BUS4013 Technology And Innovation Assignment Sample

Introduction Of Technology and Innovation

Explaining methods of undertaking technological and skills gap analysis to identify development areas within IKEA

Process of technological and skills gap analysis

Organizations must constantly adapt to new ideas in the ever-changing digital world of today to be competitive. An essential step towards discovering discrepancies between a company's present state and the planned future state is doing a technology and skills gap study. This article examines how to carry out a technology and skills gap analysis with regard to developing digital trends, with a focus on an IKEA case study.

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Analyzing technological gaps entails evaluating an organization's current technological abilities and determining areas where improvements are necessary to fulfil future requirements. On the other side, skills gap analysis entails assessing the present abilities of employees and identifying the skills required for a successful future.

• Finding emerging digital trends: Finding the Developing Digital Developments Relevant to IKEA's Industry is the first stage in doing a gap analysis for IKEA. E-commerce, augmented reality (AR), the Internet of Things (IoT), analytics of data, or artificial intelligence (AI) is a few examples that come to mind (Lee and Fanguy, 2022). IKEA may adapt its technical and skill-development initiatives to the constantly changing surroundings of the business by being aware of these developments.
• Assessing present technological infrastructure: IKEA should then assess its present technological framework to find any flaws that might prevent it from implementing new digital trends. A review of the software, hardware, networking skills, and data management platforms should be part of this study. IKEA can identify areas in need of development or investment by analyzing the positive and negative aspects of its current infrastructure.
• Evaluating Employee Abilities: IKEA must evaluate the present abilities and expertise of its staff in order to properly harness upcoming technological developments. To determine the workforce's competency in relevant areas including online advertising, data analysis, developing software, and customer experience management, this evaluation could involve questionnaires, interviews, or skill tests. IKEA can create customized training programmes or acquire new employees to meet skill gaps after identifying them.
• Determining the need for technological upgrades: IKEA has the capacity to pinpoint the technology advancements needed to close the gap based on an examination of the current infrastructure and expected digital trends (Karri, 2022). For instance, IKEA could need to make a purchase in a cutting-edge online platform, adapt the site for mobile use, or put in place a powerful inventory management system to support the growing popularity of e-commerce. IKEA may commit resources and create a plan for execution by identifying the necessary technological advancements.
• Creating training and development programmes: Solving skills shortages necessitates creating programmes for training and development that are suited to the needs of the workforce. Workshops, online courses, mentorship initiatives, and certification possibilities are just a few of the choices IKEA may provide. Improving proficiency in data analytics, customer focus, and innovation should be the main goals of these programmes (IKEA, 2023. The company should also promote a culture of continual learning to make sure that workers keep current with new digital developments.
• Working with outside experts and organizations: IKEA may want to think about working with external experts or organizations to accelerate the process of digital transformation. Access to specialized knowledge, technological know-how, and creative solutions may be made possible via this partnership (Sovacool, et. al. 2022). Working in collaboration with colleges and universities, technology consultants, or entrepreneurs in the digital sector may promote a climate of innovation and information sharing.
• Measuring and evaluating progress: To ensure that the gap analysis as well as following actions is successful, it is crucial to continuously track and evaluate progress. IKEA has to create key performance indicators (KPIs) that are in line with its goals for digital transformation. Regular assessments can assist the organization keep track of its advancement, spotting any new gaps, and altering its plan as needed.

To successfully navigate new digital trends, organizations like IKEA must do a technical and skills gap study. IKEA can close the gap between the present situation and the intended future state by comprehending the digital age, examining current infrastructure, evaluating personnel abilities, identifying required enhancements, and implementing focused training and development programmes. IKEA can actively address the issues brought on by developing digital trends through carrying out a technical and skills gap study. IKEA can effectively deploy resources, upgrade its technology infrastructure, and train its personnel with the necessary abilities by identifying the areas that need development (Olan, et. al. 2022). This helps the business to thrive in the digital age, encourage innovation, and provide great customer service.

