The era of information technologies (hereafter IT) has lead to a shift from exchanging goods to services and at the same time to a tremendous increase of companies operating in the field of electronic business. As continuous changes of the environment take place in this field, it is crucial for the companies to come up with new technologies and solutions on a regular basis (Oliveira et al. 2002). This complex condition leads to on-going development, adaptation and maintenance of eServices, which are seen as a central part of any electronic business activity due to their contribution to interactivity, connectivity, increase of customer satisfaction as well as mass customization (Sheth and Sharma 2007). Succeeding in these mentioned tasks guarantees long-term benefits for the companies, helps them to achieve their stated targets, as well as to retain a strong competitive advantage, which is of a great importance.
However, eServices need to be managed properly in order to really be a benefit for the company. One of these fundamental management tasks includes the continuous business value assessment of eServices, which is not only suitable for the calculation of the business value, but is also able to indicate, whether the eService contributes to the achievement of the company’s key performance indicators and how well it performs. The assessment of eServices business value is conducted using appropriate methods and metrics, which lies the midpoint of this Master thesis examination.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Problem setting and motivation
- Aim and approach of the thesis
- Research questions
- Structure of the thesis
- Terminology
- Physical products vs. services
- Services vs. eServices
- Business value in general
- Business value of services
- Business value of eServices
- Business value assessment
- Business value assessment in general
- Business value assessment planning process
- Economic and non-economic business value assessment perspectives
- Economic business value assessment
- Non-Economic business value assessment
- Internal and external business value assessment
- Business value assessment of eServices
- Assessment of eServices features and functions
- Fulfilment
- Efficiency
- Availability
- Security
- Convenience
- Incentive
- Reliability
- Assurance through employees
- Empathy of employees
- Responsiveness of employees
- Customer satisfaction
- Customer survey
- Focus group
- Observation
- Evaluation of online data
- Employee satisfaction
- Employee survey
- Focus group
- Observation
- Employee committees
- Evaluation of employee statistics
- Economic indicators
- Discounted cash flow
- Shareholder value added
- Total business return
- Net present value
- Discount rate
- Residual income
- Economic value added
- Economic profit
- Cash value added
- Return on investment/assets/sales
- Operating income to assets/sales/employee
- Gross margin
- Break-even-point analysis
- Net operating profit after tax
- Debt ratio
- Cost of goods sold to sales
- Selling and general administrative expenses to sales
- Total operating expenses to sales
- Cost-benefit-analysis
- Productivity
- Delivery cycle time
- Number of incorrect order fulfilments
- Assessment models
- Balanced Scorecard
- Integrated value assessment framework
- Value measurement methodology
- Modified SERVQUAL method
- Assessment of eServices features and functions
- SWOT-analysis
- Purpose and general description
- SWOT-analysis in general
- SWOT-analysis for eService business value assessment framework
- SWOT-analysis for the assessment of eServices features and functions
- SWOT-analysis for the assessment of customer satisfaction
- SWOT-analysis for the assessment of employee satisfaction
- SWOT-analysis for the assessment of economic indicators
- Concluding remarks
- Research questions, summary, limitations and further research
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
The thesis aims to provide a comprehensive framework for assessing the business value of eServices. It examines the methods and metrics used by companies to evaluate the value of their eServices, including both economic and non-economic perspectives. The research focuses on the specific features and functions of eServices, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and economic indicators to determine their impact on business value.
- Business value assessment of eServices
- Assessment of eServices features and functions
- Customer satisfaction measurement
- Employee satisfaction measurement
- Economic indicators for evaluating eService value
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- Introduction: This chapter introduces the research topic of assessing the business value of eServices, outlines the motivation behind the research, and defines the specific research questions. It also presents the structure of the thesis.
- Terminology: This chapter defines key terms related to services, eServices, and business value. It clarifies the distinctions between physical products and services, and between services and eServices. It also examines the concept of business value in general, and specifically for services and eServices.
- Business value assessment: This chapter explores the general concept of business value assessment, outlining the planning process, different perspectives (economic and non-economic), and internal and external approaches. It then delves into the specific application of business value assessment for eServices, discussing various methods and metrics.
- SWOT-analysis: This chapter explains the purpose and application of SWOT analysis in the context of eService business value assessment. It focuses on how SWOT analysis can be applied to each assessment area, including eService features and functions, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and economic indicators.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The primary keywords and focus topics of the thesis include eServices, business value assessment, assessment methods, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, economic indicators, SWOT analysis, and integrated value assessment framework.
- Business value assessment in general
- Citation du texte
- Alexandra Barokova (Auteur), 2015, eServices Business Value Assessment and its Methods and Metrics used among the Companies, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/340147
