Technology is the foundation of business
THE WORD technology appears in the written and spoken word all the time.
We see it written in journals and magazines. Politicians tell us that we are entering a world of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which is based on advanced technology.
We get told that the 4IR implies that we need to introduce computer science, artificial intelligence and robotics into school curricula.
But what is technology? If you ask a dozen university professors to define technology you are likely to get a dozen different answers. Answers are typically something like: Well, it is applied science developed for productive output.
Let us now compare the concept of technology with the concept of love. If you ask anybody if they know what love is, they will all say yes. Then say: “Please give me a written definition.”
Nobody can do that. You can love your spouse, mother, child, dog, but they are not competing in the same space. You can love long walks on the beach, or the sounds of your favourite music. Defining the word, love, now looks more complex.
Years ago I came to the conclusion that, like love, you cannot describe technology accurately. You require imagery and the correct feel.
Now for another analogy. A fellow has a wheelbarrow in his garden and he notices that it is starting to rust. He has a scientist as a neighbour, so he asks him, “How can I rust-proof my wheelbarrow?”
A couple of days later the scientist comes over to tell him that he has consulted all his tables and equations and he has the perfect scientific answer.
He says, “Gold-plate the wheelbarrow, it will then not rust.”
Of course that is an accurate science answer. But the wheelbarrow owner answers: “Well thanks, but I cannot afford that, it is only a wheelbarrow.”
So the scientist says that he also has a second-best answer. “Silver-plate the wheelbarrow.”
The two continue to debate the problem until they come up with an answer. They paint the wheelbarrow with a paint that adheres to metal. That is a technological solution. So now we have established that technology is a science solution, which is economically viable.
But there is a third factor. The law. You are not allowed to carry a bootload of dynamite down the freeway in your car, even if it is the most economical way of transporting the scientifically formulated chemical.
So a viable technology also has to abide by health and safety legislation, and a whole lot of other rules and protocols of society.
So now in an attempt to define technology in words, the closest I will get is to come up with a rather colloquial definition, and that is: “Technology is a science solution, which is economically viable within the bounds of society policies.”
But I prefer to remember this by means of a diagram. Imagine a triangle with science at one vertex, economics at another and policies at the third. Technology is then like a blob in the middle of the triangle, and like a cloud, is constantly changing shape, as pressures from the three vertices come to bear on it.
So an improvement to a technological solution can undoubtedly occur due to a new scientific development.
But equally, technology can change because of an economics alteration. If the coal price were to drop by 50 percent then a whole slew of technologies applied in industry would change.
So you don’t have to be a scientist or engineer to come up with a technology-changing idea. One can appear from any of the vertices of the triangle.
A mere process change can also be a technology advancement. If you discover a short-cut to drive to work, that is a technology advance. You did not re-train the driver, alter the car, or change the petrol, but you now save time, fuel and maintenance costs.
Business operates on the basis of a set of technologies, which change like the clouds. To hear any business leader say: “Well, we are not a technology organisation,” is just plain wrong and short-sighted. I hear that sentiment far too often.