Understanding Networked Applications:
A First Course
Chapter 3
by
David G. Messerschmitt
Taxonomy of organizational
applications
Commerce:
Inter-enterprise
Consumer
Inter-consumer
Enterprise
Department
Economy
Understanding Networked Applications
2
A First Course
Buzzwords
• Business process reengineering (BPR)
• Enterprise resource planning (ERP)
– Outgrowth of manufacturing resource planning
(MRP)
• Supply chain management
Understanding Networked Applications
3
A First Course
Some types of applications
•
•
•
•
•
•
Worker collaboration
Operations and logistics
Decision support
Information and knowledge management
Customer/supplier commerce
Consumer commerce
Understanding Networked Applications
4
A First Course
Some ERP categories
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Sales force management
Document management
Customer service and support
Manufacturing logistics
Accounting
Human resources
Supply-chain management
Understanding Networked Applications
5
A First Course
Questions
• Do you have experience with any of these
options?
– In terms of:
• Effectiveness
• Pain
• Time/budget
Understanding Networked Applications
6
A First Course
Fundamental options
• Custom application molded to existing
organization
• Custom application molded to reengineered organization
• Mold organization to off-the-shelf
application
– Common off-the-shelf (COTS) technology
– Highly configurable
Understanding Networked Applications
7
A First Course
Questions
• How standardized are organizational
processes?
– Customer service
– Finance
– Manufacturing
• Is software a good way to propagate best
practices?
Understanding Networked Applications
8
A First Course
Productivity quandary
• Economists have difficulty identifying
major productivity improvements due to
investment in information technology
• Questions:
– How does one separate quality from
productivity?
– In what ways can computing harm
productivity?
Understanding Networked Applications
9
A First Course
Electronic commerce
• Two varieties:
– Supply chain management: extension of
ongoing business processes to suppliers and
customers
– Marketplace: dynamic, opportunistic
transactions conducted over the network
• Question:
– What are some characteristics of these options,
in terms similar to social applications?
Understanding Networked Applications
10
A First Course
Electronic marketplace
• Matching buyers and sellers
– Deferred-publication style
– Recommender systems
• Negotiating terms
– Task or work group
– Electronic auctions
• Consummation
– Electronic payments and fullfillment
• Customer service
Understanding Networked Applications
11
A First Course
Questions
• For both buyer and seller:
– How does an auction differ from standard
pricing/discounting?
– What impact might recommender systems
have?
– Electronic payments? Bank account transfer
authorizations?
Understanding Networked Applications
12
A First Course
Opportunities in consumer
electronic commerce
• Equivalent of sales by direct-mail catalog
– How is it different different?
• More ways to match buyer and seller
• More payment options
• Recommender systems
– What uses?
• Mass customization
• Superstore: consolidation of suppliers
Understanding Networked Applications
13
A First Course
Advantages over direct-mail
catalog
• Customers find you
– But gaining attention remains an issue
• Multimedia
• Fewer human agents -- labor savings
• Escalation to remote conferencing
Understanding Networked Applications
14
A First Course
Matching buyer and seller
• Fixed price
• Price based on buyer characteristics
–
–
–
–
History
Demographics
Behavior
Sequential versioning
• Auctions
Understanding Networked Applications
15
A First Course
Intermediation
• What intermediaries will be eliminated?
• What are legitimate roles for intermediaries
in the networked age?
• What are some innovative roles for
intermediaries?
Understanding Networked Applications
16
A First Course
Payment options
•
•
•
•
(Topic of Chapter 14)
Account transfer authorization
Credit/debit card
Digital cash
– Privacy
• Micropayments
– Low transaction costs
– Consolidation
Understanding Networked Applications
17
A First Course
Recommender systems
• Extend and systematize the “reference”
• Suggest coupled sales
• Customer service:
– discussion forums
– knowledge bases
Understanding Networked Applications
18
A First Course
Mass customization
• Requires supply chain management
• Just-in-time production
• Supplier component integration (e.g. Dell)
Understanding Networked Applications
19
A First Course
Superstore
• Dynamic consolidation of multiple suppliers
• Major application of XML (discussed in
Chapter 15)
– Consistent presentation
Understanding Networked Applications
20
A First Course