E-Business Project: Guide: Prof. M P Sebastian
E-Business Project: Guide: Prof. M P Sebastian
M P Sebastian
2011
E-Business Project
Contents
Acknowledgement 1. Introduction 2. Objective Goal of e-business Purpose of e-business 3. Methodology Strategy Analysis Design Implementation Training Project Management 4. Details Type of e-business Characterization of e-business Front office & Back office 5. Project (SAP Labs Pvt Limited) 5. Conclusion Advantages Disadvantages Problems 6. Bibliography
Acknowledgement
Apart from the efforts of me, the success of any project depends largely on the encouragement and guidelines of many others. I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the people who have been instrumental in the successful completion of this project. I would like to show greatest appreciation to Prof. M P Sebastian. I cant say just thank you for his tremendous support and help as he provided lot of points while explaining the details of each chapter in the classes. I felt motivated and encouraged every time I attended his sessions in the class. Without his encouragement and guidance this project would not have completed. The guidance and support received from all the peers in SAP labs who contributed to this project, was vital for its success. I am grateful for their constant support and help.
Name Of Student- Arvind Gupta Stream- ePGP-03 Roll No- epgp-03-103 Place- Bangalore Date- 13th November2011
INTRODUCTION
E-business is an acronym for 'Electronic BUSINESS.' The word 'e-business' has been derived from terms such as "e-mail." As the name implies, e-business means conducting or operating business through the Internet. It also pertains to any form of business transaction in which the parties interact electronically rather than by physical exchanges or direct physical contact. The main aim is to establish a positive reputation of the enterprise as well as sell goods and services. Internet is used as a medium like print and broadcast to promote business and earn profits. It is also used to collaborate with business partners. One of the first to use the term was IBM, when, in October, 1997, it launched a thematic campaign built around the term. In e-business, on the other hand, ICT is used to enhance ones business. It includes any process that a business organization (either a for-profit, governmental or non-profit entity) conducts over a computer-mediated network. A more comprehensive definition of e-business is: The transformation of an organizations processes to deliver additional customer value through the application of technologies, philosophies and computing paradigm of the new economy. Three primary processes are enhanced in e-business. 1. Production processes, which include procurement, ordering and replenishment of stocks; processing of payments; electronic links with suppliers; and production control processes, among others; 2. Customer-focused processes, which include promotional and marketing efforts, selling over the Internet, processing of customers purchase orders and payments, and customer support, among others; and 3. Internal management processes, which include employee services, training, internal information-sharing, video-conferencing, and recruiting. Electronic applications enhance information flow between production and sales forces to improve sales force productivity. Workgroup communications and electronic publishing of internal business information are likewise made more efficient E-business has received much attention from entrepreneurs, executives, investors, and industry observers recently. As information technologies (IT) develop, novel ways of business process redesign (BPR) emerged, creating turmoil in the industry. Organizations today frequently integrate Internet technology to redesign processes in ways that strengthen their competitive advantages. Success breeds imitation and invites more entries. The rapid expansion of ecommerce values in the 5 past few years convinced many people that a new economy has
emerged. CEO of SAP always says that we need to move according to the market that is the reason HANA, cloud computing & In-Memory database for futuristic approach and revamp the service market place. And the most successful new business models are probably those that can integrate Internet technology to all activities of the enterprise-wide value chain. The three principal categories of e-business applications are:1. Electronic markets or e-marketplaces: buying and selling goods and services. 2. Inter-organizational systems: facilitating inter and intra-organization flow of goods, services, information, communication, and collaboration. 3. Customer service: providing customer service, help, handling complaints, tracking orders, etc. As information technologies developed, novel ways of business process redesign emerged. Most organizations today use Internet technology to redesign their processes in ways that provide new competitive advantage. Through the infrastructure of existing B2B exchanges in the emarketplaces, many organizations will eventually be able to integrate activities of their value chain encompassing suppliers, customers, and distribution channels within an industry or across industries. The potential of ebusiness is so great that many believe that e-business is the new economy that decides the success of future business organizations. Andy Grove, Chairman of Intel boldly stated in 1998: Within 5 years, all companies will be Internet companies or they would not be companies. Another say E-business is more than just having a web presence to facilitate buying and selling. Frank Jones, VP of IBM Corporation, provides this definition: E-business is exploiting the combined power of the internet and information technology to fundamentally transform key business strategies and processes. It is widely acknowledged today that new technologies, in particular access to the Internet, tend to modify communication between the different players in the professional world, notably: Relationships between the enterprise and its clients, Internal functioning of the enterprise, including enterprise-employee relationships, The relationship of the enterprise with its different partners and suppliers.
