Assignment 1 What is e-Business and Where is it Going?

Emerging Business Opportunities and Challenges in a Sector of Your Choice Background The first Internet boom started in the mid-1990s, and it quickly led to a dot.com bubble on the stock markets which eventually went bust in 2001. However, the market recovered very rapidly and by 2005, there were already talks about a second Internet boom which is much more robust than the first one. For many commentators, the Internet boom itself has never stopped, because even during the stock market downturn people from all over the world continued to join the Internet to search, chat, e-mail and spend money. Today, the way we work, play, communicate, learn and shop has changed significantly, and in business and governmental organisations throughout the world, new strategies, new business models and new organisational designs have emerged to exploit the new possibilities enabled by the Internet and related technologies. In the midst of such radical changes, one fundamental question remains unanswered today: What is E-Business and does it still matter? If so, in what ways and what can we do about it? Most of all where is it going and what are the main business opportunities and challenges? What are the implications for your own organisation and for your sector in general and what can be done about them? The business environment has changed, and information has become the most critical strategic resource upon which the efficiency and competitiveness of all organisations depend. The continued rapid development of ICTs (Internet related technologies in particular) enables us to acquire, communicate and manipulate the most important resource of the economy (i.e. information) cheaply and in ways not possible in the past. The combination of these changes together with various policy initiatives at different levels - means that organisations old and new, large and small - can, should, and indeed, must review the way they are organised and managed. In this sense, e-Business is not just another management fad created by academics and the media and pushed by business consultants and technology companies. It calls for the development of a new generation of organisation and management theory. The Assignment This module is assessed by one piece of individual coursework (4-5000 words). As an EMBA who has studied the e-Business Technologies module, you are assigned by your CEO to write a business report for the Senior Management of your organisation. The report should: Outline the main contemporary issues in E-Business and where it is going Identify emerging opportunities and challenges for your sector in general and for your organisation in particular (If your own organisation is not suitable for this assignment, please choose an organisation or sector you are familiar, and write a report in your capacity as a management consultant) Make some recommendations based on your findings.

This assignment will require you to conduct comprehensive research of relevant literature (e.g. journal papers, books, consultancy and government reports as well as newspaper and business magazine articles etc) and real life examples. The report should consist of an executive summary, a detailed explanation of your main points and how you arrived at those points (evidence), and areas that will require further research and observations. You should also provide a detailed list of useful e-Business resources and references you used to inform your assignment (not included in the 5000 word limit). Your views must be backed up with evidence and well-grounded reasoning. The focus is on emerging e-Business opportunities and challenges in your sector for your organisation from a business perspective. Further details about the assignment will be provided during the lectures. Deadline for submission: TBC