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Flexibility in Resource Management pp 147–160Cite as

Analyzing the Role of Management of Technology in the Growth of Technology Ventures

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Part of the book series: Flexible Systems Management ((FLEXSYS))

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to analyze the role played by management of technology (MoT) in venture scale-ups and to compare two cases of polar IIT Bombay high-tech ventures. The chapter is mainly concerned with identifying the factors related to the effect of MoT on the growth of ventures. An exploratory study via primary research was conducted to understand the characteristics and the relationships among different factors which influence a venture’s growth. Secondary research was conducted to gather data about ventures emerging from IIT Bombay. Primary research helped us understand the orientation and depth of the management of the organizations toward MoT. A comparative analysis of the companies included a study of performance considering select criteria of international competitiveness. We aim to identify factors and criteria‚ and develop indices‚ based on which multiple ventures can be compared and analyzed. This analysis will enable new ventures gain clarity in understanding the factors which differentiate venture scale-up.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are very thankful to respondents from both the ventures for sharing their views on an extensive interview guide. The authors thank SJMSOM, IIT Bombay for providing infrastructure support. Review and feedback by Mr. Lalit Lalwani and Ms. Sneha Bhat of Group on Competitiveness helped improve the chapter. This chapter would not have been possible without the patience and considerate support of the management of SEDEMAC Mechatronics and Webaroo. The authors are extremely grateful to them for their insights. Financial support from Wadhwani Foundation through Industrial Research and Consultancy Centre (IRCC) for projects related to venture competitiveness is acknowledged.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, 400076, India

    Sachin Salian & Anup Bali

  2. Intern, Group on Competitiveness (GoC), Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, 400076, India

    V. Yugandhar

  3. Management of Technology‚ Competitiveness and Flexibility, Shailesh J. Mehta School of Management, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, 400076, India

    Kirankumar S. Momaya

Authors
  1. Sachin Salian
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  2. Anup Bali
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  3. V. Yugandhar
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  4. Kirankumar S. Momaya
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sachin Salian .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, New Delhi, India

    Sushil

  2. Symbiosis International University, Symbiosis Institute of Technology, Pune, India

    T. P. Singh

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Symbiosis Institute of Technology, Pune, India

    Anand J. Kulkarni

Appendices

Appendix 1: Basic Data Related to IITB Ventures

See Table 10.4.

Table 10.4 View of the range of employee scale-up for select IITB incubated ventures
Full size table

Employee Scale-up was calculated as difference between number of employees during year of count upon difference between age of count and year started.

See Table 10.5.

Table 10.5 Differences in revenue scale-up time line
Full size table

Appendix 2: Interview Guide Questions

Parameters in management of technology

  1. 1.

    Technology choice

    1. (i)

      How was the technology chosen? What factors were considered while choosing the technology?

    2. (ii)

      Any plans to change the technology? On what basis will the technology be changed?

  2. 2.

    Identification

    Why did you select this technology?

  3. 3.

    Absorptive capacity: firms ability to recognize, assimilate, and utilize the technology

    When did you obtain the technology? How fast were you able to produce your first product?

  4. 4.

    Network externalities: value of good increases with number of users

    If the number of customers increases does that have any impact on the value of your product?

  5. 5.

    Installed base = No. of customers

    How many clients do you currently serve?

    During the first round of funding how many clients did you have?

    What is the average growth rate in number of clients?

  6. 6.

    Complementary goods/service being provided

    Do you provide any auxiliary product/service along with the main product to your clients?

  7. 7.

    Suppliers

    How any suppliers do you have for your raw material?

  8. 8.

    Vertical integration; buying out suppliers or distributers

    Since graduation have you been able to make any significant acquisition in your distributor/supplier network

  9. 9.

    Presence of competitors

    How many competitors are there in your market serving the similar target group?

  10. 10.

    Customer Feedback

    Do you have a pilot/focus group to test your product?

    After releasing the product have you incorporated any changes as suggested by the clients?

    Do you customize products as per customers’ requirements using their feedback?

  11. 11.

    Entry barriers to your business

    What are the entry barriers to your business?

    Is your value offering easily imitable by competitors?

  12. 12.

    Tacit resources—those resources which we can’t measure

    Can you give us an account of the technical and business expertise of your employees?

  13. 13.

    Core competency

    What would you call the core competency of your firm?

    What differentiates your product form the products in the market?

  14. 14.

    Parallel process development

    Do you have parallel process development for manufacturing your product?

  15. 15.

    R&D Intensity = ratio of amount spent on R&D investment/amount of sales

    What is the R&D Intensity of the firm?

  16. 16.

    Any collaboration strategies—alliance, joint venture, licensing, capability complementation, capability transfer, contract manufacturing

    Do you have in mind any collaborative strategy for your product with respect to your peers?

  17. 17.

    Patents

    No. of patents applied for in India and internationally, no. of patents granted

    Organizing for innovation

  18. 18.

    Formalized structure—utilizing rules, procedures to structure behavior of individuals

    1. (i)

      Mechanistic—high degree of formalization, operations are automatic/mechanical

    2. (ii)

      Organic—low degree of formalization, jobs are not well defined, variable operations

    Is your venture mechanistic or organic?

    Offshore strategies

    Center for global strategy—all innovation activities are at a central hub then diffused

    Local for local strategy—each location executes individual R&D for local market

    Locally leveraged strategy—each location executes individual R&D for/r global market

    Globally linked strategy—decentralized R&D, leveraged globally

    Which among the top strategies have you adopted for your venture?

  19. 19.

    Managing NPD process

    Development cycle time–time from project initiation to project launch

    How much time does it require you to design a product from idea to production phase?

  20. 20.

    Employee

    How many employees do you have? What is their technical background?

    What are their roles? How long have they been working with the firm?

  21. 21.

    Compatibility

    Compatibility of the product with systems across generations––present, future, and past

  22. 22.

    Timing of entry into market––first movers, early flowers, late entrants, open source or proprietary, purchase or develop in house

    Did you move into the market keeping the business age of the venture or since the time was right?

  23. 23.

    Tech up-gradation

    How often do you upgrade your technology? How often do you upgrade the products?

    How often does the technology change in the industry?

  24. 24.

    Transition to next generation, entirely different

    Have there been any major software changes with respect to technology?

  25. 25.

    Product develop and commercialization

    How many products have you released? How many are currently being worked?

  26. 26.

    What is your YoY revenue?

    What cap of revenue have you broken in which year?

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Salian, S., Bali, A., Yugandhar, V., Momaya, K.S. (2018). Analyzing the Role of Management of Technology in the Growth of Technology Ventures. In: Sushil, Singh, T., Kulkarni, A. (eds) Flexibility in Resource Management. Flexible Systems Management. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4888-3_10

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