ISM3011 - E-Business System Fundamentals

Chapter 8: Electronic Business and Commerce

This is a fascinating chapter. It does (IMHO) an excellent job of introducing the impact of IS and IT directly on the management of today's Internetworked E-business. There are numerous concepts that must be understood if you are to successfully identify opportunities within your company.

The author begins the chapter on page 292 by defining both E-business and E-commerce. READ the real world case about Sun Microelectronics and their web based supply chain management. It provides a great introduction to what this chapter is all about.

Figure 8.2, page 294, provides an excellent overview of the integrated nature of today's Internetworked E-business. Note that ALL aspect of today's business are interrelated and work together to be successful. Of central interest is Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). As the author states on page 295, Integration is the key to success.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

The section on ERP begins on page 296. The author states that ERP is the backbone of business. Figure 8.6 provides an introduction to some commercial ERP software available. While the text introduction is good, it is brief. You should look at this Introduction to ERP from CIO Magazine. It provides a brief but complete introduction to ERP, what it can do, what it will cost, and how it can benefit today's managers.

Marketing Systems

This section, beginning on page 299, provides a great introduction to today's marketing environment (Marketing majors take special note!). The concepts of Interactive and Targeted Marketing are introduced. Central to these concepts is Customer Relationship Management (CRM), which is introduced on page 301. This is an excellent but brief introduction. This link will take you to a draft copy of a research project on CRM that I am currently developing. It will provide a more complete overview of CRM and its impact on today's Internetworked E-Business.

Section II introduces E-Commerce Fundamentals. As the author states, Few concepts have revolutionized business more profoundly than E-Commerce. The B2B, B2C, and C2C E-commerce are introduced in this section. Figure 8.30, page 325, provides all you need to know about E-Commerce (well, almost everything). All of the information in this text and class go into defining each of the eight processes in the E-Commerce Transaction Cycle. You MUST understand this if you are to successfully implement E-Commerce in your business.

Supply Chain and Value Chain Management

The Supply Chain (and Value Chain) Management section begins on page 327. As the author states, The E-Commerce opportunity lies in the fusing of each company's internal systems to those of its suppliers, partners, and customers. This fusion forces companies to better integrate interenterprise supply chain processes to improve manufacturing efficiency and distribution effectiveness.

Here are links to three PDF format articles on Supply Chain and Value Chain Management. They provide additional perspectives on these two very important tools. They are all brief (3 or 4 pages), but present the latest thinking from the E-Commerce industry.

  1. The Service Chain: Its Impact on the Value Chain and Trading Exchanges, by Doug Peters, Vice President of E-Business Solutions, Metrix, Inc. This article presents a good overview of the value chain from a customer service perspective. Figure 3 is particularly interesting. (4 pages of text)
  2. Maximizing Supply Chain Value, by Kevin Kavanaugh and Paul Matthews. This excellent examination of the Supply Chain identifies five levels of integration and explains the import of each level. It also provides a summary of the role of the supply chain in industry. (3 pages)
  3. The Promise of Value Chain Optimization, by Ted Culotta. This article examines some of the tenets of E-Commerce from the value chain perspective. Ignore the commercial for XML. (4 pages)

I cannot overstate the importance of understanding how businesses can benefit from the Internet, particularly the integrative nature of ERP and CRM, and the managerial benefits of integrated value and supply chain management. Take some time to read these and you will soon be a hero in your company. I guarantee it!!!!

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