E-Business

MODULE HANDBOOK
Semester 2/3, 2016/17

Department of
Management & Leadership

Module Coordinator Keith Millar

Room:1H15
Tel:+44(0) 28 903 66662
E-mail:k.millar@ulster.ac.uk

Module Tutor(s) & Keith Millar

Contact Details E-mail:k.millar@ulster.ac.uk
Consultation Hours: Monday 10.00 to 12.00

Module Code BMG 738

Module CRN 31288
Module level 7
Class Times
The Lecture / seminars will take place from 6th to 8th June
2017 in Room 3E03

RATIONALE FOR THE MODULE

The global business environment is characterised by increasing supply capabilities,

intense global competition, and more demanding customers. In response to these
challenges, organisations have been deploying e-business technologies to reach
and interact with customers more effectively, boost employee productivity and
improve operating efficiency. E-business technologies such as the Internet, social
media, corporate portals, collaborative tools, mobile and wireless communication
media have eliminated traditional boundaries of time and geography and created
virtual communities of employees, customers and suppliers, with new demands for
products and services. Organisations have been transforming their operations
through converting their existing information system architectures into web-enabled
systems and automating a range of business processes.
AIMS OF THE MODULE

This module aims to provide students with an understanding of e-business and its
practical application in a range of different organizations. The specific aims of this
module are to:

 have an in-depth knowledge of e-business;

 understand and apply concepts and models underlying e-business;
 critically evaluate current practice on creating and managing an e-business;
and
 analyse how an organisation can apply e-business technologies to support its
competitive strategy

LEARNING OUTCOMES

A successful student will be able to show that he/she can:

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

 K1 Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of the factors that

influence the deployment of e-business technologies in organisations;
 K2 Understand the implementation of e-business in organisations;
 K3 Demonstrate knowledge of the fundamental concepts, principles, and
theories of applying e-business technologies;
 K4 Appreciate the need for an organisation to have an e-business strategy, and
analyse how an organisation can apply e-business technologies to support its
competitive strategy.

INTELLECTUAL QUALITIES

 I1 Acquire, analyse and synthesise materials that assist in the

 understanding of e-business;
 I2 Critically evaluate current practice in relation to e-business;
 I3 Consistently apply their knowledge and wider intellectual skills to applying e-
business technologies;
 I4 Devise likely scenarios of the future direction of e-business.

PROFESSIONAL/PRACTICAL SKILLS

 P1 Apply concepts and models underlying e-business to the real world through
class discussions, web exercises, and/or case studies;
 P2 Scan and organise data, extract meaning from information and share
knowledge;
 P3 Perform effectively in a team environment.
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS

 T1 Demonstrate competence in teamwork and interpersonal communications

using a variety of media;
 T2 Deal with complex issues systematically and creatively;
 T3 Learn through reflection on existing e-business practice and experience.
 T4 Demonstrate an ability to take responsibility for development of knowledge
and skills.

TEACHING METHODS

Key topics and concepts will be introduced by the lecturer and followed up with
interactive class discussions and group problem solving activities within the weekly
classes.

For each topic reading references are provided, but you are encouraged to read widely
around each topic, including journal articles. The core reading list is given below.
Lectures will be used to emphasise key issues, to introduce additional material or to
introduce alternative perspectives. Student participation and class discussion in
lectures is always encouraged.

