With the first phase of e-business past, and the dot-com carnage having played itself out, the focus is shifting to how companies will e-enable their current way of trading. And indications are this next wave will be the "killer application" of e-business, says Andrew Procter, MD of Get2Connect at MGX and spokesman for the 12th International Federation of Purchasing and Materials Management (IFPMM) World Congress.
Indeed, Gartner has committed itself to projections of 12 500% growth over the next three years, specifically in the areas of e-marketplaces and application-to-application e-business.
"The gains to be had through e-enabling trade between organisations are such that there will be wide-scale adoption over the next three years, laying the foundation for a new way of trading," Procter predicts. "This is the future of e-business, after all the hype of the last six years."
Gartner`s predictions are for stellar growth. For the European market alone, it predicts growth in e-business from $8 billion in 1998 to $1 088 billion by 2004 (its predictions for 2001 are $82 billion). Of great significance is that last year, for the first time, business-to-business (B2B) overtook business-to-consumer (B2C) in value of transactions. This year it rockets ahead, and over the next three years its growth will be exponential. By 2003, Gartner expects more than 90% of all e-business transactions to occur in the B2B domain.
"What is very important to note in Gartner`s predictions," adds Procter, "is that where application-to-application transactions will make up 50% of this value by 2004, the greatest growth will occur in e-marketplaces, where as much as 40% of all transactions will be fulfilled. B2C, on the other hand, will only constitute 10% of e-business, as compared to today`s 40%."
This anticipated growth represents great upside for companies alive to the opportunity, says Procter. "The market is in a relatively quiet phase following the dot-com collapse, but companies which are investing today will reap the benefits over the next three years in market leadership."
E-marketplaces and related technologies will come under close scrutiny in the 12th IFPMM World Congress, being held at Sun City from 24 to 26 October.
The congress, the first to be held in SA since the inception of this global event in 1977, is being hosted by the Institute of Purchasing and Supply of South Africa (IPSA). The IPSA represents procurement and supply chain management in SA, and has chosen "Excellence in supply chain management" as a theme for the congress.
Between 500 and 1 000 people are expected to attend the congress, which will reflect the current state of the art in supply chain management, e-procurement and e-marketplaces.
Judge Edward Kennedy-Nasho of England`s Coventry University will speak on "Excelling in the Supply Chain Jungle"; Prof Jim Reeds of Golden Gate University, San Francisco, on "Supply Chain Management"; Dennis Cook of Botswana Power Corp will present a case study on "Strategic Management of the Supply Chain"; and Alan Waller of PricewaterhouseCoopers will speak on "The Role of the Supply Chain in the New Millennium".
For further information, contact Frank Heydenrych on 082 550 2797 or frank@fhc.co.za.
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