The Business of Ecommerce: From Corporate Strategy to Technology (Breakthroughs in Application Development) [Paperback]

Paul May (Author)

Book Description

Series: Breakthroughs in Application Development | Publication Date: February 28, 2000

The Business of Ecommerce explains how to conduct business over the Web. Accessible and useful to both technical and nontechnical readers, the book describes the relevant business issues to technologists and technical issues to business managers. Paul May combines his experience as a consultant to both blue chip companies and Internet startups to provide a generic model for understanding ecommerce opportunities. He makes accessible all of the relevant technologies. This book empowers technical and business decision-makers to maximize the opportunities of ecommerce.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Whether you are an Internet neophyte, dipping a toe in for the first time to set up a business model, or an Internet sophisticate with an existing business model who wants to take best advantage of the new medium, Paul May's book is a valuable resource. Written in a lively prose with anecdotal examples from Internet pioneers such as Yahoo! and eBay, the book offers practical models for creating and executing an e-commerce strategy." George Gordon, President and CEO of FastParts.com

"Oxford alum May elaborates on the current state of e-commerce, then provides a generic model and explains the core technologies that support electronic commerce." Reference & Research Book News

Book Description

he Business of Ecommerce provides a guide to the types of business that companies can conduct over the Web, and it explains how they can go about building systems to support these initiatives. Business and technology decision-makers will learn all they need to know about the entire field of Ecommerce. Paul May combines his experience as a consultant to blue chip companies with his experience with startups and presents the best of what the two cultures have to offer. While other books attempt to provide tour of what is on the Internet, this book is a practical tool to help businesses exploit it. It empowers the decsion-maker to make better use of the opportunities of Ecommerce.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (February 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521776988
• ISBN-13: 978-0521776981
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #494,457 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best E-Commerce Book this Year!, September 18, 2000

By 

Prof David T Wright (Vancouver, BC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Business of Ecommerce: From Corporate Strategy to Technology (Breakthroughs in Application Development) (Paperback)

`The Business of E-Commerce' is a great introductory text for senior (technical and non-technical) management, university students and consultants addressing the history, strategy and business models, specific applications as well as the technology required to quickly understand what e-commerce involves.

The well-structured, lightly illustrated and referenced chapters span:

++ getting there- about virtualization, globalization, and intellectualization aspects of business change, and exploitation through origins, recent history, interactivity, connectivity and continuity.

++ a generic business model for e-commerce- local business drivers (copycat, channel development, cost reduction, and partner inclusion), new maps (physical/informational/B2C, B2B, and cross-pollination), and role types (intermediation, disintermediation, reintermediation, and transformation agents).

++ pathfinder application areas- B2C retail, auctions, and advice; and B2B procurement, inventory exchange, and real-time collaboration.

++ technology landscape- data, dynamic networks, security, payment solutions and e-commerce standards.

++ architectures for electronic commerce- logical, technical, and organizational.

++ open issues- legalities (intellectual property, responsibility and privacy, regulation and taxation), technical issues (platform risk, communication disconnect, skills), and market issues (volatility, locus, and trust).

Strengths include: the well-structured `mature' text; the useful lengthy glossary of terms; the attractive style with mostly complete and correct content often supported by useful illustrative anecdotes or supporting materials; and the author's obvious comfortability with discussing some technical aspects supporting e-commerce (1960s EDI, Java, XML, Jini etc..). Weaknesses include: gaps relating to organizational (e-business) development lifecycle necessary to leverage the technology and business models; manufacturing examples with errors (not all manufacturing processes just have discrete steps!); real-time confusion (see any control engineering text for precise & correct definitions); gap relating to object-oriented systems/ virtual organization development (briefly mentioned about 100 pages late!); better referencing and supporting material, and need for more sidebars & illustrations, and about 15% reduced text for same content.

This reviewer got the impression that detailed discussions were avoided to minimize the need for frequent updates/ revisions. Yet perhaps such tabulated comparisons of contemporary tools for applications and organizational development, details of various offerings from major consultancies, and discussion of web-enabled ERP, CRM, CRM, BI (and all those other software acronyms) would have added value for the reader to better implement e-commerce solutions.

Some alternative texts include: the weaker inspiring `Futurize Your Enterprize' by Siegel; the weaker draft `Exploring E-commerce' by Fellenstein/Wood; and Hoque's `E-enterprise' which is initially promising but ultimately unsatisfactory (too much repetition, error, and `jargonism' without support, despite some good charts and structure, to be considered worthwhile).

Overall, a useful and entertaining read- amongst the best books (read by this reviewer) in the last year.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and enjoyable read, October 2, 2000

By 

Patricia Claeys Gallant (Longmeadow, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Business of Ecommerce: From Corporate Strategy to Technology (Breakthroughs in Application Development) (Paperback)

This book is one of a series called Breakthroughs in Application Development. I found the book to be an excellent introduction to the challenges, risks and opportunities that E-commerce brings to business, as well as to our personal lives as consumers. What I particularly liked about this book was that it used both successes and failures as examples to learn from. Also, Paul May does a good job of identifying the real business drivers (not just the buzzwords) which make going "E" so important in the current age. He examines the kind of out of the box/cross-functional thinking that is needed by both business and IT to make a substantial impact on the e-commerce world.

The book also covers the applicable technology at a high level, but not before stressing the importance of a well thought out business plan before diving into incoherent forays on the web. The most startlingly obvious recommendation he made was for companies to encourage and even subsidize their employees experiences on the Internet (a la Ford Motor Company buying PC's for all their employees, allowing access to the internet from work, etc.) since that's the best way to get them e-aware, both as consumers and professionals.

I would definitely recommend this book both for business and technical people. Paul May uses humor and even sarcasm to keep the book light and engaging without skimping on content or credibility.

49 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent business ideas, and witty too, April 3, 2000

By 

Richard Taylor (Banbury, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Business of Ecommerce: From Corporate Strategy to Technology (Breakthroughs in Application Development) (Paperback)

This book gives great insight into what will make an ecommerce site successful, and the reasons behind that success, i.e. human behaviour is the driver - it's what people want/need, not what technology can offer. (However, the book does still tell you what you need to know, technically!)

It splits potential sites into meaningful categories (business-to-business, business-to-consumer, physical goods, virtual goods, etc) and defines their characteristics. This gives you the basis on which to compare your potential ideas, and gives you fresh ideas for services, too.

All in all, excellent content, excellent example sites (places I wouldn't consider visiting, and wouldn't find by accident, like cyberanalysis.com) , and excellent wit when you're not expecting it. It crosses the divide between business and technology successfully.