Large software organizations establish software technology units for managing the methods and tools aimed at supporting their software engineers. This division between software development and new technologies for software development establishes specialized competencies, supports standardization across software projects and departments and provides dedicated resources for innovation. However, such software technology units are faced with complex diffusion projects that are difficult and challenging to manage and that in many cases lead to unsatisfactory results. This paper reports from attempts to improve diffusion practices within a technology unit in a large software organization. Two complementary roles for software technology units, i.e. technology supplier and service provider, are presented and used for interpreting the experiences. The research suggests that technology units in large software organizations can improve their diffusion practices by complementing the traditional role as a technology supplier with that of a service provider. The paper offers lessons on how software organizations can take steps in that direction.
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