ABSTRACT
A review of the limited literature on private sector impact assessment shows recognition of it as a valuable tool in good business planning, especially within an increasingly complex business environment. Though the potential for impact assessment in the private sector had been recognized, limited data has been available on its actual role in American Industry. This chapter aims to determine the status of the impact assessment of technologies in the private sector--to learn what types of companies have been doing it, for what reasons, using what techniques and what types of personnel, and with what results. Given the nature of social change, the private sector must consider a series of additional factors in its planning activities. Broadly stated, technology assessment in the private sector can be defined as the process of examining the impacts, on the individual company and on society as a whole, of a technology new to the company.
