A Customer Resource Life Cycle Interpretation of the Impact of the World Wide Web on Competitiveness: Expectations and Achievements

Abstract:

Research indicates that many organizations implement their World Wide Web sites so that they can compete more successfully. The Customer Resource life Cycle (CRlC) is a framework for explaining how organizations use information technology to do so. The current exploratory research investigated how smaller organizations plan to use the Web to improve their CRlC activities and thus enhance their competitiveness. It also investigated how successfully they use the Web in this endeavor. Managers from 472 companies that use Web sites to conduct business responded to an e-mail survey about the expectations and achievements of their Web sites in the context of the CRlC. They expected their Web sites to help customers acquire resources rather than to determine requirements for resources, whereas customers used the sites more for requirements determination than for acquisition. At the same time, the Web helped organizations compete in the manner expected to a great extent.

Key Words and Phrases::

• Customer resource life cycle
• competitive information systems
• Web sites

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Gerald C. Gonsalves

GERALD C. GONSALVES ([email protected]) is an assistant professor in the Department of Decision Sciences at East Carolina University, and a Ph.D. candidate in the decision science and information systems area of the Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. He has an M.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Louisville, an M.B.A. from Xavier University, Cincinnati, and 23 years of diversified industrial experience. His research interests are business processes, strategic information systems, and quality management.

Albert L. Lederer

ALBERT L. LEDERER ([email protected]) is a professor in the decision science and information systems area of the Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. He has a Ph.D. in industrial and systems engineering and an M.S. in computer and information sciences from the Ohio State UniverSity, and a B.A. in psychology from the University of Cincinnati. He has published extensively in information systems planning, his major research area.

Robert C. Mahaney

ROBERT C. MAHANEY ([email protected]) is a Ph.D. candidate and Graduate Presidential Fellowship holder in the decision science and information systems area of the Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. He has an M.A. in mathematics from the University of Kentucky and a B.s., in mathematics and computer science from Morehead State University. He has 10 years of experience in the information technology industry. His research focuses on information systems development and project management.

Henry E. Newkirk

HENRY E. NEWKIRK ([email protected]) is a Ph.D. candidate, KPMG Peat Marwick Doctoral Scholar, and Lyman Johnson Fellowship holder in the decision science and information systems area of the Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. He has an M.B.A. from East Carolina University and a B.S. in chemistry from North Carolina State University. He has 17 years of experience in the telecommunications industry. His research focuses on strategic information systems planning.