issues regardinge biz

Upload: tareshbaruvasu8621

Post on 10-Apr-2018

214 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    1/22

    P a g e | 1

    The Business School

    MBA Department

    Computer Applications in

    Management

    Assignment

    On

    Issues Relating e-Business

    Submitted To: Submitted By:

    Mrs. Versha Mehta Taresh Baru-37

    Suraj Gandotra-35

    Date: 20/8/2010 Semester-I

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    2/22

    P a g e | 2

    E-Business

    Electronic business, commonly referred to as "e Business" or "e-business",

    may be defined as the application of information and communicationtechnologies (ICT) in support of all the activities of business. Commerce

    constitutes the exchange of products and services between businesses,

    groups and individuals and can be seen as one of the essential activities of

    any business. Electronic commerce focuses on the use of ICT to enable the

    external activities and relationships of the business with individuals, groups

    and other businesses.

    Electronic business methods enable companies to link their internal andexternal data processing systems more efficiently and flexibly, to work more

    closely with suppliers and partners, and to better satisfy the needs and

    expectations of their customers.

    In practice, e-business is more than just e-commerce. While e-business

    refers to more strategic focus with an emphasis on the functions that occur

    using electronic capabilities, e-commerce is a subset of an overall e-

    business strategy. E-commerce seeks to add revenue streams using

    the World Wide Web or the Internet to build and enhance relationships with

    clients and partners and to improve efficiency using the Empty

    Vessel strategy. Often, e-commerce involves the application of knowledge

    management systems.

    E-business involves business processes spanning the entire value chain:

    electronic purchasing and supply chain management, processing orders

    electronically, handling customer service, and cooperating with business

    partners. Special technical standards for e-business facilitate the exchange

    of data between companies. E-business software solutions allow the

    integration of intra and inter firm business processes. E-business can be

    conducted using the Web, the Internet, intranets, extranets, or some

    combination of these.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    3/22

    P a g e | 3

    Basically, electronic commerce (EC) is the process of buying, transferring,

    or exchanging products, services, and/or information via computer

    networks, including the internet. EC can also be benifited from many

    perspective including business process, service, learning, collaborative,

    community. EC is often confused with e-business.

    Advantages of E-Business

    Here are some of the important advantages of moving to e-Business.

    y You can develop a more cost-effective Communication andMarketing Strategy - The most obvious advantage of "upgrading" to

    e-Business is that it gives you a vital web presence. In an upgraded

    "e-Business environment" your company web site becomes the focal

    point of your communications and marketing strategy. And in an era

    when an increasingly large number of people are using the web as

    their first source of product and service information, "being there"

    24/7 is extremely important.

    y You can reach New Markets World Wide - The internet offers excitingways of reaching new markets that could only be dreamed of in the

    past. There are methods of promoting your products online that

    allow you to precisely target the customers you are after whether

    they are in your town or on the other side of the world.

    y You can reach Local Customers and Prospects more effectively -Until recently, companies offering a product or service to local

    customers could not see the benefits of having an online presence.

    But as more and more people become comfortable with using the

    internet instead of traditional advertising sources like classified ads or

    yellow pages, having an aggressive web presence makes better

    business sense even for local companies. This may also offer a

    springboard to developing new markets further afield.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    4/22

    P a g e | 4

    y You can cut Advertising and Marketing Costs - Online advertising isnot only more efficient, but it is often less expensive than traditional

    advertising. After sales training expenses can also be reduced by

    utilizing online seminars, training videos and tutorials.

    y You can streamline the Ordering Process by taking orders online -Implementing an online ordering system allows you to eliminate

    manual paper work or telephone order taking. It also offers the

    possibility of integrating your sales order system with order fulfilment

    and delivery so customers can be up to speed on the progress of

    their orders at all times.

    y You can cut Communications and Telephone Costs - While the costsof voice communications using long distance telephone services

    have been coming down rapidly over the last few years, switching to

    an e-business model offers the possibility of totally eliminating many

    of these costs. Of course there is traditional email. But beyond that,

    there are systems like "Live Help" where customers can chat live with

    support or sales staff. And the most recent development is VoIP

    (Voice Over Internet) which promises to completely revolutionize

    telephone service.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    5/22

    P a g e | 5

    Various issues relating e business

    Privacy and Ethical issues Unique to E-business.