In addition, gap analyses enable IKEA to create an exhaustive plan for its journey towards digital transformation. It offers a comprehensive grasp of the processes necessary to properly harness new technological developments. To direct the execution process, a roadmap should include detailed timetables, benchmarks, and resource allocation strategies. It is crucial to remember that completing an analysis of gaps is a continuous activity rather than a one-time occurrence. New technologies and trends are always emerging, and the world of technology is not an exception. IKEA should thus periodically review its technology capabilities and personnel competencies to be certain they continue to be in line with current digital trends.

SWOT analysis of IKEA

Strengths A strong global presence and reputation for the brand. A wide selection of affordable, well-designed goods. A profitable supply chain and scale economies. A focus upon responsibility for the environment and sustainablepractices. Regular clients and company.	Weaknesses Fewer decisions for product customization. For certain consumers, large shop formats might be overpowering. Reliance on foreign currency exchange rates and global sourcing. Low internet visibility in several markets. Assistance for customers is not personalized.
Opportunities Growth in emerging markets. Increasing consumer demand for environmentally friendly and sustainable goods. There is a rising trend of buying things online. Product category expansion into new markets. Working with other influencers and developers.	Threats: Intense rivalry in the retail furniture industry. Spending by consumers is impacted by economic downturns. Variable raw material cost. Potentially negative effects of trade disputes and tariffs. Enforcing laws governing environmental practices.

Figure 1: Top IT priorities

(Source: State of the IT skills gap, 2023)

Assess existing gaps and make appropriate recommendations on technological and development innovations and opportunities

Organizations like IKEA must determine current gaps and look into prospects for technology and development improvements so as to stay forward in the digital arena. IKEA can better position itself over competitors by adapting its plans to new trends thanks to this evaluation. This study will examine current gaps and offer suggestions for technical and developmental advances at IKEA.

E-commerce Optimization:

To meet the rising demand for online shopping, IKEA should give the greatest attention to optimizing its e-commerce facilities (Vyas, et. al. 2022). The user experience will be improved, the process of checkout will be simplified, and mobile compatibility will be guaranteed. Personalized ideas and virtual shopping environments may also improve consumer engagement and boost online sales.

Use of augmented reality (AR) technology:

Thesecan provide customers an engaging and immersive experience while shopping when they visit IKEA. The firm may boost customer satisfaction and lessen the demand for physical showrooms by enabling consumers to see furniture and interior design goods in their own environments. Customers might use an AR function in the IKEA Smartphone application to make wise shopping selections.

Internet of Things (IoT) collaboration:

By allowing smart and linked items, IoT has a chance to revolutionize the home furnishings market. IKEA may look at ways to include Internet of Things (IoT) gadgets in its furniture, like intelligent lighting systems or furnishings with built-in sensors for controlling temperature and humidity (Raihan, et. al. 2023). Data-driven insights, better client experiences, and preventative maintenance services may all be a result of IoT integration.

Data analytics and personalization:

IKEA may get significant insights into the preferences and behaviours of its clientele by utilizing data analytics. IKEA can personalize its products, hone marketing efforts, and enhance inventory management by analyzing consumer data. IKEA may be able to provide tailored product recommendations and discounts through the use using machine learning algorithms, improving customer happiness and boosting sales.

Supply chain optimization:

IKEA may use technology to enhance operational effectiveness and optimize its supply chain. Using real-time monitoring, predictive analytics, and complex inventory management systems can boost inventory visibility, decrease stockouts, and optimise logistics. Processes for distribution and storage can be made more effective by looking at automation and robots.

Sustainable innovation:

IKEA puts a lot of focus on sustainability. It might be a competitive advantage to embrace technical and development advances to strengthen initiatives for sustainability (IKEA, 2023).. This might involve pursuing sustainable economic models, putting in place smart systems for managing energy, and making investments in renewable energy sources. IKEA's devotion to sustainability may also be strengthened by incorporating eco-friendly supplies and production techniques into the development of new products.

Enhanced customer engagement:

IKEA may make use of cutting-edge technology like chatbots, artificial intelligence (AI), and social media platforms to forge a closer bond with customers. Real-time client service, personalized advice, and interesting social media campaigns are all possible with these tools. IKEA is going to able to increase customer devotion and involvement by using these technologies.

