Saturday - October 14, 2000

Building a Mature E-Business

For a fast-forward glimpse of life in the full-tilt New Economy, look at a technology company that has developed a mature e-business. Chances are, the e-business has fostered an array of critical improvements in corporate efficiency, employee skill sets, customer service, and revenue growth. Similarly, it has likely drawn widespread support from employees, and from existing and new customers, alike. Yet despite these considerable accomplishments, management of some sponsoring companies remain uneasy about paths not taken and risks not explored when originally rushing their e-business to market.

Leaders of 24 percent of technology companies with an e-business say theirs is now "mature." In the average of 48 months since these enterprises were launched, they have been widely credited with having positive overall impacts on corporate efficiency (cited by 74 percent); employee skill sets (71 percent); customer service (71 percent); and revenues (69 percent).

"A lot is being said today about the stunning improvement in corporate productivity brought about by technology, and, in turn, the role that higher productivity has played keeping inflation in check," said Paul E. Weaver, PricewaterhouseCoopers' global technology industry leader. "Those with well-established e-businesses are now suggesting that even more-extensive benefits are on the way."

Indeed, the majority of early e-business adopters cite an even longer list of added benefits, including stronger earnings and profit margins (60 percent); more customers (60 percent); additional products and services (59 percent); new business processes (57 percent); and more responsive delivery of products and services (52 percent).

Employees and Customers Support E-Business Strategy
Management's ardor for their mature e-business is far from unshared: 75 percent report employee support for their e-business strategy; 75 percent also cite support from existing customers, and 72 percent from new customers.

"These mature e-businesses have been successful because they have facilitated a rewarding experience - a relationship - with their customers and employees," said Mr. Weaver. "Both groups have been adventuresome in embracing this new form of business operation, and the overwhelming majority have apparently benefited."

In contrast, a lower level of support is seen from suppliers or business partners (44 percent), capital markets (26 percent), and distributors or the trade (24 percent).

"It would be appropriate for management to rethink lines of communication with groups viewed as less supportive of their e-business strategy," noted Mr. Weaver.

Despite Success: Uneasiness
Though leaders of technology companies with a mature e-business are quite pleased with the impact on their overall operations, a number also have some longstanding concerns. More than half (53 percent) worry that at the time of launch, they did not explore all the options available in their portfolio of e-business related projects. Also, 36 percent admit to not fully checking the gamut of related risks and uncertainties.

"Undoubtedly, these innovators saw initial opportunity to gain competitive advantage through speed to market," said Mr. Weaver. "Now they're wondering what untapped potential-and what risks-may have been overlooked in their enabling portfolio of e-business projects. Certainly, there's no time like the present to dig in, and find out."

Other anxieties are rife: 35 percent say they don't have a good way of valuing e-business projects; 25 percent are concerned their e-business portfolio does not adequately address the needs of their customers; 24 percent say they don't have a good way to prioritize the e-business projects they should be doing; 24 percent say they have sometimes funded the wrong or ineffective projects; 24 percent say they don't fully understand interdependencies among projects; and 22 percent say they are not monitoring their e-business portfolio adequately or often enough.

"Concerns like these are not unusual when any new technology or business process is quickly implemented," noted Mr. Weaver, "but they should not be allowed to linger. Time spent resolving these issues is time well spent."

Amazon Tastes its own Patent-Pending Medicine
According to Forbes:

"Live by the sword, die by the sword.

That's the lesson Amazon.com may learn the hard way, thanks to OpenTV , a company that makes software and infrastructure for interactive TV (iTV) set-top boxes.

OpenTV is the latest to file for patent rights to the 'one-click' shopping tool...In late September OpenTV applied to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to broaden the scope of a patent originally awarded to the company in 1998 so it includes 'one-click' shopping...Should the Patent Office decide in OpenTV's favor, Amazon could be forced to either pay licensing fees for one-click shopping or abandon it altogether..."

Click here for the full story

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