These trends form the basis for the organization and content of the
two major portions of this book.

In Part I, we consider the understanding and knowledge needed
for the effective management of these intangible assets, that is, the
"care and feeding" of technology itself. This involves, first of all,
a clear understanding that technology is indeed as asset, albeit an
intangible one, requiring careful management in a number of areas.
These include such areas as valuation of technology, protection of
technology as intellectual property, and various approaches to the
acquisition or development of technology. These are very common
activities relative to fixed assets, such as manufacturing facilities,
buildings and vehicles, but not nearly as well known for intangible
assets such as technology.

Also in Part I, we consider several other issues in the effective
management of technology. First, there is increasing recognition
that outsourcing can be a very effective management technique,
and technology management is no exception. Second, and finally,
we address perhaps the most intangible characteristic of all, the
cultural aspects of technology management that can impact the
outcome of any technology management effort.

In Part II, Strategic Options, we address the know-how required
to convert technology into workable business strategies. This in-
volves the choice among strategic options available to maximize
the yield on the technology. All too often, the entrepreneur limits
his or her strategy to the utilization of the technology for manufac-
ture in captive productive facilities, and the subsequent distribution
and marketing of the resulting product. While this is often a good
choice, there are other strategic options that should be considered,
either instead of, or in conjunction with, the captive manufacturing
option. One of the alternatives involves marketing the technology
itself in a licensing or technology transfer program. Here the
technology can be repeatedly licensed to others, thus generating
substantial income while still maintaining one's own rights to
practice. Another strategic option that is often overlooked involves
the use of the technology as a trading chip, or leverage, in the

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