Programa de Especialización en Negocios para Periodistas, 4ta Ed., de la UPC y Scotiabank, Módulo III: Business-Makingin theDigital Era.

The launch of the chatbot ChatGPT in November of 2022 has sparked a fierce debate on how AI tools will affect future education. Currently, there have been multiple articles about how universities and educators do not yet have an action plan on how to respond to the consequences of the launch of the chatbot. The technology behind ChatGPT is generative AI and is anticipated to be the next big digital disruption. Generative AI and its effects on higher education is still unexplored territory. In this thesis we aim to answer the following research question: how can generative AI be managed as a digital disruption in higher education? We conducted a qualitative case study at a university in Sweden, where the participants were educators from different departments. The three main themes discussed in this thesis are: disruptive effects of generative AI; three elements of managing digital disruption; emerging challenges and opportunities. We contribute to existing research by providing a model on how the digital disruption caused by generative AI manifests in higher education and provide suggestions on how to manage it. Further, we suggest that future research add students’ perspective to the model, since this was not covered in this thesis.

Submitted by Fabio Sobreira Campos da Costa (fabio.sobreira@ufpe.br) on 2016-08-05T15:22:56Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) msc-rlc-Final-BB.pdf: 1571813 bytes, checksum: 5798cb50511413addbcfba23f5dcd350 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-05T15:22:56Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) msc-rlc-Final-BB.pdf: 1571813 bytes, checksum: 5798cb50511413addbcfba23f5dcd350 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-01-29 / As grandes revoluções tecnológicas são cíclicas; ocorrem a cada 50 ou 60 anos. A cada iteração, tecnologias antes tidas como infalíveis e definitivas tornam-se obsoletas, dando lugar a novas formas de resolver problemas até então considerados intransponíveis. A revolução tecnológica em curso é a da Tecnologia da Informação e Comunicação, catalisada pela criação de um ambiente aberto e democrático: a Internet. Esta se transforma em uma plataforma ubíqua e permite que empreendedores repensem as dinâmicas sociais e econômicas. Um ecossistema baseado na Lei de Moore, que diz que a capacidade computacional dobra a cada 18 meses sob o mesmo custo, cria uma sensação de inexistência de limites à criatividade. O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar como corporações já estabelecidas, também chamadas de incumbentes, podem se comportar a fim de serem as catalisadoras de inovações nos mercados onde elas mesmas atuam, em vez de esperar que outras empresas o façam. Esta dissertação baseia-se nos princípios da pesquisa qualitativa, utilizando um método essencialmente prescritivo, com o objetivo principal de desenvolver recomendações. Para prover as diretivas, descreve-se a realidade, entendendo os fenômenos de inovação, empreendedorismo, intraempreendedorismo e disrupção digital, assim como as relações entre eventos que os geram ou os influenciam. Empresas incumbentes podem utilizar as recomendações descritas neste trabalho com o intuito de serem proativas na curva de disrupção de mercados, deixando de lado o papel de incumbentes disrompidos para serem protagonistas no processo de disrupção, mantendo a liderança nos mercados onde atuam e tornando-se capazes de vislumbrar novos fluxos de receitas estimulados pela inovação. / The great technological revolutions are cyclical; they take place every 50 or 60 years. During each iteration, technologies that were once deemed infallible and definitive become obsolete, giving way for new ways to solve problems once thought insurmountable. The current technological revolution is the Information and Communication one, which is empowered by the creation of an open and democratic environment: the Internet. The Internet is becoming a ubiquitous platform, allowing entrepreneurs to rethink social and economic dynamics. An ecosystem based on Moore’s Law, which states that the computing power doubles every 18 months at the same cost, creates a sensation of lack of limits to creativity. The goal of this work is to analyze how established companies, also called incumbents, should act in order to be the catalysts for innovation in the markets where they operate, rather than waiting for other companies to do so. This dissertation is based on the qualitative research approach and uses an essentially prescriptive method with the main objective to develop recommendations. In order to provide these guidelines, it describes the reality by understanding the phenomena of innovation, entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship and digital disruption, as well as the relationships among the events that generate or influence them. Incumbent companies may utilize the recommendations here described with the purpose of being proactive on the market disruption curve, leaving aside the disrupted incumbent role to become the protagonists on the disruption process, maintaining their market share leadership and also becoming capable of glimpse new revenue streams inspired by innovation.

