Synopses & Reviews
The Internet is the most important business tool of the new century. In the business-to-business (B2B) world, the Internet is enabling the formation of extended enterprises operating within value networks. Vendors and suppliers within these "wired" entities are able to communicate instantaneously with each other and with customers far more easily, cheaply, and quickly than ever before. In their rush to evolve as e-businesses, many traditional companies hasten to update existing business processes while losing sight of an important fact: E-business simply will not work in the absence of sound business infrastructures based on well-functioning enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.
While new front-end technologies are appearing at a dizzying pace, ERP software remains the most efficient and effective solution for managers who need to plan and control money, manufacturing operations, inventory, and people-the elements and processes that comprise the so-called back-end of the organization. The critical question for such managers is:
How do I combine my existing ERP systems with the most up-to-date Web-based technologies to create one all-encompassing e-business strategy designed to:
* Add greater value to customers
* Create tightly coupled relationships with trading partners
* Open the door to new strategic opportunities
In E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise, the authors answer this question by providing a road map to achieving the ideal combination of speed, business capability, technical know-how, and execution as companies attempt to get the most out of current investments while grappling with the multiple challenges of the e-business environment. Addressing the needs of the full range of companies-from Internet start-ups grabbing headlines even as they struggle to execute effective business processes, to companies with long track records of success in keeping pace with technological innovations-E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise presents:
* E-business procedures to help companies link their existing ERP systems with the information capabilities of their customers
* A new approach to valuing ERP and e-business investments
* A guide to achieving the right balance among technology, processes, and people while undertaking a major e-business effort
* A framework for understanding e-business opportunities within the context of a traditional enterprise and its infrastructure
* In-depth analysis of how the Internet impacts supply chain management, customer relationship management (CRM), and shared services
* A look into the future of ERP and Web-based technologies
The authors also offer a new model-an ERP/E-Business Matrix that executives and managers can use to assess their company's current position as an e-business-including evaluating relevant risks and opportunities; determining a desired destination; and developing a plan for getting there successfully. Perhaps for the first time, this invaluable tool lays out all the options, making an informed decision about a company's future e-business direction not only possible, but easier than ever before.
Most of today's global enterprises have invested heavily in current infrastructures, and, in many cases, this investment has paid off handsomely. However, tomorrow's most successful companies will leverage that investment by implementing Web-based technologies in tandem with sound ERP-based solutions. Let E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise show you the processes, techniques, and strategies you need to maximize your organization's ERP investment while transforming it into an e-nabled powerhouse.
Review
"It's full of diagrams and is written in a direct and concise style." (Internet Works)
"To the right business, the message could be useful." (Ambassador, October 2000)
Synopsis
More and more companies are turning to a rapidly advancing new approach to managing E-business: enterprise resource planning (ERP). With this guide, managers can utilize the powers of such ERP systems as SAP, PeopleSoft, or Baan to plan, see, and control a wide range of resources -- money, manufacturing operations, inventory, and people. E-Business and ERP shows business leaders how to lower costs across the supply and demand chain; how to collaborate with business partners; how to lower stock levels; and how to provide faster payment, product design, and delivery transactions.
Synopsis
Unter Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) versteht man den Einsatz eines Softwaresystems, mit dessen Hilfe Manager die Ressourcen eines Unternehmens planen, erkennen und steuern k nnen, wie z.B. Geld, Fertigungsbereiche, Lagerhaltung und Mitarbeiter. Bis zum Jahr 2003 soll das E-Business, d.h. der Kauf und Verkauf von Produkten und Dienstleistungen via Internet, etwa 1 Billion US Dollar ausmachen. Bislang haben die meisten Unternehmen Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) f r die Gestaltung ihrer Websites benutzt. Doch EDI ist teuer, unflexibel, erlaubt nur ein begrenztes Datenvolumen und l t den Kunden meistens unber cksichtigt. Mit dem ERP-System bietet sich Unternehmen eine erschwingliche und schnelle Methode f r den Einstieg ins E-Business. ERP to E-Business hilft Unternehmen, neue Gesch ftsideen umzusetzen, die nicht nur Kosten einsparen, sondern das Unternehmen auch weitaus wettbewerbsf higer machen.
Synopsis
Is Your Company Getting the Most from Its Investment in Change?
Many companies have already invested heavily in infrastructure change, some are making that investment now, and all are contemplating the costs of becoming or evolving as an e-business. Is your company a "greenfield" organization with no back-end systems, or one whose infrastructure support systems are integrated across the enterprise? Are you just beginning to think about e-business capabilities, or are you on the leading edge of convergence? Whatever your company's position on the ERP/E-Business Matrix, E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise provides the proven techniques you need to know to meld enterprise resource planning capabilities with the communications power of the Internet.
Is Your Company Positioned for E-Business Success?
The Internet has revolutionized twenty-first century business. Organizations today can communicate with customers, suppliers, and sellers at e-speed with the click of a mouse. Yet, with all of the excitement about the external possibilities of the Internet, companies still need efficient internal processes to make and move products, manage finances, recruit and motivate employees, and excel.
E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise covers the skills and tools you will need to combine existing ERP software and capabilities with emerging Web-based technologies. In this forward-thinking outline for a new business structure, executives and managers will discover:
* Strategies for established companies to penetrate the Internet marketplace
* Procedures that lower costs across the supply and demand chain
* Techniques that help you meet-and master-the dot.com challenge
The companies best positioned to succeed in the near future are those that can balance existing ERP-based infrastructures and capabilities with exciting new e-business innovations. E-Business and ERP: Transforming the Enterprise examines the changing but essential role of ERP, places it in the context of the Web-based technologies defining today's e-business environment, and reveals how to blend the best aspects of both to create a strong and flexible twenty-first century business enterprise.
About the Author
GRANT NORRIS, BS, MBA, is a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Management Consulting Services Practice based in Philadelphia.
JAMES R. HURLEY BA, MBA, CAGS, CPA, is a Partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers Information, Telecommunication, and Entertainment Practice based in New Jersey.
KENNETH M. HARTLEY, BS, MBA, CFPIM, is a Partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers.
JOHN R. DUNLEAVY, BA, MBA, CPA, is a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
JOHN D. BALLS, BA, MS, MBA, is CIO, Vice President, and Program Director for a leading Fortune 100 communications company's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) initiative.
Table of Contents
Concepts Behind the Electronic Enterprise.
Inside Out, Outside In: Complimentary Technologies of ERP and E-Business.
Web Economics: Valuing Your ERP and E-Business Investments.
ERP/E-Business Matrix: Options and Scenarios.
Behind the Web: Supply-Chain Management.
Customer Relationship Management.
ERP/E-Business Impact on Shared Services.
Triple Play: Technology, Processes, and People.
ERP/E-Business Matrix Destination Goals.
Migration Path Options.
Program and Project Management.
ERP Vendor Responses to E-Business Challenges.
Glossary.
Index.