Title: The impact of e-business on the demand-driven management: an empirical study in China

Authors: Zhen Zhu, Jing Zhao

Addresses: Center for International Cooperation in E-Business, School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, P.R. China; College of Business, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-1110, USA. ' Center for International Cooperation in E-Business, School of Economics and Management, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, P.R. China

Abstract: To meet the needs of increasing customisation, it is better for organisation to shift focus from supply-driven to demand-driven. However, the role of e-business in this trend remains unclear. From the e-business processes perspective, we present two models: a supply-driven model and a demand-driven model. Drawing from a sample of 105 traditional companies in China, we provide a comparison analysis to illustrate the impact of e-business on the demand-driven management using structural equation modelling (SEM). The results provide strong overall validation for the trend from supply-driven to demand-driven and show that companies with high level of e-business are good at demand-driven management. More companies with demand-driven strategy will improve demand integration through adopting e-business in ordering and CRM process. The results of this study will help managers understand the importance of e-business in improving responses to the needs of market and customers.

Keywords: demand-driven management; supply-driven management; e-business; electronic business; demand integration; China; customisation; structural equation modelling; CRM; customer relationship management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJNVO.2010.035406

International Journal of Networking and Virtual Organisations, 2010 Vol.7 No.6, pp.560 - 580

Published online: 30 Sep 2010 *

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