La thèse porte sur les formes de management pertinentes de projets d’innovation à forte composante systémique, disruptive et digitale, et qui contribuent à la structuration d’un écosystème. En effet, ces types d’innovation deviennent historiquement de plus en plus nombreuses étant donnée la connexion croissante des objets/services/entreprises/pouvoirs publics et les nouvelles possibilités de business croisés qui en résultent. Les informations fournies par la littérature existante permettent aux gestionnaires de prendre des décisions stratégiques lorsque les règles du jeu sont définies par des acteurs connus, mais pas lorsque les acteurs et l'environnement sont progressivement définis. De nos jours, les responsables d'institutions privées et publiques doivent s'aligner sur des conditions internes et externes variables, des perspectives temporelles et un système de demande mal défini. Ils manquent de conseils sur la façon de procéder. Les questions de recherche émergeant d’enquêtes empiriques et théoriques sont les suivantes: 1. Comment un projet d’écosystème peut-il être géré? Existe-t-il un schéma spécifique et quelles sont les variables du pilotage de projet? 2. Quels sont les processus de pilotage les plus stratégiques pour la sélection de projets d'innovation liés à la structuration des écosystèmes? Quelles sont les variables organisationnelles et les variables médiatrices de la structuration écosystémique? 3. Quels sont les artefacts de gestion les plus adéquats pour soutenir le processus d'exploration dans le contexte d'un projet d'écosystème? Afin d’étudier les dynamiques à l’œuvre, et d’instrumenter leur pilotage, le travail de recherche porte sur le cas de la mobilité connectée, observée par la participation à trois projets, suivant les usages qui se définissent sous l’impulsion des OEMs, et sous les initiatives des usagers (véhicule autonome, connecté, électrique, partagé). Les projets choisis portent sur la diffusion de l’infrastructure de recharge rapide du véhicule électrique, la création d’un prototype de marketplace pour les données collectées par les véhicules, et le développement de services autour du véhicule autonome. Tous constituent un terrain particulièrement perturbé par le trend de connexion, obligeant à une reconfiguration des acteurs, de leurs politiques partenariales, leur business model (ex : Uber, Google Car…). D’où le besoin actuel de réactualisation des outils et des théories existantes en management de l’innovation.L’analyse des données collectées permets de répondre aux questions posées. Suite à l’Identification des management challenges spécifiques aux projets d’innovation systémique et disruptive, nous avons développé un cadre d’analyse et d’action intégrant les trois logiques théoriques sous-jacentes (platform leadership / systemic innovation, disruptive innovation / design driven innovation, digital business model). Nous avons identifié et caractérise une typologie de projet, le Proto-ecosystem project, qui permet aux acteurs la création de connaissances, compétences et liens qui participent à la structuration d’un écosystème. Nous avons identifié le processus-type par étape finalise’ à l’alignement des partenaires des projets observés et les artefacts plus performants dans cette démarche. Nous avons indiqué les limitations de cette recherche et les possibles évolutions pour l’avenir. / The thesis deals with the relevant forms of management of innovation projects with a strong systemic, disruptive and digital component, which contribute to the structuring of an ecosystem. Indeed, these types of innovation are becoming more and more numerous given the growing connection of objects / services / companies / public authorities and the resulting new cross-business opportunities.The insights provided by existing literature enable managers to perform strategic decision making when rules of the game are set among known actors, but not when the actors and the environment are progressively defined. Nowadays, managers from private and public institutions need to get aligned with variable internal, external conditions, time perspectives, and ill-defined demand system; they miss guidance on how proceeding with it. The research questions emerging from empirical and theoretical investigations are the following: 1. How can an ecosystem project be managed? Is there a specific pattern, and which are the variables of project steering? 