Customer Reviews

TechnoLeverage: Using the Power of Technology to Outperform the Competition

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I found TechnoLeverage very insightful in its approach to corporate strategy for technology management. It was clear from the beginning of the book that a company did not have to be a high-tech or even a technology-based company to be able to put technoleverage to work to raise profits. In planning for the "big picture", I found that the book had many useful checklists and action items. It also had a very helpful chapter on financial measures and what can be learned from them. I would recommend this book to other managers in Marketing, Strategic Planning, Finance or Research and Development.

TechnoLeverage was genuinely the best business book I've read, simply because it's practical and "real world". It provided me with new ways to look at new business development and has provided me with new personal and business challenges. I am going to buy twelve copies for my collegues.

My favorite chapter in TechnoLeverage was clearly the first. As curious as I was about technology I was doubtful that I could understand its mystifying complications. However, in the first chapter Hruby explains understanding technology-based strategy. He describes new uses of technology: "TechnoLeverage seeks to convey the image of business being lifted by technology to a higher level of sales and profits than it could otherwise achieve." He demonstrates that technology-based strategy can transform any business. Step by step Hruby takes the reader through the precepts of technologyy which is a "productive alternative to operational and marketing strategies." A comparison of scramble competition as opposed to contest competition is revealing with illustrations of how technology's remarkable variety can develop new markets and new customers. Many companies are analyzed with extreme thoroughness in every possible way. The illustrations used by Hruby are disarmingly simple and apt. For example, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are familiar to all. Technoleverage is not just for the ambitious businessman. It is for everyone who wants to understand the complications of the world to-day. A young person just entering employment will have his or her eyes opened to creative methods of advancement. Brokers and financial advisors will have an additional vital way of evaluating companies. Best of all, the enthusiasm and enjoyment that Hruby brings to what some have regarded as a dry, complex subject is contageous in this spirited well written book.

Starting with a simple idea, that a company must capitalize on available technology to outshine competitors, the authors offer advice on how to use the power of technology to outperform the competition. The authors start out with a simple example: The sneaker.

Consider the sneaker. Thirty years ago sneakers were just an inexpensive canvas shoe that came in a few colors and even fewer designs. Today, however, their descendants come in dozens of styles, colors, materials, and a re truly high-tech wonder shoes including those with inflatable air bladders and gel inserts. All sport functional treads and distinctive logos. No longer is the term sneaker even used replaced by "athletic shoes." Not considered just a shoe anymore, they are not considered sport equipment. Most importantly, they are no longer inexpensive. So, what happened?

Technology happened, according to the author F. Michael Hruby. What a company has and how they will use it will determine whether they stall or move forward in today's marketplace. If companies fail to find new ways to apply the latest technology, they will fall behind.

Footwear makers learned this lesson well. They not only learned new ways to apply technology, they also learned to apply diverse technologies, such as adhesives, ergonomics, foamed plastics, injection molding, industrial engineering, and material planning. They literally transformed the sneaker from shoes to a status symbol. Consider the household names that
have resulted: Nike, Reebok, and New Balance.

The author argues that any company can do this. They must first start by searching for ways to solve customers' problems. Decide which technologies are needed and how to apply them. Fully exploit all opportunities. Companies must not leave gaps open for competitors to fill. They must also learn to capitalize on their technology by, for example, licensing it. Develop complete systems instead of just single products. Find new markets. Measure success. These are just a few of the author's points in a book designed to teach one to use the power of technology.

Using Technoleverage is absolutely imperative for start-ups and emerging growth companies. While larger companies may be able to coast for awhile on pure momentum (often risking long-term failure though); the opposite is true for entrepreneurs which have no such luxury. Entrepreneurs must be the hunter or end up being hunted. According to Hruby you must "Find new ways to apply technology and you'll leave your competition far behind."

As an example, Hruby uses the simple sneaker. Thirty years ago sneakers were inexpensive canvas shoes that came in only a few designs and colors. Now sneakers seem to come in infinite varieties of colors, styles, and features. In fact, recently I've been reading how several sneakers are now integrated with computers to constantly adjust the shoes characteristics.

Using real-world stories from companies in dozens of industries, Technoleverage shows how wisely using technology may very well be the differentiating factor in exponential success. Technoleverage shows how to get technology under your business to literally "lift" its profits, visibility, size, and value. A technology-driven business strategy applies to all types of firms, whether they invent new technologies, manufacture technological goods, sell technological services, integrate technology for others, distribute technology -- or just plain use it.

Technology is a competitive weapon for entrepreneurs and it must be seen as exactly that - a weapon to be used to provide exceptional value to customers and reduce internal costs and inefficiencies.

Michael Davis - Editor, Byvation

Technology is a hot topic, especially lately, but no author explains how to use it for competitive advantage as clearly and concisely as Hruby does. Quite simply, he writes well and knows what he's talking about -- that is, how to use whatever technology you have to pull ahead of your competition. You don't need cutting-edge technology or deep pockets to profit from Hruby's advice. All you need is this book.

Among the increasing publications of books in Management, "Technoleverage" emerges as a help-full handbook for the year 2000. It provides guidelines for top managers willing to create change, understand where their company is, where to go, and how. In an original approach the author unveils methods and describes the processes in a realistic way. How to identify opportunities, produce brand-new ideas, differenciate and implement in a cost effective manner. How to deliver value to customers and stay ahead from competitors, how to measure your company's success.... With a clear vision, the autor shows the way to run business.

Hruby illustrates a basic fact of technology that no one before has ever written about. Written very clearly, Technoleverage is easy to understand, along with it's interesting pictures and reviews at the end of each chapter. Each of the ten chapters is a different fundimental about Technoleverage. It is definently a must read for everyone, even if you are not in the technology section of business.

Technoleverage brings forth key ideas which are not yet taught in business schools. Other, more traditional, tools and technics of business are presented in a fresh perspectives using real world examples and easy-to-understand graphics. There are valuable lessons for strategists in market planning, product launch and placement and technological competitiveness. The book has the magical capability of being extremely useful to business professionals and at the same time worthy of scrutiny by academic community. On top of everything it's fun to read.

k