From Broadband Gaps to Governance Models: My Journey Through TIM-7001

Over the past eight weeks, I completed TIM-7001: Principles of Technology Innovation Management, the first doctoral course in my PhD program. The course explored how technology emerges, scales, and eventually becomes obsolete—while challenging us to analyze the governance, ethics, and strategy behind innovation.

While TIM-7001 covered a wide range of theories and frameworks, I chose to center my work on a single, timely domain: broadband as critical infrastructure.

Broadband isn’t just about fast internet. It is the backbone of education, healthcare, economic participation, and civic engagement. Yet despite historic federal investment, over 24 million Americans still lack reliable high-speed access.

This gap made broadband the perfect lens to examine innovation management as both a technical and societal challenge.

Across assignments, I examined broadband through three dimensions:

• Digital Equity: Who gets access, at what cost, and with what level of support.

• Cybersecurity: How to secure networks that increasingly support public services.

• Governance: What structures ensure broadband investments deliver measurable public value.

To explore these, I used a layered stack of frameworks:

• NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF) for cybersecurity and resilience

• Digital Equity Lens for inclusion and adoption

• COBIT & ITIL 4 for governance and service continuity

• Schumpeter’s Creative Destruction Theory to explain how BEAD is replacing outdated copper networks with modern fiber and wireless

I also drew from Amsterdam, Singapore, and Barcelona, cities that embed equity and ethics into broadband governance. These models demonstrated that broadband expansion must balance innovation with accountability to truly build public trust.

One of the most meaningful pieces of feedback I received came early in the course. After reviewing my first assignment on broadband as a human-centric tool, my professor encouraged me to publish the paper on SSRN (Social Science Research Network).

That recommendation resonated. By the midpoint of the class, I had not only submitted but also successfully published my work on SSRN, making my research accessible to peers and practitioners alike.

• Innovation without equity fails. Infrastructure must be built with fairness in mind.

• Governance drives trust. Without accountability, broadband risks deepening inequality.

• Theory meets practice. Applying Schumpeter’s Creative Destruction to BEAD funding showed how disruptive technologies reshape both markets and policy.

This course was more than an academic exercise. It reaffirmed that technology innovation is inseparable from public responsibility. Broadband is no longer a luxury—it is as essential as electricity or clean water.

I plan to continue building on this research, refining my dissertation focus, and contributing to broader conversations around equity, security, and innovation management.

And thanks to a push from my professor, I’ve already taken the first step into publishing—something I will carry forward throughout the PhD journey.