ICT in Business & Commerce

AS Module 1 10.5

Heathcote Ch. 2

Changing Shape of Business ICT is now vital to the success of most organisations

The range of goods and services delivered via the medium of ICT continues to expand

Typical trends in the “information age”• More small businesses• Large organisations becoming less hierarchical – ‘flatter’

• Information workers have become more important

• Workers now need knowledge and skills in:• Problem-solving• Communications• Using initiative• Using new technology

Information technologies

Most careers now involve employees using some aspect of information technology• Office administration• Production Control• Design applications

• Global communications

Many ‘new’ products are now commonplace• ATMs• Mobile telephones• CD and DVD players (and writers)• Computer games

Shopping on the Internet Thousands of companies now do business on the Internet,

including:• Tesco

• For £5 you can have your shopping delivered to your door

• Amazon• Cheap books and CDs

• EasyJet• Book cheap flights online cutting out the travel agent

The Benefits to Business• Lower overheads (don’t need to buy land to display goods)• Customer care can be ‘outsourced’ - many help lines are now

based in Asia where labour is cheaper. Other help lines are fully automated.

Shopping on the Internet 2 The benefits to business (ctd.)

• Can easily collect customer data for marketing purposes• The customer benefits:

• Ease of use (no more shopping trips!)• Businesses pass on cost savings in lower prices• Wider choice of goods/services (especially in the rural community)• Can search massive databases to find EXACTLY what you want

The drawbacks• Cost of setting up e-commerce sites • Not everybody access to the Internet

• Creation of a social underclass• Lost working hours (i.e. workers use company Internet access

and time for personal use - finding cheap holidays, checking football results, visiting porn sites etc.)

Shopping on the Internet 3

The drawbacks (ctd.)• Waiting for goods to arrive (if they arrive!)• Security concerns:

• Credit card fraud

• Bogus companies

• Who do you complain to if you experience poor service?• Can’t touch, taste or feel goods before you buy them• SPAM• Some people actually enjoy shopping!

Using IT to set up a small business 1

PC with peripherals (scanner, printer etc.)• To run the software

Fax machine• To communicate with customers and suppliers. Fax modem

standard with most new PCs The Internet

• To advertise and sell products online Email

• For internal and external communication On-line banking

• To keep track of finances (cash flow etc.) Telephone and answering machine

• See Fax. Vital to any small business

Using IT to set up a small business 2

Spreadsheet• Help set up business plan by calculating expected income and

expenses. Perform “what if” queries to test the effect of raising or lowering prices.

Graphics• Create high quality commercial documents i.e. design logo,

headed stationary, business cards etc. Word Processing

• Design invoice stationary, send mailshots etc. DTP

• Design high quality advertising, promotional material etc. Database

• To keep a mailing list of customers

ICT in banking

The banking sector relies heavily on ICT:

• Telephone banking• Internet banking• ATMs• Credit/Debit cards• MICR• Direct debit• Smartcards