Technological readiness levels are widely employed for managing innovations. Technological readiness is not the sole factor which determines the feasibility or success of an innovation. Other dimensions of readiness are equally important, think of market readiness, and definitely also “ethical readiness”.
Six questions about means and ends for reflection and discussion about the ethical readiness of an innovation:
- Innovation for good cause, or questionable/controversial?
- Is the aim unambiguous, or are there conflicting values?
- Are there hidden underlying motives?
- Does the means work for the intended purpose?
- Can the means be misused for unwanted purposes?
- What (un)intended (side) effects could the means have?