E-Business Objectives
Objectives give the business a clearly defined target. Plans can then be made to achieve these targets. This can motivate the employees. It also enables the business to measure the progress towards to its stated aims. The objectives of e-business can be summaries as below:-
reduce process errors reduce the cost of core service provision free staff to provide value added services improve morale give people the tools and time they need
Profit satisfying try to make enough profit to keep the owners comfortable probably the aim of smaller businesses whose owners do not want to work longer hours. Sales growth where the business tries to make as many sales as possible. This may be because the managers believe that the survival of the business depends on being large. Large businesses can also benefit from economies of scale. A business may find that some of their objectives conflict with one and other: Growth versus profit: for example, achieving higher sales in the short term (e.g. by cutting prices) will reduce short-term profit. Short-term versus long-term: for example, a business may decide to accept lower cash flows in the short-term whilst it invests heavily in new products or plant and equipment. Large investors in the Stock Exchange are often accused of looking too much at short-term objectives and company performance rather than investing in a business for the long-term.
Changing Objectives:A business may change its objectives over time due to the following reasons: A business may achieve an objective and will need to move onto another one (e.g. survival in the first year may lead to an objective of increasing profit in the second year). The competitive environment might change, with the launch of new products from competitors. Technology might change product designs, so sales and production targets might need to change.
Goal of e-Business
The goal of any e-Business project is to create value. Value can be created in different manners:
increase in
Increasing the quality of products or services Prospecting new clients Increasing customer loyalty Increasing the efficiency of internal functioning
As
a result of increased staff motivation. The transition from a traditional activity to an eBusiness activity ideally makes it possible to motivate associates to the extent that: The overall strategy is more visible for the employees and favors a common culture The mode of functioning implies that the players assume responsibilities Teamwork favors improvement of competences
As
a result of privileged relationships with the partners. The creation of communication channels with the suppliers permits: Increased familiarity with each other Increased responsiveness Improved anticipation capacities Sharing of resources that is beneficial for both parties An e-Business project can therefore only work as soon as it adds value to the company, but also to its staff, its clients, and partners.
METHODOLOGY
There are some key differences between the development approach that's appropriate for building e-business systems and the approach that's appropriate for building traditional client/server systems. However, the differences are not as great as many people imagine. Too many inexperienced e-business project managers think that they're simply "knocking together" a Web site. Faced with ever-tightening deadlines and pressure from ignorant clients or users, these project managers believe that it will be okay to skip key stages in the systems development lifecycleonly to find out later how wrong they were to do so. Such an approach is doomed to failure, because the skipped stages tend to be those that ensure quality in the final product. By using of e-business we can differentiate our new economy relationship from the old ones.
Figure . Old Economy Relationships vs. New Economy Relationships The above figure shows that in Old Economy Relationship consumers were not connect directly to the producer, so it has a lack of closeness of a producer to his consumer because it is a linear function of consumer and producer in which retailer was a medium. But in New Economy Relationship a customer can directly connect to his producer and producer can interface with his customer. There is no third party medium like Old Economy System. So in this system, a customer is not depend on his retailer. In fact, it's arguably even more essential to adhere closely to a systems development methodology when building e-business systems, which can cut across organizational boundaries, across country boundaries, and can involve the integration of a great number of systems.1 Without the correct planning and methodologies applied, an ebusiness system is likely to fail. However, implementing a solid methodology doesn't necessarily mean that it will take longer to create a working system; it can actually help improve the chances of meeting tight deadlines. In cases where the chances of meeting such deadlines were nonexistent in the first place, a solid
methodology can help the clients or users to understand the reasons that the deadlines are not feasible and can help them to take some ownership for some of the timescale issues.
