Strategic Issues and Questions

ELECTRONIC COMMERCE Strategic Issues and Questions

CRITICAL ISSUES AND QUESTIONS

Policy and Legal Issues

1. To what extent will electronic commerce affect and change the industry and environmental dynamics of the organization?

2. What are the technical, financial and organizational considerations related to the consolidation and central coordination of e-commerce facilities within the organization as opposed to decentralized models?

3. What are the strategic implications of electronic commerce and B2B consortium/cooperative participation on the ratepayer?

4. What services, payment options and data should be made available to ratepayers?

5. What are the legal implications of data-sharing among vendors and suppliers for items such as: individual consumption patterns, rate levels, household data, payment history, head of household, occupation and employer, etc.?

6. What strategic choices and options does e-commerce present to the organization? 7. What are the legal and agency charter implications of participating as an equity partner in a consortium/cooperative or B2B market? 8. What are the legal implications of receiving cash rebates based on the total purchase volumes of other organizations. 9. What are the legal implications of receiving additional or incentive discounts based on the total purchase volumes of other organizations. 10. If participating in a consortium or B2B buying syndicate, what level of influence or approval will the organization have in qualifying and validating vendors for its social responsibility and inclusiveness requirements? 11. Assuming participation in a consortium/cooperative, what are the legal implications associated with the ownership of intellectual property, digital rights management, programming code, transaction process design and data integrity? 12. What are the termination provisions and contractual obligations under early termination or voluntary withdrawal from a consortium? 13. What are the legal and policy implications of participating in a consortium on the organization’s equal access and vendor accessibility policies? 14. To what extent does participating in an e-commerce program affect the organization’s diversity initiatives and guidelines? 15. To what extent does participating in a market partnership or consortium present or create the appearance of a conflict of interest as a quasi-governmental agency? 16. To what extent does the organization’s participation in a B2B consortium affect its initiative of promoting local vendor participation in its contracts?

1. To what extent can e-commerce be used to improve operational efficiencies and reduce overhead and activity costs? 2. What are the projected cash flows associated with participating in any B2B or e-commerce consortium? 3. What are the costs associated with acquiring technologies, software, licensing agreements and personnel related to participating in b2b consortium/cooperatives? 4. What are the annual maintenance and other recurring costs? 5. What percentage of variable and fixed costs is shared by suppliers/vendors? 6. What operational or variable and fixed costs are the responsibility of the organization? 7. What is the financial impact of process changes associated with e-commerce and/or participating in a consortium? 8. To what extent are cash flows accelerated through online adjudication of AP and AR? 9. What are the total transactional costs to participating vendors and are these variable based on volumes and purchasing mixes? 10. What automated purchasing controls will be necessary to enforce purchasing policies and adherence to budgets? 11. To what extent will overall transaction costs be reduced through e-commerce? 12. What percentage (dollars and unit volume) of total organizational purchases should be represented by e-commerce transactions?

Organizational and Managerial Issues

1. To what extent must the operational processes of the organization change to optimize the use of e-commerce and the benefits of the consortium? 2. What is the impact on suppliers and potential suppliers affected by any shifts? 3. To what extent is the number of qualified vendors increased/decreased by e-commerce or a b2b consortium? 4. To what extent are administrative responsibilities for maintaining vendor data shifted to the vendor? 5. What is the impact of Cybercash, EFT or online payment of invoices on the organization’s current operational processes and cash flows? 6. What organizational and operational changes will be necessary to fully leverage the capabilities? 7. To what extent will the standardization of materials and equipment be required on the part of the organization to fully maximize its leverage on suppliers and vendors? 8. To what extent should the organization standardize its procurement requirements for selected materials to ensure that it receives the maximum discounts possible. 9. What is the impact of e-commerce on the organization’s labor relations and what labor issues will have to be addressed prior to entering into any e-commerce?

2 ©2000. Synergy Consulting Group MOR 559 E-Commerce Issues 10. What features and functions will be provided to employees and customers? 11. To what extent will customers be held accountable for the accuracy and integrity of their data and transactions? 12. What filters and organizational protocols will be necessary for ensuring that only appropriate material, language and content are posted to the organization’s website and accessible to the public? 13. What organizational unit will have overall managerial control and authority over the design, presentation layout, colors, navigation scheme, maintenance, operations/hosting, content quality and updating of the website? 14. What type of employee training and education will be required to support e-commerce and related business processes?