BM565 Digital Technologies: Analyzing Firm Performance and Culture

This report examines the role of digital organizational culture in enhancing firm performance, focusing on the case of HSBC. It discusses the importance and development of digital technologies in managing organizational culture, including the use of software like Kazoo. The report analyzes how these technologies serve as business tools, relating them to various business and management theories such as decision-making, quantitative, system, and contingency theories. It also explores e-commerce business models, particularly business-to-consumer, in the context of HSBC's digital transformation. The conclusion emphasizes the necessity of adopting advanced technologies for companies to thrive and maintain a positive working environment.

Digital technologies
and firm performance:
The role of digital
organisational culture

Table of Contents

Introduction......................................................................................................................................1
Task 1...............................................................................................................................................1
Why the technological topic is important...............................................................................1
How this technological topic developed.................................................................................1
Brief description of the technology used in this topic and what it is used for.......................2
Technological platform, apps, software version.....................................................................2
What type of business and organisation uses the technology?...............................................2
How is it used as a business tool and is this effective............................................................3
Task 2...............................................................................................................................................3
How does this relate to course content and discussion on the nature of the relationship
between digital technologies and both old and newly emerging theories on business and
management structures and practices?...................................................................................3
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................5
References........................................................................................................................................6

Introduction
Digital technology is defined as the technology which is used by the organizations by the
use of computing devices and networking in order to maintain the basic functioning of the
company. Deduction of the emerging and advanced digital technology improves the firm's
performance in many ways such as in terms of productivity and employee and customer retention
as well (Martínez-Caro, Cegarra-Navarro and Alfonso-Ruiz, 2020). The chosen topic is the role
of digital organizational culture in which the culture management is performed with the help of
digital technologies within the organization. The following discussion is based on the importance
and development of the topic along with its uses and technological platform used. Moreover type
of business and how this technology is effective is also discussed along with the various theories
and management practices as well.
Task 1
Why the technological topic is important
The organisation chosen is HSBC which is one of the leading international investment
banking companies headquartered in the United Kingdom and established in 1865. Role of
digital organisational culture in HSBC is important because employees are considered as the
greatest assets in the company and hence they are to be managed on a prior basis. Digital
technology used by HSBC health in collecting and sharing the accurate and real-time data to the
organisation. It provides and receives the feedback with the performance management and offers
more flexibility with increment of efficiency and automation in order to achieve the
sustainability goals as well (Upadhyay and Kumar, 2020).
How this technological topic developed
HSBC previously used the traditional way of managing the culture within the organisation which
was not proved as effective. But now they have introduced the powerful tools which managers
and diversity and culture in the company so that the employees can be retained for a long time. It
has helped in reduction of employee turnover and encouraged employee engagement. They not
only focus on engaging with the employees but also increase with the customers so that the
organisation goals can be achieved while adopting the digital technology to manage the
organisational culture in the organisation (Caputo, Cillo, Candelo and Liu, 2019).
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Brief description of the technology used in this topic and what it is used for
HSBC uses the culture management software which is named as Kazoo. This is software
which is mainly designed to empower the team. It has features such as top core values sidebar
that supports the company in attaining and developing the high valued qualities. It also provides
the different types of batch options that highlight the specific talents and skills of the employees.
It also remembers the birthday and public anniversary of each and every employee which helps
in imitating social media and also everyone feels special regarding this. This is the software
which has provided HSBC with the tool to remove all the employees and reinforce the company
culture. It also includes the exciting rewards such as the recognition and different perks which
helps in employee motivation as well (Kucharska and Bedford, 2019).
Technological platform, apps, software version
Kazoo is software which is a technological platform and application installed by the
HSBC which frequently updates software versions for the better security concerns. This is a
platform which helps in bringing together all the goals and recognition in a collaborative
manager for better recognition and feedback so that the conversations and incentives of the
employees can be more effective. This is software as a service platform in terms of the human
capital Management market. The reason being is that it focuses on the employee engagement and
retention which majorly derives the high return on investment for the employees as well as for
the customers in the organisation (Isensee, Teuteberg, Griese and Topi, 2020).
What type of business and organisation uses the technology?
Culture and diversity management is an essential concept which is used by almost every
type of businesses and organisations. This is because employees are required in every type of
business whether it is the manufacturing or production and the service sector and many more. If
the organisation is having a diversifying number of employees who have different backgrounds
and cultures along with the values and behaviours then the organisation is highly required to
adopt third digital technology in order to manage their culture. This helps in managing the
conflicts and team management which also further help in reducing the errors and more accuracy
in the functioning of the company (Li, Liu, Mai and Zhang, 2021).
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How is it used as a business tool and is this effective
Kazoo is used as a business tool in HSBC and has proven effective and efficient for the
company. This is because it is software which highly engages with the company with all its
needs and requirements so that its goals and objectives can be aligned and achieved in an
effective manner. Its effectiveness has reflected on the company's performance in terms of
improved productivity and large number of sales generations. This is a result of better employee
engagement and culture management because this leads to the positive working environment that
finally helps in customer servicing. That is why it is a business tool which is effective for HSBC
(Lobschat, Mueller, Eggers and Wirtz, 2021).
Task 2
How does this relate to course content and discussion on the nature of the relationship between
digital technologies and both old and newly emerging theories on business and
management structures and practices?
