Knowledge is used as a focal factor for competitive advantage, through effective and efficient performances by employees in many organisations. As a result, knowledgeable employees are expected to share their knowledge with others to increase innovation within the organisation. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Generally, employees behave differently within an organisation. The main challenge is that no organisation has total control of its employees’ behaviour and actions. The behaviour and action has impact on how information systems are deployed for innovation, in creating competitive advantage. As a result, many systems have been deployed by different organisations in attempt to address this challenge for the interest. Others have deployed competitive intelligence products and services. This is primarily intended to provide decision - makers with information that can contribute to the innovative process in order to meet customer needs. For an organisation to survive, it must be able to innovate and market its innovations. Also, innovation creates uncertainty about its consequences in the mind of potential adopters. There exists a discrepancy between what customers perceive as their problems or needs and what organisations understand these problems to be. This study was conducted with the primary aim to understand the impact of Competitive Intelligence (CI) on Information systems (IS) innovation products and services in organisations. The case study research method was employed, using a financial organisation. The Innovation-decision process, from the perspective of Diffusion of Innovation theory (DOI) was applied in the data analysis.

This thesis presents a continuation study about the diffusion of innovation in the manufacturing companies. The focus of this study is the diffusion of innovation in technology and CAD is the selected technology that is widely used in the manufacturing companies. The foundation of this study is the previous work that has been conducted by Jan Löwstedt and Christer Norr in 1991 that explained about the diffusion of technology during that time. Thereafter, technology has experienced a rapid change. There is not a continuation study afterwards. The purpose of this study is to see how the technology has changed and how people use it over time, and what driving forces are behind it, so an extension information for the PLC perspective can be formed. Theoretical framework was built by analyzing the previous studies as the foundation to see what has changed over time. The concept of the diffusion of innovation, PLC, and the development of CAD in terms of technical and organizational perspective wise from several researchers are also disclosed to support the empirical findings. The approach of this study is based on a qualitative study where empirical data are collected through interviewing Swedish manufacturing companies that use CAD in their companies. The result of this study reveals that the usage of CAD technically is not dramatically changed: it is still mainly in providing a visceral visualization. But, the paradigm shifting in utilizing CAD in the organization is worth exploring. Where it is triggered by the need to get more advanced technology-wise. The diffusion of technology could contribute the paradigm shifting in the way of working. This study shows that the companies tend to maximize the result of the technology by integrating the result not exclusively only for the design department, but also for other parties such as: the engineering calculation department and customers. However, this study could present a sharper pattern if there were more companies that were in the early stage of CAD as the source of information.

This study investigates the extent to which teachers adopted a computer technology innovation and the role of collaboration in the adoption process. Semi-structured interviews with seven teachers and one Computer Resource Teacher, supplemented by observations and documentation regarding the innovation, provide data for an in-depth, ethnographic case study. Six months were spent in the setting recording the teachers' interactions and processes centered on adopting the innovation. Results show collaboration efforts among teams and the level of uncertainty regarding the innovation influenced the amount of time and the degree to which each team adopted the innovation. Two other factors influenced the adoption rate of the innovation: the interaction that the teachers had with a change agent, which helped to decrease the level of uncertainty about the innovation with two of the teams and thus, increased their adoption rate, and the innovativeness of individuals, which had a direct connection to the rate of adoption and which influenced other members of the grade level and their rate of adoption. Each participant's level of innovativeness, their compatibility and comfort with the innovation, and their efforts to collaborate were significantly related to successful implementation of the computer technology innovation. / Ph. D.

