RC TOM Challenge 2018

November 13, 2018

Read The Full Prompt

The TOM Challenge provides an opportunity for you to continue exploring organizational learning and innovation through the lens of process improvement and/or product development, the focus of RC TOM’s second module. In this challenge, you will investigate how an organization is grappling with machine learning, additive manufacturing, or open innovation. These megatrends are likely to significantly affect how organizations manage process improvement and product development in the coming years of your career. The TOM Challenge requires you to (1) conduct research and write an essay that examines how one organization is facing a particular aspect of one of these megatrends, and (2) write six comments that share your reflections on some of your section mates’ essays.

Your essay should address four questions in the context of the organization you choose:

  1. Why do you think the megatrend you selected is important to your organization’s management of process improvement and/or product development?
  2. What is the organization’s management doing to address this issue in the short term (the next two years) and the medium term (two to ten years out)?
  3. What other steps do you recommend the organization’s management take to address this issue in the short and medium terms?
  4. In the context of this organization, what are one or two important open questions related to this issue that you are unsure about that merit comments from your classmates?

Your essay should convey facts, analysis, and your recommendations. It should focus on a single organization (e.g., a single company, non-profit organization, or government agency) and a concern related to one megatrend. It is fine if the concern you choose relates to other megatrends that the organization is facing, but that’s not required. Roughly a third of your essay should be dedicated to each of the first three questions, with just a few sentences dedicated to the fourth question. Your essay should be at least 700 words but no more than 800 words, and must conclude with a word count in parentheses (such as 778 words).

When posting your essay to Open Knowledge, be sure to enter “Machine Learning”, “Additive Manufacturing”, or “Isolationism” in the Topics field.

More details on research, sourcing, deadlines, and other matters are provided in the RC TOM Challenge: 2018 note.  For assistance with the Open Knowledge platform during business hours (9:00 am – 5:00 pm M-F), email openknowledge@hbs.edu. A short video with instructions on how to post an essay to this platform is available at https://aiinstitute.hbs.edu/platform-rctom/how-to/.

Submitted (926)