The lecturers will include a mix of activities used for seminars, such as video case
studies, group presentations, question/discussion sessions. All of which are designed
to encourage the active learning of the subject.
TEACHING PLAN (highlighted = remove)
Session TOPIC
Introduction to E-business
Nature, scope and impact of e-business;
digitisation and the business process view;
impact of e-business on economic growth;
1
differences between e-business and
traditional technologies; reach, richness
and affiliation; and impact of e-business on
individuals.
Social Media
Explore the rise of social media, distinction
between social media and traditional
media; framework for applying social
media, benefits and challenges of social
2
media.
Case study: Building a Social Media
Culture at Dell.
SUPPORTING READINGS
Carr, N. (2003). IT Doesn’t Matter, Harvard Business Review, May, 41-49.
Davenport, T. H., & Kirby, J. (2016). Just How Smart Are Smart Machines? MIT Sloan
Management Review, 57, 3, 41-47.
Iansiti, M., & Lakhani, K. R. (2014). Digital Ubiquity: How Connections, Sensors, and Data
Are Revolutionizing Business. Harvard Business Review, 92, 11, 91-99.
Gallaugher, J., and Ransbotham, S. (2010). Social Media and Customer Dialog
Management at Starbucks. MIS Quarterly Executive, 9, 4, 197 – 212.
Hoffman, D. and Fodor, M. (2010). Can You Measure the ROI of Your Social Media
Marketing, MIT Sloan Management Review, Fall, 41-49.
Jones, B., Temperley, J. and Lima, A. (2009) Corporate reputation in the era of Web 2.0:
the case of Primark. Journal of Marketing Management, 25 (9), 927-939.
Kietzmann, J.H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I.P. and Silvestre, B.S. (2011) Social media?
Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business
Horizons, 54 (3), 241-251.
Mangold, W.G. and Faulds, D.J. (2009) Social media: The new hybrid element of the
promotion mix. Business Horizons, 52 (4), 357-365.
Roberts, D. L., & Piller, F. T. (2016). Finding the Right Role for Social Media in Innovation.
MIT Sloan Management Review, 57, 3, 41-46.
Useful report
The Social Economy: Unlocking Value and Productivity through Social Technologies,
McKinsey and Company:
http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/high_tech_telecoms_internet/the_social_economy
Session TOPIC
E-business strategy
Linking strategy and e-business; resources,
capabilities, and competitive advantage;
influence of industry structure; industry
3 disruptions and transformations; e-
business and growth strategies; and the e-
business and competitive strategy.
Case Study/Group Presentation: Tate
Modern or Volvo/Ford?
Enterprise Systems
Enterprise systems: characteristics, drivers,
potential benefits, implementation
4 problems, key decisions in planning and
implementation.
Case Study: KEDA ERP Implementation.
Knowledge Management and Big data
Define knowledge and describe the
different types of knowledge; activities
involved in knowledge management;
different approaches to knowledge
management; the sources of data, their
collection, and quality issues; the power
5 and benefits of data mining; and discuss
and assess implications of ‘Big Data’.
Case study: Davenport, T. and Harris, J.
(2007). The Dark Side of Customer
Analytics, Harvard Business Review, May,
37-48.
SUPPORTING READINGS
Enders, A. and Jelassi, T. (2009). Leveraging Multichannel Retailing: The Experience of
Tesco.com, MIS Quarterly Executive, 8, 2, 89-100.
Kane, G. C., Palmer, D., Phillips, A. N., & Kiron, D. (2015). Is Your Business Ready for a
Digital Future?. MIT Sloan Management Review, 56, 4, 37.
Porter, M.E. (2001). Strategy and the Internet, Harvard Business Review, March, pp63-78.
Rigby, D. K. (2014). Digital-physical mashups. Harvard Business Review, 92, 9, 84-92.
Sia, S. K., Soh, C., & Weill, P. (2016). How DBS Bank Pursued a Digital Business
Strategy. MIS Quarterly Executive, 15, 2, 105-121.
McIvor, R., McCracken, M., & McHugh, M. (2011). Creating outsourced shared services
arrangements: Lessons from the public sector. European Management Journal, 29,6, 448-
461.
Botta-Genoulaz, V. and Millet, P. (2006). An Investigation into the Use of ERP Systems in
the Service Sector, International Journal of Production Economics, 99, 202-221.
Bell, P. C. (2015). Sustaining an Analytics Advantage. MIT Sloan Management Review,
56, 3, 21-24.
Davenport, T.H., Barth, P. and Bean, R. (2012). How ‘Big Data’ is Different. MIT Sloan
Management Review. 54, 1, 22-24.
McAfee, A. and Brynjolfsson, E. (2012). Big Data: The Management Revolution, Harvard
Business Review, 90, 10, 61-67.
Useful report:
Big Data: The Next Frontier for Innovation, Competition, and Productivity, McKinsey and
Company:
http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/big_data_the_next_frontier_for_in
novation
Session TOPIC SUPPORTING READINGS

Digital information exchanges in supply

chains
Glassberg, B. and Merhout, J. (2007). Electronic Markets Hypothesis Redux: Where are
Supply chain management; challenges of
We Now? Communications of the ACM, 50, 2, 51-55.
supply chain management; demand
6
amplification; supply chain uncertainty Lee, H. (2002). Aligning Supply Chain Strategies with Product Uncertainties, California
framework; strategies for reducing demand Management Review, 44, 3, 105-119.
and supply uncertainty in supply chains;
and integration support technologies.

