The Inducing Power of Japanese Technological Innovation


Book Description

The Japanese economy has achieved remarkable growth since the end of World War II, outpacing that of other advanced industrial nations. The most significant contribution to this growth has been the level of investment in technology. In contrast to other advanced economies, this investment has been funded primarily by private industry; the level of R & D investment by the Japanese government is the lowest among the advanced countries.




Technology and Innovation in Japan


Book Description

Long-awaited reforms in technology policy and corporate strategy are now taking place in Japan. This book asks whether it is the programme of reform or the will and ability to implement reforms which is new.




Japan's Growing Technological Capability


Book Description

The perspectives of technologists, economists, and policymakers are brought together in this volume. It includes chapters dealing with approaches to assessment of technology leadership in the United States and Japan, an evaluation of future impacts of eroding U.S. technological preeminence, an analysis of the changing nature of technology-based global competition, and a discussion of policy options for the United States.




A Handbook of Industrial Ecology


Book Description

'The editors of this handbook have brought together 58 of the world's greatest environmental systems experts. These professionals have, in 46 specific topic headings, divided into six major sections, provided very insightful information and guidance as to what industrial ecology entails, how it can be implemented, and its benefits . . . a very valuable tool . . . This book provides essential information to mid- and top-level management that can enable industry to make more prudent business decisions regarding the manufacturing of its products.' - Robert John Klancko, Environmental Practice Industrial ecology is coming of age and this superb book brings together leading scholars to present a state-of-the-art overviews of the subject.




Technology, Innovation and Industrial Economics: Institutionalist Perspectives


Book Description

Technology, Innovation and Industrial Economics: Institutional Perspectives, inspired by the work of William E. Cole, Professor Emeritus at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, extends his work with essays on technology, innovation and industrial economics from an Institutionalist perspective. The managerial style, innovational practices and industrial setting of the continuous improvement firm are central to several chapters. This volume also features innovation and technology in Latin America, Adam Smith's writing on entrepreneurship and a comparison of American and European Institutionalism. The topics of technology, innovation, industrial organization and industrial policy are being widely discussed and debated in today's literature, but seldom from an Institutionalist perspective. The purpose of this book is to reduce substantially this missing dimension in the ongoing debates on these important issues.




Technological Change and the Environment


Book Description

Much is written in the popular literature about the current pace of technological change. But do we have enough scientific knowledge about the sources and management of innovation to properly inform policymaking in technology dependent domains such as energy and the environment? While it is agreed that technological change does not 'fall from heaven like autumn leaves,' the theory, data, and models are deficient. The specific mechanisms that govern the rate and direction of inventive activity, the drivers and scope for incremental improvements that occur during technology diffusion, and the spillover effects that cross-fertilize technological innovations remain poorly understood. In a work that will interest serious readers of history, policy, and economics, the editors and their distinguished contributors offer a unique, single volume overview of the theoretical and empirical work on technological change. Beginning with a survey of existing research, they provide analysis and case studies in contexts such as medicine, agriculture, and power generation, paying particular attention to what technological change means for efficiency, productivity, and reduced environmental impacts. The book includes a historical analysis of technological change, an examination of the overall direction of technological change, and general theories about the sources of change. The contributors empirically test hypotheses of induced innovation and theories of institutional innovation. They propose ways to model induced technological change and evaluate its impact, and they consider issues such as uncertainty in technology returns, technology crossover effects, and clustering. A copublication o Resources for the Future (RFF) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA).




Encyclopedia of Technology and Innovation Management


Book Description

Get complete, up-to-date and authoritative coverage of technology and innovation. A broadly encompassing encyclopedia on the emerging topic of technology innovation and management (TIM), this volume covers a wide array of issues. TIM is a relatively new field and is highly interdisciplinary, incorporating strategy and entrepreneurship, economics, marketing, organizational behavior, organization theory, physical and life sciences, and even law. All of these disciplines are represented in this volume, and their intersections are made clear. Entries are contributed by scholars from around the world who are leading experts in their respective topics. This volume is appropriate for scholars who are new to this particular field, as well as industry practitioners interested in understanding the state of knowledge in these specific areas. Entries may also serve as useful instructional materials, given their span of coverage as well as their currency. Encyclopedia of Technology and Innovation Management has now been adapted and included as the 13th volume of the Wiley Encyclopedia of Management. VK Narayanan is Stubbs Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship and Associate Dean of Research at Drexel University, Philadelphia, U.S.A. Gina O'Connor is Associate Professor of Marketing in the Lally School of Management and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, U.S.A.