2.Which are the most strategically performing steering processes for the selection of innovation projects related to ecosystem structuring? Which are the organizational variables and the mediating variables toward eco-systemic structuring? 3. Which are the more adequate management artefacts to support the exploration process in a context of ecosystem project?In order to study the dynamics at work, and to instrumentalise their management, the research work focuses on the case of connected mobility, observed through the participation in three projects, according to the uses defined by the impetus of OEMs, and under the initiatives of users (autonomous vehicle, connected, electric, shared). The projects chosen concern the diffusion of the fast charging infrastructure of the electric vehicle, the creation of a prototype marketplace for the data collected by the vehicles, and the development of services enabled by the autonomous vehicle. All of them constitute a terrain particularly disrupted by the trend of connection, forcing a reconfiguration of actors, their partnership policies, their business model (ex: Uber, Google Car ...). Hence the current need to update existing tools and theories in innovation management. The analysis of the data collected provides elements to answer the research questions. Following the identification of management challenges specific to systemic and disruptive innovation projects, we have developed a framework of analysis and action integrating the three underlying theoretical logic (platform leadership / systemic innovation, disruptive innovation / design driven innovation, digital business model). We have identified and characterized a project typology, the Proto-ecosystem project, which enables stakeholders to create the knowledge, skills and connections that contribute to the structuring of an ecosystem. We have identified the typical process by stage finalized to the alignment of the partners of the observed projects and the more efficient artifacts in this alignment process. We have indicated the limitations of this research and the possible future evolutions.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019 / The internet, mobile communication, social media, and other digital services have integrated so much into our daily lives and businesses alike. Companies facing digital transformation experience this as exceptionally challenging. While there are several studies that state the importance of digital transformation and how it influences current and future businesses, there is little academic literature available on factors that affect the success or failure of digital transformation in companies. It is unclear what factors affect digital transformation in an established telecommunications company. The aim of this study was therefore to explore the factors that affect digital transformation in a telecommunications company in South Africa, and to what extent. One primary research question was posed, namely: “What factors affect digital transformation in a telecommunications company in South Africa?” To answer the question, a study was conducted at a telecommunications company in South Africa. The researcher adopted a subjective ontological and interpretivist epistemological stance, as the data collected from the participants’ perspective were interpreted to make claims about the truth, and because there are many ways of looking at the phenomena. An inductive approach was selected to enable the researcher to gain in-depth insight into the views and perspective of factors that influence digital transformation in the specific company. The explorative research strategy was used to gain an understanding of the underlying views, reasons, opinions, and thoughts of the 15 participants by means of semi-structured interviews. The participants were made aware that they do not have to answer any question if they are uncomfortable, and they could withdraw their answers at any time. The data collected were transcribed, summarised, and categorised to provide a clear understanding of the data. For this study, 36 findings were identified. From this research, it was inter alia concluded that successful digital transformation of companies depends on how Management drives digital transformation, and the benefits of new digital technologies should be carefully considered when planning to implement digital transformation.

