The Great Enabler: The Role of Information Technology in Social Responsibility

1. The Great Enabler: The Role of Information Technologyin Social Responsibility Hershey H Friedman Brooklyn College Linda Weiser Friedman Baruch College Zicklin School of Business The City University of New York NEDSI 2009

2. The Great Enabler: The Role of Information Technology in Social Responsibility OVERVIEW • The Computer as “Universal Machine” • What’s so special about Information Technology? • The Great Enabler • The Force • The Dark Side of the Force • Social Responsibility: More than Just ethics NEDSI 2009

3. The Great Enabler: The Role of Information Technology in Social Responsibility OVERVIEW • Information Technology In the Service of Social Responsibility • Business Ethics and CSR • Environmental Stewardship • Valuing Customers, Employees, etc. • Individuals with Disabilities • Numerous Other Issues • Previous Work NEDSI 2009

4. The Computer as “Universal Machine” • Previously, “technology” was more likely to be special purpose • Digital computer was unique in its layers of software that turned it into any number of different machines • Maybe that’s why there was talk of a “computer revolution” when we never had, say, a “refrigerator revolution” NEDSI 2009

5. Universal also implies Everywhere • Robot limbs • ATMs • Library scanners • Virtual worlds for disabled folks • Human cyborgs? • Smart cards • TiVo • Forensics • From the earliest airline reservation system to the stuff of science fiction… NEDSI 2009

6. Information Technology has Completely Permeated Our Lives • Email - @ work 24 / 7? • Web 2.0 – the new media technologies • Communication • Creativity • Convergence, including • The blurring of our professional and personal selves As our universe expands it also shrinks • Collaboration • Community NEDSI 2009

7. The Great Enabler?What’s so special aboutInformation Technology? • Speed • Reach (global network) • Access • Digitization • Private • Anonymity NEDSI 2009

8. The Great Enabler What are the implications of these characteristics? NEDSI 2009

9. The Great EnablerTHE FORCE • Efficiency • better use of resources, e.g., time and space • Collaboration reduces redundancy • Reduced costs • Increased access means • Power to the user • Reducing the “digital divide” • Increased entrepreneurship • Creativity NEDSI 2009

10. The Great EnablerTHE DARK SIDE OF THE FORCE Remember, Grasshopper: The bigger the donut, the bigger the hole! • Malware • Internet addiction • Sexual predators, stalkers • Purposeful loss of privacy • Identity theft • Waste of resources: company time, bandwidth, • Poorly developed skills in H2H communication? NEDSI 2009

11. Social ResponsibilityIT’S MORE THAN JUST ETHICS • Commitment to ethical behavior • Appreciation of our position as environmental stewards • Profound respect for people individually and in groups. This includes employees, customers, the local and global communities, … NEDSI 2009

12. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityBUSINESS ETHICS AND CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) • Publish an annual CSR report on the company’s website. Use Web 2.0 technologies – blogs, social networking – to allow for comments. • Use Web 2.0 technologies for anonymous reporting of ethical lapses to the company ethicist. NEDSI 2009

13. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP • Enterprise wide management of the organization’s green program • Monitor energy usage, emissions • Simulation software to reduce environmental footprint • Automatically turn off equipment not in uses • U.S. Dept of Energy Industrial Technologies Program http://www1.eere.energy.gov/industry/ NEDSI 2009

14. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityVALUING CUSTOMERS • CEO blogs • Customer service wikis • Social networking for customers (e.g., American Express travel community) • Improve customer service by monitoring (with a bot) “chatter” about the company on blogs, online discussion groups, etc. • Use Twitter to promote one’s message to company followers. NEDSI 2009

15. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityVALUING EMPLOYEES • Using technology to implement a “learning organization.” • Wikis for organizational memory • Corporate social networking • Virtual worlds (e.g. SecondLife) for meeting, training, design • Use assistive technology to hire the disabled NEDSI 2009

16. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityVALUING STUDENTS?!! • Using Web 2.0 technology to bring faculty and students together in a learning organization. • Social Networking • Virtual Worlds • Assistive technology • RSS feeds, app’s for mobile devices • Online education NEDSI 2009

17. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES • The computer (and associated information technologies) is – as a “universal” machine – already a type of adaptive device. It can be easily adapted to accommodate folks with disabilities and, thus, it ought to be. NEDSI 2009

18. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES • Most of the fears that employers have about hiring the disabled, e.g., cost of making accommodations, possibility of lawsuits, mediocre performance, and hostility of co-workers are unfounded. • What is true is that individuals with disabilities will spread positive feedback to family and friends about firms that make accommodations for the disabled. • Organizations shouldn’t ignore 20% of the population. • Computer technology can be used to help accommodate individuals with disabilities in the workplace. NEDSI 2009

19. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Visually Impaired • Large monitors • Screen magnifiers • Speech synthesizers • Screen readers • Voice recognition software NEDSI 2009

20. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Visually Impaired • Digital Talking Books (DTBs) • Talking ATMs (need earphones for security) • The computer keyboard can be made usable via raised letters that can be felt by the fingertips. There are also Braille keyboards NEDSI 2009

21. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Hearing Impaired • RIT National Technical Institute for the Deaf • Light indicators for telephone, doorbell, etc. • Being deaf is not much of a disadvantage in IT since most communication is via e-mail. • For many individuals who are hard of hearing, all they may need for a job is amplified headphones and/or a powerful speaker. NEDSI 2009

22. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Speech Impairments • There are numerous possible causes of speech impairment such as injuries to the brain, mental retardation, hearing impairments, stroke, or psychological problems. • Speech computers are computers with special software to help individuals with speech impairments communicate. These programs have artificial voices which speak for the person. • Some people with speech impairments simply use a laptop computer as a communication device. NEDSI 2009

23. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Learning Disabilities • Software that provides the user with a multisensory experience is very helpful for those with learning disabilities. • The Kurzweil 3000 was developed to help students with learning disabilities such as dyslexia. The software displays scanned text on the computer. The words are read aloud and the reader can adjust the reading speed. As the words are read aloud, they are also highlighted to help the reader focus on each word. • Technology of this type can also be modified to help learning disabled individuals perform various reading tasks in the workplace. NEDSI 2009

24. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES Learning disabilities • Other services which help people with learning disabilities include: • spell checkers • grammar software • word prediction software, which predicts the next word the person will enter in the word processor, giving them a choice of words. This helps those with problems with spelling or using a keyboard. NEDSI 2009

25. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES AUTISM • It is hard for people with autism to focus attention on one thing. Not everyone interacting with them has the patience to repeat something over and over, which is what they might need. • The AuRoRA project (Autonomous Robotic platform as a Remedial tool for children with Autism) was developed to use robots to help children get over their fears and relax when interacting. NEDSI 2009

26. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES AUTISM • In one study, they used a robotic doll that copied actions in order to see how children reacted. They were allowed to interact freely with the robot. They showed no fear and enjoyed it. The children played with it by going away from the robot, and then checking to see if it was following them. Unusually for autistic children, all of these children showed a lot of eye contact with the robots. NEDSI 2009

27. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES MOBILITY IMPAIRMENT • There are special keyboard settings that enable disabled individuals who cannot use a mouse to work with the numeric keyboard instead. • Robotic wheelchairs can be very helpful for people who don’t have the ability to maneuver a wheelchair very well, as these wheelchairs can move themselves without having the user do as much work as with an ordinary wheelchair. NEDSI 2009

28. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES MOBILITY IMPAIRMENT • US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed a robot to help disabled people move around their home. The robot acts as a wheelchair but also gives a helping hand to get out of bed and get on and off other seats. NEDSI 2009

29. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES MOBILITY IMPAIRMENT • There are other kinds of robots which can help these users as well. For example the iRobotRoomba vacuums people’s floors for them, and the iRobotScooba washes them. • In the very near future, quadriplegics will be able to use their thoughts to control a computer. An experiment was already performed by researchers at Brown University in which a quadriplegic individual with a small sensor implanted in his brain was able to move a cursor, open e-mail, change channels on a television set, play Pong (a video game), adjust the volume on a television, and control a robot arm using only his thoughts. NEDSI 2009

30. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES THE ELDERLY • Nursebot, Pearl, was developed to assist elderly people in their homes.Pearl can perform such routine tasks as opening a jar, reminding people to take their medication or calling for help if they fall. • Output is also presented on the screen for people with hearing loss. NEDSI 2009

31. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityINDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITES MENTAL HEALTH • virtual reality systems are used to treat phobias and anxiety disorders. Examples include Fear of Flying, Fear of Driving, Acrophobia, Social Phobia, and Eating Disorders. NEDSI 2009

32. Information Technology in the Service of Social ResponsibilityNUMEROUS OTHER ISSUES • Privacy • Confidentiality • Digital rights management • Intellectual property • Fair use • Open source models • Creative Commons • Malware • Internet predators NEDSI 2009

33. Some previous work • R.F. Adler, Friedman, L.W. and Friedman, H.H. "The Use of Information Technology to Create a Better Workplace for Individuals with Disabilities," Management Online REview, August 2008, http://www.morexpertise.com/view/101 • Friedman, H.H. and Friedman, L.W. How Virtuous is Your Firm? A Checklist, Electronic Journal of Business Ethics and Organization Studies, forthcoming. • Friedman, H. H., Lopez-Pumarejo, T, and Friedman, L.W. “Frontiers in Mulcultural Marketing: The Disabilities Market,” Journal of International Marketing and Marketing Research, 32, 1, February 2007, 25 – 39. • H.H. Friedman, T. Lopez-Pumarejo, and L.W. Friedman, “The Largest Minority Group: The Disabled.” Business Quest, August 2006, http://www.westga.edu/~bquest/2006/commentary06.htm NEDSI 2009

34. Any questions? NEDSI 2009