Cellular Technology: Innovation and Strategy

The concept of cellular communications has been around for over fifty years but commercial implementation has only taken place in the last 20 years. The last 10 years have seen an almost exponential growth in the number of users worldwide, estimates are not I the millions but in billions. So how does this old technology hold up? It does so by innovation. All current and planned future technologies build upon the first and subsequent ones. What is interesting that despite having a common core mo st are incompatible with each other. The basic concept of cellular phones began in 1947, when researchers looked at crude mobile (car) phones and realized that by using smell cells (range of service area) with frequency reuse they could increase the traffic capacity if mobile phones substantially. However at that time, the technology to do so was nonexistent. Devised in the late 1970s to early 1980s, analog systems have been revised somewhat since that time and operate in the 800-MHz band. Most newer wireless phones and networks use digital technology. In digital, the analog voice signal is converted into binary code and transmitted as a series of on and off transmissions. There are three main digital wireless technologies, CDMA, TDMA and GSM. The demand from wireless communication technologies increases, so do the number of subscribers for wireless services. People are using their phones not only for communication but for entertainment, sending email, taking/sending digital picture and using GPS positioning. In the future the wireless networks will be asked to do more. 3G technology is the solution that fit this situation. The mobile telephone industry can be classified as an open system, due to the various different technologies involved that are in constant interaction with each other. The interactions between the technology providers determine the way the technology evolves. The telephone market mainly stands on four legs. The first of these four are the manufacturers, who make the handsets as well as the infrastructure equipment, such as switches and transmission apparatus. Then there are the network operators, also called service providers; these are companies that provide phone service to handset users. Third are platform vendors, which supply software environments, known as platforms, on which the handset\u27s software stack is based. Also important are the application developers, who create applications that can be installed in handsets, such as games, image processing, basic PDA functions, and currency conversion

Motorola, Inc.

For quite some time in America\u27s history, Motorola, Inc. was not only the #1 company in electronic communications, but looked upon as the pioneering forefathers of innovation as we know it. However, there are more competitors, more mergers and most importantly, more control of the market at stake. This paper will discuss Motorola in the past, present, and what their future plans are for the mobile telecommunications industry in Asia and how they plan to recuperate lost revenue, as well as, their reputation

Issues in Cross-Cultural Teams

Executive Summary As our world embarks upon making the most of technology, via email, teleconferencing, virtual offices and classrooms, it is essential that all cultures become more culturally aware of one another, especially by those leading us. We are interfacing with societies and cultures at an exponential rate. Therefore, being culturally aware means that we must appreciate, accept, and understand the beliefs and values of cultures other than our own. Understanding other cultures has two notable benefits: 1) it multiplies our access to practices, ideas, and people that can make positive contributions to our own society; and 2) it helps us understand ourselves more deeply. By understanding a range of alternatives, we become aware of our own implicit beliefs – beliefs so deeply imbedded that we routinely take them for granted. [1] Incorrect assumptions about other cultures could lead into misunderstanding and conflict among any team members. Conflict within teams of any kind is inevitable, but even more so in multi-cultural teams. Each culture has its own ways of dealing with conflict, and this can actually exacerbate already stressful situations. In spite of this, conflict can actually be productive if it is dealt with effectively and the team can learn from it. On the other hand, if not dealt with properly, conflict can be destructive. Therefore, being prepared to deal with conflict can mean the difference between team success and failure. We present several strategies, such as establishing a proactive decision-making process, team development sessions and third party intermediaries for improving the chances of constructive outcomes to conflict. As stated previously, different cultures have different ways of handling conflict. There are subcultures within cultures, and different people have different viewpoints on the way situations should be handled. Intercultural disputes within the workplace can have many different causes, including differences in attitudes, beliefs, education levels, upbringing of individuals involved, attitudes, expectations, etc. It should not automatically be assumed that all disputes between people from different cultures are culturally based. With training and familiarity, it is possible for people to overcome their preconceptions and biases, as long as the parties are willing to make the effort. Each of us has preconceptions and prejudices, and the only way to overcome them is to be willing to meet them head-on and examine their causes. In any team, thus, open communication can help to remove disputes and miss understanding among team members. Communication is the key to any successful team. For any team member, previous cultural exposure is an important factor influencing communication behavior. People with high confidence in the knowledge of other cultures tend to be more willing to explore cultural topics, which results in a positive communication for understanding each other\u27s needs and helps in positive contribution to the team project for achieving successful results