Background: While technologies are progressing exponentially and inevitably becoming an essential as a means for business to adapt and survive, no exception is the finance division. Digitalization activities have become do or die tasks for many companies and have been a challenging process for finance departments. Yet, in the context of Finance 4.0 it is barely researched. Due to evolving understanding of how finance departments should look, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as the leader of the whole finance division is going through a lot of changes surrounded by uncertainty. The expectations for CFO and finance department are increasing and it becomes unclear what financial specialists should actually deliver for business. Hence, this paper aims to identify how CFO’s role is changing because of Finance 4.0, otherwise known as finance function digitalization, and what skills will be needed to successfully work as CFO in the new environment that seeks to become fully digital and automated. Purpose: The purpose of this master thesis research is to identify and analyze how the CFO’s role is changing because of Finance 4.0 and what skills will be required in future for the CFO position.  Method: A qualitative study with interpretivism philosophy, inductive approach and narrative inquiry strategy is taken as the best options for this particular study. Semi-structured interviews with Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) is a method for primary data collection as well as thematic data analysis for gathered data analysis are chosen in order to answer research questions. Conclusion: This research investigates how Finance 4.0 is changing the role of CFO as well as explores what future skills are required for the profession. The research clearly reveals that digitalization is affecting CFO’s role significantly and brings more uncertainty. Research results show that fundamental responsibilities of a CFO will not undergo changes any time soon as well as the skills required for work will remain largely the same. This is because the professional skills of a CFO directly reflect the responsibilities and working tasks, and, moreover, the finance departments are not completely undigitized. However, even though the foundation of the CFO role remains the same, digital disruption causes expansion and increased complexity. While existing academic knowledge is focused mostly on the change process itself and the benefits of digitalization, CFOs revealed what is challenging for them during this digital journey and what negative effect they have experienced.

Background: From digitalization acceleration, digital disruptions such as edge-cutting technologies, have caused challenges and changes to business’ natures in terms of value, structures, and strategies. No industry nor organization is immune to these impacts, especially multinational enterprises in the information technology industry, whereas these businesses have started to overlook and disregard traditional ways of working to enhance these impacts. Agility has become a new vital dynamic capability in today’s environment, whereas organizational agility is argued to support businesses to cope with this turbulent era of increased competition, globalization, and digitalization. Although, to enhance this, traditional business processes and operations must be rethought and extended to a digital context.  Purpose: As digital disruptions have become a threat to businesses' values and operations, it has gained increased attention in both practice and research. Organizational agility is raised as a tool and response to cope with these new digital threats and changes to fundamental business values, however, this has also increased pressure on managers to create and maintain cohesion and motivation when change is imposed. Nonetheless, how this is managed and experienced within local subsidiaries of multinational enterprises lacks both exploration and understanding, and thus, suggesting that there is much left to uncover. This, especially on how to maintain local responsiveness while enhancing global fundamental values when introducing organization agility to cope with changes and digital disruptions.   Method: With a relativism ontology, interpretivism epistemology, and inductive research approach, this research studied how to be organizationally agile under digital disruptions, from a subsidiary perspective in an IT multinational enterprise. Through a qualitative explorative research and multiple-case study design, the empirical data was gathered from 12 semi-structured in-depth interviewees and observations, where the employee perspective set the foundation of how organizational agility and digital disruptions are managed and experienced within their local subsidiaries. The data were analyzed through a thematic analysis, including separate within-case analyzes, a cross-case analysis, and lastly, a comparison with existing literature.  Conclusion: The findings show how multinational enterprises in the information technology industry could manage organizational agility when digital disruptions occur and how this is experienced amongst employees. Subsidiary Management is vital for coping with digital disruptions whereas Strategic Decision-Making for responding to the same, fundamentally relying on the Organizational Culture with the six key factors of Ownership, Learning, Diversity, Inclusion, Trust, and Mindset. Moreover, organizational agility could cause a negative tradeoff of work-life balance and a negative tradeoff between increased workload and individual growth, whereas increased autonomy creates a tradeoff between local independence and global cohesiveness. This, however, was experienced as both positive and negative. Being organizationally agile is vital on both global and local levels to utilize efficiency, flexibility, and be locally responsive to regional market demands where the attention must be given to people rather than structures to be agile and digitally responsive.