While some folks are skeptical of the future of electronic commerce, six recent graduates from the Claremont Graduate University's School of Information Science favor a different view. Three of the students from the first graduating class with a master's of science in electronic commerce have already accepted employment offers, while three other students are considering their options-which generally includes more than one opportunity. The Internet is here to stay, and the demand for trained professionals who can help organizations formulate their e-commerce strategies and architectures is not going to wane in the foreseeable future. As Senior Manager of Customer Relations, Tripuraneni leads a team of information technology professionals developing Internet solutions for Fortune 500 companies.
Companies often underestimate the cost of making the transition and they set unrealistic deadlines.
There is a lot of initial research that needs to be done in order to understand the complexities of what customers want. Once an online presence is developed though, Tripuraneni says that it is not unusual for a company to experience savings between 20 to 100 percent on the cost of a transaction. Greg Mittenhuber agrees with Tripuraneni about the possible cost savings a business can obtain by going online. We are cutting costs by allowing everyone to see the information stream because it is more efficient. The goal is to maintain a third less inventory.