Dynamics of Corporate America & Innovation

Summary 1. Discourse the world of business and innovation in American economy The dynamics of corporate America is huge and phenomenal. Of course, the American economy continues to be one of the most thriving economies in the world. The business sector plays a significant role in every economic system. The determination of business ownership, the production, and distribution of goods and services within a society requires not only the economic decision but also innovation management. Over the years, the choice between the private and public sectors has not been easy to decision makers. This choice leads to resounding questions like, what are the types of business ownership. What role does technology play in business? What is e-commerce? Failure to recognize innovation and its dual role in business management is a recipe for business failure. Business does not exist in a vacuum; therefore, corporate social responsibility has become a strong corporate overhead cost in the portfolio of today’s organizational leaders. A good business model should contain entrance and exit strategies. The employees’ transferable skills and competencies are effective tools to succeed in a corporate ladder. 2. Define innovation and its risk and rewards Innovation is a pivot upon which the wheels of business management thrive. Innovation also promotes creativity in an organization. Businesses that stop innovating, also, stop being relevant. There are different types of innovation. Innovation is the result of an interactive process of knowledge mining, application, and diffusion. The significance of knowledge interactions for innovation continues to challenge today's’ managers and other organizational leaders. 3. Define global supply chain and describe its role in business management Global supply chain management (SCM) is a process of managing supply chain globally or nationally in other to gain competitive advantage. The supply chain is the business concept used to form alliance or partnership relationship laterally or horizontally between one business and another to profit. Supply chain management is one of the fastest and the most proficient method of running a business. The primary goal and objective of SCM are to increase competitive advantages, adding value, and cost reduction globally. Specialization, competency, and the concept of global supply chain emerged in corporate America in the 1980s - 1990s. This period in its wake witnessed the neglect of the vertical integration and outsourcing of those functions to partners. The specialization model resulted in manufacturing, and the distribution networks composed of various individual supply chains specific to suppliers, producers, and consumers that come together to manufacture, design, distribute, market sell, and service product. 4. Describe information technology and the three primary types of innovation Information technology sets the pace to maximize profits in an organization. Innovation is the bedrock of transformational knowledge in human history. Therefore, innovation management is the decision made to accomplish sustainable enterprises and economic reality that connects industry, society, and the environment. In corporate America, technology plays a predominant role in leading the global marketplace. Firms and individual countries have gained tremendously from the competitive advantage. Countries may become technological leaders in developing or advancing a particular technology and marketing its acquired technological advantage via licensing. 5. Examine the five competition forces and business strategic management The Porter's Five Forces as depicted in Figure 5.2 evaluates the competitive intensity of the organization's industry by analyzing the market in five dimensions. Competition in the marketplace defines an organizational strategy. Thus, organizational structure is the driving force behind operations and the foundation upon which both short-term and long-term decisions come to fruition. Strategic Business Management is the key function in management that coordinates the efforts of people to accomplish goals and objectives by using available resources to minimize cost and increase output, productivity, and profitability. Business management also involves organizational leaders setting different goals for the accomplishment of various purposes within an organization. An organization resembles our human anatomy; it has different interchangeable parts with separate functions. According to the general systems theory (GST), the organization is a whole system consisting of distinct parts (Bertalanffy, 1972).