Significantly, most technologists believe that the biggest challenge will be finding the people to manage the technology. This means, managing technology will require very creative people, there is no royal road at the moment. If we do not master the knowledge of IT in the coming 21st century, how can we survive? The promise of Information Technology is that it can open doors of opportunity to change lives, to close society’s gaps, to open new horizons. Whether or not that promise will be realised depends on personal engagement and guidance for the public good. It depends upon action.
Another important point is that people’s acceptance of a technology does not mean that they are using it effectively or achieving adequate benefits for the organisation. A fair body of research suggests that few organisations get full value from their It investments, either because people have not learned how to use it well or because managers have not learned how to manage its benefits. George Bernard Shaw said, “The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can’t find them, make them.” Our challenge is to ensure that this kind of opportunity remains open in the information age, in fact that it is expanded to include more people and even brighter possibilities.
Conclusion
In this essay, I have already given the history, the role, and the challenges of information technology in our lives, our work and our communities. First, four stages are defined in the not very long IT history. I think it is very useful to know it not only because it is a revolution of human potential and opportunity, but also it is upon us and nearly everyone will be part of it whether they consciously choose to or not. It is having an impact on everything from the economy to government to medicine and education. So, in the second step, I give 7 major impacts that how IT change our lives with many valuable examples from real company. In fact, in many cases we will find that technology is not just a tool in the company, it is really is the heart of their business. Last, I think we must think about the challenges IT brings us when we take full advantages of it. We should improve ourselves if we do not want get in trouble in the near future dominated by Information Technology.
When I read the reference books of information technology, there are inevitable many jargons in the book, but I have tried my best not to use these jargons in my essay.