    The realm of e-business is difficult to understand. While some may view its

    environment as effortless, it can be complex and problematic for others.

    Seeing as most of our business today is conducted over wires, computers,

    and the Internet, ethical, privacy, contract, buying and purchasing issues in

    a traditional storefront business have been modified to support the privacy

    and the exchange of consumer/business related information in e-

    commerce.

    Unique to e-business, the privacy of individuals and businesses are

    enforced and protected more considerably. There is more cost to maintain

    privacy with e-commerce security measures than traditional storefront

    security. For example, since it is noticeably easier to store masses of private

    information on a business computer vice a physical safe, we will expend

    and invest more cost to protect this computerized information than the

    cost to protect information in a safe. Personally, I have spent more money

    protecting the privacy of consumer information on computers with

    electronic security programs. Pros and Cons of e-business? Gathering

    information on anything e-business related is possible. This information is at

    your fingertips, so to speak. However, the same pros can be cons; since

    illegally acquiring private business information is too, possible.

    Ethics cover a wide range of topics in e-business. With close ties to privacy,

    especially for the consumer, e-business organizations have made it

    ethically clear to protect consumer information and that information will be

    held in strict confidence. Unique to e-business, consumer information is

    exchanged and protected electronically in secure websites and

    databases. Additionally, it is our duty and theirs to be truthful with the

    information given and provided.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    6/22

    P a g e | 6

    E t h i ca l i s s u e s i n b u s i n e s s

    Ethical issues arising from the nature of markets

    - The 18th Century economist Adam Smith demonstrated how in a free

    market the self interest of producers and consumers will produce an

    outcome desirable to all concerned

    - But the market can also lead to inequality of income, wealth and market

    power:

    y Monopoly suppliers can exploit consumersy Monopsony buyers can exploit supply firmsy World wide inequality of income can result in unethical practices

    such as the child labour

    Ethical issues and society - examples

    y Involvement in the communityy Honesty, truthfulness and fairness in marketingy Use of animals in product testingy Agricultural practices e.g. intensive famingy The degree of safety built into product designy Donation to good causesy The extent to which a business accepts its alleged responsibilities for

    mishaps, spillages and

    y leaksy The selling of addictive products e.g. tobaccoy Involvement in the arms tradey Trading with repressive regimes

    Ethical issues arising from internal and industry practices - examples

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    7/22

    P a g e | 7

    y Treatment of customers - e.g. honouring the spirit as well as the letterof the law in respect to warranties and after sales service

    y The number and proportion of women and ethnic minority people insenior positions

    y The organisations loyalty to employees when it is in difficulteconomic conditions

    y Employment of disabled peopley Working conditions and treatment of workersy Bribes to secure contractsy Child labour in the developing worldy Business practices of supply firms

    Unethical practices in marketing - examples

    y Pricing lack of clarity in pricingy Dumping selling at a loss to increase market share and destroy

    competition in order to subsequently raise prices

    y Price fixing cartelsy Encouraging people to claim prizes wh en they phoning premium

    rate numbersy Bait and switch selling - attracting customers and then subjecting

    them to high pressure selling techniques to switch to an more

    expensive alternative

    y High pressure selling - especially in relation to groups such as theelderly

    y Counterfeit goods and brand piracyy Copying the style of packaging in an attempt to mislead consumersy Deceptive advertisingy Irresponsible issue of credit cards and the irresponsible raising of

    credit limits

    y Unethical practices in market research and competitor intelligence

    Unethical practices relating to products - examples

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    8/22

    P a g e | 8

    y Selling goods abroad which are banned at homey Omitting to provide information on side effectsy Unsafe productsy Built in obsolescencey Wasteful and unnecessary packagingy Deception on size and contenty Inaccurate and incomplete testing of productsy Treatment of animals in product testing

