Course Description

This course examines the strategic opportunities and challenges of exchanging goods and services over networks. Students learn how companies plan electronic commerce initiatives and harness networked hardware and software capabilities to improve their relationships with customers, suppliers, and other business partners. Case studies and exercises help students learn how to analyze e-commerce opportunities and risks, and to plan and implement effective e-commerce strategies for both established firms and start-ups in a variety of industries. Consideration is given to regulatory, ethical, and societal implications of specific strategic choices.

This course is also intended to supply students with an overview of the electronic commerce phenomenon currently sweeping through the global economy. The course introduces contemporary management philosophies as they have come to be used for the marketing, selling, and distribution of goods and services through the Internet, World-Wide-Web, and other electronic media.

What this course in NOT: Because this course is an management course and is meant to expose contemporary managerial thought associated with a relatively new and dynamic environment, the information technologies associated with the delivery of Internet sites, etc. will be only briefly mentioned. If the student has an interest in learning to build web pages or to develop databases, search engines, intelligent agents, etc., the instructor suggests an IT or CS course. We will do little here to further your working knowledge of the tools available to the IT professional, but will do much to further your ability to manage a business in the digital world.

Course Educational Objectives

Upon successful completion of the course, the students will be able to:

· Describe how electronic commerce affects the strategic intent and operations function of the firm;

· Explain the differences between different types of Ecommerce environments and how they are important in positioning and focusing the efforts of the organization;

· Explain how electronic commerce can be used to create a strategic competitive advantage for an enterprise; and

· Describe the some of the best practices in Ecommerce that are currently available to managers.

Measurement of Attainment of Course Objectives

Attainment of course educational objectives by the student is measured by scores on examinations and quizzes, evaluation of written documentation of research activities, evaluation of oral presentations, and class instruction assessment techniques.

Textbook

Much of the material in this course comes directly from publications found on the Internet. In addition, the following book will be thoroughly reviewed.

Vulkan, Nir. (2003) The Economics of E-Commerce: A Strategic Guide to Understanding and Designing the Online Marketplace, Princeton University Press.

Grading

Homework Assignments 30%

Final Exam 35%

Case Research report 35%

Total 100%

A = 92 -100%

B+ = 89 - 91%

B = 83 - 88%

C+ = 80 - 82%

C = 74 - 79%

D+ = 71 - 73%

D = 65 - 70%

F = less than 65%

Research Report

Students will be assigned to groups for the conduct of a case study. Each group will be required to conduct a research project evaluating the Ecommerce initiatives of a group of competing firms. The target firms of the research will be proposed by the group and approved by the instructor. Further details concerning this project will be articulated in class.

Course Topics:

Topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:

· Technology Overview

· Ebusiness Models

· The Virtual Value Chain

· Competition and Pricing Implications

· The Marketing Mix for the Internet

· Agents and Personalization

· Business to Business Ecommerce

· Business and Industry Transformation

NOTE: The instructor reserves the right to modify this syllabus, either verbally or in writing, as is necessary to meet the objectives of the course. Such modifications, if necessary, will always take place at least one week prior to any submission deadline.