10-1 Discussion: Reflection Discussion Topic

1

A Strategic Plan for Implementation of the Innovation and Gain Competitive Advantage

Shemah Rau

Southern New Hampshire University

November 23,2021

Introduction

To catch up in the first-paced automobile industry, manufacturers have to remember that sensors are now a very significant part of automobile designs. According to Tyler, a typical automobile contains approximately 100 sensors (2016). This figure, however, has a likelihood of rising in the next several years. These sensors include and are not limited to gesture recognition, proximity detection, speed and pressure, temperature, and positioning. These sensors aid in complete controllability of the car and data processing, and intelligent observability. The sensors function through computer connections. These computers are increasingly connected wirelessly via the internet to other computers and the manufacturer to help generate predictive maintenance recommendations. Currently, the commercial term used for this is connected cars. Technically, this is part of the internet of things (IoT) (MBA 580 Chief Technology Officer Brief, n.d.).

Internet of things (IoT)

The Internet of Things is a technological genius that showcases the tomorrow of computing and communications (Madakam, 2015). It is very significant in the future of the internet. Automotive need a radio frequency identification system (RFID) to recognize and identify objects by using radio waves (Jia, 2012) enabling connected cars to assist drivers in navigating where they want to go, be it to identify the nearest restaurants, or kids playing grounds as more semi-autonomous driving features plan to be added soon. The wireless computers will also be talking to other cars to assist in predicting their next move and communicate to road sensors to monitor conditions. In the end, sufficient information will be provided to and from the connected car, and autonomous driving will become commonplace after that. According to Cisco's economic analysis, IoT will generate approximately $8 trillion globally (Gong, 2016). Even though our company is marketing connected cars, we are not at the top of the game. Therefore, innovation is vital for our products to be competitive in a market that is snowballing.

Nevertheless, our cars have sensors and computers, and our technical expertise is unique and thus competitive. We have some connectivity driver apps for keyless start and OnStar connectivity to detect accidents and first responders of alerts. Our growth and ultimate health require us to take charge as leaders in the enterprise or, at least, keep up with the leaders. Moreover, there is a significant opportunity to improve our customer satisfaction and increase revenue streams for our repair and parts by alerting customers on the required maintenance before an expensive breakdown happens on the road. However, with our current implementation plan on technology, we expect a growth of 3.1%, which is about 1% less than the industry. We forecast that our growth for connected cars is about 10.2%, far much less than what is in the industry. The only way for us not to risk losing our market share is through innovation increase.

What we estimate our competitors are doing and how fast they are adding technology.

Connectivity

BMW is the leader among the existing auto manufacturers. BMW cars significantly have connectivity to information services now. For others, there are driver-assist functions, such as auto-parking and lane-keeping. These features have been in BMW models for several years. Market research suggests that BMW will have a full suite of information connectivity in their cars after some time. The company will start producing fully autonomous driving machines approximately in the next 12 years. Social media is one of the leading marketing tools to increase visibility, and Toyota Company has tapped into it fully in Japan. It will soon be in European and U.S. Social Media markets due to the availability of 5G wireless. Volkswagen is about our position but has partnered with Microsoft to get ahead faster. Competitors from outside the traditional automobile manufacturers also hint that they intend to enter the connected car market with disruptive technologies. Apple, for instance, is aiming for a fully autonomous delivery vehicle by the mid-2020s and an autonomous passenger car in a decade. We aim at launching an autonomous vehicle following quickly after BMW, which is the leading luxury competitor. We are considering two ways to guide us to get there; the first is introducing a radically innovative design in several years. In two, we introduce incremental improvements faster than we have in the past and improve our current models each year. The first option does not prevent us from continuing to introduce incremental improvements in the interim. Our approach will depend on your analysis of our capabilities to innovate.

The two paths we can take are:

i) Discontinuous or radical innovation.

Having a new model could be very expensive to the tune of $6 billion (Viswanathan, 2013). Redesign and recently innovated technology integration are also riskier to develop, this might lead to a colossal failure, and it would take longer to get to market. We might need enough of the existing resources that we could fall behind with our current models. However, it also might provide insight into incremental changes to current models as we develop a significant new product line. It is also much to think about. We could take the leadership position ourselves in the growing market and protect ourselves better from competitors. If we take this path, we are likely first to introduce a new high-end model. Also, as we brought costs down rapidly, we will deploy it across our whole product line, using this innovation process to accelerate our innovation ability.