    Ethics and the supply chain

    - It would be hypocritical to claim to be a ethical firm if it turned a blind to

    unethical practices by suppliers in the supply chain. In particular:

    y The use of child labour and forced laboury Production in sweatshopsy Violation of the basic rights of workersy Ignoring of health, safety and environmental standards

    An ethical producer has to be concerned with what is practiced by all

    firms (upstream and downstream) in the supply chain.

    Bribery

    This is a key ethical issue in business

    y It first needs to be stated that bribery to secure a contract (especiallya contract with a public sector body) is against the law and severe

    penalties can result

    y However, it is sometimes seem (wrongly) as a victimless crime and isoften rationalised in terms of if we dont offer a bribery, others will

    y From a moral or ethical perspective it should be approached not interms of can we get away with it but is it right to offer a bribe to

    secure a contract

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    9/22

    P a g e | 9

    Case Study: Mahindra & Mahindra's

    E-Business Initiatives

    Abstract

    Mahindra & Mahindra started its E-Business initiatives in 1995. E -Business

    started with the launch of a dedicated network across 8 manufacturing

    locations, 33 area offices and 4 branch offices. In June 1996, M&M

    launched its website mahindraworld.com, which was one of the first

    corporate websites. In 2000, M&M extended the Intranet to three websites

    dedicated to suppliers and dealers of the automotive and farm equipment

    sectors. In the same year, it started CRM and SCM initiatives, whic h helped

    in analyzing customer buying behavior and product development with the

    help of data mining tools. All these initiatives seemed to have paid off and

    in 2003 M&M's farm equipment sector won Japan's prestigious Deming

    award.

    Introduction

    The Farm Equipment sector of Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) was awarded

    Japan's prestigious Deming award3 in 2003. It was the seventh company

    outside Japan and the first tractor company in the world to have been

    awarded the Deming prize. M&M's E-Business initiatives, which started in the

    late 1990s, seemed to have played a major role in the success of the Farm

    Equipment sector.

    M&M launched its E-Business initiatives in 1996. It involved both B2B 4 and

    product-focused sites. The B2B site helped M&M to do business online with

    its suppliers and dealers of Utility Vehicles and Farm Equipments. Its

    suppliers'centric site, mahindrasuppliers.com, enabled it to send orders and

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    10/22

    P a g e | 10

    receive raw materials faster.

    The sites teammahindra.com and kisanmitra.com, created to do business

    with the dealers of utility vehicles and farm equipments respectively, madeit easier and faster for M&M to get orders from the dealers and to know

    about the status of sales at each dealer's outlet.

    In addition to these initiatives, M&M also launched product-focused sites,

    such as mahindrascorpio.com and mahindra-bolero.com.

    These sites were aimed at making customers aware of the features of

    Scorpio and Bolero and consequently increase their sales.

    M&M also used Customer Relationship Management (CRM) as a data-

    mining tool. CRM helped M&M to know about the problems in the existing

    products, if any, and develop new products with the help of information

    collected from the customers about the vehicles' performance.

    Background Note

    The two brothers, J.C.Mahindra and K.C.Mahindra, in 1945 nurtured a

    dream, to introduce the GPU vehicle used in the battlefields of World War

    II. The GPU vehicle, often known as the jeep, was famous for its ruggedness

    and ability to run on rough terrain. The Mahindras and Ghulam

    Mohammed formed the company, Mahindra & Mohammed, in 1945.

    Mahindra & Mohammed Limited was incorporated on October 2, 1945, as

    a private limited company and was renamed as Mahindra & MahindraLtd., on January 13, 1948.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    11/22

    P a g e | 11

    E-Business Initiatives

    After the different business units had been created, M&M realized that the

    system formed islands of data that inhibited flow of information. It needed

    a strong information technology link that would seamlessly integrate the

    different islands of information. Therefore, it started an e-biz drive in the

    company, which was a step-by-step process...

