Business Assignment
The objectives of electronic commerce differ from small businesses to larger ones. While the general purpose for e-commerce engagement is to increase revenues, these objectives vary with the size of the business as well as the market. For a small-scale business, the objectives could vary depending on the owner’s personal objective, the growth objective, and the competitive objective. Small-scale businesses are privately owned as personal or family ventures (Epstein, 2004). The personal objectives of the owner of the business in engaging in e-commerce include earning a better living for the family members. However, large businesses have the objective of creating wealth for the stakeholders by growing the business as well as creating equity. Since small-scale businesses serve smaller markets, their growth objectives do not include expensive advertisings as the larger businesses since they possess little potential for rapid growth (Bothma, & Geldenhuys, 2008). Finally, while larger businesses have the competitive objective of using their large resources to build customer loyalty, small-scale businesses seek to compete against the established large-scale businesses through increasing their customer base. The objectives of a small boutique might include increasing revenue, increasing popularity, and competing against large stores
Outsourcing
The different types of outsourcing include the following (Chongvilaivan, Hur, & Riyanto, 2009):
- Information Technology Outsourcing: sub-contracting specific information technology functions to independent individuals or companies. The main advantage of ITO is reducing operational control costs. Its major disadvantage is possible incompatibility of outsourced content with organizational goal
- Business Process Outsourcing: involves subcontracting the responsibilities and operations of specific business functions to independent business entities. The advantage of BPO is that it reduces bureaucratic costs. Its disadvantage is that the misconduct of the subcontractor translated to the image of the parent company
- Offshore Software Development: involves acquiring software from suppliers from beyond county’s borders. The advantage is that it evades the expensive costs of local software companies. The disadvantage is that some software is designed for specific manufacturer location and might not be compatible with organizational goals.
- Knowledge Process Outsourcing: involves outsourcing of relevant information for business development. It ensures growth, but also leads to adoption of incompatible ideas.
I believe that Business process outsourcing is the most effective because the parent company exercises control over the subcontractors. Ford Motor Company is an example that uses Business Process Outsourcing through giving advertising contracts to J. Walter Thompson (JWT) advertising company (Denzel, 2013).
References:
Chongvilaivan, A., Hur, J., & Riyanto, Y. E. (2009). Outsourcing Types, Relative Wages, and the Demand for Skilled Workers: New Evidence from U.S. Manufacturing. Economic Inquiry, 47(1), 18-33.
Denzel K., (March 25, 2013). Ford India apologizes for ads featuring Berlusconi, Paris Hilton and women bound and gagged. Fox News. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/03/25/ford-ads-featuring-berlusconi-paris-hilton-show-women-bound-and-gagged/
Epstein J. M., (2004). Implementing E-commerce Strategies: A Guide to Corporate Success After the Dot.com Bust. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group.
Bothma C., & Geldenhuys P., (2008). Managing E-commerce in Business. Claremont, Cape Town: Juta and Company Ltd.
