e-businessafrica.com

Introduction to e-Business

The term "e-Business" therefore refers to the integration, within the company, of tools based on information and communication technologies to improve their functioning in order to create value for the enterprise, its clients, and its partners.The term e-Commerce (also called Electronic commerce), which is frequently mixed up with the term e-Business, as a matter of fact, only covers one aspect of e-Business, i.e. the use of an electronic support for the commercial relationship between a company and individuals.

E-Business is not only applicable to virtual companies (called click and mortar) all of whose activities are based on the Internet, but also to traditional companies (called brick and mortar).

Creation of value.

The goal of any e-Business project is to create value. Value can be created in different manners:

• As a result of an increase in margins, i.e. a reduction in production costs or an increase in profits. E-Business makes it possible to achieve this in a number of different ways:
  • Positioning on new markets
  • 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 e-Business 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 customer satisfaction. As a matter of fact, e-Business favors:
  • a drop in prices in connection with an increase in productivity
  • improved listening to clients
  • products and services that are suitable for the clients' needs
  • a mode of functioning that is transparent for the user
• 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.