    Launch of the Website

    In 1995, M&M set up a dedicated network connecting 8 manufacturing

    locations, 33 area offices and 4 branch offices. In June 1996, it launched

    the website, www.mahindraworld.com, which was one of the first

    corporate websites launched in India at that time...

    ERP Implementation

    In 1997, M&M decided to implement an ERP solution, which would

    integrate different business processes and cut down on wastes in the

    manufacturing chain.

    Intranet

    In 1997, Mahindra Connect, the Intranet initiative was launched. The

    objective behind introducing Intranet was to make all employee and

    organization related information available online , on a single platform.

    E-Ventures

    In 2001, M&M launched three sites, automartindia.com,officemartindia.com and propertymartindia.com. Automart was a joint

    venture with HDFC and automotive dealers- Sah and Sanghi group...

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    12/22

    P a g e | 12

    Product-Based Sites

    With the launch of the vehicles targeted at urban customers, M&M

    launched product-focused websites, such as www.mahindra-bolero.com

    and www.mahindrascorpio.com .

    Benefits of E-Initiatives

    ERP implementation restructured the whole process of business at M&M.

    Electronic procurement of materials and inventory served as a boon for

    M&M as it helped the company in the entire procurement cycle, from

    supplier selection to deciding on the contracts.

    The RoadAhead

    M&M is focusing on transforming itself into an effective E -Business

    organization and with the help of its e-infrastructure it is trying to establish

    the Mahindra Group as a virtual knowledge community.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    13/22

    P a g e | 13

    Ford's e-Business Strategy

    Abstract:

    The case looks at the issues relating to Ford's e-business strategy. It talks

    about how Ford sought to transform itself from an 'old economy' firm to a

    'new economy' firm using the Internet to further its objectives. During 1999,

    Ford discovered the potential of web technologies and sought to leverage

    its competencies using the Internet. As a part of the strategy, it partnered

    with few other automakers to form 'Covisint' - an online market place that

    linked its members to more than 30000 suppliers of components. In addition

    to this it also took special initiatives to build excellent relationships with

    customers, dealers and suppliers as this held the key to survival. It floated

    an e-CRM company, and gave its employees a PC and other hardware for

    a nominal cost, which were all part of its e-business initiatives.

    Introduction

    In early 1999, Ford Motor Company (Ford), the leading automobile

    manufacturer in the world, announced its e-business strategy, through

    which it sought to transform itself from an 'old economy' to a 'new

    economy' company. Almost 90 years after Ford introduced the world to

    the concept of mass production, the company was all set to

    revolutionalize the auto industry, by using the Internet to introduce radically

    new ways of planning, manufacturing and selling cars.

    Towards the end of 2000, Ford announced its ' Build to order' model for

    manufacturing cars. The model, similar to Dell Computer's model was

    expected to help Ford's customers to customize car features with just a

    click of the mouse.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    14/22

    P a g e | 14

    The model once implemented would enable customers to get what they

    ordered, delivered at their doorsteps. Initially, customers were allowed to

    send personalized information through Ford's website (Forddirect.com)

    which enabled them to configure, select, price, finance and schedule

    delivery of any Ford car or truck. Ford expected major improvements in

    supply chain management as well as rise in demand for its vehicles after

    the implementation of its e-business initiatives.

    Above all, Ford hoped to increase customer satisfaction levels by providing

    speed, convenience and value-added information to them (Refer Exhibit

    II). This led some analysts to remark that none of the other automobile

    companies were pursuing their e-biz initiatives as boldly and broadly as

    Ford. However, critics felt that it was not necessary for Ford to rush with its e-

    business initiatives on such a large scale. They criticized Ford for

    announcing several grand plans but implementing few. Moreover, return

    on investment was one of the key issues for e-business ventures. Jurgen

    Hubbert, a member of DaimlerChrysler's management board, said, "Why

    jump into this sort of business when nobody makes money?"

