A01 chaf6542 06 se fm indd

(a) Distributed 

(b) Matrix control 

(c) New division 

(d) Autonomous company 

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Part 3  Implementation

 Where the main e‑commerce function is internal, the E‑consultancy (2005) research sug‑

gested that it was typically located in one of four areas (see  Figure   10.10   ) in approximate 

decreasing order of frequency: 

   (a)    Main  e‑commerce  function  in  separate  team.  

  (b)    Main e‑commerce function part of operations or direct channel.  

  (c)    Main e‑commerce function part of marketing, corporate communications or other cen‑

tral marketing function.  

  (d)    Main e‑commerce function part of information technology (IT).    

 There is also often one or several secondary areas of e‑commerce competence and resource. 

For example, IT may have a role in applications development and site build and each busi‑

ness, brand or country may have one or more e‑commerce specialists responsible for man‑

aging e‑commerce in their unit. Consider which of the options would be preferable for 

organisations you are familiar with. The research suggested that the approach which was 

appropriate depended strongly on the market(s) the company operated in and their existing 

channel  structures.  

  Approaches to managing change 

 Hayes (2002) notes that for external forces of change, it may be difficult for those in an organ‑

isation to manage and control the impact of change – the deterministic view. However, the 

voluntarist view is that managers can make an important difference to managing the impact 

of change. In the case of information systems management, it is clear that much can be done 

to reduce the impact of change. Change management is conducted by  

change agents

   who 

are the managers responsible for controlling change. In the context of digital business, the 

change agent could be the project manager responsible for implementing a new information 

  Approaches to managing change