Strategy
It's important that user/client expectations be managed early on in the process of building an ebusiness system. Facilitated workshops involving users/clients as well as knowledgeable ebusiness staff can help. Users/clients need to realize that ebusiness strategy is still about working out the best mission statement, goals, and objectives to enable a retailer to be an excellent retailer or a financial institution to be an excellent financial services provider. It's not about working out how to be an excellent e-business. Encourage clients/users to use e-business systems to carry out their current business better, rather than trying to do something newthere will almost always be someone else who can do the new thing bigger and better because they have more experience or money.
Analysis
Users/clients should not be allowed to think that requirements analysis can be skipped for ebusiness systems because "there's not enough time." Studies show that spending more time on analysis up front considerably reduces the chances of the system failing later on. Because requirements for e-business systems can be critical customer or business partner expectations often include reliable, available (24 * 7 * 365), secure systems that are scalable, able to perform under high load, and able to cope with cross-country and cross-organizational transactionsit's vital to spend plenty of time up front getting these systems right. It's a good idea to design, build, and prototype the technical architecture for critical ebusiness systems ahead of writing any other code, to ensure that the technical architecture really can support the requirements. Architecture can be a massive task, for example involving getting a Web server, an application server, a content-management system, and a customer-relationship management system talking to one another. Or it might involve constructing an architecture that will support a collaborative workflow across many organizations, integrating a number of systems. A typical e-business system may need to support any or all of the following:
CRM
features. A great deal of interaction with the user; building up a personal profile of each customer and tailoring Web site features to meet that profile; providing self-service facilities, chat rooms, discussion groups, rating facilities. PRM facilities. Shared processes/workflows across many organizations; sending parts of or whole transactions securely between organizations (Web EDI, XML); sharing data and ideas securely between organizations. After the technical architecture requirements are gathered, the business requirements need to be gathered. Initial broad-brush impressions can be gathered in brainstorming meetings and JAD sessions. Iterative prototyping is a good way of subsequently refining requirements quickly when under pressure to meet tight deadlines, while still maintaining close interaction with users to ensure that the system does what it should.
Design
Iterative prototyping is also a good way of identifying issues with Web page design. human/computer interaction (HCI) issues are key when designing e-business systems because the system must be intuitive, designed for nave users, given that the user of the system is unlikely to get any training in how to use it. Design of an e-business system should involve more than just visual design, however. Just as it's important during the design phase of "traditional client/server computing," it's crucial that the design makes clear where the processing is taking placeclient side or server side (or in some middle tier, or on the database). It should also identify common code/libraries to be developed to reduce duplication, and should identify standards and guidelines to enhance maintainability.
Implementation
Because implementation of e-business systems is more likely to involve incremental development, it's vital that code development and environment/installation planning be tightly controlled to ensure that defects don't creep into the various releases. Coding standards should be adhered to, code inspections/walkthroughs should be carried out regularly, and quality should be ensured through effective testing. Testing should be carried out in all supported browsers and with all PC (or other client) configurations/screen resolutions, and although there may be an emphasis on performance/stress/security/cross-system/cross organizational testing, in general, the approach to testing should be much the same for e-business systems as it has been for traditional client/server systems. Configuration management and source code control can also be vital throughout the implementation phase. Installation/delivery must still be thoroughly plannedan e-business system might be developed and working very effectively in-house, but deployment might involve fitting the code around a live environment provided by an ISP. Allow time in the schedule for ISP incompetence, as it's rife! Of course, the client side of e-business installations is often far easier than traditional client/server installations because all the user needs to run the system is a Web browser.