The e-book reader, Kindle, which Amazon.com officially promoted in November, 2007, has caught the eye of global market, and the sale volumes reached 500,000 in 2008(Bureau of Industrial Development, MOEA, 2009). Moreover, the Kindle2 promoted in March, 2009, has also created a good performance. The success in Kindle lets many Taiwanese manufacturers think the feasibility of developing the e-book reader market in Taiwan. Therefore, this research uses Innovation-Decision Process (Rogers, 2003) and New Product Adoption Model (Holak, 1988) to study the effects of perceived attributes of innovation, include relative advantage, compatibility and complexity, on purchase intention Taiwanese having. Furthermore, the influences about substitutes and reading habits on the purchase intention were also discussed in this study. According to the possible consumer groups, this research focus on Taiwanese who live in Taiwan now and who must be office workers had college degree or be university, graduate, or PhD students. The period of survey was from March 19 to April 18 in 2010 and the questionnaires were handed out through personal interview and e-mail. The number of questionnaires collected is 202 and only 158 questionnaires had confirmed to the standard the study requested. In 158 questionnaires, 42% are office workers and 58% are students; 59% are male and 41% are female; the age distribution of 158 questionnaires is from 20 to 59 years old, and 58% are in the range 20 to 29 years old; About the disposable monthly income, 40% are in the rang NT$5,000 to NT$9,999; 85% are live in south of Taiwan. The findings showed: (1) At present, Only 28% respondents have the purchase intention of e-book reader (selling price for NT$10,000 about); (2) The first three factors which attract Taiwanese to purchase an e-book reader include easy to carry (70%), saving the space to store paper books (40%), and easy to read when you are moving (37%); (3) The relative advantage affected the purchase intention positively; (4) The degree respondents approved of reading paper books usually was positively correlated with purchase intention; (5) The purchase intention was higher when respondents had netbooks or smartphones, and more items of substitutes they had.

Mobile barcode e-invoicing (MBEI) is a novel system that not only reduces companies¡¦ cost on invoice delivery and storage but also enables the government to save money on printing the invoices. Although this is an important policy, no study has examined it from the general public¡¦s perspective. Therefore, this study surveyed a convenience sample of 250 people to investigate factors that may affect the public¡¦s willingness to use MBEI. Based on Rogers¡¦s (1995) diffusion of innovation theory, this study explored the impacts of relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, observability, and habits of using relevant technology on willingness to use MBEI. The results suggest that while relative advantage, compatibility, and complexity are associated with people¡¦s willingness, observability is not. As for the habits of using relevant technology, people with i-bon experience were more willing to use MBEI than those who had never heard about i-bon. But respondents¡¦ usage of membership cards for shopping, the carrying of these membership cards, and the habit of using touch-control mobile devices had no impact on their willingness to adopt MBEI. These results suggest that the government should not only promote its e-invoicing policy more aggressively, but also be alert to the problems that different age groups may encountered when trying to use MBEI.

New applications of genomic medicine stemming from the Human Genome Project are predicted to become routine components of primary care. Primary care physicians (PCPs) will increasingly become responsible for screening patients for inherited diseases, recommending genetic testing, and making referrals to genetic services. Clinical applications of genomic medicine will occur at a variable pace. Characteristics of an innovation such as genomic medicine are strong indicators of its potential for adoption. The purpose of this study is to assess whether (and to what extent) physicians' perceptions of genomic medicine as an innovation influence their likelihood of adopting this innovation into primary care. The study's sample consists of 400 primary care physicians in Texas and employs a survey design. Based on Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations Theory, the perceived characteristics of genomic medicine - Relative Advantage, Compatibility, Complexity, Trialability, and Observability - are the study's independent/predictor variables. Likelihood of PCPs Adopting Genomic Medicine is the dependent variable. The nature of the social system (private or group practice) is examined as a possible moderator variable. The study suggests that Texas PCPs who are likely to adopt genomic medicine strongly perceive its clinical uses (such as genetic testing for carrier status or susceptibility to common diseases, testing an embryo for genetic disorders before it is implanted, and supplementing a family history) to be highly advantageous. For half of the PCPs, genetic services such as genetic counseling and genetic testing are not compatible with current practice. Perceived complexity of the innovation is the strongest predictor of likelihood of PCPs adopting genomic medicine. Many PCPs find it difficult to stay updated on genomic medicine and locate genetic services. Although Texas PCPs feel genomic medicine can be gradually incorporated into primary care practice, most are not presently observing their colleagues adopting genomic medicine or assisting their patients to make decisions regarding genetic services. Future efforts to advance the use of genomic medicine in primary care will require more emphasis on genetics in medical school curriculum and continuing education programs. Links with specialists trained in genetic counseling and health education will be essential to translate relevant information to patients and families.

