Unit rationale, description and aim

The emergence of digital innovations is reshaping industries, organisations, and management paradigms. These innovations serve as pivotal catalysts for change, affecting how companies create, capture, and deliver value, and influence managerial strategies. To maintain competitiveness, executives and managers must adeptly assess various digital technologies and emerging business models, discerning enduring trends from transient fads. Furthermore, digital innovations offer novel tools and methods for navigating uncertain and ambiguous environments. This course equips students with the competencies needed to oversee digital innovations rooted in advanced technologies, ethics and business model innovations.   


The aim of this unit is therefore to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of how to develop digital solutions, and harness innovation to sustain competitiveness. Students will be equipped with the knowledge, tools, and strategies required to identify, manage, and optimise digital innovation opportunities and challenges within various organisational contexts. 

2025 10

Campus offering

No unit offerings are currently available for this unit

Prerequisites

Nil

Incompatible

ENTD203 Innovating Through Technology

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

Identify relevant models, theories, concepts and ...

Learning Outcome 01

Identify relevant models, theories, concepts and principles of digital and technology innovations.
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC1, GC9

Analyse digital innovations, recognising strategie...

Learning Outcome 02

Analyse digital innovations, recognising strategies, ethical considerations, potential risks and negative impacts.
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC4, GC12

Analyse digital innovations, recognising strategie...

Learning Outcome 03

Analyse digital innovations, recognising strategies, ethical considerations, potential risks and negative impacts.
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC7, GC8

Apply user-centred methodologies to manage digital...

Learning Outcome 04

Apply user-centred methodologies to manage digital innovations.
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC2, GC9

Evaluate technologies and adopt a strategic and su...

Learning Outcome 05

Evaluate technologies and adopt a strategic and sustainable approach to start and grow a business in today's digital landscape.
Relevant Graduate Capabilities: GC7, GC11

Content

Topics will include:

  • Introduction to digital innovation 
  • Technologies and business models  
  • Open and closed ecosystems  
  • Managing digital innovation processes 
  • Responsible digital innovation  
  • Financial and digital marketing technologies   
  • Disruptive innovation and technologies    
  • Recognising opportunities through design thinking  
  • Market and product fit  
  • Enhancing user experience (UX) through operations   
  • Entering new, evolving and mature markets  
  • Surveillance capitalism, cyber security and emerging threats 

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment approach is structured to ensure that students achieve proficiency in accordance with the learning outcomes and develop a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter.  

Assessment tasks are designed to be both formative and summative, providing students with ample opportunities to gauge their progress and develop their skills. The assessment approach is consistent across all modes of delivery, ensuring fairness for all students irrespective of their learning environment. 

Assessment 1. Students will focus on selected weekly modules to deepen their understanding of the role of innovative platforms and technologies and demonstrate synthesis of ideas, and engagement with relevant concepts. 

Assessment 2. Students collaboratively problem-solve and present how technology can solve an industry problem in an innovative way.  

Assessment 3. Students are invited to analyse and compare digital technologies with considerations of sustainability frameworks.  

Overview of assessments

Assessment Task 1: Active Engagement  Studen...

Assessment Task 1: Active Engagement 

Students will be evaluated on knowledge acquisition through a range of engagement activities, synthesis of information, and application of relevant theories and concepts in practical contexts.  

 Submission Type: Individual 

Assessment Method: Online engagement 

Artefact: Online record of engagement 

Weighting

30%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2, LO3
Graduate Capabilities GC1, GC4, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC12

Assessment Task 2: Research Report   Re...

Assessment Task 2: Research Report  

Research, analyse and compare digital innovation technologies with consideration of ethical and social positive and negative impacts.  

Submission Type: Individual 

Assessment Method: Research Report 

Artefact: Written report 

Weighting

30%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2, LO4
Graduate Capabilities GC4, GC7, GC8, GC11, GC12

Assessment Task 3: Innovation Roadmap Presentatio...

Assessment Task 3: Innovation Roadmap Presentation 

Design and present digital innovation roadmap with user-centred methodology to address an industry problem and manage digital innovations in a group setting. 

Submission Type: Team 

Assessment Method: Oral 

Artefact: Individual presentation 

Weighting

40%

Learning Outcomes LO1, LO3, LO4
Graduate Capabilities GC2, GC4, GC7, GC9, GC11, GC12

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit provides students with an active and engaging learning experience focused on the analysis and synthesis of knowledge, pertinent to business technology understanding and management. A blend of online learning materials and interactive workshops serve as dynamic environments where students actively participate in constructing and combining knowledge, both independently and collaboratively within group settings. 

Through these workshops, students embark on a journey of understanding the pivotal role of management in driving impactful business outcomes within the realm of technology. By engaging with real-world case studies and practical exercises, students not only enhance their theoretical knowledge but also cultivate the practical skills necessary for effective technology management and integration with wider business operations to achieve digital innovation. Through the exchange of stories, insights, and reflections, students are immersed in an interactive learning environment, catering to diverse learning preferences and fostering collaboration among peers. 

Representative texts and references

Representative texts and references

Daim, Tugrul, Marina Dabic and Yu-Shan Su, The Routledge Companion to Technology Management (Routledge, 1st ed, 2023) 

Rajagopal. and Ramesh Behl (eds), Innovation, Technology, and Market Ecosystems Managing Industrial Growth in Emerging Markets (Springer International Publishing, 1st ed. 2020., 2020) 

Ancillai, C., Sabatini, A., Gatti, M., & Perna, A. (2023). Digital technology and business model innovation: A systematic literature review and future research agenda. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 188, 122307. 

Avelar, S., Borges-Tiago, T., Almeida, A., & Tiago, F. (2024). Confluence of sustainable entrepreneurship, innovation, and digitalization in SMEs. Journal of Business Research, 170, 114346. 

Lingens, B., Miehé, L., & Gassmann, O. (2021). The ecosystem blueprint: How firms shape the design of an ecosystem according to the surrounding conditions. Long Range Planning, 54(2), 102043. 

Liu, W., Liu, Y., Zhu, X., Nespoli, P., Profita, F., Huang, L., & Xu, Y. (2024). Digital entrepreneurship: towards a knowledge management perspective. Journal of Knowledge Management, 28(2), 341-354. 

Si, S., & Chen, H. (2020). A literature review of disruptive innovation: What it is, how it works and where it goes. Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 56, 101568. 

Schrage, M., Kiron, D., Candelon, F., Khodabandeh, S., & Chu, M. (2023). AI is helping companies redefine, not just improve, performance. MIT Sloan Management Review, 64(3), 1-7. 

Tsou, H. T., & Chen, J. S. (2023). How does digital technology usage benefit firm performance? Digital transformation strategy and organisational innovation as mediators. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 35(9), 1114-1127. 

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