Training
Installation of a new system always causes change-management issues, but ebusiness systems can involve total cultural revolution. Effective leadership is necessary so that staff see the changes in a positive light. Managers of employees who have been used to hoarding information must encourage those employees to share data with external business partners. Contrary to popular belief, it's productive to an accompany to encourage employees to play computer games, surf the Web, and use chatrooms and discussion groups, so that they're not paralyzed by technofear when they receive the new e-business system. This strategy also encourages employees to "think out of the box" about new ways in which technologies can be exploited to improve the business. They need to be taught that in the competitive, ever-changing e-business world, change must become a way of life. This can be done by encouraging employees to think of new and innovative ways of beating the competitionor to think of new and innovative ways in which the competition might beat them!
Project Management
Project management of e-business systems implementations can be difficult due to the complexities involved, but often not much more complex than many of the client/server projects that experienced project managers have already managed.
Iterative development and phased releases are issues that typical project managers have experienced, and time box approaches make it easier for managers to set and stick to deadlines. New, untried, and untested technologies and unstable development products are not new to the IT world! Lack of technical skills/training has also been an issue for many years. Project managers are accustomed to adding in contingency due to factors like this, and are also accustomed to locating bright sparks within the team who can pick up the essential skills and get those technologies working in a timely fashion.
DETAILS
In recent years, the business community and the public have been confused by distorted market signals of many dotcoms, such as the exponential growth in number of customers, artificiallylow operation costs, and inflated revenues. Some companies even resorted to dubious accounting methods to inflate revenues and deflate costs. Somehow these distorted signals have misled many people into a belief that the emarketplaces have rendered old rules of competition obsolete. As a consequence, many companies decided to shift their fundamental ways of doing business from quality, feature, innovations, service, and profits toward mainly low price and revenue growth. Without long-term profits, they failed. To succeed, companies will need to search and implement innovative strategies that capitalize on both the power of the Internet and the changes in both traditional and electronic markets. Companies that run e-business should have tight supply chain relationships with customers, suppliers, and distributors. In addition, the supply chain within e-business companies also continues to change. Businesses need to be sure that customers and suppliers can easily gain access to their websites to gain important product information for decision making. Currently, the major barrier to customers and suppliers access to the web is ease and speed of access, e-loyalty, and e-trust. Because the use of ecommerce technology tends to reduce the switching cost, it is important for e-business companies to build ts strategic position by focusing on e-loyalty which encompasses good relationships and trust with value chain partners. B2B procurement of direct goods requires a relationship, usually long-term, with a vendor who will deliver a known quality of goods. With mission critical buying, companies cannot just buy from anyone in the e-marketplace. If an order for supplies goes unfilled, the missing goods could shut down a production line or an entire factory. In B2B procurement of direct goods, tight integration with major suppliers along the supply chain is absolutely essential. Major success factors for e-business include: Internet technology fully integrated into the companys overall strategy.
Competitive advantage maintained in both operational efficiency and distinctive strategic positioning. Basis of competition not shifted from traditional competitive advantage, such as cost, profit, quality, service, and features. Companys strategic positioning well maintained. Support from top management. Buyer behavior and customer personalization. Quick time to market. Right systems infrastructure. Good cost control. Good e-business education and training to employees; management and customers. Customers and partners expectations well-managed. Good products and services offered by e-business. Current e-business systems expanded to cover entire supply chain. New competitors and market shares tracked. Website of high quality that meets or exceed user expectations. Companys virtual marketplace established.
TYPE OF e-BUSINESS
The Different Types of e-business:E- Business is the process of buying and selling of various products and services by businesses through the Internet. It deals various kind of business concern, from retail site of the consumer, which includes auction. The main focus is to concentrate on business substitutes involving goods and services between various corporations. E- Business is the purpose of Internet and the web to Conduct business but when we concentrate on commercial deals among organizations and individuals demanding selective information systems under the guarantee of the firm it accepts the form of ebusiness. Nowadays, the word e is hitting momentum. If youre looking to get into this business, one of the fore most thing you have to have is a Virtual Private Cloud Hosting keeping the traffic in mind and respecting customers valuable time.
