Greetings to all,

For todays post we were asked to discuss one technology and one trend from the following website. 

One trend currently sweeping the field of education is that of the implementation of a long term impact plan to help bolster and benefit higher education. Discovery and innovation from research conducted at universities have the ability to impact not only the local communities in which they are based but also the world, depending on the findings. In order for these incubators of discovery to be bolstered and have a large impacting reach, education leaders are looking into ways in which they can move this process forward. One method being proposed is the application of a business based startup model that can be applied to the research universities to bolster discovery and innovation. What is known as the lean startup movement is a movement designed around technology, where technology is used a as catalyst for the purpose of promoting a culture of innovation in a more cost effective and widespread manner that is easier to manage (New Media Consortium, 2016).

One technology that is currently in widespread usage, and that ties into the trend of higher education adopting a startup model of management, is that of cloud computing. Cloud computing is a technology that has been around for some time now that allows users the ability to store, save, and retrieve data from online storage (New Media Consortium, 2016). This technology is beneficial when we discuss research universities trying to bolster discovery and innovation, as cloud computing makes the storage of files and sharing of data much easier since, depending on the setup, multiple users can have access to a cloud from anywhere at any time. Currently, however, one issue is the current state of digital literacy amongst students. With the technology boom that encompasses the internet, computers and others mobile devices, the digital world has invaded almost every aspect of modern life, to include academics. Academic leaders are looking into ways in which students can be educated and become digitally literate. One example of this is in the UK at Staffordshire University where the faculty there has developed a community-based online forum in which peer-to-peer learning of digital literacy is achievable. This is just a small example of information sharing to help foster a learning environment; and for many academic leaders this issue is considered to be a solvable one due to the fact that programs such as the Staffordshire University one are well under way (New Media Consortium, 2016).

One force that has impacted the trend for research universities to adopt a technology-based lean startup program to bolster discovery and innovation is the economic need for further development in innovation. There is a demand in our current economies for the latest and greatest technology and anything that can help bolster this will have an impact on that demand. A second force that is impacting this trend is that of the need and desire by research institutions to improve their processes and advance their technological capabilities to improve their output.   

For the technology of cloud computing, especially in the academic world, the desire for ease of access and sharing of data is a force that has impacted the adaptation of could computing at academic institutes. A second force that has impacted cloud computing is the demand for increased storage beyond that of local capacities; a problem that cloud computing is able to remedy.

References

New Media Consortium. (2016). Advancing cultures of innovation. NMC Horizon Report: 2016 Higher Education Edition, 8-9.

New Media Consortium. (2016). Cloud computing. 2016 NMC Technology Outlook: Internationl Schools in Asia, 10.

New Media Consortium. (2016). Improving digital literacy. NMC Horizon Report: 2016 Higher Education Edition, 24-25.

Greetings to all,

This week for one of our discussion topics we were asked to examine three different group decision making methods; starting with an examination of the Delphi technique.  

According to Sullivan and Payne (2011), a group decision-making method known as the Delphi technique was designed after World War II in order to enable a structured process for groups that would not allow for peer pressure to be a factor in the process. With the Delphi technique, a panel of experts are selected and are kept anonymous from one another in order to prevent the experts from potentially influencing one another. For what is described as a classical Delphi, this technique is used primarily to reach a consensus on a posed issue being inquired about to determine the underlying facts in order to arrive at fact-based answers (Sullivan & Payne, 2011).

A decision-making method is known as the Nominal Group technique, according to Gepson, Martinko, and Belina (1981), was designed to gain maximum input from participants while at the same time limiting the conflict and dysfunction within the group. In order to reduce the amount of argument in this technique, participants were required to generate ideas in writing. They were given equal time to provide feedback for each idea uninterrupted, and discuss each recorded idea at length, ending with a vote on each idea to make a decision. The reason behind this process was to allow for all ideas to be voiced and heard equally while using the group to identify and narrow down their decision from the ideas presented by the participants (Gepson, Martinko, & Belina, 1981).

Lastly, what is known as the Stepladder technique is another group decision-making process that was designed to guide a select number of people in a group into reaching a consensus on the issue at hand. In the Stepladder technique, for example with a group of four people, the group will start with what is called the core group. The core group, with a group of two people, will begin by developing a solution to the problem at hand; then later on the third member will be added to the core group with their own solution to the problem. This three-person group will then hash out the problem set with the two solutions and come up with a consensus. Then the fourth member will be added to the three-person core group with their own solution to the issue at hand; the group then discusses their options and renders a final group decision to the initial problem set as a collective group (Rogelberg, Barnes-Farrell, & Lowe, 1992).      

The Nominal Group technique and the Stepladder technique are similar in the simple fact that they are both group decision-making processes aimed at trying to guide a group of individuals to come up with the best possible solution or decision possible. The difference between the two techniques is the process in which a consensus is reached. For the Stepladder technique, a core group meets first and keeps growing until all participants are in the group and a decision is reached. For the Nominal Group technique, all participants start off together from the beginning and work through the issue together while still having equal input to the decision-making process. The Delphi method is similar to these two methods, as it is again a group decision-making process aimed at reaching a consensus amongst its participants. Where the Delphi technique is different is in the fact that participants do not communicate with one another, making for no influence in the data being presented.

References

Gepson, J., Martinko, M. J., & Belina, J. (1981). Nominal group techniques. Training & Development Journal, 35(9), 78-83.

Rogelberg, S., Barnes-Farrell, J., & Lowe, C. A. (1992). The stepladder technique: An alternative group structure facilitating effective group decision making. Journal of Applied Psychology , 77(5), 730-737.

Sullivan, W., & Payne, K. (2011). The appropriate elicitation of expert opinion in economic models . PharmacoEconomics, 29(6), 455-459.

Initial Post

Greetings to all,

In accordance with the instructions given by my Professor for CS875 Futuring and Innovation, I have been asked to create this Blog. My name is Ben and I am a doctoral student at Colorado Technical University majoring in Computer Science.

In the class Futuring and Innovation, we have two assigned course texts which are, "The Innovation Paradox" by Tony Davila and Marc Epstein as well as "Scenario Planning: A Field Guide to the Future" by Woody Wade. In this course, we have so far examined through our course texts what innovation itself as well as what it entails and how different enterprises incorporate or approach innovation.

This blog will focus on the different topics covered throughout this course as the week progress and is intended to be a reinforcing measure of the course material in a different forum other than the classroom.

-Ben