There are several theories which relate with the organisational culture and digital
technology used by HSBC. Decision making theory is one of the theories which states how an
individual must behave in this situation of risk and uncertainty. There are basically three types of
decisions in the business such as strategic and tactical along with the operational type of
business. Strategic decision is for the upper level operations made by leaders. Tactical decision is
for the middle level operations made by managers. Operational decisions is for the lower level
operations made by the executives. Decision making theories are used by all the levels of
organisation while using the software in HSBC. A decision support system is an information
system which is used by the employees of the organisation so that they can analyse the data and
convert it into the relevant information so that the strategic decision making can be made along
with the future considerations (Teichert, 2019). Quantitative theories are also a theory which is
used by the HSBC which is developed by the researcher in order to deductively test the statistical
methods within the organisation. This is a theory which is logically constructed and also
considered as a feasibility study along with the variables and concepts of the theory. This is
basically used in the big database management in which the data is stored and processed as per
the needs and requirements of the company which is further used in the decision making and the
chief mint of the poles and objectives of the company. It is highly based on the facts and figures
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along with the numeric values so that the actual and authentic information can be generated with
accuracy and no error. System theory is also one of the theories used by HSBC which is defined
as the study of systems that are interdisciplinary in nature. It is made for the cohesive groups
who are intelligence related and are the interdependent parts of the company. It includes factors
which are influenced by the environment and structure along with the purpose of the company. It
is basically a study of society which is complicated in nature and beliefs and social systems
across the social sciences. HSBC uses the information systems for the system management so
that they can manage their entire function in a systematic way. It is highly based on the culture
management who have the diversified backgrounds in the organisation. It helps the HSBC in
adopting each other's culture and respecting each other's values so that a positive working
environment can be developed. Contingency theory is also another theory which is a
management model that recommends the HSBC to use the most suitable management style
which is based on the situational context and adopt the single and rigid style which must be
efficient to the current circumstances within the organisation. It helps in making the decision and
organises the work in a contingent manner whether it is an internal or an external situation.
Software is used by HSBC to perform the contingent theory and analyse the most appropriate
style of Management so that the effectiveness and efficiency could be maintained in a potential
manner by the employees as well as by the employers also. HSBC uses this theory using
information systems such as enterprise resource planning and knowledge management systems
for better examining of the concept and implementing the management styles in a digitalised
manner (Haseeb, Hussain, Kot, Androniceanu and Jermsittiparsert, 2019).
There are a total of 6 types of e-commerce Business models. Business to consumer is one
of the models in which the business sells its goods and services to the general public. Example of
this model is Portugal footwear. Consumer to business is a model in which the goods and
services are sold to the business organisation with the help of a website. Examples of this model
are content creators and social media managers. Business to business model transaction takes
place between the two businesses where one is the manufacturer of the product and other is the
wholesaler hu resell them to the general public. An Example of this model is Amazon. Consumer
to consumer business model takes place among the consumers where one consumer sells its
product and services to another consumer with the help of online option or offering it to any
medium. Examples of this model are eBay. Business to administration is a model which takes
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place among the companies and the public administrations and even the government agencies as
well. An Example of this model is Accela. Consumer to administration model consists of the
electronic transactions in an online manner among the individuals and the public administration.
An example of this model is taxes and health along with the tuition fees for higher education. all
these are the models which are used in The E-Commerce business model and are based on the
market segmentation in order to conduct the business online. In the context of HSBC, it uses the
E-Commerce business model of business to consumer where they directly serve the customers.
HSBC is also now introducing the business to business digital platform so that the customers can
transact on their own as per their own needs and requirements (Wiesböck and Hess, 2020).
Conclusion
It is concluded that digital technology is an important concept to learn and studies that its
applications can be applied in real world organisations. This is because nowadays it is impossible
for the companies to survive without adopting the advanced technology. Discussion is based on
the organisational culture which is based on the merging technology that Organisation in an
effective and efficient manners so that the employees can potentially work in the organisation
with a positive working environment. Therefore it is important to assess the importance and
development of the topic along with the uses and technological platform used. It is essential to
examine the type of Business and how technology is affected so that the practices and theories
and models can be determined. Hence the above discussion also covers areas in order to
understand the concept of digital technology and the role of organisational culture.
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References
Books and Journals
Caputo, F., Cillo, V., Candelo, E. and Liu, Y., 2019. Innovating through digital revolution: The
role of soft skills and Big Data in increasing firm performance. Management Decision.
Haseeb, M., Hussain, H.I., Kot, S., Androniceanu, A. and Jermsittiparsert, K., 2019. Role of
social and technological challenges in achieving a sustainable competitive advantage and
sustainable business performance. Sustainability, 11(14), p.3811.
Isensee, C., Teuteberg, F., Griese, K.M. and Topi, C., 2020. The relationship between
organizational culture, sustainability, and digitalization in SMEs: A systematic
review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 275, p.122944.
Kucharska, W. and Bedford, D.A., 2019. Knowledge sharing and organizational culture
dimensions: does job satisfaction matter?. Electronic Journal of Knowledge
Management, 17(1), pp.1-18.
Li, K., Liu, X., Mai, F. and Zhang, T., 2021. The role of corporate culture in bad times: Evidence
from the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 56(7),
pp.2545-2583.
Lobschat, L., Mueller, B., Eggers, F. and Wirtz, J., 2021. Corporate digital
responsibility. Journal of Business Research, 122, pp.875-888.
Martínez-Caro, E., Cegarra-Navarro, J.G. and Alfonso-Ruiz, F.J., 2020. Digital technologies and
firm performance: The role of digital organisational culture. Technological Forecasting
and Social Change, 154, p.119962.
Teichert, R., 2019. Digital transformation maturity: A systematic review of literature. Acta
universitatis agriculturae et silviculturae mendelianae brunensis.
Upadhyay, P. and Kumar, A., 2020. The intermediating role of organizational culture and
internal analytical knowledge between the capability of big data analytics and a firm’s
performance. International Journal of Information Management, 52, p.102100.
Wiesböck, F. and Hess, T., 2020. Digital innovations. Electronic Markets, 30(1), pp.75-86.
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