    Background Note

    Ford was established in June 1903 by Henry Ford. The company's first car

    Model A was introduced in July 1903. Several manufacturers launched

    expensive car models to compete with Model A, but failed. A few years

    later, Ford launched Model T, which became very successful because of its

    durability and easy reparability. In the early 1920s, Ford entered the luxury

    car segment by acquiring Lincoln Motor Company. However, in the 1920s,General Motors (GM) launched a variety of styles, an assortment of colors

    and became Ford's biggest competitor.

    In the 1930s, Ford faced major problems during the Great Depression.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    15/22

    P a g e | 15

    Henry tried to deal with the depression by increasing wages and reducing

    prices.

    Ford also obtained an order to supply to the US Military 500 liberator

    bombers per month to support the World War II, as a result of which the

    company survived. In the 1940s, Henry Ford II (Henry Ford's grandson) took

    over as the CEO of Ford. He made several changes in the company

    including establishing of 'Profit Centers', to identify areas that were not

    making money. He also closed obsolete plants and initiated moves to

    retrain workers. In January 1956, Ford made an initial public offering of

    10,200,000 shares. In the 1960s, Ford expanded its operations to Europe.

    The oil crisis of 1974 had a major impact on the automobile industry. While

    the US market shifted towards small and fuel-efficient cars, Ford had excess

    capacity in large cars. Ford responded by diverting a part of its production

    capacity to Pinto, its small car. By the mid 1980s, Ford's profitability had

    improved and for the first time in 60 years, Ford generated more profits

    than GM worldwide. In 1988, Ford reported the highest level of profits ever

    for a US car company. In 1993, Ford's Board of Directors appointed Alex

    Trotman as the new CEO. According to Fortune, Trotman's entrepreneurial

    instincts and his remarkable self -confidence helped him get the coveted

    post. In 1998, Ford acquired the Audi's racing engines unit.

    Improving Supply Chain Efficiency

    Ford believed that using the Internet improved the efficiency of its supplychain. In mid 1999, the company created AutoXchange , a joint venture

    with Oracle that allowed online business-to-business (B2B) transactions with

    its suppliers. AutoXchange helped Ford and its suppliers swap information

    and bids on an estimated $300 billion worth of goods and services. Ford

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    16/22

    P a g e | 16

    was able to reduce suppliers' inventories and eliminate billions of dollars in

    excess stock by getting accurate information to suppliers about short-term

    demand, with the help of the real -time orders entering its system.

    According to Kelley2, Ford expected to reduce its $80 billion purchasing bill

    by 10% within the next few years, through AutoXchange. However, cost

    savings on purchases was just one of the benefits.

    Focussing on the Demand Chain

    In 1999, Ford started its online initiatives for managing the demand chain

    by entering into a partnership with Microsoft for developing CarPoint, an

    auto buying website. Retail customers could order Ford cars through

    CarPoint.

    The Future

    According to Kelley, the major objectives of Ford's e-business strategy were

    to bring speed, convenience, and information to customers rather than just

    focusing on cost cutting. The Internet played a crucial role in helping Ford

    boost the satisfaction levels of its consumers. Kelley said: "The consumer is

    king.

    And the Internet is accelerating the speed at which they get what they

    want. Using the Net to zap customer orders directly to factories and parts

    suppliers will eventually allow Ford to deliver cars to consumers within days

    of ordering".

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    17/22

    P a g e | 17

    E-Business Strategy in an Online Banking Services:

    A Case Study

    Abstract:

    Banks today are aware of both the threat and the opportunity that the

    Web represents. No traditional bank would dare face investment analysts

    without an Internet strategy. But even a detailed and thoughtful approach

    to the Web does not guarantee business success. The main purpose

    behind the launching of online banking services is to provide the customers

    with an alternative, more responsive and with less expensive options. With

    options just a click away, customers have more control than ever. They

    expect real-time answers and superior usability. They also want personal

    attention and highly customized products and services. The focus of e-

    business must always be on the customer. On the other hand, the

    technology and the business structure follow on form of the value you

    intend to provide to the customer.

