If there is a single concept that characterizes today's internetworked E-Business environment, it is that we live in a global business environment. Where "here" is doesn't matter any more. Anyone from literally anywhere on the planet can access any Internet web page at any time, redefining the marketing concept of the importance of "location, location, location." The impact of this fact is discussed in Section I of the chapter. Of particular interest is "The E-Business Organization" section and figure 12.4, which compares the pre-E-organization to the current E-organization. The vignette on Cisco Systems which begins on page 496 provides an excellent perspective on today's modern E-organization. Your job is to be aware of the characteristics of today's successful E-organization and to look for opportunities within your organization to implement some of these concepts.
Figure 12.8, page 500, and the "E-Business/IT Strategic Planning" section on page 499 provide an excellent overview of the development of customer value. Key to the process is the generation of feedback and questions that help you ultimately focus on how customers define value and how the company can deliver value to the customer.
Section II further develops the international nature of today's E-business. The "Cultural, Political, and Geoeconomic Challenges" section that begins on page 511 focuses on one of today's major E-business challenges. The section on "Cultural Challenges" and the vignette on the Challenges in the European Union are a particularly good introduction to this important issue. Believe it or not, people in Europe, Asia, South America, Africa, and the Far East don't necessarily view the world as we in America do, nor do they respond to advertising as we do. The challenge is to address these cultural differences and develop an E-business strategy that addresses the widest possible autidence. There is a reason why sociology is part of the university core curriculum.