Impact of new technology on organizational outcomes

¶ … Technology -- Fed-Ex and RFID

Technological Innovation at Fed-Ex

Federal Express ("Fed-Ex") has always maintained a very specific focus on innovation as a fundamental part of the organization's corporate culture (Fed-Ex, 2011). Innovation is promoted as a core concept at every level of the organization, from human resource management, packing materials, operational processes, and especially, with respect to the incorporation of continual advances made possible by newly evolving digital technologies. As has been the case with other industry leaders such as United Parcel Service (UPS) (Brewster & Dalzell, 2007), Fed-Ex was quick to capitalize on the radio frequency identification (RFID) systems pioneered by organizations such as Wal-Mart and by the United States Armed Forces as soon as the equipment and the software platforms necessary to make RFID tracking a reality (Byrne, 2004).

Customer Support in Relation to Technological Innovation

Organizations such as Fed-Ex and UPS also implemented corresponding changes to the roles and responsibilities of their respective Customer Relations and Support functions to ensure a seamless transition to automated tracking systems. That was particularly important in connection with long-time customers who had become very accustomed to the traditional labeling processes, some of whom were comparatively slow to appreciate the tremendous advantages of RFID technology systems in the shipping industry.

Negative Experiences in Relation to Technological Innovation

While the impact of the new technology has been spectacularly successful in the shipping industry (Brewster & Dalzell, 2007) as well as throughout wholesale industries in connection with supply chain management (Byrne, 2004; Gordon, 2006), it was also the source of complaints and confusion, especially when it was first introduced as a replacement for the traditional paper-based tracking systems (Brewster & Dalzell, 2007). This was not a function of any shortcomings with the digital systems; rather, it was simply a function of the degree to which people typically become comfortable with the status quo and with systems and technologies with which they have become familiar over time.

This is a constant that is hardly unique at all to the shipping or wholesale industries; it has been consistently documented in connection with virtually every significant technological change, irrespective of the value-added and convenience to users. There is always a period of adjustment necessitated by any shift to technological innovations. Certain individuals welcome those changes and look forward to the opportunity to learn new processes. However, other individuals become uncomfortable with change, especially when change is mandatory and the old systems are no longer available. For precisely that reason, both Fed-Ex and UPS added dedicated Customer Service representatives to assist existing customers whose business systems were not yet compatible with the requirements of digital-based ordering systems at the time of their initial introduction (Brewster & Dalzell, 2007).