Potential risks for discontinuous innovation

Complying with the law vs. breaking the law

Consumers and regulators collectively expect businesses to identify, manage and minimize privacy and data security issues that come with cloud computing. Compliance and risk mitigation procedures must go beyond regulations, such as the GDPR in Europe and the HIPAA in U.S. healthcare.

Potential benefits for discontinuous innovation

In its application for critical judgment and decision making, machine learning remains an intriguing disruptive technology as it eradicates human biases; this is only possible with a perfectly impartial dataset and model

ii) Incremental innovation.

The automobile is a mature technology, the modern car is more than a century old, and it has been changing and adapting during all that time. Our company does incremental innovation, and our major competitors and the costs are built into our way of conducting business. We can continue adding sensors, computers, and IoT capabilities each model year by upgrading modules from the way we make automobiles today. There are risks, though: 1) Could changes in the market affect what customers demand? A faster competitor or a new entrant may produce a breakthrough in automobiles which makes everything else obsolete.

The potential risk for incrementally reduced danger

Even in a quick-line changing market, the failure rate of innovative products is essential and influential. Developing new technology or doing R&D initiatives may be risky for many organizations.

Well-established systems may increase success rates, but training and commitment are still required.

The potential benefit of incremental innovation

Increase product diversification

Some innovations, such as radical innovation, may be more challenging to get people on board. This is because the concepts, goods, or services are so foreign to them. People desire new things, but they don't want to learn new things as much as they want new things.

To make the transition to new ideas more gradual, businesses should put their efforts and R&D expenditure on incremental innovation. This is because there is a greater willingness among customers to try out new versions of well-known items.

The company's capability to pursue the innovation

Automakers and purchasers all around the globe have new options now since IoT has the market. Since it can be used at both industrial and commercial levels, the Internet of Things (IoT) in the automotive sector has developed into a vital hotspot from a wide variety of multi-functional applications.

A partial gap analysis

Other disruptive technologies, including the internet of things, are reshaping the whole automobile business. The development of linked and autonomous vehicles is a result of advancement in this sector.

Since its introduction, automotive inspection and maintenance have seen significant improvement and the introduction of additional entertainment options.

Large portions of essential data are generated on manufacturing floors. This data may be utilized for a variety of reasons. Firms, however, must first collect this data before using it. As a result of the internet of things (IoT), Products development has undertaken radical transformation. IoT data enables manufacturers to personalize items to particular consumers. This is better than making educated guesses about what a customer wants. This extends the production process far beyond the factory floor and into the homes of consumers.

References

Gong, W. (2016). The Internet of Things (IoT): What is the potential of the internet of things (IoT) as a marketing tool? (Bachelor's thesis, University of Twente). The benefits of OnStar | Keeping you safe and secure. (n.d.). OnStar. https://www.onstar.com/us/en/why-onstar/

Jia, X., Feng, Q., Fan, T., & Lei, Q. (2012, April). RFID technology and its applications in Internet of Things (IoT). In 2012 2nd international conference on consumer electronics, communications and networks (CECNet) (pp. 1282-1285). IEEE. Meola, A. (2020, March 10). How 5G & IoT technologies are driving the connected smart vehicle industry. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/iot-connected-smartcars?international=true&r=US&IR=T

Madakam, S., Lake, V., Lake, V., & Lake, V. (2015). Internet of Things (IoT): A literature review. Journal of Computer and Communications, 3(05), 164.Computers in your car. (2018, January 24). AAMCO Colorado. https://www.aamcocolorado.com/computers-in-your-car/#:%7E:text=Your%20Car’s%20Computer,controls%20to%20meet%20emissions%20standard s

Viswanathan, B. (2013, May 7). Why are cars not getting cheap even with better economies of scale? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2013/05/07/why-are-cars-not-getting-cheapeven-with-better-economies-of-scale/?sh=3ad2b1045ad9