Instructors:

Dr. Robert H. Reck
Kendall Consulting Group
268 Highland Road, Andover, MA 01810
Phone: 978-474-9109 or 941-366-1774
E-mail: reck@babson.edu

David Kopcso
Babson Hall 303
Phone: 781-239-4409
Fax: 781-239-6416
E-mail: kopcso@babson.edu

Class Meets: Wednesday, 6:30 P.M.- 9:00 P.M., Gerber 101

Course Web Site http://faculty.babson.edu/reck/mis7570f99/index.htm for syllabus. Another site will be posted for regular class use.

Course Summary and Objectives

This course studies the rapidly growing phenomena of electronic commerce and electronic business from four perspectives:

1. Technology underpinnings for Electronic Commerce (EC), including languages, hardware, software, networks, Internet, EDI, standards and protocols

2. Impact on other information systems within a business, including impacts on Intranets, management information systems, and other operating systems that provide fundamental support to all elements of the value chain within a business. The relation to Knowledge Management will also be discussed.

3. Impact on business design and strategy (and vice versa), including how business strategy shapes and is now being shaped by threats and opportunities in EC

4. Impact on the industries and markets, including use of extranets, and how some industries are being forced to change almost overnight to respond to the impact of EC, particularly some intermediaries and distributors

Audience

The course is aimed at those business and management information systems graduate students who already have an understanding of the fundamentals of MIS, and who want an in-depth understanding of the issues and fundamentals regarding the use and conduct of electronic commerce and electronic business. Further, the course is being designed to especially appeal to those students with an entrepreneurial spirit.

Prerequisites

MIS-7500 - Information Systems Management or equivalent or permission of the instructor.

Other Related Courses

The following courses can help you develop related skills and knowledge in the areas of electronic business and e-commerce:

• MIS7520, Designing Organizations with Information Technology (DOIT). While retaining a business orientation, MIS7520 is a more technical course than the other two MIS courses listed below. Students in MIS7520 learn how to redesign business processes and then actually prototype the redesign using tools such as Microsoft Access and web page development tools.
• MIS7570, Emerging Technology: E-Commerce. MIS7570 addresses the strategic application of advanced technologies for electronic commerce. The course emphasizes inter-company information flows and the management of information, particularly via the Web, for competitive advantage. MIS7570 also gives a more in-depth coverage of the technologies used for e-commerce.
• MIS7571, IT and the Value Chain. MIS7571 studies the interdependent activities performed by a company to bring a product or service to its customers. It emphasis the role of IT in key business processes, supply chain management, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. Electronic commerce is also reviewed.
• MKT7570, Direct Marketing and E-Commerce. MKT7570 provides a more in-depth look at options and strategies for businesses that focus on the customer, including customer relationship management or CRM.
• MKT7540, Retailing in a Networked Environment. MKT7540 specifically applies the concepts reviewed in some of the above classes to retailing problems.
• OPS7520, Supply Chain Management. OPS7520 focuses on the relationship between material flows and information flows, predominantly between companies.

Please note. You may see identical or similar teaching materials in the syllabi of these courses. The faculty have been coordinating efforts in this area, and even when we use the same case, we will be teaching very different dimensions of the case.

Class Approach and Student Evaluation

Classroom participation, a personal web-based case study, a team web-business project, and a final examination are the basis for the course grade. (N.B., Project team grade will be shared by all team members.)

Participation will be evaluated on the basis of understanding and using assigned readings and study findings, contributing to insight on analysis and action recommendations for the case or topic being discussed, and taking into account others’ inputs. Excessive absence or tardiness from class will adversely affect this grade.

A web-based case study development is to be an analysis and recommendations for a specific company. The papers are to take into account not only the assignment materials for the classes to that point, but also the class discussions and insights after the class.

Student teams will also prepare short business plans for an electronic commerce concept that they develop during the semester. Teams will present these concepts to the class at the end of the semester.

Students are encouraged to discuss material for classes and papers, but are individually responsible for the final products. Arrangement will be made so that students can post case studies and examinations to a class web site.

The weighting of these elements in the final grade are:

Individual Case Study Project

Each student will write a short case study about a company or industry coping with electronic commerce or electronic business in some way. Unique companies and industries will be selected by each student on a first-come, first served basis on a class sign-up page. This project could include field work, analysis, and a Web-based case study from each team. Data for the study can be gathered from the Web, from publicly available information, from the library, from a visit to a local firm (possibly your firm). The firm you select should be involved in a key way with electronic business, either as a manufacturer or distributor, or as a user. Interviews with business managers who interact with the e-business will be especially useful. The case study should be organized to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the e-business and its potential. As a general guideline, the case study could include (but not be limited to):

This project is due November 10, 1999 in written and electronic form. Where electronic media (e.g., Web sites) are integral to your case, you may incorporate these on attached disks or direct the reader to a readily-accessed public Web site. You may also post your case on the Web site and notify the instructors of the site's address (if not on the class Web site).