The success of the South African policy to reduce carbon emissions and incorporate solar energy production into the national energy mix is partly dependent on the ability to persuade householders to become more energy efficient, and to encourage installation of domestic solar systems. Solar power is an innovation in South Africa and the current policy of stimulating the market with subsidies for solar water heaters is not resulting in widespread adoption. The high upfront costs have been a barrier in the past but as more suppliers offer financing options, there has been a gradual increase in purchasing but not at the rate required to save the 578 MW of electricity over the next few years. This research report takes the form of a survey of two consumer groups (“early adopters” and “early majority” adopters in South Africa, with the aim of: • Investigating consumer attitudes towards characteristics of solar systems, • Utilising the diffusion of Innovations theory to understand the attributes which affect the consumer decision making process, and • Isolating the characteristics that are preventing a pragmatic “early majority” from adopting the technology. The results show that overall, while the “early majority” demonstrate a positive perception of the environmental characteristics of solar power, its financial, operational and aesthetic characteristics are limiting adoption. Differences existing between the two groups show support for the concept of the ‘chasm’ between adopter categories identified by Moore. The study concludes that if consumers cannot identify the relative advantage of solar power over their current source of power supplied readily and cheaply through the national grid, it is unlikely that wide-scale adoption will follow. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

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The use of electronic portfolios (ePortfolios) to support learning, assessment, and professional development across higher education has increased in recent years. However, higher education faculty who are instrumental to successful adoption and implementation are not often invited as active participants in the innovation process. In addition, while student perspectives of ePortfolio adoption are well represented in the literature, faculty perspectives are not. The goal of this research study was to investigate faculty and administrators perspectives regarding the university-wide implementation of an ePortfolio initiative in order to develop a framework for implementation that integrates the voice of faculty as well as diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. The study employed a design and development research methodology, comprised of three phases (analysis, development and evaluation, and revision) and focused on a large United States research university in its tenth year of electronic portfolio implementation. An analysis of survey and interview data in light of DOI theory as well as expert review resulted in a six-component modular framework that can be used by any faculty group to guide electronic portfolio adoption and implementation. One implication is that higher education now has a process technology to support successful integration of an instructional technology, electronic portfolios, in university teaching and learning. / Ph. D.

Quick Response eller QR är en teknik som tillåter snabb och pålitlig optisk läsning av information som är kodad i ett rutmönster. Som läsverktyg kan man använda läsare som är speciellt tillverkade för ändamålet och numera också vanliga smartphones. Tekniken har i flera år varit framgångsrik i vissa industriella applikationer såsom lagerhållning, men det är fortfarande osäkert i vilken utsträckning den också kan vinna insteg i vardagligt användande av smartphones. Vi har genomfört en enkätundersökning bland universitetsstudenter för att uppskatta hur spridd användningen av QR-koder är och hur denna användning ser ut. För att analysera resultatet har vi använt oss av teorin om diffusion of innovations som tillhandahåller en modell för spridning av ny teknik inom ett sammanhang. Resultaten antyder försiktigtvis att kännedom om tekniken är väl spridd, men att användandet är begränsat och att det beror på brist på upplevd nytta snarare än på att tekniken skulle vara otillgänglig eller svårhanterlig. / Quick Response or QR is a technology allowing fast and reliable optical reading of information encoded in a pattern of black and white squares. Reading implements include devices designed especially for this purpose as well as, in recent years, ordinary smartphones. The technology has for some time been successful in industrial applications such as storage management, but it is uncertain to what degree it might also see widespread use in everyday use of smartphones. We conduct a questionnaire-based survey targeting university students in order to estimate the extent and nature of QR usage. In analysing our findings we make use of the theory of diffusion of innovations, which provides a model for the adoption of a new technology within a given context. Our results imply that knowledge of the technology is widely dispersed, but that actual use is limited and that this is due to a lack of perceived usefulness rather than the technology as such being inaccessible or difficult to use.