Thesis (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 1999. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 178-184). / by Sawan P. Deshpande. / S.M.M.O.T.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, 2002 [first author]; and, (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2002 [second author]. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 76-81). / This thesis is construed as a part of M.I.T. Sloan School project sponsored by a Fortune 500 company (hereafter referred as "The Company") to study disintermediation in the IT service industry. In this thesis we develop an integrated framework of IT outsourcing processes for enterprise users based upon our research findings. Each individual element is supported by a published, industry-accepted framework; what is unique is our integration of these accepted frameworks into a best practices model that supports customer firms through the entire IT lifecycle. In addition, we analyze future trends in IT outsourcing as to how enterprise needs will change over the next three to four years. To achieve these objectives, we've employed three research methods: literature review, in-person interview with corporate users, and a paper-based survey. The key to successful IT outsourcing lies in the establishment of a strategic partnership between a firm and its IT service provider. From client's point of view, there is no short cut or cookie-cutter method for successful outsourcing. People skills are the most demanded skills for successful outsourcing because human beings ultimately manage all technology. As hardware becomes a commodity, users see more value in customized IT solutions that help companies achieve business goals. IT service providers who can understand a client's business strategy and processes will be able to compete in higher tiers of the IT value chain. / by Thomas L. LaBreque and Mitsushige Yamada. / S.M.M.O.T. / M.B.A.

Thesis (S.M.)--Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology; and, (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 60-61). / The decline in Pharmaceutical R&D productivity has been attributed to high clinical failure rates suggesting that targets, leads and clinical candidates may be of lower quality in recent years. Senior R&D management generally believes that a greater integration of drug discovery and development will improve the selection and optimization of clinical candidates. I demonstrate the different nature of discovery and development with discovery tasks seen as more uncertain, having more reciprocal work flows and more under the control of management than development tasks. Discovery and development personnel have different characteristics and motivations, with discovery staff having greater creative skills and development staff greater planning skill. Following a congruence approach to organization design these differences imply that a complete merging of discovery and development functions would lead to poor fit between organizational design elements. This leaves an ongoing requirement for integrative systems which can preserve the important characteristic of discovery and development functions yet provide knowledge integration at key decision points to improve the quality of clinical candidates. A wide range of integrating mechanisms was found to be in use with an emphasis on cross functional teams. Information Technology was viewed as necessary infrastructure but not an important component of knowledge integration. No strong links were found between pipeline maturity and the integrative mechanism deployed. I speculate that company R&D performance could be better matched to internal and external circumstances by a more active approach to managing integrative systems. I propose a conceptual model of integrative systems to guide a more dynamic management approach / (cont.) to organizational design of R&D and suggest further work to formalize the model through an agent based simulation. / by Peter J.A. Smith. / S.M.M.O.T. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology; and, (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references. / The promise of personalized medicine lies in its potential to fundamentally change healthcare. In the past, pharmaceuticals were prescribed on a "one size fits all" basis-patients with certain disease phenotypes were given what were thought to be appropriate drugs. There is growing evidence however that the effectiveness of these drugs may differ by individual and by sub-group; presumably due to fundamental genetic differences in disease and metabolic pathways. Drugs like Herceptin, Gleevec and Iressa are part of an emerging trend in the biopharmaceutical arena of drugs that are accompanied by genetic diagnostic tests and prescribed only for patients with genotypes in which the agents are most effective. / by Chad D. Holland. / S.M.M.O.T. / S.M.