Tesco's B2B model to be admired

When it comes to e-business and Business to Business model success stories, Tesco is unquestionably one to be admired. Tesco learned to go beyond Wal-Mart and become the Toyota of the grocery business. However, as a company they do not just see themselves as being in the grocery business, and rightly so, they consider themselves as being in the logistics industry. Tesco goes far beyond providing groceries to consumers, it has implemented ebusiness strategies that not only impress but make them top of their field. Tesco’s execution of lean management, radio frequency identification tags and customer driven replenishment systems has accounted for them being a top class and waste free company. Tesco’s supply chain management model is unrivaled in the industry with everything being 100% integrated, traceable and visible. The success of Tesco can be attributed to the fact that they are not afraid to face up to date cutting edge technologies to better the company. For Tesco, their ebusiness is all about technology meeting the needs of the company, and not just adapting to new technology because it’s the ‘thing to do’. More companies should adopt Tesco’s ebusiness values and learn a thing or two from them. Tesco hands down have accomplished their goal of being the Toyota of their industry.

References:

http://www.smartinsights.com/digital-marketing-strategy/digital-strategy-development/tesco-marketing-strategy-in-2012/

http://www.wiley.com/college/acc/wilkinson253529/site/spotlighting/4ch3SpotEcommerce.htm

Cloud Computing: A must have for companies striving for success

Cloud Computing has gone from being something to be admired, into something that is now a must have for all companies with a future. For those who are new to the term, Cloud computing is technology that allows a large amount of computers to be connected through a communication network. The Cloud service is completely managed by the provider, meaning users only need access to a computer and the internet, making it effortlessly easy to use. Cloud Computing eliminates the management of hardware and software. The success of Cloud Computing has been driven largely by the increase in recent years of the exploitation of IT. Cloud Computing is more than just a platform for businesses who chose to utilise it, it is about providing companies with access to much needed resources and technologies, Cloud Computing has the ability to take a company to the next level. Businesses have begun using this new technology to successfully manage HR activities, accounting activities and customer relationship management. Just like the shift from web 1.0 to web 2.0, this new shift towards Cloud computing is becoming more and more popular and is revolutionising the business world. Cloud Computing is arguably the future for e-business and is certainly a must have for any company looking to be taken seriously as far as IT goes.

References:

http://www.uniface.com/content/dam/compuware/application-development/brochures/br_cloud.pdf

http://www.siliconrepublic.com/enterprise/item/10908-cloud-computing-to-be-as-i

http://www.salesforce.com/eu/cloudcomputing/

Revenue Online Service: an Irish eGovernment Success Story

Although as a State Ireland has a lot of work to do in the eGovernment sense, with many failure stories such as eVoting and its essentially pathetic online presence with regard to social networking and information sites, the implementation of the Revenue Online Service has been a triumph for the state. Initiated in 2000, The Revenue Online Service has successfully provided Irish businesses with an easy and effective way of administrating all of their revenue related transactions. This has truly been the Irish flagship eGovernment platform.  The Revenue Online Service not only facilitates online transaction and documentation, it also provides features like ordering forms or leaflets online or through text message and mobile apps. This new and effective online tool not only benefits the user, making managing revenue a simple task, it has also provided the government with huge increases of taxation returns since it has been implemented. Unlike the disappointing eVoting initiative, which cost the tax payer millions of euro which failed partly because of the Irish Nations lack of faith in the system, The ROS has been greatly embraced and welcomed. The ROS has not only proved that eGovernment can be a huge success in this country, but also that any failure in eGovernment activity has not been a technology issue, but about a failure of correctly reforming public services. If more initiatives like this are established, Ireland eGovernment will be moving onwards and upwards.

References:

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2354424

http://www.revenue.ie/en/press/archive/2005/pr_241105ros.html

http://books.google.ie/books?id=KjALtIPW14AC&pg=PA159&lpg=PA159&dq=revenue+online+service+e-government+success&source=bl&ots=k8HY5sVBqx&sig=JRLwxP8eLIN9QkxcSeFpcnZBsOY&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9UMrU-qQDYOThQeOtIHIDA&ved=0CEsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=revenue%20online%20service%20e-government%20success&f=false

Bitcoin: Giving Ireland a push in the right e-business direction?

With the introduction of Bitcoin in 2009, Ireland was slow to jump onto this new revolutionised digital currency bandwagon. In Canada and the US, ATMs have been installed around the nation specifically for Bitcoin. Huge American and Canadian companies such as Zynga, TigerDirect, Clearly Canadian and Overstock.com now all accept Bitcoin as payment. Ireland have now realised the potential value that the Bitcoin can add to its economy and business and have began measures to capitalise on this. Ireland’s first Bitcoin ATM was opened in Dublin this year, where users convert physical cash into Bitcoin. In order for this to work, users will first have to download their own digital wallet in which to store their new currency. Further moving Ireland towards US success of Bitcoin usage, Eircoin has been set up. Eircoin is presently Irelands only Bitcoin broker, however, I advise watching this space as Bitcoin gets more and more popular and others elect to cash in on this digital phenomenon. Although as of yet few large Irish businesses accept Bitcoin as payment, the small amount that have adopted this method are set, in my opinion, to pave the way for others. Some businesses like Ring Farmhouse, a B&B in Offaly have welcomed this new currency. The Baggot Inn in Dublin recently became the first pub in Ireland to accept Bitcoin for a pint. As slow as Ireland may be to adopt Bitcoin, watch this space over the next couple of months as Irish businesses realise its potential value.

References:

http://www.joe.ie/tech/tech-news/a-pub-in-dublin-became-the-first-boozer-in-the-country-to-accept-bitcoin-for-a-pint-last-night/

http://www.rte.ie/news/business/2014/0313/602037-bitcoin-atm/

https://www.eircoin.net/

http://www.siliconrepublic.com/business/item/35451-irish-retailers-and-specula/

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/12/06/bank_of_america_says_bitcoin_could_become_the_currency_of_ecommerce/