B2C stands for Business to Consumer as the name suggests, it is the model taking businesses and consumers interaction. Online business sells to individuals. The basic concept of this model is to sell the product online to the consumers. B2c is the indirect trade between the company and consumers. It provides direct selling through online. For example: if you want to sell goods and services to customer so that anybody can purchase any products directly from suppliers website.
Directly interact with the customers is the main difference with other business model. As B2B it manages directly relationship with consumers, B2C supply chains normally deal with business that are related to the customer. B2C (Business to Consumer): Refers to a business communicating with or selling to an individual rather than a company. B2C e-commerce jumped from $11.2 billion in 1998 to $31.2 billion in 1999, Doing business online no longer requires a huge investment by retailers, thanks to developments in template-based online stores which are based on packaged applications that are delivered over the internet. As nearly all online stores will require the same functions: catalogues, order baskets, payment processing, content management and member management, it makes sense for those components to be created once and shared by all stores, with each store effectively renting its own copy of the applications. The one area where it's important for online stores to differentiate is their look and feel, and naturally retailers feel very strongly about their business branding. So the ability to create a unique skin for each site is an important part of a template-based e-store offering. Using the latest internet application technology, individual sites can be created within minutes of the retailer selecting a template and supplying graphics such as logos. Typically, retailers will pay only a modest monthly rental charge and retailers require no specialist hardware or software, other than internet access. Anyone who wants to sell products and services over the internet, or who wants customers to be able to research their purchases on the internet, should consider an online store. These days, a web site should be a standard part of the promotional and advertising mix for every business, along with other tools such as Yellow Pages, newspaper advertising and signage.
Advantages:B2C e-commerce has the following advantages: Shopping can be faster and more convenient. Offerings and prices can change instantaneously. Call centers can be integrated with the website. Broadband telecommunications will enhance the buying experience.
Challenges faced by B2C e-commerce:The two main challenges faced by B2C e-commerce are building traffic and sustaining customer loyalty. Due to the winner-take-all nature of the B2C structure, many smaller firms find it difficult to enter a market and remain competitive. In addition, online shoppers are very pricesensitive and are easily lured away, so acquiring and keeping new customers is difficult. A study of top B2C companies by McKinsey[citation needed] found that: Top performers had over three times as many unique visitors per month than the median. In addition, the top performer had 2,500 times more visitors than the worst performer. Top performers had an 18% conversion rate of new visitors, twice that of the median. Top performers had a revenue per transaction of 2.5 times the median. Top performers had an average gross margin three times the median. There was no significant difference in the number of transactions per customer and the visitor acquisition cost.
B2B stands for Business to Business. It consists of largest form of Ecommerce. This model defines that Buyer and seller are two different entities. It is similar to manufacturer issuing goods to the retailer or wholesaler. Dell deals computers and other associated accessories online but it is does not make up all those products. So, in govern to deal those products, first step is to purchases them from unlike businesses i.e. the producers of those products. It is one of the cost effective way to sell out product through out the world B2B is the selling between companies, wholesale rather than retail. But it means more than that. Efficient use of capital demands small inventories, which entails anticipating demand, and so maintaining detailed information flows between all parties involved in today's complex manufacturing processes. B2B involves widening the circle of suppliers (for safety and competition), and of centralizing control (for records and discounts). B2B ecommerce is an important part of any online business. Leaving aside the simple transfer of funds covered here many businesses need some combination of: Credit worthiness assessment. guarantee of quality and delivery of goods (escrow services). safeguards against fraud. fast collection of funds, with ability to vary the collection period. reporting: approval of sale, invoicing, delivery, payment. procedures to handle disputes. Information of all types corporate, technical, identity-building has to be Interchanged across the scattered divisions of large companies, and new ideas fostered, assessed and disseminated. Speed is vital, as are improved communication, collaboration, and customer understanding. All these requirements can be handled by IT, and software has been developed to meet the challenge customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning, online auction, supply chain management, etc. Little of it is off-the shelf, but is devised as systems to be extended and built round individual company requirements. Hence many problems with surveys. B2B has reportedly done better than B2C steadier growth, higher profits but is it software sales or savings in companies with B2B-enhanced management that have been measured? Even within the B2B market, there are marked differences between types of software and their successes. Records of some are distinctly spotty, and sales of the more advanced systems have been badly hit by the dotcom bust and US recession. Improved management is not simply a matter of installing new software: extensive
company reorganization and retraining are required to obtain even a modest payoff. These points need to be borne in mind when following up the information briefly noted below. B2B Ecommerce History An Anderson survey found that America accounted for 67% of worldwide B2B revenues in 2000, and Europe 14%. Towards the end of 2000, a gloomy period for ecommerce in America, executives remained confident about the digital marketplace. Some 45% of suppliers reported an average 31% increase in sales over the previous 6 months, and 66% of customers responding said they had increased purchases over the period. A June 2001 IDG survey came to a similar conclusion, noting that B2B trade in Brazil should near $2 billion in 2003. . Even in the B2C ecommerce slump of August 2001, the larger US retailers were planning to invest in B2B to improve customer service and supply chain management.
