E-Business: Enterprise 02.03

125 Pages·2002·5.718 MB·English

by  Michael J. Cunningham

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E-Business
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Michael J. Cunningham
(cid:2)Fast track route to understanding and mastering e-business tools
and opportunities
(cid:2)Covers the key areas of e-business, from developing e-business
strategies and learning how to complement an existing business
initiative to using e-business as a change management tool as
well as a competitive weapon
(cid:2)Examples and lessons from some of the world’s most successful
businesses, including Staples, Travelocity, eBay and COVISINT,
and ideas from the smartest thinkers, including Patricia Seybold,
Thomas Koulopoulos, John Hagel III, Marc Singer, Thomas H.
Davenport and John C. Beck
(cid:2)Includes a glossary of key concepts and a comprehensive
resources guide
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E-Business N
02.0 TERP
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IS
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Michael J. Cunningham
(cid:2)Fast track route to understanding and mastering e-business
tools and opportunities
(cid:2)Covers the key areas of e-business, from developing e-business
strategies and learning how to complement an existing
business initiative to using e-business as a change
management tool as well as a competitive weapon
(cid:2)Examples and lessons from some of the world’s most
successful businesses, including Staples, Travelocity, eBay
and COVISINT, and ideas from the smartest thinkers, including
Patricia Seybold, Thomas Koulopoulos, John Hagel III, Marc
Singer, Thomas H. Davenport and John C. Beck
(cid:2)Includes a glossary of key concepts and a comprehensive
resources guide
CopyrightCapstonePublishing2002
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1988
Firstpublished2002by
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CIPcataloguerecordsforthisbookareavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
andtheUSLibraryofCongress
ISBN1-841122-807
ThistitleisalsoavailableinprintasISBN1-84112-212-2
SubstantialdiscountsonbulkquantitiesofExpressExecbooksareavailable
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Introduction to
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Contents
IntroductiontoExpressExec v
02.03.01 Introduction 1
02.03.02 DefinitionofTerms 5
02.03.03 TheEvolutionofE-Business 15
02.03.04 TheE-Dimension 29
02.03.05 TheGlobalDimension 45
02.03.06 TheStateoftheArt 55
02.03.07 InPractice:E-BusinessSuccessStories 69
02.03.08 KeyConceptsandThinkers 87
02.03.09 Resources 101
02.03.10 TenStepstoMakingE-BusinessWork 105
FrequentlyAskedQuestions(FAQs) 117
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Introduction
What is the role of e-business in the modern world of business? This
chapterconsidersthechangingnatureofe-business,including:
» whycompaniesneedtousee-businessasacompetitiveweapon;and
» howe-businesshasbecomeametaphorforbothsuccessandfailure
inmanyorganizations,yetisneededtoensuresuccessforalmostany
operationinthefuture.
2 E-BUSINESS
As more organizations understand the importance of e-business con-
cepts, the prefix e- may eventually disappear from our vocabulary.
Whether we want it to happen or not, e-business affects every orga-
nization. It is impossible to hide from its impact or influence in the
marketplace.
E-businesswillremainveryimportanttoourorganizations;however,
understanding e is not as much of a challenge as we all might think
to begin with. Throughout the rise and fall of the New Economy
(whatever that has turned out to be), vendors and influencers in the
marketplacehavetriedtokeeptherelevanceofe-businesshiddenfrom
the average Joe on the street. Much has this has happened because
of the propensity of vendors to have solutions looking for problems.
(Hammers looking for nails, as I like to call it.) Also, the media and
thefinancialmarketshaveheldswayduringthisprocess,causingfirms
to take action just for the sake of it. The reality is that technology
and the supporting work processes that make up e-business are just
alternatives. They can be ignored or they can be used, but they are
options,nomoreandnoless.
Beginning with the fundamentals, there are three ways that we
can do business: directly with consumers,commonly known as B2C;
betweenbusinessoperations,whetherinsupplychains,partnerships,
ordevelopmentenvironments(B2B–BusinesstoBusiness);andinter-
nally inside the organization (B2E–Business to Employee). Using
e-businesstoolsandtechniquesdramaticallyassistsorganizationswith
thedevelopmentanddeliveryofimprovedstrategies.
Onethingwedonowknow,isthattheworldwillneverbethesame
againforus,nowthatthistechnologyisoutthereinthemarketplace.
TheInternethasmeantchangeforus,wehaveexperiencedtheearly
years, but as James Champy, chairman of Perot Systems consulting
practiceandalsoheadofstrategyforthecompany,quippedatarecent
conference‘‘Wearetenminutesintoa24hourpokergame.’’Wehave
alreadyhadtochange,butwearestillnotsurehowmuchmoreisto
come.
Foranystrategytobecomeasuccessfule-businessplan,focusingon
the business in e-business is a great place to start. While that might
sound trite, it is unlikely that e-business technology alone will trans-
formyouroperation.Mostfirmsthathavebeensuccessfulusingthese
INTRODUCTION 3
technologieshaveinitiatedchangeassociatedwiththeirexistingbusi-
nesses and created opportunities through incremental improvements
inoperationsforthemselvesandtheirclients.
Thisbookisagoodexampleofsuchachange.Traditionalpublishing
models have followed a pattern unchanged in centuries. The book
outline is prepared, a contract is signed with the author, and this
is followed by development of copy, editing production, printing,
marketing,anddistribution.Typicaltimelinesarearound9–12months
from beginning to end. Far too slow for some of the time-sensitive
informationcontainedinthisseries.So,takingadvantageofelectronic
creation, production, and distribution technology, a new product,
process, and business model emerges, one not bound by book-
sellers, marketing timelines, and the processes normally associated
with marketing books. This example, like most examples in the e-
business category, does not mean that the traditional book market is
going away, but in the same way that Amazon has changed the way
thatmanyshopforbooks,theothere-businesstechnologieswillcreate
newoptionsforthepresentationanddeliveryofinformation.
CHANGE-READY AND ARMED FOR THE FUTURE
Building business environments that are ready for change may turn
out to be the most important aspect of using e-business technology.
Managers today are faced with many challenges: paying attention to
costsandproductivitywhilestayingflexibleenoughtoensurethatthey
arereadyforthenextroundofchangesthatmarketsandcompetitors
thrustuponthem.Inadditiontobeingexpertsintheirfields,managers
havetostayabreastofthemostimportanttechnologydevelopments,or
riskmissingopportunities.Usinge-businesstechnologiesandsystems
canhelpinthiseffort.
Market conditions are changing faster than ever, yet our ability to
adaptanddealwiththesechangesseemstobedecreasing.Despitethe
factthatinformationtechnologyande-businesssolutionsthatmeetthe
mostcomplexbusinesstransactionsarematureandavailable,thegap
between the organization that wins the first time out and the others
continuestowiden.HowcanoperationssuchasCiscoandAltracreate
tremendous value using technology to support their business needs,