Continuous education and skills development:

IKEA should fund programmes for its staff members' continual development of skills and knowledge if it wants to bridge the skills gap and promote an innovative culture. This may entail granting access to virtual educational environments, promoting attendance at trade shows and seminars, and fostering cross-functional cooperation. IKEA can guarantee that their employee is still able to adapt to advances in technology by fostering a learning atmosphere.

Figure 2: The skills gap analysis

(Source: Verlinden, 2023)

For IKEA to succeed in the digital era, a detailed assessment of the gaps that exist and recommendations for suitable technology and development breakthroughs are essential. IKEA can increase its market share and deliver excellent customer experiences by optimising e-commerce, incorporating AR and IoT, utilizing data analytics, and boosting customer interaction. IKEA will also be established as a leader in the sector by emphasizing innovation that is environmentally friendly, supply chain optimization, and continuous learning (Grabowska and Saniuk, 2022). IKEA can manage new digital trends and boost growth in the competitive market by implementing these suggestions.

IKEA must also create an environment that values innovation and adaptability inside the organization. This entails creating an atmosphere that promotes experimentation, teamwork, and the examination of novel concepts. IKEA may establish innovation centres or incubators where staff members can come up with creative ideas that are in line with burgeoning digital trends. A culture of innovation may also be promoted through fostering collaborations with external stakeholders and teams from different departments.

IKEA could think about investing in cutting-edge technologies like the blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) in addition to the ideas already made. Supply chain management, support for customers, and product development are just a few of the operational aspects of IKEA that might be completely transformed by these technologies. Blockchain, for instance, could enhance supply chain transparency and traceability, AI may streamline customer interactions and offer individualised suggestions, and ML can improve forecasting of stocks and demand planning. IKEA may be able to obtain cutting-edge ideas and skills through partnerships with startups, technology providers, and academic institutions. Partnerships and collaborations in innovation ecosystems can help achieve this. IKEA may expedite its technological and creative breakthroughs by working with other organisations and utilising their knowledge, experience, and resources.

TASK 2

Assessing an Innovative solution related to the identified technological and skills gap along with the potential implementation benefits

Employing virtual assistants powered by AI can have a big impact on IKEA's efforts to improve its online offerings while addressing skills and technology gaps. Intelligent and natural language processing-based virtual assistants have the capacity to transform customer service, promote personalisation, and boost operational effectiveness.

• Enhanced customer support: powered by AI virtual assistants can revolutionise how IKEA consumers interact with customer support personnel. Virtual assistants can comprehend consumer enquiries, deliver quick replies, and make personalized suggestions by utilizing the use of natural language processing and artificial intelligence. Customers can connect with AI assistants through a variety of channels, including as websites, applications for smartphones, and messaging services, making the procedure easy and practical. In order to free up real customer service agents to concentrate on more complex problems, virtual assistants may handle typical client enquiries like product details, order tracking, and shop locations. This promotes client satisfaction, shortens response times, and lightens the strain for customer support staff.
• Personalization and product suggestions: Virtual assistants can utilize use of AI algorithms to examine customer tastes, past purchases, and browsing patterns so as to offer tailored product suggestions. Virtual assistants may make appropriate product recommendations, offer design suggestions, and assist with a customized purchasing experience by learning about specific client wants and preferences (Gong, et. al. 2022). This degree of personalization promotes upselling and cross-selling opportunities, improves consumer engagement, and fosters customer loyalty. In order to offer clients specialized offers and incentives based on their tastes and prior purchases, IKEA can include virtual assistants into its customer loyalty programme.
• Simplified online sales: Virtual assistants powered by AI can help clients when they make online purchases by responding to any issues or queries they may have. Artificially intelligent assistants may give real-time inventory updates, full product information, help with size and color choices, and aid with choosing a product. This simplified method of online sales lowers friction between consumers and abandonment rates, which eventually boosts conversion rates and income. In addition, virtual assistants may help with simple and safe ways to pay, which will enhance your whole online buying experience.
• Support and training for workers: By providing rapid availability of information, instructional materials, and established processes, virtual assistants may be a great resource for IKEA workers. This lessens the demand for human trainers and makes it easier for staff members to discover solutions to their enquiries, enabling them to provide superior client service. Virtual assistants may help with onboarding by giving new hires interactive training materials like quizzes and tools. This increases the effectiveness of training procedures, reduces training expenses, and guarantees uniformity in the distribution of information.
• Data insights and analytics: IKEA is able to collect useful information and insights about consumer preferences, frequently asked queries, and developing trends through the use of AI-powered virtual assistants. IKEA can find patterns, enhance customer service, and make information-driven business choices through analyzing this data (Coscieme, et. al. 2022). IKEA is able to assess the success of its artificial intelligence installation and pinpoint areas for development thanks to the statistics and analytics that virtual assistants can generate on client interactions. Such data can help improve customer relationship management, product development, and advertising strategies.
• Scalability and cost-effectiveness: Virtual assistants offer a scalable solution to customer assistance and enquiry management. Virtual assistants can manage several enquiries at once, unlike human customer care professionals, delivering rapid and efficient responses to customers' demands. This scalability decreases the need for extra personnel at busy times, saving money and enhancing the efficiency of operations. Since virtual assistants are accessible round-the-clock, clients may get guidance and data whenever it's convenient for them.

