advantages in the knowledge-economy world, the focus of enterprises is to manipulate knowledge, make good use of the characteristics of knowledge-sharing and innovation. Therefore, knowledge management can be deemed as a weapon for organizational management and organizational development. With fine-quality knowledge, enterprises can create new knowledge and enhance corporate competitiveness. The aim of this research is to explore the differences of the mechanisms of knowledge management and the relationships between industry attributions and knowledgement among enterprises. With interviews with companies and relevant literature review, we conclude the following researching findings: Research finding 1: When the technologies in an industry go into a ripe phase, the model of knowledgement tends to focus on integrating explicit knowledge; when the technologies are still in the growth phase, the model of knowledge management focuses on internal interaction. Research finding2: Enterprises place more importance on knowledge transfer and their knowledge management mechanisms focus on information system when the industry life cycle is in the ripe phase; enterprises value knowledge innovation and their knowledge management mechanisms focus on the platform of human interaction when the industry life cycle is in the growth phase. Research finding 3: Industries in ripe phase emphasize the knowledge storage, diffusion, and application; industries in growth phase emphasize the knowledge creation. Keyword: knowledge management, industry attribution, industry life cycle, mechanism of knowledge management.

China has become both South Korea’s largest trading partner and one of the largest destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI). The display industry, which is one of the major export industries for Korea and extremely important for the Korean economy, has a particularly high level of dependence on China – the industry’s largest market. The Korean LCD panel industry has grown into a global leader and major industry of the Korean economy over the past ten years through its preemptive, aggressive investment and its development of innovative products. This was helped by the diverse strategies for aggressive investment in China that were implemented since the early 2000s as the companies faced unlimited competition in the global era. However, the rise of the Chinese LCD industry, which was spurred by the rapid growth of the domestic market and government support policies in the mid-2000s, has impacted the investment strategies of the Korean LCD panel industry in China. This research focuses on an analysis of the investment strategies of Korean TFT-LCD panel industry businesses’ investments in China in terms of their corporate and business strategies. It also assesses the status of the LCD industry and market, reviews the Korean LCD panel industry’s development, and analyzes its competitive strategy using Porter’s five forces model, industry life cycle, and the value chain. Based on the findings and the forecast for the Korean LCD panel industry, it then concludes by providing suggestions for the major industry players and the Korean government.

Innovation and technological change is the major factor of production, renewal, and competitiveness of firms and nations in the contemporary “knowledge economy”. The overall purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the innovative behavior of firms in various sectors and regions. In particular, I have analyzed the determinants (driving forces) of firms’ innovation on the one hand (in paper 1 and 2), and the effect of firms’ innovation on the other hand (in paper 3 and 4). In addition, a central concern in this dissertation is that context, in which firms operate and innovate, matters for innovation. I take into account several contexts in the analyses of both the determinants and effects of innovation. These contexts are: the regions in which firms are located, the dynamics of industries, and the dynamics of cluster in which firms belong to. This dissertation consists of four separate papers plus an introductory chapter. Each paper can be read independently, but all of them deal with either determinants or effects of the innovation of firms. The first paper analyzes the effect of various firm-specific determinants on firms’ innovation output. It also considers the stages of the Industry Life Cycle (ILC) as a context in which firms operate and innovate. Using the Community Innovation Survey data for manufacturing and service sectors in Sweden during 2002-2004, I find that the importance of various determinants of firms’ innovation depends on the stages of the ILC in which they operate. The second paper is again investigates the determinants of innovation, but this time incorporates another context that affect the innovation, i.e. the regions that firms belong to. Using the patent applications data as a measure of innovation in all functional regions in Sweden during 2002-2007, we find that both the internal knowledge generated within the region and the inflow of external knowledge matter for innovation of firms located in the regions. Moreover, the extent of related variety of knowledge in the region has the superior role to promote innovation. The third paper examines the effect of a firm’s innovation output on firm’s performance. Export behavior of firms is chosen as a performance indicator. Particular attention is devoted to distinguishing between innovation input and innovation output and to isolate their effects on export behavior of firms. Using two waves of Swedish Community Innovation Survey data during 2002-2006 merged with registered firm-level data, I find that what really matters for enhancing the export behavior of firms is the innovation output of firms, rather than the innovation input (mere efforts in investing in innovation activities). The fourth paper also analyzes the effect of innovation on performance measures but this time incorporates another context, i.e. the life cycle of the regional cluster that firms belong to. This paper delves into a particular cluster, i.e. Linköping ICT cluster. Using data collected through interviews during 2009 and 2012 on key cluster actors, we find that innovation is among the factors that are always highly important at any given stage of the cluster’s evolution, however, it has slightly greater importance during the “growing” stage.

Background and Aim: Markets are getting increasingly complex, competitive and changing. A firm’s ability to respond to environmental challenges is a significant factor for its survival and success. To establish itself in the market, a company needs to adjust the product in a way that meets the expectations and required quality of the target market in other words, make relevant product adaptations. Many aspects of product adaptation have been discussed in the literature ranging from small changes in the product such as specification or design to modifying a company’s market strategy depending on which stage the product is in its life cycle. Technology innovation can enable a firm keep the market share and retain customers especially in a mature and technology driven industry where the market is saturated and consumers diffuse to competitors who easily copy the product. However, the role of technology innovation to adapt a product in the growth stage to mature markets is missing from the present literature. This present thesis will investigate the role of technology innovation in product adaptation and the factors to consider thereof the Swedish high tech company Saab will be used as the case study. Methodology: Research method for the present thesis includes the qualitative approach with the case study design. For the purposes of this thesis the Swedish high-tech company Saab will be studied to explore the practices of adapting product (field hospital) to different markets. Completion and results: Result of the study showed that there are similarities and differences between what literature provides and Saab does to adapt a product in markets. Analyzing the theory and practice recommendations for Saab were concluded. Suggestions drown for Saab can be useful for other high technology companies as well.