Benefits:
Encourage your businesses online Products import and export Determine buyers and suppliers Position trade guides
registrations to renewing licenses. There are other categories of ecommerce out there, but they tend to be superfluous. The most famous and successful example of a Consumer-to-Consumer application is Ebay. Ebay.com is an online auctioning site that facilitates the trade of privately owned items between individuals (May, 2000, p.109). The website claims that through Ebay, oepractically anyone can trade practically anything? (Ebay, 1995-2004). The company began in September 1995 when Pierre Omidyar decided to establish the first online marketplace (Ebay, 1995-2004). Since that time, the company has continued to grow both in size and popularity. Ebay is now considered one of the most successful C2C e-Businesses ever. Other examples of Consumer-to-Consumer applications are service and employment websites such as Monster.com, Seek.com.au and CareerOne.com.au. These websites provide a valuable service to consumers looking for jobs. Employers can advertise on these websites and potential employees can contact their organization for an interview. Web-based communication organizations are one final example of a C2C operation. Sites such as Sastashopping.com ICQ.com and MSN.com act as a communications medium for peer-to-peer deliberations. although there is no commercial benefit to the website, they do provide the facilities for Consumer-to-Consumer exchange. Consumer-to-Consumer applications are a growing area of eCommerce. As online business expands, peer-to-peer transactions will continue to grow in popularity and the industry will become highly profitable.
company that will complete the project. Elance empowers consumers around the world by providing the meeting ground and platform for such transactions C2B is a rather peculiar Internet phenomenon. An example of C2B e-commerce could be the following. A student wants to fly from London to New York, but has only 200 ($320) in the bank to pay for this round trip. They put up an ad in an Internet C2B site, seeking airlines that are willing to offer the transatlantic round trip for 200 or less. The beauty of the Internet is that it brings together a large number of customers to create a marketplace that a number of airlines (that will have to otherwise fly with empty seats) will be interested in. Many analysts state that C2B and C2C e-commerce will thrive in the near future. It is a challenging task, however, to construct these e-commerce systems because of their diverse nature. The existing EC construction tools, which usually focus on B2B and B2C e-commerce schemes, were designed for constructing specific e-commerce systems, making them unsuitable for developing consumer-initiated e-commerce systems. In this paper, we propose a trading model that supports C2B and C2C e-commerce through the use of digital media called vouchers and the trading system VTS. We show how the introduction of vouchers simplifies the procedures of C2B and C2C e-commerce, and show that vouchers, together with VTS, can be utilized to form a trading framework that uniformly realizes the delivery/payment phase. We demonstrate that a wide range of matching phase implementations, in which the characteristics of specific e-commerce systems such as market coordination are implemented, can be integrated into this framework.
It is a discipline that deal itself which assists people to instantly shares related computer files and computer sources without having to interact with central web server. If you are going to implement this model, both sides demand to install the expected software so that they could able to convey on the mutual platform. This kind of e-commerce has very low revenue propagation as from the starting it has been tended to the release of use due to which it sometimes caught involved in cyber laws.
