5
Introduction
to
e-Business Systems
1
5
Learning Objectives
• Give examples of how Internet and
other information technologies
support business processes within
the business functions of ..
– Accounting,
– Finance,
– Human resource management,
– Marketing, and
– Production and operations
management.
2
5 Learning Objectives (continued)
• Identify the following cross-functional
system concepts, and how they can
provide significant business value to
a company:
– Cross-functional enterprise systems
– Enterprise application integration
– Transaction processing systems
– Enterprise collaboration systems
3
5
Section I
• Functional Business Systems
4
5
IT in Business
• “Business managers are moving
from a tradition where they could
avoid, delegate, or ignore decisions
about IT to one where they cannot
create a marketing, product,
international, organization, or
financial plan that does not involve
such decisions.”
5
5
Marketing Systems
• Marketing Information Systems provide
information technologies that support
major components of the marketing
function.
– Interactive Marketing
• Customer focused marketing process
• Based on using Internet, intranets, & extranets to
establish two-way communications between
customers or potential customers and the business
• Customers become involved in product
development, delivery, & service issues
6
5
Marketing Systems (continued)
– Targeted marketing
• Five targeting components
–
–
–
–
–
Community
Content
Context
Demographic/psychographic
Online behavior
7
5 Marketing Systems (continued)
– Sales Force Automation
• The sales force is connected to marketing
websites on the Internet, extranets, & the
company intranet
• Increases productivity of sales force
• Speeds up the capture & analysis of sales
data
• Allows management to provide improved
delivery information & better support of the
sales force.
8
5
Manufacturing Systems
• Support the production/operations
function
• Assists firms in planning,
monitoring, & controlling
inventories, purchases, & the flow of
goods and services
9
5
Manufacturing Systems (continued)
• Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)
– Simplify
– Automate
– Integrate
• Supports the concepts of flexible
manufacturing systems, agile
manufacturing, & total quality
management
– Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE)
– Computer-Aided Design (CAD)
– Material Requirements Planning (MRP)
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5
Manufacturing Systems (continued)
• Computer-Aided Manufacturing
(CAM)
– Automate the production process
• Manufacturing Execution Systems
(MES)
– Performance monitoring systems for
factory floor operations
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5
Manufacturing Systems (continued)
• Process Control
– The use of computers to control an
ongoing physical process
• Machine Control
– The use of a computer to control the
actions of a machine.
– Also called numerical control
12
5
Human Resource Systems
• Human Resource Information
Systems
– Support
• Planning to meet the personnel needs of
the business
• Development of employees to their full
potential
• Recruitment, selection, & hiring
• Job placement
13
Human Resource Systems (continued)
5
• Human Resource Information
Systems (continued)
•
•
•
•
Performance appraisals
Employee benefits analysis
Training and development
Health, safety, & security
14
5
Human Resource Systems (continued)
• HRM and the Internet
– Allows companies to process most
common HRM applications over their
intranets.
– Allows companies to provide aroundthe-clock services to their employees.
– Allows companies to disseminate
valuable information faster.
– Allows employees to perform HRM
tasks online.
15
5
Human Resource Systems (continued)
– Staffing
• Supported by information systems that
record and track human resources to
maximize their use
– Training and Development
• Help human resource managers plan and
monitor employee recruitment, training, and
development programs
16
5
Accounting Systems
• Record and report business
transactions and other economic
events
• Online Accounting Systems
17
5 Accounting Systems (continued)
• Six widely used accounting systems
– Order processing
• Captures & processes customer orders and
produces data needed for sales analysis
and inventory control
– Inventory Control
• Processes data reflecting changes in items
in inventory.
• Helps provide high-quality service while
minimizing investment in inventory &
inventory carrying costs
18
5 Accounting Systems (continued)
– Accounts Receivable
• Keeps records of amounts owed by
customers from data generated by
customer purchases and payments
– Accounts Payable
• Keeps track of data concerning purchases
from, and payments to, suppliers
19
5 Accounting Systems (continued)
– Payroll
• Receives and maintains data from
employee time cards and other work
records
– General Ledger
• Consolidates data received from accounts
receivable, accounts payable, payroll, &
other accounting information systems
20
5 Financial Management Systems
• Supports financial managers in
decisions concerning
– The financing of the business
– The allocation & control of financial
resources within the business.