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / The Fourth Industrial Revolution has provided new opportunities to tackle problems in health, education, transport and many other sectors. In the financial sector, new financial technology (FinTech) is providing new ways of tackling the problem of financial exclusion. The uptake of cell phones has enabled financial service providers (FSPs) to expand into areas where the most vulnerable have hitherto been outside the reach of the banking agency model. This has ultimately allowed previously financially excluded individuals to have access to bank accounts. Through SMACT (Social Media, Mobile, Analytics, Cloud and the Internet of Things) technologies, FSPs are able to collect new types of data such as call detail record data and mobile app data which have been leveraged globally to enable the emergence of M-Pesa in Kenya, the WeChat payments module in China and KakaoBank, South Korea’s first online-only bank. The common thread in these innovations is that these are telecommunications company-led business models that have encroached into the area of finance. Such digital disruption has happened in South Africa but little is understood about how inclusive digital financial services are in the South African context. Moreover, what are the barriers to further financial inclusion, given that South Africa has significantly high bank account uptake rates? What role can the Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies have in breaking those barriers and reaching the lower-income population that has largely been mis-sold financial products that were created for the middle to upper-income population? This study sought to investigate how the diffusion of SMACT technology has contributed to financial inclusion in the South African financial services sector. The study made use of a mixed methods approach to answer this research question. Finscope data from 2012 to 2015 was used as the data source for the quantitative section and key informant interviews as the source of data for the qualitative section. The study found that roughly 80% of adults in South Africa are financially included through formal banks. Despite the near 100% uptake rates of cell phones across all income groups, proximity to an ATM or bank branch still significantly determined whether an individual accessed formal financial services. The study also found that ATM withdrawal, store withdrawal and internet banking were infrequently utilised by lower-income adults. In terms of internet banking and digital financial services in general, financial products, especially digital credit, do not appear to be well aligned with the needs of the lower-income consumer. The mismatch of financial products and the needs of lower-income consumers is further worsened by poor financial literacy levels in South Africa, especially among lower-income consumers. The study concludes that more needs to be done to increase economic inclusion, digital inclusion and financial inclusion for the lower-income population in South Africa. While consumer protection and transparency are well covered in the regulatory and legislative framework to which FSPs by and large adhere, a more inclusive and sustainable financial sector will only exist if product fit, affordability, financial literacy and convenience issues are addressed. This should happen in an enabling environment where ICT infrastructure benefits all, interoperability of digital financial services is reached and a regulatory framework more focused on financial inclusion is in place.

Background: While the positive sides of digitalisation in work environments have been highlighted in academic research in the field of business administration, there seems to be a lack of representation regarding the negative sides. By systematically identifying, evaluating, and summarising peer-reviewed articles in the field of digitalisation in work environments, this systematic literature review and thematic synthesis, aims to provide a nuanced and applicable overview of the scope in which the potential effects of digitalisation within work-related office contexts are researched in the field of business administration. Methods: Ontology - Relativism; Epistemology - constructionism, inductive approach; Methodology - Qualitative research design, systematic literature review; Data collection - systematic 12-step guideline; Data analysis - thematic synthesis Findings: The findings uncover several patterns in the relevant literature through a summary of the content of the analysed batch in descriptive themes and synthesising patterns through the creation of analytical themes, in which perspectives of organisational as well as employed actors were analysed. The results illustrate the motivations for digital transformations for organisational actors and employees as well as their respective drawbacks. Discussion: The study suggests that digitalisation in work environments is typically portrayed positively in research within the field of business administration. There is an implicit unanimous perception among academics in business administration that depict digitalisation in work environments as desirable and portray a view where digitalisation is not questioned. As a consequence, the papers show an absence in terms of alternatives beyond the digitalisation scope through the retrieved literature batch. Conclusion: As there are clear patterns of the favourable depiction of digital technologies visible in this study, implications of a one-sided representation of digital technology are valid in the context of the analysed data. Other: The papers were subject to no external funding, meaning that the two authors covered all costs derived throughout the writing process.

The retail sector is experiencing transforming changes driven by service robots (SR). While SR promise benefits such as improved inventory management, increased efficiency, and enhanced customer satisfaction, their integration presents technical and societal challenges. Technical hurdles encompass image classification under varying conditions, data security, localization, and obstacle detection. On the societal front, concerns revolve around public perception, safety, and employee apprehension regarding job security. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of these challenges and opportunities, highlighting that while SR have considerable potential, their optimal utilization in retail may be best suited for non-human facing tasks, given the current limitations of AI in human interactions.