M-Business
It deals with conducting the transactions with the help of mobile. The mobile device consumers can interact each other and can lead the business. Mobile Commerce involves the change of ownership or rights to utilize goods and related services.
A company can be viewed as an entity providing products or services to clients with the support of products or services of partners in a constantly changing environment. The functioning of an enterprise can be roughly modeled in accordance with a set of interacting functions, which are commonly classified in three categories: Performance functions, which represent the core of its activity (core business), i.e. the production of goods or services. They pertain to activities of production, stock management, and purchasing (purchasing function); The management functions, which cover all strategic functions of management of the company; they cover general management of the company, the human resources (HR) management functions as well as the financial and accounting management functions; The support functions, which support the performance functions to ensure proper functioning of the enterprise. Support functions conver all activities related with sales (in certain cases, they are part of the core business) as well as all activities that are transversal to the organization, such as management of technological infrastructures (IT, Information Technology function).
2. Leave request:
3. Performance tool
4. Local News
5. Training Calendar
7. SDN network
Note: If you see above functionalities they are currently available at different places and very difficult to access the same, these all include for three process so proposing the new website for the same as per below mockup and will use the single sign on based on user roles and responsibilities, this will be known as information hub for SAP labs India Pvt Limited. Proposal for single source and easily accessible for internal employees and external stakeholders: Slide 1:
Slide 2:
SDN Network
CONCLUSION
Market volatility makes understandinglet alone predicting strategic movements very difficult. Practicing managers, consultants, investors, and students all face the problems associated with analyzing a dynamic market environment. As the environment changes, it becomes important to ask the following fundamental questions: Do we understand the emerging business models? Are we investing in the right business opportunities? Are we attacking these opportunities using the right business model? Are these opportunities ever going to be profitable? In today's environment more than ever, managers of "old economy" companies need the right tools to support and improve their effectiveness when making major strategic moves, allocating
scarce resources, and managing risk. Why? Because the large "old economy" companies from consumer products to industrial manufacturing have begun to see relatively small pieces of their markets taken away by new, Web-enabled firms. As a result, they're waking up to the e-business threat (and opportunity) and have started to push toward more efficient digital strategies based on optimizing customer experiences, integrating their value chains, and accelerating information flow. Clearly, we're in the early stages of a revolution that's changing the business landscape. As with any revolution, there will be moments of extreme optimism when the potential reveals itself; there will also be moments of extreme pessimism when skepticism rules. However, one thing is certain. E-business.
be made online, products can be shipped to the customer without the customer having to leave the house. Removes Location and Availability Restrictions:Users need not be in the same physical location as an e-business and the exchange of information and transactions may take place at any given time, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and from any location in the world with Internet access. A physical location is restricted by size and limited to only those customers that can get there, while an online store has a global marketplace with customers and information seekers already waiting in line. Reduces Time and Money Spent:In e-business, there is often a reduction in costs required to complete traditional business procedures. Many of those same traditional business approaches can be eliminated and replaced with electronic means, which are often easier to carry out as well as easier on the pocketbook. For example, compare the cost of sending out 100 direct mailings (paper, postage, staff and all), to sending out a bulk e-mail. Also think about the cost of paying rent at a physical location opposed to the cost of maintaining an online site. Heightens Customer Service:With e-business customers receive highly customizable service, and communication is often more effective. There is far more flexibility, availability and faster response times with online support. For example, think about the speed of e-mail inquiries and live chat as opposed to getting on the phone, especially when that business is closedfor the day. There is also a faster delivery cycle with online sales, helping strengthen the customer/business relationship. The internet is a powerful channel for reaching new markets and communicating information to customers and partners. Having a better understanding of your customers will help to improve customer satisfaction. Gives a Competitive Advantage:The internet opens up a brand new marketplace to businesses moving online. Competition via the internet is growing as the internet itself grows and waiting too long to move online may cause you to lose your place in line entirely. Easy access to real time information is a primary benefit of the internet, enabling a company to give more efficient and valid information and helping to gain the competitive advantage over those that are not online. Although there are risks associating with e-business, as with most business decisions, there is also the risk associated with the inability to adapt to the changing times. Change is inevitable in todays marketplace and should be embraced with open arms and open sites!
