COM COM Technology & Innovation Management 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary purpose of a Technology Roadmap in operations planning?
- Track employee training completion
- Align technology investments with business strategy over a defined time horizon (Correct answer)
- Map physical office layouts
- Schedule preventive maintenance
Correct answer: Align technology investments with business strategy over a defined time horizon
A technology roadmap outlines the planned evolution of technology capabilities over time, ensuring that investments align with strategic goals and are sequenced appropriately.
Question 2: In operations management, what does 'digital twin' technology allow managers to do?
- Duplicate employee credentials
- Create a virtual replica of a physical process or asset to simulate and optimize performance (Correct answer)
- Back up company financial data
- Train employees using virtual reality
Correct answer: Create a virtual replica of a physical process or asset to simulate and optimize performance
A digital twin is a virtual model of a physical process, product, or system that allows managers to simulate scenarios, test changes, and optimize performance without real-world risk.
Question 3: What does 'robotic process automation' (RPA) typically target in operations?
- Physical manufacturing assembly tasks
- Repetitive, rule-based digital tasks like data entry and report generation (Correct answer)
- Customer service interactions
- Strategic decision-making
Correct answer: Repetitive, rule-based digital tasks like data entry and report generation
RPA software robots automate repetitive, structured digital processes such as data entry, invoice processing, and report generation, freeing staff for higher-value work.
Question 4: Which concept describes an organization's ability to rapidly adopt and scale new technologies to maintain competitive advantage?
- Operational rigidity
- Technology agility (Correct answer)
- Process standardization
- Vertical integration
Correct answer: Technology agility
Technology agility refers to an organization's capacity to quickly evaluate, adopt, and integrate emerging technologies to adapt to market changes and competitive pressures.
Question 5: How does big data analytics benefit operations managers in a US manufacturing environment?
- Eliminates the need for human oversight
- Enables data-driven decisions by identifying patterns across large volumes of operational data (Correct answer)
- Replaces all manual quality checks
- Automates supplier negotiations
Correct answer: Enables data-driven decisions by identifying patterns across large volumes of operational data
Big data analytics processes vast amounts of operational data to reveal trends, predict outcomes, and identify optimization opportunities that would be impossible to detect manually.
Question 6: What is the 'make vs. buy' decision in technology management?
- Choosing between manufacturing or purchasing raw materials
- Deciding whether to develop a technology solution internally or purchase it from a vendor (Correct answer)
- Determining equipment procurement strategy
- Selecting between cloud or on-premise storage only
Correct answer: Deciding whether to develop a technology solution internally or purchase it from a vendor
The make vs. buy decision evaluates whether building a custom technology solution in-house or purchasing an existing solution from a vendor better meets the organization's needs and budget.
COM COM Technology & Innovation Management 2
What is the primary purpose of a Technology Roadmap in operations planning?