Figure 3: Organizations seek to improve both IT skills gaps

(Source: State of the IT skills gap, 2023)

IKEA will gain a lot from using AI-powered virtual assistants to fill up technology and ability shortages. These virtual employees improve customer service, give specific guidance, speed up the online purchasing process, aid in training staff members, and produce useful information. IKEA is able to deliver excellent customer experiences, boost efficiency in operations, and stimulate growth in revenue by utilizing the abilities of virtual assistants.

IKEA should incorporate virtual assistants like its website, Smartphone application, and messaging channels in order to effectively employ AI-powered virtual assistants. By doing this, a unified and consistent consumer experience throughout all touchpoints is made possible. Advanced processing of natural language skills should be included in virtual assistants in order to properly comprehend and address consumer enquiries (Perri, Giglio and Corvello 2020). To ensure excellent accuracy and client satisfaction, regular updates and upgrades to the digital assistant's language comprehension algorithms are required. IKEA must provide a thorough knowledge base containing a variety of product details, solutions to commonly asked questions, and how-to manuals. For accurate and current information, the knowledge base must be frequently updated and maintained.

TASK 3

Describing barriers to implementation of innovation, technological and or behavioural that may have an impact on the proposed solution

IKEA could benefit much from introducing AI-powered virtual assistants, but there are a number of hurdles that may prevent this cutting-edge solution from being put into practice successfully. These obstacles fall into two categories: technical and behavioural. IKEA must comprehend these challenges so as to successfully handle them and guarantee that the process is successful.

Technological Barriers:

1. Integration complexity: The difficulty of incorporating virtual personal assistants into IKEA's current digital infrastructure is one of the major technological obstacles. To get pertinent information and deliver seamless experiences for customers, this integration involves setting up connections with several systems, databases, and networks. It might be difficult to ensure compatibility and easy integration across multiple platforms, including websites, mobile applications, and messaging systems.
2. Data integration and quality: For the purpose of giving pertinent replies and personalized suggestions, AI-powered virtual assistants mainly depend on access to correct and current data. IKEA's complex information ecology makes it difficult to integrate data from many sources (Karri, 2022). Customers' capacity to get accurate and trustworthy information from a virtual assistant may be hampered by inconsistent data formats, poor data quality, and data silos.
3. Scalability and performance: Due to IKEA's immense client base, virtual assistants must be able to manage numerous simultaneous interactions and enquiries. A technological difficulty might be ensuring that virtual assistants can scale to handle periods of high demand without sacrificing efficiency. To provide a flawless user experience at periods of high activity, a solid infrastructure and sufficient server capacity are necessary.
4. Accurate natural language: The performance of virtual assistants powered by AI strongly depends on their capacity to comprehend and address client enquiries. Since the technology for natural language processing is still developing, it might be challenging to comprehend client intent with high accuracy. Virtual assistants can have difficulty comprehending complicated grammatical structures, colloquial phrases, and context-specific questions, which may result in incorrect answers.