Personal Web-Business Project (Includes Preliminary Business Site)

The class should break themselves into project teams of two to four students per team. Each team will propose, design and develop a Web-based profile of a business. A shortened business plan will be one of the products that will be submitted. (Business plans are discussed in the September 29^th class.) The business may be any of the following types of projects:

The business plan and preliminary business site are due on December 1, 1999. The paper and site may be submitted in a fashion similar to that established above for the Individual Case Study Project. This project is intended to be an enjoyable experience, but is a serious exercise. For some, this will begin the preparation of materials that will launch real businesses. To aid you and the instructors in understanding your project, each specific activity and the time spent completing it should be noted in a "Project Legacy Notebook," which will be an appendix to the project's business plan.

The final two classes will be used to evaluate the Web Business projects. Each team will make a ten to fifteen minute briefing of their project to the class and answer questions. Treat the class as a room full of venture capitalists or executives you are trying to interest in your concept, and the instructors as the primary investors or funding sources. Further grading criteria will be discussed in class.

Final Examination

The final examination is a take-home examination which will call for the student to prepare a brief paper on an assigned topic or case study. The examination will be passed out in the final class and due in two days in double-spaced, typed format (no less than 10-point type), five pages maximum plus exhibits. The examination should be e-mailed as an attachment in Word 97 to both instructors so that it is received no later than 5:00 P.M. on December 11, 1999.

Course Materials

There is a course pack for this class containing the case studies and several articles that is available at the Babson College Bookstore.

There are three books for the course, all available in paperback from the Bookstore or from online stores such as amazon.com or varsitybooks.com.

Specific articles at particular Web sites will also be assigned as part of the readings and assignments. Students are expected to review the Web sites of any case study company.