Machine-learning in insurance is a sweet deal for customers
Ed Arthy
Last modified on November 12, 2018 at 10:20 pm
Tired of being given lemons by traditional insurers, customers are turning to Lemonade
American Express has Struck Gold with Machine Learning
PM
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 7:40 pm
American Express, a company which has been around for over 150 years, moves into the next generation harnessing the power of machine learning.
LEGO: Leveraging the Building Blocks of Open Innovation
Pallavi M
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 4:32 pm
How LEGO's legion of global fans helped the company drive value from open innovation.
Enabling patients to get innovative treatments faster through machine learning at GSK
Maxime
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 4:36 pm
This article explains how GSK is using machine learning to increase R&D productivity and accelerating drug development timelines.
A 126-year old company that sells Artificial Intelligence?
IoT nerd
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 2:50 pm
BHGE is finding new ways to create value for oil and gas customers by leveraging machine learning techniques.
3-D printing our way to space?
WJB
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 4:42 pm
Additive manufacturing has already begun to revolutionize NASA’s R&D processes, but, despite its innovation potential, NASA must be wary of its application beyond developmental processes.
Betting on machine learning to save lives
Robert Galbraith
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 7:00 am
Machine learning is disrupting traditional industries such as transportation (ride-hailing) and financial services (credit scoring, robo-advisory). Can it also transform the traditionally human-intensive healthcare industry too?
Myth or Reality: Exploring the Potential for Machine Learning to Improve Care Delivery in the UK’s National Health Service
Ollie Osunkunle
Posted on November 12, 2018 at 8:50 pm
Machine-learning driven advancements in healthcare have promised much but left us waiting. Will the UK National Health Service's latest effort fare any better?
Turning Big Data into Clean Electrons at NextEra
tsides
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 7:05 pm
As prices drop and competition intensifies in the world of solar and wind, can generators use machine learning to maintain healthy margins?
It’s all up from here! Machine Learning & Predictive Maintenance in Elevator Service
Up!
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 2:25 pm
ThyssenKrupp’s MAX is on the rise
SpaceX – Surviving Enrico’s Paradox
Bruce Willis
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 6:43 pm
SpaceX is in an epic effort to make humans a multi-planetary species, and escape the trap of Fermi's Paradox. To achieve this the Company has been adopting 3D-printing to gain efficiencies and reduce costs. Will it be enough?
Space Wars advancing additive manufacturing?
Starwars
Posted on November 12, 2018 at 11:43 pm
The race to colonize space is spurring rapid application of additive manufacturing
Will machine learning help the Commonwealth Bank of Australia avoid the next banking scandal?
Alan Tuning
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 6:56 pm
Managing regulatory and reputational risk has become the top priority for the financial services industry in Australia in 2018 – so how will machine learning help?
HackerOne: Using Open Innovation to Foster a Cyber Secure Environment
Dwayne Johnson
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 6:27 pm
The world of cybersecurity can be a complex place. With the advent of the internet, increasingly more data is ripe for hacking and companies are scrambling to protect it. HackerOne thinks it has a solution to keep information protected for [...]
What’s your alibAI: rise of recidivism reducing robots
MBA2020Student
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 5:15 pm
In a small county in northern England, a police constabulary is taking the first faltering steps to outsourcing their recidivism decisions to a machine. Can machines do it better than humans, and who decides if they should be allowed?
Operation Love Serenade: Fighting corruption in Brazil with an open-source, Machine Learning-powered robot
FRomano
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 6:28 pm
Motivated to fight corruption in Brazil, tech-savvy citizens used crowdfunding to start a non-profit, open-source project that uses data science for the purpose of monitoring public spending.
Building the Worlds You Want To See: Lego Calls on You To Co-create
Gwen James
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 2:49 am
In an increasingly digital world, Lego, the famous plastic construction toy company, continues to generate interest in physical toys and to build brand loyalty by leveraging crowdsourcing and user co-creation for popular product innovations.
Not just winging it: predicting airfare at KAYAK
Em Batt
Last modified on May 23, 2019 at 5:36 am
How KAYAK uses machine learning to predict drops in plane ticket prices.
Printing the Future of Helicopters with Bell
Ryan Lynch
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 5:43 pm
3D printing is reshaping the way that the aerospace industry develops and produces aircraft. Bell Helicopters is turning additive manufacturing into a competitive advantage within the world of rotary wing aerospace.
Navigating Drug Discovery using AI
Licensed Drug Dealer
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 12:11 am
After the boom of Blockbuster(drugs with revenues exceeding $1B/yr) approvals in the 90’s, there has been a slowdown in the development of new drug entities (NDE). With drugs already in the market for easy to identify targets, research in academia [...]
The Artificially Intelligent Brewer: Carlsberg’s Breakthrough Project
Roni
Posted on November 14, 2018 at 8:02 am
Humans have been producing beer for over 5,000 years, and it has become our most consumed alcoholic beverage worldwide. But is brewing an art or a science? The rise of the craft beer segment suggests that many of us perceive [...]
To Catch a Rogue Train – SMRT’s Continuous Fight against Rail Breakdown
Kai
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 4:00 pm
In the backdrop of increasing ridership and almost zero tolerance for breakdown, Singapore’s rail operator, SMRT, is turning to machine learning and predictive maintenance to manage failure.
GE’s additive capability; Is it a future of GE or just another potential business for divesture?
Daichi Ban
Last modified on November 13, 2018 at 7:29 pm
GE is always seen as a leader for its manufacturing capabilities and spent significant amount of money to build up its additive manufacturing business. Though additive manufacturing has huge potential, it can be realized only if leveraged appropriately. What should [...]
Tesla – Fully Autonomous Driving Has Never Been Closer
Michelangelo
Posted on November 13, 2018 at 8:18 pm
Tesla's competitive advantage in self-driving cars.
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