    This paper evaluates the success of the e-business model and e-business

    strategy implemented by Citibank in the United Arab Emirates in offering its

    retail Internet Banking Service; Citibank Online.

    Introduction

    E-business relies on the development of new business strategies based on

    networks. The world has become increasingly inter-connected via

    telecommunication networks and computers. These offer fast, flexible, and

    cost-effective ways of doing business.

    The Internet is driving the new economy by creating unprecedented

    opportunities for countries, companies and individuals around the world.

    CEOs worldwide recognize the strategic role that the Internet plays in their

    companys ability to survive and compete in the future. To be competitive

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    18/22

    P a g e | 18

    in the Internet economy, companies need t o harness the power of the

    Internet successfully.

    Citibank UAE BackgroundInformation

    Citibank is a subsidiary of Citigroup, a strong financial brand with more

    than 100 million customers, 5.9 million online relationships and a global

    reach spanning 100 countries.

    Citibank UAE started its retail business in 1987 in a very highly competitive

    environment offering a comprehensive line of high quality financial services

    targeted to the affluent and middle income segments. Citibank has been

    perceived, as at the edge of innovation leveraging its global expertise, it

    was the first bank in the UAE to introduce innovative e-business solutions

    like:

    1) CitiPhone 24 hour Phone Banking Service

    2) ATMs- Automated Teller Machines

    3) CitiAlert GSM notifications service

    4) E-Card Internet Shopping Card

    5) CitiDirect Corporate Internet Banking Service, and

    6) Citibank Online Retail Internet Banking Service.

    In the year 2000, Citibank had 160,000 retail customers serviced mainly

    through five branches, six ATMs and CitiPhone. Given the Central Bank

    restrictions on opening additional branches, being a foreign bank, the

    banks e-business strategy was to focus on remote channels of distribution,

    mainly Internet Banking solutions.

    Ms. Sarah Hussain, Web Administrator at Citibank says, Given the kind of

    Internet explosion which the market is going through, Internet is the

    channel of the future, it is critical for Citibank to leverage this channel

    aggressively and gain an early and dominant leadership.

    What encouraged Citibank to proceed with its investment in this direction is

    the tremendous growth of Internet usage since its introduction in 1996.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    19/22

    P a g e | 19

    According to Etisalat, the only Internet Service Provider in the UAE, in 2003

    the number of Internet users was 1,105,000 in a country with a population of

    3.7 million, this number is fairly high and expected to increase even further.

    In an industry that has became increasingly serviced through remote

    channels, Citibank UAE wanted to leverage on the advanced technology

    available within Citigroup to stand out, hence Citibank Online was

    launched in 2000 offering a comprehensive list of services/functionalities.

    E-business Strategy

    Based on Porter (1980) generic strategies, Citibank opted for a

    differentiation strategy for its home banking service by offering a superior

    web banking option with powerful and relevant functionalities wherein

    customers can access/operate their banking accounts on the net with full

    confidence and ease.

    In the year 2000, there were only four local banks offering simple home

    banking solutions, Citibank wanted to be the first multinational bank to

    launch a multifunctional home banking service and own the category

    before competition becomes fierce in the field.

    Citibanks mission was to be a leading e-Financial Services company in the

    UAE by becoming trusted, premier e-business enabler for its customers.

    The objectives of launching Citibank Online were:

    1) Extend its network and overcome the limited branch situation.

