eCustoms Case Study: Mechanisms behind Co-operation Planning

Members of existing e-commerce trading networks constantly assess their network to identify opportunities for increased co-operation and integration of e-commerce IT systems. Failing to identify the mechanisms involved in co-operation compromises correct investment decisions. In this paper, we use Systems Thinking as a reasoning model that helps decision makers to uncover such mechanisms. We use Systems Thinking to analyse a real-world case called eCustoms, an inter-organisational network of customs organisations. The resulting model explains the mechanism of planning co-operation in terms of a feedback loop that comprises political support, operational potential, and information flow. This mechanism also explains why it is important to select potential partners for closer co-operation as early as possible, the importance of willingness to participate, and the gain or loss of decision power that joining a network implies

Electronic government procurement adoption behavior amongst Malaysian SMEs

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between a model of electronic procurement (e-procurement) adoption behavior and the level of Government e-procurement adoption amongst Small Medium Enterprise (SME) in Malaysia. Data was collected through questionnaires that were distributed to SME selected randomly in all SME in Malaysia.The data were analyzed using factor analysis, reliability analysis, independent-sample t-test, descriptive statistics, Pearson Correlation and multiple regressions. Regression results reveals that ‘power’, ‘trust’ and ‘value’ have a positive relationship with the level of e-procurement adoption amongst SME in Malaysia.All dimensions, namely; the power of supplier, power of procurement, trust on supplier, trust on information technology, value of implementation system efficiency and value of cost efficiency were also correlated with the level of e-procurement adoption amongst SME. Past studies on e-procurement are beset by problems of buyer-seller relationship perspective.In addition, these studies are skewed towards Government-SME relationship perspective which the Government possesses more power than SME and provide a better incentive to educate and influence SME to adopt e-procurement.In investigation the relationship between a model of e-procurement adoption behavior and the level of Government e-procurement adoption amongst SME in Malaysia, this study also tries to provides recommendation to Malaysian government for improving the level of e-procurement adoption amongst SME

How Effective are Electronic Reputation Mechanisms? An Experimental Investigation

Electronic reputation or "feedback" mechanisms aim to mitigate the moral hazard problems associated with exchange among strangers by providing the type of information available in more traditional close-knit groups, where members are frequently involved in one another's dealings. In this paper, we compare trading in a market with online feedback (as implemented by many Internet markets) to a market without feedback, as well as to a market in which the same people interact with one another repeatedly (partners market). We find that, while the feedback mechanism induces quite a substantial improvement in transaction efficiency, it also exhibits a kind of public goods problem in that, unlike in the partners market, the benefits of trust and trustworthy behavior go to the whole community and are not completely internalized. We discuss the implications of this perspective for improving feedback systems.

Trading Partner Trust in Electronic Commerce Participation

The growth of business-to-business e-commerce has highlighted the role of computer and communications technologies as well as inter-organizational trust in developing and maintaining business-to-business relationships. Despite the acknowledged importance of trust, only a limited amount of research exists and that examines the role of trust in these relationships. By investigating inter-organizational relationships andtrust in e-commerce, this study will enable us to identify factors leading to successful e-commerce participation (adoption and integration). Drawing on theories such as trust in business relationships, inter-organizational relationship theories, transaction cost economics, and resource dependency theory, this paper develops a conceptual model to examine the impact of trading partner trust in e-commerce participation. The model is currently being tested through multiple in-depth case studies. The findings of the case studies are expected to increase the awareness of e-commerce adopters and implementers about the importance of trading partner trust in e-commerce participation

EDI and intelligent agents integration to manage food chains

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a type of inter-organizational information system, which permits the automatic and structured communication of data between organizations. Although EDI is used for internal communication, its main application is in facilitating closer collaboration between organizational entities, e.g. suppliers, credit institutions, and transportation carriers. This study illustrates how agent technology can be used to solve real food supply chain inefficiencies and optimise the logistics network. For instance, we explain how agribusiness companies can use agent technology in association with EDI to collect data from retailers, group them into meaningful categories, and then perform different functions. As a result, the distribution chain can be managed more efficiently. Intelligent agents also make available timely data to inventory management resulting in reducing stocks and tied capital. Intelligent agents are adoptive to changes so they are valuable in a dynamic environment where new products or partners have entered into the supply chain. This flexibility gives agent technology a relative advantage which, for pioneer companies, can be a competitive advantage. The study concludes with recommendations and directions for further research

Trust and Risk in Business Networks: Towards a Due Diligence for Electronic Commerce

This paper develops a due diligence for electronic transactions with new partners in business networks with complex goods such as food products to enable the use of e-commerce potentials in first time transactions. The e-commerce due diligence is a means to reduce perceived risks and uncertainties for businesses and create trust and confidence in the electronic transaction with appropriate information. The paper presents a conceptual framework for the due diligence integrating the principles of transaction decision making and the four phases of a transaction process. The operationalization of the framework assigns trust signals and control elements to the four process phases to be communicated during the process.Trust, risk, electronic commerce, first time transactions, due diligence, food networks, Agribusiness, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, Marketing,

Trusted operational scenarios - Trust building mechanisms and strategies for electronic marketplaces.

This document presents and describes the trusted operational scenarios, resulting from the research and work carried out in Seamless project. The report presents identified collaboration habits of small and medium enterprises with low e-skills, trust building mechanisms and issues as main enablers of online business relationships on the electronic marketplace, a questionnaire analysis of the level of trust acceptance and necessity of trust building mechanisms, a proposal for the development of different strategies for the different types of trust mechanisms and recommended actions for the SEAMLESS project or other B2B marketplaces.trust building mechanisms, trust, B2B networks, e-marketplaces