Electronic Business - Essay Example

Does e-Business Automate or Informate? Gp Capt (R) NA Moitra VM Administrator, Academia-research.com 05-11 03:47 Does e-Business Automate or Informate? Introduction: According to the well known web project manager Marios Alexandrou, e-business (electronic business) is, in its simplest form, the conduct of business on the internet (2010). He attributes the first usage of the term to IBM, in 1997, when it launched a commercial campaign on the internet, forcing many corporations to reconsider their perspective of their existing businesses with relation to the internet within its then supposedly definable boundary of capabilities. With the passage of time and the evolution of the internet to a seemingly limitless entity now, I would define e-business as the focussed harmonisation of information and communication technologies (ICT) in furtherance of an overall business aim. Zuboff (1988) argued that the computer, initially designed to replace lower echelon jobs by automating them had, instead, led to an unexpected outcome: a focus on what she called ‘informating’. A close look reveals that the technology implementation that Zuboff describes can be seen from two angles. One aspect concerns automation of arduous manual repetitive tasks. The other facet, more central to Zuboff, involves informating or re-designing work well beyond automated tasks so that any new data generated by computerisation could be developed by workers into a strategic company asset. Informating calls for collecting, organising, analysing and creating a database, the domain of IT specialists, who then administer it. This information flow is, therefore, educative to those who have access to the computers, thereby forestalling the planned laying off of staff. I agree with Zuboff, but find that I have to look beyond her horizon. This is because I firmly believe that computerisation works at two distinct levels: Post 1: The first and most important level is its output of information. It is this information that guides decision making authorities to an optimal business strategy, i.e. minimal cost and maximum efficiency. Information is of many types and impossible to pen. From an organisations’ point of view, the field could be narrowed, depending upon its product list, to departmental productivity rates; supply chain interaction; delivery schedules/ bottlenecks; market demand and performance, etc. Post 2: The second level is a mix of information and linked automation, fed downwards through a network, an indication that the management believes in informating. Workers are granted access to role-specific data and overall section-wise performance, creativity is encouraged. Workers now have the opportunity to explore different patterns in the information, perhaps bringing ideas to the company that will increase productivity, decrease operating costs, create new products, or serve customers better. Feedback is welcome. Workplace ethos also changes to a tension-free approach. Critical Evaluation: Consider the case of the worlds largest enterprise software company, Oracle. The first sentence that stares at you in big bold letters when you download their brochure at http://www.oracle.com/us/solutions/financial-management/018836.pdf is their USP: INFORMATION GENERATES VALUE, the Cornerstone for Sustainable Compliance and Growth. Today’s branch heads in an organisation are constantly carrying out a balancing act. On the one hand, they must comply with increasingly stringent regulations, which require a consistent flow of information. On the other, they must help guide the enterprise to a profitable future, investing in new opportunities and equipment while hedging risks to maximise Returns on Investment (ROI) and economies of scale. What is of great help here is that the information is fully transparent and the data presented is exactly the same to all heads. They are on a level playing field as a cohesive unit if called upon to make a policy judgment or a decision at the organisation level. Boeing engineers also use ‘informating’, which they describe as a collaborative, distributed and multimodal system. Their perspective is slightly different, as should be the case in two vastly differing industries. Boeing believes informating strategies emerge as industries move beyond an emphasis on productive efficiency, where ‘automating’ strategies tend to be at the forefront− like the production of Intel chips− to an emphasis on innovation and competitive advantage in which interpretation and subsequent utilisation of information to suit the organisation’s aims can be as important as the production of material goods. Automating technologies seek to extract productive value (skill, technique, strength) from human bodies and invest them in machines, making human labour superfluous. Informating technologies− for example electronic mail and bulletin boards, telecom networks, etc. also extract or externalise workers activity (e.g. planning and discussion,) but they do not seek to replace workers; they are meant to augment or enhance a workers performance. There is an inevitable but welcome result of informating: A change in workplace ethos. Informating addresses the changing roles among managers and workers that occur with the influx of information technologies. In the informated work scenario, quite different from an industrial area of operations – a trio of specific operating conditions needs to be met. 1. Managers must ‘release’ workers to explore and interpret patterns in the central databases content. In many cases, this means that managers must loosen their grip on authority to give way to a more decentralised work environment. Workers should be encouraged to look for conceptual patterns that contribute to innovation and new directions and then be rewarded for their discovery, thereby increasing motivation. 