    2) Achieve savings in CitiPhone/Branches operating costs by diverting

    customers to the Internet. Citibank Online has one of the lowest

    costs per interaction as compared to the ATM, phone banking or

    branch banking. It contributes immensely as part of the Strategic

    Cost Management initiatives the bank is implementing without

    compromising on the quality of service.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    20/22

    P a g e | 20

    According to an online banking report published by Ernst & Young, the

    transaction costs of the various banking channels are as follows:

    Branch $1.07

    Call Centre (human) $0.85

    Automated Response System (AVR) $0.44

    Automated Teller Machine $0.27

    Dialup PC banking 1.5 Cent

    Internet Banking 1 Cent

    3) Meet the increased consumer demand for quick and secure banking

    solutions, anywhere, any time on any device, this is important in

    staying ahead of competition.

    4) Enhance the brand imagery and values in the mind of the customers

    and the prospects by owning this channel especially that Citibank is

    seen to be innovative and ahead of most other banks in terms of

    technology and product development.

    5) Create another arm for deepening customer relationships through

    cross sell and acquisitions of new customers.

    E-business Model

    Citibank Online is considered as a standard Business to Consumer

    approach, the e-business model Citibank is using can be classified as

    Merchant.

    Without the intervention of the AVR, ATM or CitiPhone Officers, a Citibank

    customer can access and operate all his relationships with Citibank at a

    click of mouse in complete privacy. In doing so, Citibank is balancing

    between security and accessibility of information leveraging on a robust e -

    banking service available within Citigroup.

    The three elements of the business model; value stream, revenue stream

    and logistics stream are complementing each other in this specific case.

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    21/22

    P a g e | 21

    Citibank was certainly focusing on adding value to its customers by offering

    unmatched level of service and security. Its internal logistics were aligned

    towards a single objective; launching a powerful service to its customers to

    complement its e-business strategy overall. Revenues after a period of time

    started flowing too, making the investment worthwhile.

    Evaluation of E-business strategy andmodel

    There are many ways of evaluating the success of the e-business model

    and e-business strategies of Citibank, one of which is looking at the

    financials for the performance of the service for the past four years. Ms.

    Sarah Hussain, Web Administrator at Citibank says The results of the service

    represented in the information management system reports covering the

    performance of Citibank Online from 2001 to 2004 are very satisfactory and

    have met the managements expectations

    Citibank Online is proving to be a successful acquisition and revenue -

    generating channel, despite the fact that the management did not

    expect any revenues to be generated for the first three years of the

    launch.

    The deployment of the program to Citibank UAE, played a very important

    role in gaining those revenues, as Citibank UAE did not fund the

    development work, there were only a couple of adjustments made to the

    service to suit the UAE requirements.

    According to Timmers (1999) there are two dimensions of analyzing the e-

    business model:

    1. The degree of innovation:

    Citibank is excelling in building and maintaining the competitive

    advantage in the Internet era, all functionalities offered were well

    studied and executed in a way where matching them is indeed a

  • 8/8/2019 Issues Regardinge Biz

    22/22

    P a g e | 22

    difficult task. Flexibility is built in the system for further

    enhancements and additions.

    2. The extent to which the new functions are integrated within the

    business model.

    The functionalities added fit perfectly with the e -business strategy and

    business model opted. They contribute directly towards meeting the

    objectives.

    Conclusion

    This paper examined the e-business strategy and e-business model that

    have been used by Citibank in the UAE in offering its Retail Online Banking

    Service to its customers. Based on the evaluation, it is very clear that the e -

    business strategy is complementing the e-business model used.

    According to Timmers (1998), a business model in itself does not yet provide

    understanding of how it will contribute to realize the business mission of the

    companies who is an actor within the model. Therefore, it is important to

    supplement it with the e-business, marketing and sales strategies.Through Internet solutions, Citibank has maintained its agility and

    competitive advantage, gaining substantial benefits from them. It is

    important to note that customers in the Internet economy are well

    informed and their expectations continue to increase, therefore the ability

    to respond rapidly to customer demands and deliver value is imperative. At

    the end, it will continue to be that The bet is on the NET! Ms. Hussain

    said.