Perspectives on Industrial Ecology


Book Description

Business-as-usual in terms of industrial and technological development – even if based on a growing fear of pollution and shortages of natural resources – will never deliver sustainable development. However, the growing interest in recent years in the new science of industrial ecology (IE), and the idea that industrial systems should mimic the quasi-cyclical functions of natural ecosystems in an 'industrial food chain', holds promise in addressing not only short-term environmental problems but also the long-term holistic evolution of industrial systems. This possibility requires a number of key conditions to be met, not least the restructuring of our manufacturing and consumer society to reduce the effects of material and energy flows at the very point in history when globalisation is rapidly increasing them. This book sets out to address the theoretical considerations that should be made implicit in future research as well as practical implementation options for industry. The systematic recovery of industrial wastes, the minimisation of losses caused by dispersion, the dematerialisation of the economy, the requirement to decrease our reliance on fuels derived from hydrocarbons and the need for management systems that help foster inter-industry collaboration and networks are among the topics covered. The book is split into four sections. First, the various definitions of IE are outlined. Here, important distinctions are made between industrial metabolism and IE. Second, a number of different industrial sectors, including glass, petroleum and electric power, are assessed with regard to the operationalisation of industrial ecology. Eco-industrial Parks and Networks are also analysed. Third, the options for overcoming obstacles that stand in the way of the closing of cycles such as the separation and screening of materials are considered and, finally, a number of implications for the future are assessed. The contributions to Perspectives on Industrial Ecology come from the leading thinkers working in this field at the crossroads between a number of different disciplines: engineering, ecology, bio-economics, geography, the social sciences and law.




Challenges in the Management of New Technologies


Book Description

New developments in bio- and nanotechnologies and also in information and communication technologies have shaped the research environment in the last decade. Increasingly, highly educated experts in R&D departments are collaborating with scientists and researchers at universities and research institutes to develop new technologies. Transnational companies that have acquired various firms in different countries need to manage diverse R&D strategies and cultures. The new knowledge-based economy permeates across companies, universities, research institutes and countries, creating a cross-disciplinary, global environment. Clearly, managing technology in this new climate presents significant challenges.This book comprises selected papers from the 14th International Conference on Management of Technology, which was convened under the auspices of IAMOT and UNIDO on 22-26 May 2005 in Vienna, Austria. It deals with some important aspects of these challenges, and discusses in detail the changing dynamics of innovation and technology management. It will certainly appeal to academics, scientists, managers, and policy makers alike.




Japan's Computer and Communications Industry


Book Description

Computers, telecommunications equipment, semiconductors - the products and technologies of the information and communications (IC) industry have transformed our world. Most of these products were initially developed in Western countries, but by the early 1990s some of the world's largestcompanies in the field were Japanese. This book explains the resurgence of Japan's IC giants, their global status, and their strengths and weaknesses. Empirical scrutiny of their evolution is the author's own theory of the most appropriate method for studying the dynamics of long-term industrialchange. While the Japanese motor vehicle and consumer electronics industries have been relatively well analysed, there are no comprehensive up-to-date studies of the Japanese IC industry. This book addresses the questions consequently left unanswered: How were Japanese IC companies able tocatch up with their western rivals--and in some cases overtake them? How have Japanese IC companies responded to the post-IBM world of computing? Why do they remain primarily dependent on the Japanese market? Why do they combine competences in computers, semiconductors, and telecommunicationsequipment, while their US counterparts are far more specialized? What role has been played by the Japanese government and the system of controlled competition in their success? Will Japanese IC companies become increasingly competitive internationally in the future? The author extends theevolutionary approach to the organization of the firm and industry developed by such writers as Schumpeter, Nelson, Winter, and Chandler. He argues that in order to understand the evolution of companies and industries, it is necessary to create a theory of the firm capable of encompassing thedevelopment of real firms in the real world in real time. This approach stresses the importance of the beliefs that are constructed in the firm under conditions of 'interpretive ambiguity', which guide the firm's decisions and its reactions to new technologies. Lengthy analyses of NEC and NTT (byfar the world's largest company in terms of market value; its future currently under government scrutiny), and of the computing, switiching, and optical fibre industries, illustrate these concepts. Based on over 600 personal interviews over eight years with Japanese leaders, this book providesimportant new material on the past, present, and future of Japanese industry.