Planning and Designing an Enterprise-Wide Database System for E-Business

Abstract

The planning and development of an enterprise-wide electronic database system for e-business usually calls for the re-engineering of information processes coupled with a push toward data content standardization across the entire organization. In this chapter, the case study involves a multi-national conglomerate that is in the process of integrating and Web-enabling their enterprise database systems. The objective of the system was to help engineers sift through millions of components offered by various suppliers and component manufacturers, where the end-result was to improved the integration and efficiency of the product development, engineering design, e-sourcing, and e-procurement processes. This research is a qualitative action research study on how different organizational, social, political, and technical forces influenced the social construction of an enterprise-wide information system. Understanding the dynamics and power of these socio-technical forces in shaping the development environment and change process of enterprise systems is the focal point of this chapter’s discussion.