Economic evaluation of a technology strategy

Sound strategic planning of all a company’s activities contributes significantly to its success. Strategies provide guidance for targeted action within a company. Large corporations such as Deutsche Bahn AG are particularly dependent on strategic action, as many decisions made today can have an impact for several years to come. Therefore, in 2014, the objectives for 2020 had to be at least roughly outlined. For example, trains are ordered many years in advance. However, the requirements for these trains, which may not be on the rails for another 10 years, must be defined at the time of ordering. It should therefore be clear what requirements, e.g. in the areas of technology, customer service and equipment, will need to be met in 10 years’ time. This book describes methodological approaches to how this problem could be tackled and how the question of the economic viability of strategies could be answered as soon as possible after they have been drawn up.