Distinguishing the critical success factors between e-commerce, enterprise resource planning, and supply chain management

Abstract

The rapid deployment of e-business systems has surprised even the most futuristic management thinkers. Unfortunately very little empirical research has documented the many variations of e-business solutions as major software vendors release complex IT products into the marketplace. The literature holds simultaneous evidence of major success and major failure as implementations evolve. It is not clear from the literature just what the difference is between e-commerce and its predecessor concepts of supply chain management and enterprise resource planning. In this paper we use existing case studies, industrial interviews, and survey data to describe how these systems are similar and how they differ. We develop a conceptual model to show how these systems are related and how they serve significantly different strategic objectives. Finally, we suggest the critical success factors that are the key issues to resolve in order to successfully implement these systems in practice.