Barthelemy, J. (2003). The Seven Deadly Sins of Outsourcing, Academy of Management

IT Outsourcing
Types, pros and cons, TCE theory,
7 transaction attributes, vendor capability
framework, characteristics of contracts, and
relationship strategy
Executive, 17, 2, 87-98.
Feeny, D., Lacity, M. and Willcocks, L. (2005). Taking the Measure of Outsourcing
Providers, Sloan Management Review, Spring, 41-48.
McIvor, R. (2010). Global Services Outsourcing, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
McIvor, R. (2005). The Outsourcing Process: Strategies for Evaluation and Management,
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Guest Speaker:
Paul Wickens
8
Chief Executive, Enterprise Shared
Services, NI Civil Service

9 Assignment Preparation
READING LIST

The recommended textbook for this module is:

Turban, E. and Volonino, L. (2012) Information Technology for Management, Eighth

Edition, John Wiley, New York.

Other relevant sources include;

Chaffey, D. (2015) Digital Business and E-Commerce Management: strategy,

implementation and practice (6th Ed.) Pearson.

Reynolds, J, (2010) E-Business A management perspective. Oxford University Press

Valacich J.S. and Schneider C. (2016) Information Systems Today: Managing in the
Digital World. Pearson Education

Schneider G. (2013) E-Business: international edition. (10th Ed.) Cengage Learning

Laudon K. and Traver C. (2015) E-Commerce: business, technology, society (11th

Ed.), Pearson Education

Jackson, P. Harris, L. and Eckesley, P. (2003) e-business fundamentals. Routhledge

Turban, E., King, D., Lang, J. (2011) Introduction to Electronic Commerce (3rd Ed.),
Pearson Education.

Additional Journal Articles to those in Teaching Plan:

Amit, R. and Zott, C. (2001). Value Creation in E-business, Strategic Management

Journal, 22, 493-520.
Basu, A. and Muylle, S. (2007). How to Plan E-business Initiatives in Established
Companies, Sloan Management Review, 49, 1, 28-36.
Bettis, R. (1998). Commentary on ‘Redefining Industry Structure for the Information
Age’, Strategic Management Journal, 19, 357-361.
Coltman et al. (2001). E-Business: Revolution or Hype? California Management
Review, 44, 1, 57-86.
Enders, A., Hungenberg, H., Denker, H., and Mauch, S. (2008). The Long Tail of
Social Networking: Revenue Models of Social Networking Sites, European
Management Journal, 26, 3, 199-211.
Dedrick, J. and Kraemer, K.L. (2005). The Impacts of IT on Firm and Industry
Structure: The Personal Computer Industry, California Management Review, 47, 3,
122-142.
Evans, P. and Wurster, T.S. (1999). Getting Real About Virtual Commerce, Harvard
Business Review, November-December, 85-94.
Farrell, D. (2003). The Real New Economy, Harvard Business Review, October, 38-
46.
Hormozi, A. and Giles, S. (2004). Data Mining: A Competitive Weapon for Banking
and Retail Industries, Information Systems Management, Spring, 62-71.
Kim, E., Nam, D. and Stimpert, J. (2004). The Applicability of Porter’s Generic
Strategies in the Digital Age: Assumptions, Conjectures, and Suggestions, Journal of
Management, 30, 5, 569-589.
McAfee, A. and Brynjolfsson, E. (2008). Investing in the IT that Makes a Competitive
Difference, Harvard Business Review, July-August, 98-107.
Rangan, S. and Adner, R. (2001). Profits and the Internet: Seven Misconceptions,
Sloan Management Review, Summer, 44-53.
Simmons, G. (2007). i-branding: Developing the Internet as a branding tool,
Marketing, Intelligence and Planning, 25, 6/7, 544-562.
Wirtz, B., Shilke, O. and Ullrich, S. (2010). Strategic Development of Business
Models: Implications of Web 2.0 for Creating Value on the Internet, Long Range
Planning, 43, 2/3, 272-290.

Specific articles per teaching session have been specified as recommended reading
above and in the teaching plan. It would be expected that students would read at
least some of these articles prior to the teaching sessions. In addition the following
academic journals may be useful in sourcing supplementary material. Access to the
articles in these journals can be obtained through the electronic Athens database.

Practitioner-oriented journals:
 Harvard Business Review
 Academy of Management Executive
 Sloan Management Review
 California Management Review
 Long Range Planning

ELECTRONIC REFERENCES AND ONLINE RESOURCES

The library offers referencing services on electronic journals. Three databases which
are good starting points for accessing journals and are accessible from home PC’s
using your PIN are:

Business Source Premier - http://www.ulst.ac.uk/library/electronic/index

Proquest - http://proquest.uni.com.
Emerald: - http://www.emerald-library.com

Ask at the Library Information Desk for details of other online academic databases
available or surf the library electronic resources pages.
**To highly achieve in this module (and broaden your current business knowledge), it is
also useful to browse through business news online. Current examples of the changing
business environment and how organizations adapt accordingly will be helpful for
explaining key topics and concepts within the module. Such websites include:

www.bbc.co.uk/business
http://uk.reuters.com/business
www.ft.com/uk/management
http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/

MODULE ASSESSMENT

Assessment is by 100% coursework. Student will be assessed by two assignments

based on Faculty Qualitative Grading Criteria:

Assessment 1 (50%) – Individual Written Report

The individual assignment is designed to encourage students to compare and
contrast an offline business with an online business, and make recommendations on
how to improve the online business.

