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Essay / Internet for Business Purposes - 1822
IntroductionInternet is a technology that provides a global network and has become an essential concept in recent years. This technology, which began as a basic tool within military, government and academic operations, has exploded into a world-class means of communication and has become the backbone of organizations. Companies are leveraging this technology on a large scale and widely implementing it in all their functional processes (Aguiar & Oliveira, n.d.). In this report, we discuss aspects related to gaining competitive advantage, limitations and management issues related to Internet technology. Information was gathered through searches of various websites and the AUT Library database and all citations have been referenced appropriately. Management or Implementation Issues The primary management issue for most organizations is understanding the percentage of support required by Internet technology. Management must understand the structure of the organization, the nature of the business, the skills of the employees and the customer database. Alignment should be based on business purpose and future requirements rather than generic reasons (Schwartz, 2008). Closely associated with the alignment problem is the issue of organizational culture. Consideration needs to be given to how company culture can be managed with the ever-increasing technology of the Internet. Technology is evolving at a rapid pace, but it is important for staff to understand the relationship between the use of advanced technologies and organizational benefits. Management must have a clear understanding of the organizational objectives, value and business plan for all stakeholders. Implementation and sophistication in a single office are difficult to transfer across national borders due to cultural implications (Haynes, 2002). Staff training is also a management issue due to the rapid development of new technologies on the Internet. Another major problem for management is the loss of personal relationships. Lack of human contact may not allow employees and customers to develop a relationship which can erode emotional attachment. Research indicates that customers are loyal and perceive less risk during face-to-face interaction than during online interaction (Colgate, Buchanan, & Elmsly, 2005). Another major implementation issue was the degree of employee access to the Internet. Since the Internet is an excellent source of communication, staff access must be controlled to increase their productivity at work. Employment records and criminal history should be addressed before recruiting new staff..