Human resource strategy and practices are effective ways to sustain organizational competitive advantage under the concept of strategic human resource management. It was proved that human resource strategy and business strategy have causal relationship. However, we need to explore the relationships among industry environment, business strategy and human resource in corporations of Taiwan. Using literature review and case studies, this research targeted six firms, which were sampled purposely, to conduct an in-depth interview to explore the relationships among human resource strategy, business strategy, and industry life-cycle. And the results showed below: 1.Business strategy is influenced by industry life-cycle stage and industry category. 2.Different business strategic will result in different human resource strategies and practices, that is, the principle of ¡§fitness¡¨. 3.Operation of human resource management will output multi-changes and combinations, due to cross influences of multi-factors.

This thesis examines the Saudi animation industry and investigates the barriers that are preventing the development of its life cycle. Although there has been a demand for animation content since the establishment of the Saudi TV in 1965, the Saudi animation industry remains in its Introduction stage. Therefore, the study undertakes an analysis of the factors that could enable the industry to move to its Growth stage. To achieve this, the study attempts to establish an understanding of how different countries succeeded in developing their animation industry life cycle. Therefore, the study selects three countries as a qualitative multiple case study. These countries are the UK, which represents a Mature animation industry; Egypt, which represents an established Growth industry; while the United Arab of Emirates represents an emerging Growth industry. This has involved an in-depth analysis of the animation industries in Saudi Arabia and two other Arabian countries – UAE and Egypt – as well as of the UK. There has been very limited historiography for Arabian animation and almost none on the Saudi Arabian industry previously. A consideration of which factors should be investigated, as the most effective in influencing the evolution of the industry, was undertaken. Reviewing the available literature on the animation industry development showed that four factors have been found to play a considerable role in developing the local animation industry: Higher III Education institutions, Networks, Government and Location. Thus, this study focuses on examining these four factors at different life cycle stages of the animation industry. The findings of this study demonstrate that their impact differs from stage to stage in developing the local animation industry; the significance of particular barriers also varies at different stages of the life cycle. Thus, this study developed a Theoretical Model that combines the most effective strategy that has been found within the studied countries. It also applied the model to the specific context of the Saudi Arabian industry and developed recommendations for a strategy to encourage its evolution. The model could also be applied to other developing animation industries.

This study describes how institutions in a developing country, South Africa influence the salient characteristics and patterns of innovation in firms belonging to an emerging versus a mature industry. The patterns and characteristics of innovation in firms belonging to industries in different phases of their life cycles are influenced by various factors. Because of the wide range of factors and often due to the endogenous relationships between them, empirical studies in describing these patterns remain inconclusive. This research describes the patterns and the significant innovation characteristics of the firms through the lens of institutions. Special attention is paid to the institutional frameworks influencing innovation in firms at national and regional levels. These frameworks are often referred to as National and Regional Innovation Systems. The central argument of this study is that these innovation systems are expected to influence the characteristics of innovation in different ways when firms are situated in developed versus the developing countries. In this regard, this study attempts to contribute to the innovation knowledge-base of developing countries. The salient characteristics discussed in this study are types, institutional support (government), centre of knowledge and geographical locations of innovations. Chi-square, t-tests and stepwise logistic regressions were run on the responses of the firms regarding the chosen characteristics. The results suggest that in most cases these characteristics were different in firms belonging to an emerging versus a mature industry. Also the patterns of innovation were mostly dissimilar from the expectations of the studies based in the developed world. A logistic model was built to explain the relationships between the individual characteristics and the firms belonging to the two phases of the industry life cycle. The model, formulated on the salient characteristics of innovation discussed could successfully predict if a firm belonged to a mature industry or not. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Overall my dissertation work tries to capture a holistic view of the various complex interactions that occur in technology development, implementation, adoption and diffusion, in the context of three industries by examining issues that arise due to regulation of technology. Essay 1 focuses on the social media industry, which is in the early stage of the industrial life cycle, and is the foci of government attention for its ill effect on society. Results from the study (N= 647 employed adults in the US) supported hypotheses related to the antecedents and outcomes of platform utilization in the context of the three regulation dimensions. Essay 2 focuses on the automotive industry, which is in the growth stage of the industrial life cycle. Here the focus is on electric vehicles (EV) transitioning from the niches to the main market. Results from the longitudinal study (N = 429) support the moderating role of political activism on innovation capability of manufacturers and presence of ancillary services in the diffusion of different types of electric vehicles in the US market. Essay 3 focuses on the US healthcare industry, reflecting mature stage of industrial life cycle, yet also characterized with high cost and fragmentation of service. The results supported a causal relationship and further indicate that the relationship between resources and capabilities is quadratic when evaluated in presence of regulatory challenges. In conclusion, results of three essays indicate that the effect of regulatory forces on an industry are complex and affected by multi-level interactions. Hence, taking a holistic view in understanding the impact of regulation on the utilization, implementation and eventual diffusion of technology is essential. Additionally, insights are gained by considering these impacts within the nuances of industry life cycle, evolving technology and differing regulations.