Assessment 2 (50%) – Group Written Report

The group assignment is designed to encourage students to critically reflect on e-
business strategy in a practical context through experiences in an organisation with
which they are familiar. Students will be encouraged to develop group-working skills
and asked to prepare a report on their findings. This group assignment will measure
the students’ achievement of learning outcomes K1, K2, K3, I1, I2, I3, I4, P1, P2, P3,
T1, T2, T3, and T4.

ASSIGNMENT DETAILS

Assessment 1 (50%) – Individual Written Report – 2,000 Words

Select ONE (1) company from the table below to critically appraise how
technology has or could help the firm in their innovation practices using
Drucker’s (1985) seven opportunities for innovation.
 Clothing/Fashion Banking/Finance
 Primark  HSBC
 H&M  Santander
Supermarket Retail Media Entertainment
 Aldi  HMV
 Morrison’s  Yahoo Movies
Airline Telecommunications
 Virgin Atlantic  Hutchison 3G
 Easy Jet  Nokia

All published information relative to the firm that you have used in the preparation of
your assignment should be included as an appendix.

It is expected that you will use the Internet facilities to obtain:

 Information from the organisation web site which support arguments put
forward in your assignment;

 Company documentation; and

 Academic literature from electronic databases to provide research evidence to

support your arguments.

Your written assignment should include at least 10 references to the literature in the
area. Any references cited must be included in a reference list at the end of your
assignment; the quality of the references will be taken into consideration.

Submission Details:
 TurnItIn Report (uploaded onto Blackboard)
 30th June 2017, no later than 14:00

Assessment 2 (50%) – Group Written Report – 3,000 Words

Critically appraise a company’s capabilities based on the matrix below to

assess its long-term survival and competitive advantage. Select ONE (1)
company from the table.
 Clothing/Fashion Banking/Finance
 Monsoon  ING Group
 Sports Direct  Natwest
Supermarket Retail Media Entertainment
 Co-Op  CNN
 Waitrose  Daily Mailo
Airline Telecommunications
 Emirates  Samsung
 Thomson Cook  EE

All published information relative to the organisation that you have used in the
preparation of your assignment should be included as an appendix.

It is expected that you will use the Internet facilities to obtain:

 Information from the organisation web site which support arguments put
forward in your assignment;

 Company documentation; and

 Academic literature from electronic databases to provide research evidence to

support your arguments.

Your written assignment should include at least 10 references to the literature in the
area. Any references cited must be included in a reference list at the end of your
assignment; the quality of the references will be taken into consideration.

Submission Details:
 TurnItIn Report (uploaded onto Blackboard)
 4th August 2017, no later than 14:00
In preparing reports for both assignments students should will be expected to
demonstrate an understanding of the importance of information management,
sharing and technology on strategic decisions taken by the organization and in
decision making processes.

Students are solely responsible for assigning themselves to a group. NO group

assignments will be accepted with only one author. Failure to complete the
group assignment as a group will result in a repeat of the course work for the module
with submission in the summer repeat period. Repeat fees will need to be also paid.

In line with the Ulster University Assessment Handbook (August 2016), 25% of each
student's assessment within the group work will be based on his or her individual
contribution. To facilitate this all students will be required to complete a peer
assessment form for submission along with the final piece of group coursework. All
students must also submit a peer assessment form based on the template
available at Appendix 1.

Opportunities for Feedback

Individual Report (50%)

This will be provided within two weeks of submission. There will be written feedback
using the level 7 descriptors on BlackBoard Learn; face-to-face feedback can be
provided and needs to be arranged via appointment owing to term break for
students.

Group Work (50%)

This will be provided within two weeks of submission. There will be written feedback
using the level 7 descriptors on BlackBoard Learn.
Peer Assessment Form

To ensure the contribution of group members is evaluated and marked equitably all
students must provide an assessment of their peers. Where you feel members
contributed equally all should receive a score of 100%.

Group Member Student ID Student Name Contribution

1
2
3
4
5
6

Details of Submitting Student

Student ID:

Student Name:

Course:

Where you have scored a group member (or members) with less than 100%
contribution please include a rationale for your marks below.
BMG738 Level 7 Grading Criteria