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DIRECTOR’S DESK
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Dear Reader,
I am pleased to present the 2025 edition of Episteme, which, as always, reflects the sustained efforts to monitor and understand the evolving relationship between business, technology, and transformation.
Thematically, this year’s edition builds on last year’s theme. While last year’s edition focused on digital business models and explored how various industries were adapting to the digitalization of work, this year’s edition shifts its emphasis to business transformation and the impact of digital technologies on business and education. Improvements in software integration with hardware, Artificial Intelligence (AI), immersive technologies like Virtual Reality (VR), and advanced digital simulations are not only enhancing efficiency but also changing how companies envision, operate, and expand. At the same time, this evolution is influencing policy and legal frameworks, potentially causing significant impacts on business operations. In line with this theme, articles in this edition provide critical insights into how digitalization alters the competitive advantages of businesses and how these evolving policy and legal ecosystems interact to shape competitive advantage.
We explore this shift through a collection of articles that assess the influence of digital technology on policies and corporate choices. We begin with two articles that provide context for the ongoing advancements in digital technologies and their impact on businesses. "Sorting Hype from Reality" provides insight into the recent excitement surrounding the collection of technologies referred to as AI, highlighting their significance for companies and the broader economy. By evaluating AI's capacity to generate substantial economic benefits and identifying the obstacles to achieving tangible outcomes, it provides a realistic perspective on AI, tracing its evolution and relevance to both businesses and the broader economy.
Likewise, “Charging Ahead or Falling Behind: The EV Transition and the Trials of India’s Auto Industry” emphasizes how the rise of electric vehicles (EVs), which integrate digital technologies, along with policy incentives promoting consumer adoption, threaten the competitive edge of established manufacturers that have historically focused on internal combustion engine vehicles. This article highlights an issue that has often been the focus of research in management: why incumbents who were once successful may not continue to be leaders when technology advances.
This edition also emphasizes the role of AI in shaping boardroom and managerial decisions. The piece titled “A Tale of Potential Collaboration: Will Algorithms and Boardroom Decisions Meet?” explores how AI could revolutionize top-level decision-making, prompting critical questions about strategic choices. It poses a vital inquiry: Can AI effectively make strategic decisions that require innovative, integrative, and analytical thinking? If companies aim for differentiation to achieve a sustainable competitive edge, can AI assist managers in developing strategies that are distinctive, reflecting the unique blend of businesses and capabilities they possess? If not, how close are we to realizing that goal? Additionally, can AI help avert notable failures like those of Kodak and Nokia?
The concept of "Digital Twins" examines how digital simulations influence not just manufacturing and logistics, but also managerial decision-making. By allowing for real-time modelling of business functions and their interactions, digital twins empower organizations to explore strategic options before committing resources, thereby reducing risks and accelerating decision-making processes. This capability transforms decision-making from reactive to proactive, embedding foresight within the organization’s strategic framework. Additionally, this article addresses the significant challenges associated with adopting this technology. Although digital twins provide valuable insights by reflecting real-world dynamics, their effectiveness heavily relies on the quality of data, cross-functional cultural integration, and the organization’s readiness to trust and respond to simulated outcomes.
“How VR Can Enrich Lessons in Business Strategy” highlights how technology can revolutionize management education by providing tools that help future managers handle the uncertainties and complexities of decision-making through immersive simulations. The VR simulations, paired with traditional case teaching, serve as a “third eye” that underscores the capability to use observations in decision-making.
In addition to articles, this year’s Episteme highlights SRITNE’s dynamic ecosystem of activities, which encompasses: the 6th edition of the AI and Strategy Consortium that united scholars and practitioners to outline a future roadmap for AI integration; academic research endorsed by SRITNE alongside the computing infrastructure available for that research; case studies that help us monitor the leading-edge management practices in action; and our various thought initiatives.
I hope this edition of Episteme provokes thought, invites collaboration, and inspires you to explore the many frontiers of business transformation.
Warm Regards,
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Anand Nandkumar
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Executive Director,
SRITNE
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