Human Capital And Technology Adaptation Study

Technology is playing a crucial role in helping countries and enterprises achievingcompetitive advantages and core competencies. In open economy, relatively backwardcountries and firms can rely on assimilation and imitation of advanced technology toachieve technological development. It is one of important factors to affect the effect ofspillovers whether the technology introduced is appropriate to be absorbed, applied andintegrated into matches with the inherent technology system. Human is that who absorb,apply, improve and innovate technologies, so the level of human capital has great influenceon technological selection. This paper focusing on the fit between human capital andtechnological selection is mainly concerned with two questions. One is that whytechnological selection must math the level of human capital. And the other is how humancapital can fit the technological selection.This paper has answered the first question from three aspects.①The factors that affectthe appropriateness of technology are summarized by reviewing the literature ofappropriate technology theory.②The mechanism of dynamic fit between technologicalselection and human capital is examined. Based on the further research on the relationshipof the interaction between human capital and exogenous technology selected, the model ofthe mechanism of the interaction between them has been proposed. Furthermore theexisting of a dynamic fit between them was specified. It includes two meanings. One is thattechnology selected must fit the level of human capital to maximize the marginproductivity of the combination of technology and human capital. The other is thattechnology selected and human capital need dynamically fit each other not only at staticpoint but also during the development process because the interactions make themrespectively increase. This point should be allowed for in practice.③The appropriatedecision of technological selection under constraint of technology and human capital wasdiscussed. The exogenous technology selected may be suitable to be introduced andimitated if it could fit the level of human capital. Otherwise it couldn't. Technology gap hasan important influence on the fit between them while it may affect the spillovers in anon-linear relationship. That is introducing technology is merely the best decision whentechnology gap is appropriate. Hereby, a decision-making model of technology selectionsuggested to dwell on which is the better choice technological imitation or self-innovationaccording to the different combination of human capital and technology gap.Technological capability to assimilate, use, adapt and change the technologiesintroduced is more important for firms to turn them into productivity than the selection ofappropriate technology. Thus this paper has answered the second question based on the process of building and improving technological capacity.①The mechanics that thearchitecture of human capital matches the process of building and improving technologicalcapabilities has been analyzed. There are three stages in the process of the technologicalcapacity developing. And there is big difference in nature, formation condition andconversion between explicit and tacit knowledge of technological capacity at differentstages, so different types of human capital would be needed. Technological human capitalincluding skilled human capital(marked by S)and R&D human capital(marked by R)which directly undertake the technological activities. And entrepreneurial human capitalplays (marked by E) an important role in decision-making and supporting in thedevelopment process of technology capacity. Thus the appropriate architecture of humancapital characterized by the relative importance of these three types of human capital willchange in the way S﹥R﹥E→R﹥S﹥E→R﹥E﹥S which coordinates with thedevelopment process of technological capacity from duplicative imitation, creativeimitation to self-innovation. On the basis, a model has been proposed to specify themechanics how the architecture of human capital would fit and promote technologicalcapabilities.②An operation mode of technological human capital has been formed. It ishelpful to fit the higher level of technology by improving the accumulation andtransformation of technological human capital. According to the characteristic oftechnological human capital, this paper suggests to acquire it mainly by applying internaldevelopment strategy, develop its specificity in appropriate practices and approaches andencourage it in suitable ways of compensational incentives.③A solution has beensuggested to turn the low level of human capital into technological capacity and achievecompetitive advantages through the interactions of value activities in value chain.Specifically, unskilled labor could replace skilled labor and machines in advancedtechnology system by skill-replacing technological advances. Thus capital could bereduced, whereas unskilled labor and its low-cost advantage could be exploited. Factors cancontinuously be accumulated and optimized in structure through the interactions of valueactivities that the technological choice of each activity may affect the resource endowmentof other correlative activities, which is helpful to foster competitive advantages andimprove technological capacity.This paper has not only analyzed why human capital must fit technological selection,but also how human capital can fit the technological selection. Thus a theoretical framehelpful to analyze the fit between human capital and technological selection has been builtto instruct the practices in technological selection and investments of human capital.