Sun Microsystems: Realizing the Potential of Web Technologies (9-198-007) Teaching Note, (5-698-074)
"Describes how Web technology has been deployed at Sun--how it has evolved from being perceived as an inappropriate use of company resources to become the centerpiece of the company's business strategy"
Ford Motor Company
Robert Austin and Mark Cotteleer, Harvard Business School, 12 pages, plus exhibits, 9-198-006, July 1997.
Great case that discusses Ford's Web development and use up until July 1997. Provides an interesting vehicle for studying electronic commerce in the automobile industry. Summarizes web applications, connection of suppliers to the Ford intranet, issues in managing web content and provides a time line of web use at Ford.
Cisco Systems, Inc. (398127); Teaching Note, (5-399-074)
"Cisco is a fast moving, leading company in the Information Age. The company has used IT to build an Information Age organizational structure that not only provides a highly competitive cost structure, but enables the company to provide extraordinarily high service levels. The CIO is a renaissance CIO, and has built the company's strategic intranet. Teaching Purpose: To illustrate the strategic impact of strong IT leadership."
American Management Systems, Inc.: The Knowledge Centers (9-697-068}
"Senior management at AMS, a business and information technology consulting company, is growin at 28% annually and assimilating 1,800 new hires a year. They have recently instituted a new knowledge management strategy, a group of six knowledge centers (virtual communities of experts) each concerned with one of the company's core disciplines. The initiative is intended to help AMS reach its goal of leadership, as well as to help assimilate the many new consultants. How well does the company's newest knowledge management infrastructure work? The case deals with crucial issues of knowledge transfer and knowledge organization, and innovations in the field of knowledge management. Teaching Purpose: Knowledge management and innovation."
AirProducts' Internet Strategy
This case is great for getting to a issues ranging from the use of the internet in business, intranets and extranets.
Electronic Commerce at Air Products (9-399-035) Case Video, (9-399-515), 24 min,
"In 1998, chief information officers (CIOs) in the highly competitive international gases and chemicals business came face-to-face with the reality that electronic commerce capability was a strategic necessity. The results of annual surveys of technology officers in the chemical industry indicated a shift in priorities from the building of a corporation's internal infrastructure in 1995 to enabling the same infrastructure to connect with customers, suppliers, and partners in 1998. Computer-supported collaborative work, electronic commerce, and Internet systems were cited by the CIOs as critical technologies in 1998, according to surveys conducted by Computer Sciences Corp. Mostcompanies have completed in-house reengineering tasks and are ready to put new systems to work managing whole supply chains. The increasing strategic importance of electronic commerce commanded the attention of the senior executives of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., an international corporation with headquarters in Trexlertown, PA. With sales of $4.6 billion in 1997, Air Products held the number two position in the gases industry in the United States, behind Praxair, and was the fourth largest provider in the worldwide market. Air Products Management Information Systems (MIS) Vice President Joe McMakin and his colleagues recognized the opportunity: they could improve service to customers by automating the buying, selling, and distribution of products, while simultaneously improving productivity and realizing cost savings. Teaching Purpose: Reveals the issues and processes involved in corporate implementation of electronic commerce initiatives. A rewritten version of an earlier case".
Freemarkets Online (9-598-109) (Teaching note: 5-599-130, but apparently not available online)
"Describes the marketing strategy of an entrepreneurial start-up engaged in electronic purchasing for large manufacturers. By creating an electronic bidding platform, the company has been able to cut down procurement costs by about 15%. The case question concerns how this company should now go to scale. Teaching Purpose: To understand the business challenge of entering electronic commerce."
Federal Express: The Role of Information Technology in Customer Service
David Paul and Keri Pearlson, University of Texas at Austin, 8/1/95. Nine pages of text and 9 exhibits. The case discusses this Memphis, Tennessee based overnight package delivery company. The focus on the case is the relationship between information technology and customer service with emphasis on Powership - an on customer premises system that provides links to Cosmos - Federal Expresses tracking system. Powership, at the time of the case, was processing 60% of domestic U.S. volume and one third of total volume. Case also discusses the various customer service strategies for high volume customers such as L.L. Bean and for low volume customers. Case presents an interesting opportunity to present the Customer Service Life Cycle framework. Also, be sure students visit the Federal Express Site on the WWW, which gives access to COSMOS. (Note:This case is available from Keri Pearlson and can be used free of charge. However, you must notify Keri prior to using the case so she can notify Federal Express - per their request. )
EDI and Process Change
Singapore Tradenet: A Tale of One City (see also Singapore Leadership (9-191-025) and Hong Kong TradeLink (9-191-026))
John King and Benn Konsynski, thirteen pages plus exhibits, April 1995, 9-191-009.
Super case. Students love this case that allows comparison of Singapore and Hong Kong EDI efforts.
Singapore Unlimited: Building the National Infrastructure (9-196-012) Teaching Note (5-399-098) (see also 5-195-025)
This case "presents the story behind development of an IT enabled strategy for the country of Singapore and the information infrastructure required to implement the strategy."
Baxter Healthcare Corporation: ASAP Express
Benn Konsynski and Michael Vitale, ten pages plus exhibits, February 1991, 9-188-080.
Traces the origins and evolution of EDI at Baxter and in the Health Care Industry. Excellent historical perspective.
Baxter International: On Call as Soon as Possible
Christopher Marshall, Benn Konsynski and John Sviokla, 11 pages, plus exhibits, December 1, 1995, 9-195-103.
Continues the Baxter story and includes a quick summary of material in the Baxter ASAP Express Case. This case (15 pages plus exhibits) brings us up to date on one of my favorite cases - the old American Hospital Supply/ Baxter International ASAP system. ASAP was a proprietary and ever evolving order entry system that provided AHSC and then Baxter International with an at least temporarily sustainable advantage in dealing with its hospital customers. The new case describes Baxter, the hospital supplies industry and changes in it. It then traces the history of ASAP and the new multi-company On-Call initiative. Unlike ASAP, On-Call employs an open rather than proprietary networking strategy, thus the benefits will go to those firms that can best derive value from a shared infrastructure. The case leaves faculty and students to explore how Baxter should seek to do that..
Supply Chain Interaction
Proctor & Gamble: Improving Consumer Value through Process Redesign
Theodore Clark and James McKenney, twelve pages plus exhibits, 9-195-126, March 31, 1995.
Super! I love this case. The case lays out the evolution of Proctor & Gamble's supply chain integration for business to business electronic commerce. Includes EDI, supplier managed inventories and simplification of processes. If you talk about B2B EC then this case needs to be in there!
i2 Technologies, Inc. (9-699-042) Rev. February 24, 1999, by Ananth Raman and Jasjit Singh.
i2 is one of the two leading providers of supply chain management software.
Ford Motor Company: Supply Chain Strategy (9-699-198) Rev. April 1999, by Rob Austin
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This page is maintained by Daniel E. O'Leary. We encourage your feedback (send me your cases!) -- please send it to oleary@rcf.usc.edu. This page was last updated on December 1, 1999. Although we will attempt to keep this information accurate, we can not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided. Users are advised to look at our disclaimer.