21
5
Financial Management Systems (continued)
• Major financial management system
categories
– Cash Management
• Collects information on all cash receipts
and disbursements on a real-time or
periodic basis
22
5
Financial Management Systems (continued)
– Investment Management
• Helps the financial manager make buy,
sell, or hold decisions for each type of
security
• Helps the financial manager develop the
optimum mix of securities in order to
minimize risk and maximize return
23
5
Financial Management Systems (continued)
– Capital Budgeting
• Involves evaluating the profitability and
financial impact of proposed capital
expenditures
• Allows financial managers to analyze longterm expenditure proposals for plant and
equipment
24
5
Financial Management Systems (continued)
– Financial Forecasting & Planning
• Evaluate the present and projected
financial performance of the company
• Help determine financing needs and
analyze alternative methods of financing
• Explore what-if and goal-seeking
questions
25
5
Section II
• Cross-Functional Enterprise Systems
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5
Cross-Functional Enterprise Applications
• Integrated combinations of
information subsystems that share
information resources and support
business processes across the
functional units
• A strategic way to use IT to share
information resources & improve
efficiency & effectiveness
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5
Cross-Functional Enterprise Applications
(continued)
• Enterprise Application Architecture
28
5
Cross-Functional Enterprise Applications
(continued)
– Focused on accomplishing
fundamental business processes in
concert with the company’s customer,
supplier, partner, & employee
stakeholders
29
5
Enterprise Application Integration (EAI)
• Software enables users to model the
business processes involved in the
interactions that should occur between
business applications.
• Also provides middleware that
– Performs data conversion & coordination
– Provides application communication &
messaging services
– Provides access to the application interfaces
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5
Enterprise Application Integration (continued)
• Business value
– Integrates front-office and back-office
applications to allow for quicker, more
effective response to business events
and customer demands
– Improves customer and suppler
experience with the business because
of its responsiveness.
31
5
Transaction Processing Systems
• Cross-functional information
systems that process data resulting
from the occurrence of business
transactions
– Transactions – events that occur as part of
doing business
•
•
•
•
•
•
Sales
Purchases
Deposits
Withdrawals
Refunds
Payments
32
5
Transaction Processing Systems (continued)
– Online transaction processing systems
• Real-time systems that capture and
process transactions immediately
– Adds value to product or service through
superior customer service
33
5
Transaction Processing Systems (continued)
• Transaction Processing Cycle
– Data entry
• The capture of business data
– Transaction processing
• Two basic ways
– Batch processing where transaction data are
accumulated & processed periodically
– Real-time processing where data are
processed immediately after a transaction
occurs
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5
Transaction Processing Systems (continued)
– Database maintenance
• Corporate databases are updated to
reflect the day-to-day business
transactions
– Document and report generation
• A variety of documents and reports are
produced
35
5
Transaction Processing Systems (continued)
– Inquiry processing
• Inquiries and responses concerning the
results of transaction processing activity
36
5
Transaction Processing Systems (continued)
37
5
Enterprise Collaboration Systems
• Cross-functional e-business systems that
enhance communication, coordination, &
collaboration
– Communicate – share information with each
other
– Coordinate – coordinate individual work
efforts & use of resources with each other.
– Collaborate – work together cooperatively on
joint projects and assignments
38
5
Enterprise Collaboration Systems (continued)
• Tools for Enterprise Collaboration
– Electronic communication
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
E-mail
Voice mail
Fax
Web publishing
Bulletin boards
Paging
Internet phone systems
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5
Enterprise Collaboration Systems (continued)
– Electronic conferencing
•
•
•
•
•
Data & voice conferencing
Videoconferencing
Chat systems
Discussion forums
Electronic meeting systems
– Synchronous. Team members can meet at the
same time and place in a “decision room”
setting
40
5
Enterprise Collaboration Systems (continued)
– Collaborative work management
•
•
•
•
Calendaring & scheduling
Task & project management
Workflow systems
Knowledge management
41
5
Discussion Questions
• Why is there a trend toward crossfunctional integrated enterprise
systems in business?
• Referring to the example on Dell
Computer, what other solutions
could there be for the problem of
information system incompatibility in
business besides EAI systems?
42
5
Discussion Questions (continued)
• Referring to the Charles Schwab & Co.
example, what are the most important
HR applications a company could offer
to its employees via a Web-based
system?
• How do you think sales force
automation affects salesperson
productivity, marketing management,
and competitive advantage?
43
5
Discussion Questions (continued)
• How can Internet technologies be
involved in improving a process in
one of the functions of business?
• What are several e-business
applications that you might
recommend to a small company to
help it survive and succeed in
challenging economic times?
44
5
Discussion Questions (continued)
• How can Internet technologies be
involved in improving a process in
one of the functions of business?
• What are several e-business
applications that you might
recommend to a small company to
help it survive and succeed in
challenging economic times?
45
5
Discussion Questions (continued)
• Which of the 14 tools for enterprise
collaboration do you feel are essential for
any business to have today? Which do
you feel are optional?
• Referring to the General Electric example,
how do enterprise collaboration systems
contribute to bottom-line profits for a
business?
46
5
References
• James A. O'Brien; George M. Marakas.
Management Information Systems:
Managing Information Technology in the
Business Enterprise 6th Ed., Boston:
McGraw-Hill/ Irwin,2004
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