MIS-7570 Course Syllabus - Session Descriptions

Date (1999)	Instructor	Topics	Assignments, Readings, Cases and Guests
September 1	Kopcso & Reck	Introduction Course overview and administrative matters. Content of syllabus. Introduction to instructors. Discussion of assignments, grading criteria, class papers and team projects. Formation of student teams. Overview of Internet, e-Comm (EC) and e-Biz (EB), as well as other aspects of EC. Review of history of the Internet and EC/EB. Role of technology in commerce and strategic systems. Key frameworks for course. Key vocabulary. Introduction to EC languages and tools, including site development tools.	Case: None. Readings: Scan all text books, particularly the table of contents for major topics.
September 8	Reck	EC Sites: Business Perspective Discussion of site "progressions" and typical sites, relative to a business' intent and business and technology implications. The elements of a business model as well as the spectrum of EC business models observed will be discussed. Relation of EB/EC to value chains and extended enterprise models.	Case: "The Knot," by M. Lieb, Harvard Business School, #9-899-116, February 10, 1999. Guest: Helen Lee, former Babson College MBA and now CEO of SmartBride. Reading: K&R - 1, 2 and 11. T&S - 1, 2 and 8.
September 15	Kopcso	EC Sites: Technology Perspective Discussion of what's on the Web and why; organizing principles and major Internet components, including ISPs, portals, search engines, Internic, and other features. Mechanics of creating Web pages and launching them into cyberspace. The technology, software, network connections, and business design will be discussed for several business models.	Case: Open Market Reading: K&R - 3 and 4. T&S - 9 and 10.
September 22	Kopcso	EC Sites: Design Criteria and Layout What factors lead to successful EC sites? What are the various evaluation criteria? How can you become a "destination" site? Several specific areas will also be discussed relative to site design, including collaborative filtering versus structured filtering, search engine bias, and common gateway interfaces (CGI). These factors are particularly instrumental in site functionality and relative success. Aesthetic factors will also be highlighted.	Case: "Firefly Network (A)," by J. C. Charlet, Stanford University, OIT-22A, March 1998. Case: "Broadvision" by J. C. Charlet, Stanford University, OIT-21, March 1998. Read: Optional - Web "Wow" Book. T&S - 11.
September 29	Reck	EC Business: Components The revenue and cost components of an EC business will be developed, together with the major elements that go into a business case for a venture partner. Criteria VPs use to evaluate submissions. The class will also discuss the role of intermediaries in EC businesses. The roles and success factors of entrepreneurs will also be covered.	Case: "Chemdex," by L. Katz, Harvard Business School, #9-898-076, January 9, 1998. Readings: K&R - 5. Business 2.0 and other articles on Chemdex to be passed out. Sites: Chemdex, Life Technologies, VWR
October 6	Reck	EC Business: Linkages With Strategy How do existing businesses cope with the establishment of EC in their industries? What steps do mature companies take to create and implement an EC strategy? What factors are in the way? What strategic questions arise and how should they be answered? The eight rules of EB will be discussed and related to performance parameters. Performance metrics for EC/EB will also be discussed.	Case: "Leadership Online: Barnes & Noble vs. Amazon.com (A)," by P Ghemawat and B. Baird, Harvard Business School, #9-798-063, December 4, 1998. Reading: K&R - 6, 12. T&S - 3 and 4. And McKinsey Quarterly articles and other articles about Amazon to be assigned or passed out.
October 13	Kopcso	Key Topic: Security and Other Factors Many of the key issues surrounding EC will be discussed. Specific focus will be on security and "hacker proof" sites, hence, a discussion on protection of company systems and information by firewalls and security-limited access. Solutions to security problems with various hardware and software configurations will be covered. Protocols and features of EC software such as browsers that allow heightened security will also be discussed.	Case: TBD Reading: K&R - 9. T&S - 12 and 13.
October 20	Reck	EC In Practice: Financial Services One of the key areas being developed that will have far-reaching impacts on business and EC is electronic banking. Attempted on-and-off for over 20 years with various technologies, now electronic banking appears to have a viable start. The role of EC, EB and electronic banking will be discussed, together with the various banking/financial services functions. Many related issues including payments, bill presentation, credit cards, e-wallets, etc. will also be discussed. EC/EB businesses will also be discussed from the shareholder and stock market perspective.	Case: "Wells Fargo Bank & Electronic Banking," by R. Bamford, Stanford Graduate School of Business, SM-41, October 14, 1997. Reading: K&R - 8. T&S - 14.
October 27	Kopcso	EC In Practice: Online Publishing Continued discussion on business strategy. How do mature industries cope with potential obsolescence of their business or market position due to EC? Examples from the publishing area will help focus the discussion. Additionally the impact of distance learning on the education industry will be examined.	Case: "USA Today Online," by J. Deighton, Harvard Business School, 9-598-133, July 17, 1998. - and - Case: "InterZine Productions,"by J. Green, Harvard Business School, 9-396-174, November 16, 1995. Reading: T&S - 15.
November 3	Reck	Key Topic: Knowledge Management An important and allied component of EC/EB is knowledge management. This module will discuss KM and the various viewpoints companies are taking on the subject. A business and technology perspective will be shared. The impact on operations of a consulting company will help focus the class.	Case: "Ernst & Young Knowledge Management," by A. Chard, Stanford Graduate School of Business, M-291, September, 1997. Reading: K&R - 10.
November 10	Kopcso & Reck	Key Topic: Buy Side, Sell Side and Supply Chain Opportunities and Systems This module and guest will discuss how various companies are positioning themselves to use EC/EB in their operations. The product suites that support each type of operation will be discussed. Buy-side or procurement systems will be discussed, together with the efficiences they inject into a business. The subject of "front office" or Customer Relati onship Management (CRM) will also be discussed in depth together with the subject of data mining. Supply chain systems will also be covered.	Case: TBD Reading: Review K&R 5, 6 and 8. T&S - 17 and 18.
November 17	Kopcso	Key Topic: ERP and Integration of EC Components The opportunities for EC/EB along the supply chain will be covered with emphasis on ERP/EEM systems and their relationship to the "back office" support of e-Comm. The role of EB in removing time from the supply chain will also be discussed (zero latency effect).	Case: TBD Reading: K&R - 7. T&S - 16. Davenport, T.H., "Putting the Enterprise Into the Enterprise System", HBR, July 1998, pp 121-133. Reprint # 98401. "The Net Imperative," Economist, July 1, 1999.
November 24	None	No Class - Thanksgiving Recess	No formal assignments
December 1	Kopcso & Reck	Presentations and Course Evaluations Team presentations will start today. Time will also be allocated for completion of the course evaluations.	Due Today: Final papers/sites
December 8	Kopcso & Reck	Presentations and Wrap-Up As an ending to the class the future scenarios and business impacts facing the EC/EB communities will be discussed. Final examination will be passed out and due on December 11, 1999.	Handout: Final exam due Dec. 11, 1999

End of Syllabus.

This page updated 9/9/99.