2. Workers need access to participate. This means that systems computer expertise be decentralised and distributed throughout the organisation so that workers have more direct, ongoing access to key, raw data, i.e. resources. 3. The management must make a conscious effort to develop and to train workers so they can determine context within the information collected and participate in the planning process; this is especially valid at the brainstorming level. The flexibility of Web tools for managing multimedia content, the relatively little staff required to design and maintain a site, and the technologys inherent accessibility by most users are the primary reasons behind the growing popularity of Web-based tools for informating projects. Interestingly, research has shown that information professionals - whether they are working in a corporate library or in another department as Webmasters - play a key role in designing and/or and maintaining a companys central information resource and in carrying out the informating process. Typically, the core database is the history of the organisation since inception. Even more interesting is a report that by placing most of their core database as ‘current awareness’ on their Web site, an organisation added a strategic edge by off-loading a lot of repetitious tasks/responses and directly saved millions of dollars annually in support calls. Judging from the evaluation and analysis presented above, there is no need to fear that e-business will revert to its discarded unpopular practices used in the earlier era of automation, with systems either replacing people or reducing skill level needed to do their jobs. The question: What is the difference between e-commerce and e-business? Research Plan: See http://www.apdip.net/publications/iespprimers/eCommerce-eBusiness.pdf Zorayda Ruth Andam, a Filipino lawyer, examines and defines e-commerce and e-business in her Report on the e-ASEAN Task Force UNDP-APDIP (2003). E-commerce is the use of electronic communications and digital information processing technology, in business transactions to create, transform, and redefine relationships for value creation between or among organisations, and between organisations and individuals. E-business is the transformation of an organisation’s processes to deliver additional customer value through the application of technologies, philosophies and computing paradigm of the new economy. Interestingly, both seem to have a lot in common. Are they actually different? Yes, they are. Andam very clearly distinguishes between the two. She says, “While some use e-commerce and e-business interchangeably, they are distinct concepts.” She then clarifies her point using information and communications technology (ICT) as her clinching argument. She then moves on to e-business, stating, “In e-business, on the other hand, ICT is used to enhance one’s business. It includes any process that a business organisation (either a for-profit, governmental or non-profit entity) conducts over a computer-mediated network.” She strengthens her arguments tellingly by bringing out three primary processes that are enhanced in e-business. This provides the foundation of the research. Further research: “E-business goes far beyond e-commerce or buying and selling over the Internet, and deep into the processes and cultures of an enterprise. It is the powerful business environment that is created when you connect critical business systems directly to customers, employees, vendors, and business partners, using Intranets, Extranets, e-commerce technologies, collaborative applications, and the Web.” (http://www.ebusinessprogrammers.com/ebusiness/ecommerce_and_ebusiness.asp). I have added one line above. As desired, I am rewriting the question bit. Awad, Whenever you post an order, I request you to please add that you are an international student and want your answers in simple non-technical language. It will make the writer’s job easier. Not to mention that it would save considerable time. The revised page follows. Question: E-business is simply the use of electronic communications media to do business. Traditionally, business houses conducted e-business using the internet, meaning that that a business with a physical presence incorporated electronic communications into its daily operations. In the past 5 years, a whole new area of e-business has sprung up because of the phenomenal global spread of the internet, i.e. virtual business. What is a virtual business? In e-business, the new concept of virtual business is an extremely interesting theme to understand and an equally exciting concept for companies to employ. It is summarised neatly by the statement: ‘Bricks and Mortar’ trading houses are changing to ‘Clicks and Mortar’ trading houses. Research Plan: Perhaps it would be best to research this topic chronologically. Firstly, look at the evolution of e-business. What did it mean? What did it entail? Was it a commercially viable prospect for small and medium enterprises or would it be perforce limited to the larger trading houses because of the cost factor. Having got these answers, look at the practical difficulties faced by these practitioners of e-business. What were the negative impacts? Next, look at the growth of the internet and the opportunities this growth offered. Despite its multiple advantages, why didn’t profit shoot up as expected? Was the approach to e-business correct? Was it marketing the right product? Had it selected the correct market geographically? Did it involve logistical problems in terms of shipping/supply? Would it not be more cost-effective to do business online than invest in physical space? Finally, consult E-Business Diagnostic at http://www.bdc.ca/en/business_tools/diagnostic_tools/default.htm ; this is applicable to people actually planning to start or comprehend e-business in totality. Read More