Disadvantages of E-Business
Sectoral Limitations: The main disadvantage of e-business is the lack of growth in some sectors on account of product or sector limitations. The food sector has not benefited in terms of growth of sales and consequent revenue generation because of a number of practical reasons like food products being perishable items. Consumers do not look for food products on the Internet since they prefer going to the supermarket to buy the necessary items as and when the need arises. Costly E-Business Solutions for Optimization: Substantial resources are required for redefining product lines in order to sell online. Upgrading computer systems, training personnel, and updating websites requires substantial resources. Moreover, Electronic Data Management (EDM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) necessary for ensuring optimal internal business processes may be looked upon, by some firms, as one of the disadvantages of e-business. It's evident that the advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages of e-business. Every business has
to eventually change its modus operandi and adopt e-business practices in order to ensure survival and success.
Other problems are: High Internet access costs, including connection service fees, communication fees, and hosting charges for websites with sufficient bandwidth; Limited availability of credit cards and a nationwide credit card system; Underdeveloped transportation infrastructure resulting in slow and uncertain delivery of goods and services; Network security problems and insufficient security safeguards; Lack of skilled human resources and key technologies (i.e., inadequate professional IT workforce); Content restriction on national security and other public policy grounds, which greatly affect business in the field of information services, such as the media and entertainment sectors; Cross-border issues, such as the recognition of transactions under laws of other ASEAN member-countries,certification services, improvement of delivery methods and customs facilitation; and The relatively low cost of labor, which implies that a shift to a comparatively capital intensive solution (including investments on the improvement of the physical and network infrastructure) is not apparent. Starting your own e-business might sound easy, what with all the turnkey operations, website building tools, and more, but there is a lot that must go into it if it is going to be successful. Often times, the most difficult part of starting a successful e-business is coming up with the idea. Because of the sheer number of websites already existing, and the thousands upon thousands of new ones being created every day, it can be a daunting task to try and come up with a good e-business idea. Here, well go over the process behind starting an online business of your own, what aspects go into the creative process, and how to get your fledgling business off the ground. While there are lots of online businesses for virtually every market out there, it is possible to get ahead by putting a new twist on an existing idea, or providing a better product or service in less time for less money. It is not crucial that your ebusiness idea be completely original, but it is important that there be some way for it to stand out from the sea of other, undoubtedly quite similar ideas floating around it. When trying to consider possibilities for a new online business, take a look at existing examples of highly successful online businesses. eBay, Amazon, eHarmony, and similar sites all took a relatively simple idea, adapted it for the internet, and turned it into a highly polished and efficient business. Are there any other relatively simple ideas out there that could be commandeered and turned into an online business? What can you offer online that currently cannot be found on the internet, or that you can do better, cheaper, faster? Keeping these things in mind will help you ensure that your business has an edge over the competition. Another important aspect of making sure your e-business gets off the ground is to use a variety of internet marketing strategies. Many online businesses use techniques such as SEO (search engine optimization), affiliate marketing, and more in order to ensure they get a large amount of traffic, thus increasing their customer base. If you want to get ahead in the online business world, it is going to require a fair investment of time and resources into first making sure you are noticed and taken seriously. By creating a relatively unique and noticeable site you can take your ideas to their natural conclusion as an online business.
It's evident that the advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages of e-business. Every business has to eventually change its modus operandi and adopt e-business practices in order to ensure survival and success. So e-business is a better option to promote or increase our business in this high-tech society.
Bibliography
I have collected the Informations of my seminar report on e-business from different sources. Some sources are: 1) Books Authors Information management Dien D. Phan E-commerce & e-business Zorayda Ruth Andam 2) Internet www.google.com www.bing.com