Behavioural Barriers:

1. Customer approval and adoption: Customers who prefer conventional human-assisted service may be reluctant to accept artificial intelligence as a new channel to establish a client connection. Customers may be worried about the security, privacy, and accuracy of interactions with AI assistants (Haefner, et. al. 2021). Good communication and education are necessary to address consumer concerns, emphasise benefits, and promote adoption in order to remove these behavioural challenges.
2. Worker resistance and job safety: IKEA's customer service staff may be reluctant to use of virtual assistants because they concerned about losing their jobs or being supplanted. Virtual assistants may be considered a threat to employees' jobs and areas of competence. It is essential to convey the benefits virtual assistants offer in terms of enhancing customer service and outsourcing monotonous chores, freeing up people to work on more challenging and added-value jobs. Cooperation may be facilitated by offering employees the chance to learn new skills that complement the setting up of virtual assistants.
3. Change management: Introducing virtual assistants with AI-powered abilities necessitates a fundamental change to the way client contacts are handled. It entails changes to the customer service operations of IKEA in terms of processes, roles, and duties. The effective adoption of digital assistants might be hampered by change aversion, a lack of expertise, and insufficient training. To ensure a seamless transition and adoption of the new solution, an effective change management plan involving communication, training, and staff involvement is required.
4. Privacy and ethical issues: Because AI is used to power AI-powered virtual assistants, there are ethical issues with regard to privacy, security of data, and transparency (Butler, Yigitcanlar and Paz, 2021). Consumers can be worried about how virtual assistants acquire and utilize their private data. To allay these worries and win the confidence of consumers, IKEA must prioritise safeguarding privacy, adhere to data legislation, and fully explain its data management practices.

IKEA has specific challenges in putting AI-powered virtual assistants into use. To guarantee the successful adoption of virtual assistants, technological challenges including integration difficulty, integrating data and quality, flexibility, and natural language comprehension must be solved. Additionally, it is essential to carefully address behavioural hurdles relating to client acceptance and acceptance, employee opposition and security of employment, change management, and moral issues.

IKEA should make significant infrastructure and planning investments that will allow the smooth integration of virtual assistants in its present technology so as to get beyond these obstacles. The technological environment, integrating data abilities, and scalability requirements must all be carefully evaluated. In order to assure the availability, veracity, and integrity of the data required for virtual assistants, IKEA must set up efficient data management procedures. To maintain the highest standards for data quality, it is necessary for data cleansing, integration, and constant monitoring.

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References

Books and Journals

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• Sovacool, B.K., Newell, P., Carley, S. and Fanzo, J., 2022. Equity, technological innovation and sustainable behaviour in a low-carbon future.Nature Human Behaviour,6(3), pp.326-337.
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Online

• IKEA. 2023. About IKEA. Online. Available through. :< https://www.ikea.com/in/en/this-is-ikea/about-us/>.
• Karri, J., 2022. Here Is How You Can Identify And Close Skill Gaps In Software Development. Online. Available through. :< https://www.hackerearth.com/blog/talent-assessment/skill-gaps-in-software-development>.
• State of the IT skills gap, 2023. Organizations seek to improve both IT skills gaps. Online. Available through. :< https://www.comptia.org/content/research/state-of-the-it-skills-gap>.
• State of the IT skills gap, 2023. Organizations plan to address IT skills gaps by investing in training for existing staff. Online. Available through. :< https://www.comptia.org/content/research/state-of-the-it-skills-gap>.
• State of the IT skills gap, 2023. Top IT priorities. Online. Available through. :< https://www.comptia.org/content/research/state-of-the-it-skills-gap>.
• Verlinden, 2023. The skill gap analysis. Online. Available through. :< https://www.aihr.com/blog/skills-gap-analysis/>.